Smile.
I’ve grown up in the church so the creation story is not
new to me. It is, in fact, more familiar
than the legend of Tarzan, the “ape man” and his leading lady, Jane. Until recently, I took for granted the basic
facts…
God created the whole world in
seven days.
He made Adam, and then He made
Eve.
He made Adam and Eve “in His
image”.
Yada…yada…yada…
What a tragic impact this cursory understanding has had
on my walk with God, on my marriage and my family. Ok. “Tragic”
might be a little strong, but it is such a testimony of His grace that the
Spirit has peeled away the hardness of my heart and opened my eyes to the brilliant
and stunning details of this creation account, particularly as it relates to
the pinnacle of His creation: people. I could wax eloquently about this for pages
and pages, but I’ll spare you the details and just give you a preview.
“God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him, male and female He created them…Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…”[1]
These 31 words articulate a few
fundamental principles that together create the layers of beauty that is the
story of creation. They are, however, a "hot topic" in the Church today. Pause here for just a
minute:
God created man
in His own image; in the image of God He created him…
I mean, seriously.
That statement in itself is sufficient to baffle great theologians. My
grandson is the spitting image of his
dad. It’s actually a little
uncanny. Micah looks just. Like.
Milas. Milas fathered a son in
his own likeness. It’s a paltry
comparison (really cute, but paltry),
but it’s what we have.
God fathered children in His own likeness.
We image Him.
Not exactly.
Not perfectly.
But uniquely …
no other created being boasts
such design status.
Interestingly, however, it is not our divine
image-bearing that is the basis for debate.
While perhaps uncertain of the depth of its meaning we are, for the most
part, agreeable to this character description.
Instead, our angst becomes
apparent with the peculiarity of male and
female, the distinction made here
just 27 verses into what would become a sixty-six book narrative. Just the mention that Scripture makes a
gender distinction here is enough to shut down a discussion.
And I mean crickets shut down.
Why? What makes us
so uncomfortable? What is so radical
about the idea of our being created in
the image of God -- male and female?
What makes us such a hostile audience when this subject is raised?
Maybe,
in part, it’s because the Church’s history is fraught with our own failure
to honor women as having been
created equally with their brothers in the image of God.
to honor women as having been
created equally with their brothers in the image of God.
Sadly, we have often trampled
the dignity of women and marginalized their gifts. We have dismissed their fears and concerns
and treated them with some level of condescension.[2]
But the idea that men are more valuable
to Him and that women are somehow inferior is unequivocally unbiblical. The male superiority and dominance that have
plagued the Church are not and never have been the character and nature of God’s
design for gender.
This is a detail of the account of creation that we must
not miss:
God created all people, men and
women, equal in His image.
God created humanity, male and female, equal in His image.
Equal in importance.
Equal in personhood.
Equal in worth.
Any discussion of gender that
is biblical must begin with this
truth: God created men and women equally in His image. The New Testament affirms this equality in
image-bearing and value. The Holy Spirit
is given to both men and women[3]. Baptism is offered to men and women as is
church membership[4]. Spiritual gifts are given to both men and
women equally[5].
Because God created us together in His image, men and women can be assured that we are
equally important to God. The Church must set the pace here. We must promote the value of all of God’s
people, irrespective of gender, race, heritage, or socio-economic status. Whatever we do, in whatever direction our
thinking leads, we must not ignore this truth:
God created all people, men and women, equal in His image.
It is not as simple as “Me, Tarzan. You, Jane.”
But the extraordinary plan of God for His people is worthy of our
careful and thoughtful contemplation.
What a marvelous truth penned as a prelude to God’s redemptive
story: God
created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him, male and
female He created them. It is a
tragedy to lose the spectacle in familiarity or to dismiss it because we're uncomfortable. May it not be so.
Note: This is the fourth installment in a series
[1]
Genesis 1:27 & 2:26
[2] This
is a generalization of the history of the church. It is not a sweeping statement that
encompasses every individual church and its leadership. I recognize that many churches and churchmen have worked hard to honor women, but
this is not our collective historical story.
[3]
Acts 2:17-18
[4]
Acts 2:41
[5] 1
Corinthians 12:7 and Ephesians 4:7
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