R
Richie_2uk
Guest
WHO AM I?
John Blanchard
The pressures and problems of modern living are driving many people to a restless search for meaning and purpose in life. We have seen something of who God is in the Bible: But what about us? Why do we exist? Why are we here? Does human life have any meaning or purpose? These are the questions many people still asking today. Well! Read on, perhaps those questions you may see answer too.
The first thing to get clear here is that man does not merely ‘exist’. Man is more of an accidental accumulation of atoms which all happen to fit together into a convenient package we call a ‘human being’. The Bible tells us that he was a specifically created by a wise and Holy God. God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Man is more than a highly developed animal or a refined ape. Man is as different from other animals as animals are from vegetables and vegetables are from minerals. In terms of size, man is minute compared with the sun, moon and stars, but God has given man a unique and honoured place in the universe.
This is seen in one of God’s first commands to man: Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground. Man became God’s personal representative on earth, with authority over all other living creatures.
But man was also given special dignity. Being created ‘in the image of God’ does not mean that man was made the same size or shape as God nor that man was a miniature of God, processing all God’s qualities in small quantities. It means that man was created as a spiritual, rational, moral and immortal being, with a nature that was perfect. In other words man was a true reflection of God’s Holy Character.
What is more, man gladly and constantly chose to obey all God’s commands and as a result lived in perfect harmony with him. Man had no ‘identity crisis’ then! Man knew exactly who he was and why he was in the world, and man obediently took his God-given place.
But not only man totally fulfilled and completely satisfied with his position in the world. God was satisfied with man! We know this because the Bible tells us that when his work of creation was complete, with man as its crowning glory, God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. At that point in history, perfect people actually lived in a perfect environment in a perfect relationship with each other and in perfect harmony with God our creator. To think that we were created perfect in God’s image, given authority over all living things on earth, lived perfect lives with the creator. That is hardly the situation today!
What on earth happened?
John Blanchard
The pressures and problems of modern living are driving many people to a restless search for meaning and purpose in life. We have seen something of who God is in the Bible: But what about us? Why do we exist? Why are we here? Does human life have any meaning or purpose? These are the questions many people still asking today. Well! Read on, perhaps those questions you may see answer too.
The first thing to get clear here is that man does not merely ‘exist’. Man is more of an accidental accumulation of atoms which all happen to fit together into a convenient package we call a ‘human being’. The Bible tells us that he was a specifically created by a wise and Holy God. God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Man is more than a highly developed animal or a refined ape. Man is as different from other animals as animals are from vegetables and vegetables are from minerals. In terms of size, man is minute compared with the sun, moon and stars, but God has given man a unique and honoured place in the universe.
This is seen in one of God’s first commands to man: Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground. Man became God’s personal representative on earth, with authority over all other living creatures.
But man was also given special dignity. Being created ‘in the image of God’ does not mean that man was made the same size or shape as God nor that man was a miniature of God, processing all God’s qualities in small quantities. It means that man was created as a spiritual, rational, moral and immortal being, with a nature that was perfect. In other words man was a true reflection of God’s Holy Character.
What is more, man gladly and constantly chose to obey all God’s commands and as a result lived in perfect harmony with him. Man had no ‘identity crisis’ then! Man knew exactly who he was and why he was in the world, and man obediently took his God-given place.
But not only man totally fulfilled and completely satisfied with his position in the world. God was satisfied with man! We know this because the Bible tells us that when his work of creation was complete, with man as its crowning glory, God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. At that point in history, perfect people actually lived in a perfect environment in a perfect relationship with each other and in perfect harmony with God our creator. To think that we were created perfect in God’s image, given authority over all living things on earth, lived perfect lives with the creator. That is hardly the situation today!
What on earth happened?