Creatures of Earth & Man in God’s Image

Male & Female He Created Them

The uniqueness of male and female finds its creational roots in the distinction of the image of God. As Martin Luther analogized by using sun and moon, the relationship between the man and the woman is derivative, reflective, and unique. When Paul repeatedly argues for headship in the man, He does so by using the distinction in imaging we see in Genesis, because man was formed first, and the woman out of him. God's cultural and dominion mandate to be fruitful, multiply, fill, subdue, and have dominion was given to them, and though each would have primary roles, all facets would require both. This creational reality is also teleological, and ultimately eschatological. Christ, the second and better Adam, is the image of the invisible God. And we as the church are the weaker vessel who ate the fruit, but unlike Adam, Christ did not, and we are saved through Him, as Paul argues as the ultimate end of marriage.

Creatures of Earth & Man in God’s Image

What does it mean that man was made in the image of God, and what was lost of it in the fall? On the sixth and final day of creation, after creating all other living creatures according to their kind, God created man in His own image and likeness. Scripture speaks of a glory in man that not only set him above all other living creatures, but was all but lost after sin. Man, the very creature that was made to image God, did the one thing God would never do. And now, only in Christ, can man be restored in His image.

Let the Waters Swarm & Birds Fly

On the fifth day of creation, God filled the seas and skies with living creatures that swam below and flew above. These breathing souls were blessed and commanded by God to be fruitful and multiply. Even the great sea monsters that the Mesopotamians, Egyptians, and Canaanites saw as rival gods were actually creatures under the sovereignty of Yahweh. In Genesis, the themes of blessing, multiplication, and fruitfulness that begin on the 5th day with God's first living creatures continue through His image bearers (Gen. 1:28), His faithful (Gen. 9:1), His people (Gen. 22:17), His nation (Gen. 28:1-3), and His tribes (Gen. 49:28). Blessing was not just for the fish and birds. It finds its ultimate fulfillment in Christ, whose miracle on the hillside of Bethsaida was not His first time multiplying two fish. And at the last supper, we again see blessing (in giving thanks), multiplication (in the breaking of bread), and fruitfulness (in the cup). In the church, we see multiplication at Pentecost and fruitfulness as churches are planted and grow. And in the kingdom, we see multiplication as disciples are made 30, 60, and 100-fold, and fruitfulness as true believers live full of the fruits of the Spirit.

Let There Be Lights in the Heavens

God created the sun, moon, and stars as light-bearing signs of the days, years, and seasons. These celestial bodies were not created to define the day, but to sign the day. God obviously didn't ordain the day on the fourth one, but the first. One of the reasons we know the days of creation are the same as the days we experience now is that the when the heavenly bodies were created in accordance with the morning and evening, they did so according to the pattern of evening and morning that God had already established on the first day.

Let Land Appear & Earth Produce

The land and seed that God brought forth on the third day of creation remind us of the promised seed who was buried in the earth and came forth on the dawn of the third day as the true first fruit over all creation.