WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:12.400 Welcome. Grab a handout. Handout pens and Bibles are at the back. 00:00:19.059 --> 00:00:19.480 ! 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:35.060 I didn't bring a flyer with me. If you've seen the flyer, we've planned out the adults under 00:00:35.060 --> 00:00:39.079 school for the whole year, and so we've got six different topics we'll be looking at, 00:00:39.620 --> 00:00:44.439 and so it's divided into half terms, so three terms with two half terms in each. We've got 00:00:44.439 --> 00:00:50.879 six different topics, and I hope to follow this lesson plan. The individual title of each lesson 00:00:50.879 --> 00:00:57.120 might change, but each topic will be the same. And as you'll see, this series, this half term, 00:00:57.119 --> 00:01:04.379 is a series called Being Human, and we're going to look at what the Bible says about what it means 00:01:04.379 --> 00:01:10.700 to be human. We're going to be looking at what's called the doctrine of man, and this is quite 00:01:10.700 --> 00:01:18.840 possibly more relevant than ever. Every age has a doctrine or teaching that's really fought over, 00:01:19.400 --> 00:01:25.519 so in kind of the first few centuries, the big fight was over the doctrine of God and the doctrine of 00:01:25.519 --> 00:01:34.219 Christ. Who is God? Who is Christ? In the 16th century, the doctrine that was fought over was 00:01:34.219 --> 00:01:39.979 justification, how we're made right with God. The 20th century, you could say that maybe it was the 00:01:39.979 --> 00:01:46.679 atonement, what happened on the cross. That was the thing that was fought over. And if you look around 00:01:46.680 --> 00:01:54.160 right now, it looks like the real fight is over the doctrine of man, isn't it? What it means to be 00:01:54.160 --> 00:02:03.600 human. If you saw my little video on the church email, I said the world and the church is really 00:02:03.600 --> 00:02:10.020 confused over what it means to be human right now. You can see this in how the church is responding 00:02:10.020 --> 00:02:17.300 and even caving into various views of marriage and sexuality and gender and desires and the value of 00:02:17.300 --> 00:02:28.020 human life. And so a clear biblical doctrine of man is the answer to all of that. It is so vital for 00:02:28.020 --> 00:02:35.000 us right now. And so my intention for this half term is this. I want us to get a vision of what the 00:02:35.000 --> 00:02:43.099 Bible says about what it means to be human and for us to really grasp God's wonderful design for us. 00:02:44.120 --> 00:02:50.759 And today, I want us to see how God created us. And I want us to look at Genesis 1 to 3. That's 00:02:50.759 --> 00:02:55.639 the best place to start for this. It can't be overstated how important these chapters are. 00:02:57.979 --> 00:03:02.219 Before we open up, let me pray and then we'll dive into Genesis. 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:14.860 Lord God, we ask for your help today and this term. We ask for your mercy upon the church. And would you 00:03:14.860 --> 00:03:22.659 please help us as we consider what it means to be human? Please help us to think biblically. Help us 00:03:22.659 --> 00:03:30.159 to think rightly about this and in a way that honours you. And Lord, we pray that you would transform 00:03:30.159 --> 00:03:39.819 our minds and renew them. And would we know what a wonderful thing it is to be human. And Lord, we pray 00:03:39.819 --> 00:03:43.500 that our thinking would honour you today. In Jesus' name. Amen. 00:03:47.019 --> 00:03:55.840 We're going to go to Genesis 1. And Genesis 1 is so important because it takes us back to our design. 00:03:55.840 --> 00:04:02.159 If I gave you just this invention and I plonked it on your lap and you'd never seen it before, 00:04:02.360 --> 00:04:07.000 you looked at it and you didn't know what it was or how it works or what it's for, 00:04:08.199 --> 00:04:15.360 where would you go to if you wanted to find out what that thing is for? Well, the best place to go 00:04:15.360 --> 00:04:21.939 is back to the factory, isn't it? Where it was made and you can look at the blueprints and you can speak 00:04:21.939 --> 00:04:29.219 to the inventor about how he made it and what he designed it for. Well, this thing called a human, 00:04:30.399 --> 00:04:37.439 if we want to figure out what it means to be human, we need to go back to the factory and look at the 00:04:37.439 --> 00:04:44.319 blueprints and speak to the inventor. And so we're going to go back to Genesis. And when we do, we see 00:04:44.319 --> 00:04:49.920 something obvious, but really important. And it's the first point I want us to see today. We are 00:04:49.920 --> 00:04:55.540 creatures. We are creatures. So let's open up Genesis 1. How does it all begin? Verse 1. 00:04:57.719 --> 00:05:05.579 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Now, I won't make a 10-point sermon out of 00:05:05.579 --> 00:05:13.019 this, but I do want us to establish something important from this. From this verse, what do we see? 00:05:13.019 --> 00:05:23.879 All things were created by God. So let's recall our diagram of the doctrine of God. This is God. 00:05:26.019 --> 00:05:42.259 And what's created by God? What's created by God? All things. All things are created by God. 00:05:43.019 --> 00:05:57.259 So energy, atoms, earth, rocks, heaven, hell, angels, demons, animals, and humans. All things were created by God. 00:05:58.459 --> 00:06:04.439 So God, if you remember our doctrine of God, God is dependent on nothing, right? That's his aseity, 00:06:04.560 --> 00:06:08.219 if you remember that word. God is dependent on nothing. But think about all things now. 00:06:08.220 --> 00:06:12.560 So we're going to kind of bring our focus down here for a moment. Think about all things. 00:06:13.680 --> 00:06:24.340 All things are utterly dependent on God. So look at Acts 17. I've written that out there for you. 00:06:24.339 --> 00:06:32.539 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, 00:06:32.719 --> 00:06:40.919 nor is he served by human hands as though he needed anything, aseity, since he himself gives to all mankind 00:06:40.919 --> 00:06:48.899 life and breath and everything. In him we live and move and have our being. 00:06:48.899 --> 00:07:02.639 So let me just focus specifically. All things, all humans are utterly in every single way dependent on God. 00:07:03.779 --> 00:07:10.019 Without God, there's no existence. Without God, there's no humanity. Without God, there is no life or breath 00:07:10.019 --> 00:07:16.419 or anything. A fundamental thing about being human is we are creatures. 00:07:18.000 --> 00:07:22.659 And by creatures, I don't mean creepy, crawly, like wood lice. That's how we often use creatures. 00:07:22.759 --> 00:07:26.199 No, we are beings created by God, creatures. 00:07:27.680 --> 00:07:33.060 And so let's jump ahead to Genesis 2, 2 verse 7, to see what God made us from. 00:07:35.620 --> 00:07:37.000 Genesis 2 verse 7. 00:07:37.000 --> 00:07:45.939 Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. 00:07:46.360 --> 00:07:48.300 And the man became a living creature. 00:07:50.279 --> 00:07:52.220 We are fundamentally dust. 00:07:53.500 --> 00:08:02.019 So 99% of the human body, this is apparently what Google says, 99% of the human body is basically six elements. 00:08:02.019 --> 00:08:06.560 Oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon, calcium and phosphorus. 00:08:07.579 --> 00:08:09.639 So you break that down. What do you have? 00:08:10.000 --> 00:08:11.899 You basically have the same stuff as dust. 00:08:13.279 --> 00:08:14.339 Dirt from the ground. 00:08:14.779 --> 00:08:19.019 So along with rocks and dirt and sand belongs us. 00:08:19.199 --> 00:08:20.539 We're all created, right? 00:08:20.620 --> 00:08:23.000 We all belong in this circle here. 00:08:23.000 --> 00:08:29.759 And so let's just draw some important conclusions to this point. 00:08:30.800 --> 00:08:35.740 So considering this, we need to realise creation isn't eternal. 00:08:37.139 --> 00:08:38.159 It has a beginning. 00:08:38.340 --> 00:08:41.340 So there are some theories out there that time is eternal. 00:08:41.340 --> 00:08:47.000 And the universe came from the Big Bang, then expanded, then it's going to contract again. 00:08:47.220 --> 00:08:49.220 And then it's going to have another Big Bang. 00:08:49.300 --> 00:08:51.100 And there's going to be this endless eternal cycle. 00:08:51.399 --> 00:08:52.700 And that's just the way it's always been. 00:08:52.840 --> 00:08:56.000 That's how people try to account for why is there something. 00:08:56.660 --> 00:08:58.519 That they just say it's always been. 00:08:58.600 --> 00:08:59.420 Time is eternal. 00:08:59.780 --> 00:09:01.720 But no, time has a beginning. 00:09:03.220 --> 00:09:04.800 Creation is created. 00:09:04.799 --> 00:09:09.959 And another thing to see is we aren't independent creatures. 00:09:11.199 --> 00:09:19.059 We aren't beings who can make up our own lives or shape our own destiny or figure this world out by ourselves. 00:09:19.139 --> 00:09:21.559 No, we are dependent in all of that. 00:09:22.439 --> 00:09:29.839 So being a creature means being utterly dependent on God for our life and breath and everything. 00:09:31.219 --> 00:09:32.279 What does Paul say? 00:09:32.359 --> 00:09:34.659 In him we live and move and have our being. 00:09:34.799 --> 00:09:39.559 And also, this all relates to identity as well, doesn't it? 00:09:40.539 --> 00:09:48.399 All this means whoever we are, our identity must be determined in relation to God. 00:09:49.479 --> 00:09:53.919 If you take God out of the equation to figure out who we are, we're going to be lost. 00:09:55.179 --> 00:09:59.099 We cannot understand creation, history, the world, ourselves without God. 00:09:59.100 --> 00:10:08.080 It will be like having that random invention and not looking at the blueprint or going back to the factory or completely ignoring the inventor. 00:10:08.080 --> 00:10:12.740 So we are creatures. 00:10:12.740 --> 00:10:14.420 But what is that? 00:10:15.360 --> 00:10:16.000 But what? 00:10:16.480 --> 00:10:17.720 Who are we then? 00:10:19.160 --> 00:10:21.440 Well, let's look at the rest of Genesis 1. 00:10:21.560 --> 00:10:23.240 We don't have all the time in the world today. 00:10:23.240 --> 00:10:29.180 So I'm just going to briefly go through just the six days of creation. 00:10:29.340 --> 00:10:32.279 I just want us to highlight some things over these six days. 00:10:32.419 --> 00:10:38.159 So the first day, I've got it in that little box and I've underlined the bits you really need to look at. 00:10:38.860 --> 00:10:43.419 The first day, and God said, let there be light. 00:10:43.419 --> 00:10:45.019 And there was light. 00:10:45.740 --> 00:10:48.120 And God saw that the light was good. 00:10:48.279 --> 00:10:49.539 That's how the first day ends. 00:10:50.379 --> 00:10:53.919 Then the second day, God said, let there be an expanse. 00:10:54.439 --> 00:10:56.279 And God called the expanse heaven. 00:10:57.259 --> 00:11:01.279 And the third day, let the waters be gathered and dry land appear. 00:11:01.860 --> 00:11:04.139 And God saw that it was good. 00:11:05.079 --> 00:11:07.980 The fourth day, let there be light in the expanse. 00:11:08.059 --> 00:11:10.699 This is the sun and the moon and the stars. 00:11:10.700 --> 00:11:12.400 And what do you say? 00:11:12.540 --> 00:11:13.520 And it was good. 00:11:14.700 --> 00:11:18.140 And then the fifth day, he starts to create living creatures. 00:11:18.340 --> 00:11:25.720 Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures and let the birds fly above according to their kinds. 00:11:26.379 --> 00:11:27.540 And it was good. 00:11:28.680 --> 00:11:34.580 And then the sixth day, the final day, let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds. 00:11:35.400 --> 00:11:37.640 And God saw that it was good. 00:11:37.639 --> 00:11:43.980 So up to this point, before we get to humans, humans are created just after this on the sixth day. 00:11:44.500 --> 00:11:51.600 Up to this point, before we get to humans, if you notice, there's been a pattern of how God has created things. 00:11:52.080 --> 00:11:54.220 So did you see these repeated words that I've underlined? 00:11:54.919 --> 00:11:57.439 Let, let, let, let there be light. 00:11:57.539 --> 00:11:58.360 Let the waters. 00:11:58.539 --> 00:11:59.460 Let the earth. 00:11:59.460 --> 00:11:59.600 Let the earth. 00:12:00.800 --> 00:12:02.600 And then what's repeated again? 00:12:02.680 --> 00:12:03.300 It was good. 00:12:03.560 --> 00:12:05.540 Good, good, good, good, good. 00:12:06.660 --> 00:12:13.180 And then when God makes the living creatures, there's a phrase that's repeated three times. 00:12:13.680 --> 00:12:15.600 They're all according to their kinds. 00:12:15.720 --> 00:12:16.980 According to their kinds. 00:12:17.120 --> 00:12:18.240 According to their kinds. 00:12:18.240 --> 00:12:23.480 But now, we come to the final thing that God creates. 00:12:24.360 --> 00:12:25.779 The creation of humans. 00:12:27.500 --> 00:12:31.139 But the story in Genesis 1, it shifts here. 00:12:32.240 --> 00:12:36.620 And as you read it, things begin to slow and change. 00:12:36.620 --> 00:12:40.560 And there's something unique and different going on. 00:12:40.700 --> 00:12:42.779 And I want you to see what's different. 00:12:42.980 --> 00:12:45.000 I want us to, to read together. 00:12:45.080 --> 00:12:46.299 We'll read together Genesis 1. 00:12:46.419 --> 00:12:49.860 And then I want us to break into discussion and kind of figure out some things. 00:12:49.940 --> 00:12:53.360 So first of all, I'll read Genesis 1 and then we'll break out. 00:12:54.580 --> 00:12:58.220 So Genesis 1, 26, 28, and then just verse 31 at the end. 00:12:58.700 --> 00:13:01.580 It's all in that little dash box for you on your, your handouts. 00:13:01.580 --> 00:13:10.660 Then God said, let us make man in our image after our likeness. 00:13:11.379 --> 00:13:21.600 And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. 00:13:22.280 --> 00:13:25.360 So God created man in his own image. 00:13:26.060 --> 00:13:28.379 In the image of God, he created him. 00:13:29.140 --> 00:13:31.560 Male and female, he created them. 00:13:32.540 --> 00:13:33.660 And God blessed them. 00:13:33.720 --> 00:13:46.220 And God said to them, be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth. 00:13:47.120 --> 00:13:49.639 And God saw everything that he had made. 00:13:49.780 --> 00:13:52.040 And behold, it was very good. 00:13:52.700 --> 00:13:56.080 And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. 00:13:56.080 --> 00:14:05.180 Now, I want you to break out into groups and just note down what is unique about the creation of humans compared to the other days. 00:14:05.580 --> 00:14:07.940 And so I've got a few questions there for you to read. 00:14:08.300 --> 00:14:08.900 Break out into groups. 00:14:08.960 --> 00:14:11.240 I don't want you to necessarily draw any conclusions yet. 00:14:11.240 --> 00:14:17.279 Just try to maybe circle or underline things you see in the text that are unique about the creation of humans. 00:14:17.419 --> 00:14:18.259 So break out into groups. 00:14:18.320 --> 00:14:19.360 I'll give you a few minutes to do that. 00:14:19.360 --> 00:14:20.060 Thank you. 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:20.060 00:14:20.059 --> 00:14:50.039 Thank you. 00:14:50.059 --> 00:15:20.039 Thank you. 00:15:20.059 --> 00:15:50.039 Thank you. 00:15:50.059 --> 00:16:20.039 Thank you. 00:16:20.059 --> 00:16:50.039 Thank you. 00:16:50.059 --> 00:17:20.039 Thank you. 00:17:20.059 --> 00:17:50.039 Thank you. 00:17:50.059 --> 00:18:20.039 Thank you. 00:18:20.059 --> 00:18:50.039 Thank you. 00:18:50.059 --> 00:19:20.039 Thank you. 00:19:20.059 --> 00:19:50.039 Thank you. 00:19:50.059 --> 00:19:53.599 And what is unique about God's response to humanity's creation? 00:19:55.159 --> 00:19:58.059 Let me pick on Moses. 00:19:58.700 --> 00:20:00.179 Very good. 00:20:00.200 --> 00:20:30.160 Yeah. 00:20:30.160 --> 00:21:00.140 He's a crown of creation. 00:21:00.140 --> 00:21:30.120 There's a discussion in the divine mind. 00:21:30.119 --> 00:22:00.119 And do that. 00:22:00.119 --> 00:22:30.099 It's an analogy. 00:22:30.099 --> 00:23:00.099 We're the peak. 00:23:00.099 --> 00:23:30.079 They have their own pattern. 00:23:30.079 --> 00:24:00.059 We're modelled after God. 00:24:00.059 --> 00:24:30.039 Put on the new self. 00:24:30.059 --> 00:25:00.019 And so that's the past. 00:25:00.019 --> 00:25:02.460 Now, what do they mean, these three qualities? 00:25:02.639 --> 00:25:07.000 Well, knowledge means we are rational creatures. 00:25:08.379 --> 00:25:09.819 We're rational creatures. 00:25:09.980 --> 00:25:18.519 We can communicate with God and know God and know him in a way that animals can't. 00:25:19.759 --> 00:25:22.079 So God is a speaking God, isn't he? 00:25:22.680 --> 00:25:26.579 And so we are speaking wordy creatures. 00:25:26.579 --> 00:25:31.619 So, yes, animals are in a way rational, aren't they? 00:25:31.839 --> 00:25:33.619 Yeah, animals can problem solve. 00:25:34.740 --> 00:25:38.119 But we need to think of knowledge in relation to God. 00:25:39.179 --> 00:25:41.119 Remember, everything's in relation to God. 00:25:41.939 --> 00:25:45.819 We are of an entirely different order to the animals. 00:25:46.759 --> 00:25:55.319 Animals don't have the capacity to pray to God or to receive his law or to understand the gospel 00:25:55.319 --> 00:25:59.299 or to hear from him and understand him. 00:26:00.299 --> 00:26:04.519 God knows himself and he knows his world. 00:26:06.059 --> 00:26:08.179 And we are his image. 00:26:08.299 --> 00:26:14.539 And so we can know God and know his world in a way that God does. 00:26:14.539 --> 00:26:20.159 And so to be made in the image of God, it's to have this capacity for knowledge like God. 00:26:20.339 --> 00:26:21.639 We're rational creatures. 00:26:22.559 --> 00:26:28.399 And then there's righteousness and holiness, which means we are moral creatures. 00:26:29.240 --> 00:26:31.139 So I'll speak more on this next week. 00:26:32.200 --> 00:26:33.500 But here's the heart of it. 00:26:33.619 --> 00:26:37.539 We are morally accountable to God in a way no other creature is. 00:26:37.539 --> 00:26:42.839 We have the ability to know God's law and obey it. 00:26:43.859 --> 00:26:47.879 So, yes, animals, you'll see that they have a code of ethics, don't they? 00:26:47.980 --> 00:26:52.500 You know, wolves have a hierarchy and there's a code of ethics within the pack. 00:26:53.099 --> 00:26:54.319 And they can show compassion. 00:26:54.539 --> 00:26:58.539 But fundamentally, they don't relate to God's law like we do. 00:26:58.539 --> 00:27:04.379 We are morally accountable to God in a special, weighty way. 00:27:05.559 --> 00:27:09.539 We can know and wrestle with right and wrong. 00:27:10.759 --> 00:27:13.879 His law is written on our hearts. 00:27:15.119 --> 00:27:17.279 We know when we break his law. 00:27:17.460 --> 00:27:18.680 We have consciences. 00:27:19.319 --> 00:27:21.099 And God cares about his law. 00:27:21.259 --> 00:27:23.920 And as his image is, so do we. 00:27:23.920 --> 00:27:28.880 There's also a couple more things we could add. 00:27:29.860 --> 00:27:33.480 To be made in the image of God, it means we are relational creatures. 00:27:34.759 --> 00:27:36.100 So look how God made us. 00:27:36.600 --> 00:27:38.180 In the image of God, he created him. 00:27:38.420 --> 00:27:41.580 Male and female, he created them. 00:27:43.320 --> 00:27:49.560 This shows us that to be an image is to be, in essence, relational. 00:27:50.940 --> 00:27:53.300 We aren't designed to be in solitude. 00:27:53.299 --> 00:27:57.480 God is relational and loving from eternity. 00:27:58.500 --> 00:28:01.460 The Father loves the Son from eternity. 00:28:03.079 --> 00:28:06.960 And so, as his image is, so are we. 00:28:09.159 --> 00:28:12.139 There's a book, and they turn it into a film called Into the Wild. 00:28:12.399 --> 00:28:13.220 I don't know if you've seen it. 00:28:13.279 --> 00:28:15.980 It came out, I think, about 2007, around that time. 00:28:17.500 --> 00:28:19.539 And Into the Wild is based on a true story. 00:28:19.539 --> 00:28:28.379 It's about an American guy who tries to live in solitude and find happiness just on his own. 00:28:29.039 --> 00:28:34.460 And so he escapes to Alaska and he lives in this abandoned little camper van that he finds, 00:28:34.559 --> 00:28:39.519 just in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by bears and nature and nobody nearby. 00:28:39.519 --> 00:28:41.940 And he lives there for ages. 00:28:42.119 --> 00:28:45.139 And then he eventually dies on his own in the wilderness. 00:28:45.460 --> 00:28:46.559 No one knows he's there. 00:28:47.400 --> 00:28:49.200 But the whole time he keeps a diary. 00:28:50.259 --> 00:28:52.299 And so we know all that went on. 00:28:52.379 --> 00:28:55.680 And we've got this book and we've got the film because he kept this diary. 00:28:55.680 --> 00:28:57.779 And it's interesting. 00:28:57.900 --> 00:29:01.519 One of the last things he wrote in that diary before he died was this. 00:29:01.640 --> 00:29:03.039 These are his exact words. 00:29:04.380 --> 00:29:07.720 Happiness only real when shared. 00:29:10.039 --> 00:29:13.519 He discovered something about being an image of God there, didn't he? 00:29:14.620 --> 00:29:17.740 We are fundamentally relational creatures. 00:29:17.740 --> 00:29:23.000 We need to relate to each other and we need to relate to God. 00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:27.420 And so this is how every single human being is made. 00:29:27.759 --> 00:29:33.180 If you look at your blueprint, you are made to reflect God. 00:29:34.240 --> 00:29:35.759 It's in your very nature. 00:29:35.819 --> 00:29:37.440 And we can't escape this. 00:29:38.220 --> 00:29:40.880 We are rational, moral, relational creatures. 00:29:40.880 --> 00:29:46.359 To be human, it's to be made in the image of God, in knowledge and righteousness and holiness. 00:29:47.740 --> 00:29:54.700 Now, when sin enters, how well we reflect God, that dramatically changes. 00:29:56.000 --> 00:29:57.599 And we're going to see that in a few weeks. 00:29:57.740 --> 00:30:02.240 But we need to know we still remain an image of God. 00:30:03.220 --> 00:30:04.640 That's how we're designed. 00:30:06.339 --> 00:30:13.079 And so God has created us to be a reflection of him, but also a representative of him. 00:30:14.120 --> 00:30:15.920 And that's why we have dominion. 00:30:15.920 --> 00:30:18.940 To be an image is to be a vice-regent. 00:30:19.080 --> 00:30:20.120 That's my next sub-point. 00:30:20.320 --> 00:30:21.680 We are vice-regents. 00:30:21.880 --> 00:30:25.080 Now, we don't often hear this word vice-regent, but I really like it. 00:30:25.100 --> 00:30:26.680 I think it captures it well. 00:30:26.800 --> 00:30:28.360 So put this in your vocabulary. 00:30:29.240 --> 00:30:32.420 A vice-regent is someone who rules for someone. 00:30:33.000 --> 00:30:35.440 It's kind of like their understudy, like an underking. 00:30:35.440 --> 00:30:40.920 So God is king over all the earth, over heaven and earth, right? 00:30:41.440 --> 00:30:44.539 He rules and controls and looks after the whole earth. 00:30:44.660 --> 00:30:47.480 But he's done something very special for us. 00:30:48.420 --> 00:30:55.059 He's created us to be under kings, vice-regents to rule for him on earth. 00:30:55.059 --> 00:30:58.039 And that's what he's saying in Genesis 1.28. 00:30:59.139 --> 00:31:09.059 Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth. 00:31:10.220 --> 00:31:11.740 Dominion is kingship. 00:31:11.740 --> 00:31:15.339 And then look at Genesis 2.15. 00:31:16.000 --> 00:31:19.339 This is what he says to Adam specifically in the garden. 00:31:20.660 --> 00:31:26.180 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. 00:31:27.640 --> 00:31:30.720 So God has entrusted the world to us. 00:31:31.180 --> 00:31:37.960 And we're to rule over and care for and use and cultivate all that he's given us. 00:31:37.960 --> 00:31:41.220 And this is often called the cultural mandate. 00:31:41.420 --> 00:31:43.380 You might have heard this word, the cultural mandate. 00:31:44.400 --> 00:31:46.960 It just means it's God's mandate to man. 00:31:47.579 --> 00:31:49.039 It's this task. 00:31:49.220 --> 00:31:52.039 Multiply over the earth and rule over it. 00:31:52.940 --> 00:31:58.860 And so in our very nature, we are designed to rule and care for this world. 00:31:58.859 --> 00:32:12.859 And this is a reason why something like animal abuse or seeing the beauty of creation being abused, that's why it can be so agonizing, can't it? 00:32:13.979 --> 00:32:16.179 It goes against our nature. 00:32:17.059 --> 00:32:18.459 That's what you're feeling there. 00:32:20.079 --> 00:32:24.179 But this is also why science and technology is such a wonderful thing. 00:32:24.180 --> 00:32:27.279 It's a part of our dominion. 00:32:28.980 --> 00:32:32.860 Adam, he was meant to work and keep the garden. 00:32:33.660 --> 00:32:39.500 He was to be a farmer and a scientist and an engineer and an artist in the garden. 00:32:40.980 --> 00:32:48.160 Dominion means harness the creation and cultivate it, not abuse it, but harness it and cultivate it. 00:32:48.160 --> 00:32:53.880 And so give Adam, if the fall didn't happen, give Adam a few thousand years. 00:32:54.420 --> 00:32:55.940 He could well have invented computers. 00:32:57.240 --> 00:33:00.580 Subduing the earth, filling the earth, that requires technology, doesn't it? 00:33:00.779 --> 00:33:05.440 That's ships and mining and smelting. 00:33:05.600 --> 00:33:07.440 That's technology, isn't it? 00:33:07.440 --> 00:33:12.360 And this is also why we're creative. 00:33:13.700 --> 00:33:14.900 God is a creator. 00:33:16.140 --> 00:33:20.980 And as his image, as his images, we can't help but create as well. 00:33:21.980 --> 00:33:25.500 So just think about what humanity has done since we've been created. 00:33:25.980 --> 00:33:26.900 The Mona Lisa. 00:33:28.799 --> 00:33:29.360 Skyscrapers. 00:33:30.240 --> 00:33:30.720 iPhones. 00:33:31.380 --> 00:33:32.220 Jet planes. 00:33:34.340 --> 00:33:35.539 Extraordinary things. 00:33:35.539 --> 00:33:41.460 We are imaging God the creator as we design and invent and create. 00:33:42.519 --> 00:33:47.579 And if you yourself are an artist or a dancer or a singer or a writer, 00:33:48.359 --> 00:33:53.839 you know very well this compulsion to create, don't you? 00:33:54.879 --> 00:33:56.859 You just think, I just need to paint. 00:33:56.940 --> 00:33:58.559 I just need to dance. 00:33:59.539 --> 00:34:02.379 Well, that's because you're made in the image of God. 00:34:02.380 --> 00:34:07.840 And so there is nothing else like humanity. 00:34:08.880 --> 00:34:10.700 We are something special. 00:34:12.059 --> 00:34:19.320 And that is why God gives us such care and special attention and these special words in our creation. 00:34:20.800 --> 00:34:22.760 Psalm 139 captures it well. 00:34:22.760 --> 00:34:24.700 Familiar verse. 00:34:24.700 --> 00:34:30.220 I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. 00:34:32.220 --> 00:34:36.360 We are not just animals, not just a bag of cells. 00:34:37.440 --> 00:34:39.620 We are made in the image of God. 00:34:40.940 --> 00:34:43.460 Which means something very important for today. 00:34:43.740 --> 00:34:45.040 It's going to be my final point today. 00:34:45.039 --> 00:34:48.119 This all means we have dignity. 00:34:48.940 --> 00:34:50.139 We have dignity. 00:34:52.119 --> 00:34:58.039 Being made, being an image of God, it means not just that we have a special task. 00:34:58.679 --> 00:35:01.019 But it means we are special. 00:35:02.360 --> 00:35:04.440 We have infinite value. 00:35:04.440 --> 00:35:09.880 The human life is incredibly, immeasurably valuable. 00:35:11.460 --> 00:35:15.599 And this is why murder is such a horrific tragedy. 00:35:16.780 --> 00:35:20.579 It's why we care about it so much and are angered by it so much. 00:35:20.700 --> 00:35:24.880 It's why civilizations across the millennia in all parts of the world, 00:35:25.539 --> 00:35:29.159 they all fundamentally, they're against murder now. 00:35:29.159 --> 00:35:32.859 They may not always hold to it in the way that God wants to. 00:35:33.159 --> 00:35:35.500 But there is always that instinct, isn't there? 00:35:36.719 --> 00:35:39.519 We see someone squash an ant on the floor. 00:35:40.480 --> 00:35:41.960 Doesn't really faze us, does it? 00:35:43.019 --> 00:35:45.139 But we see someone stab a teenager. 00:35:46.079 --> 00:35:47.500 We are outraged. 00:35:48.920 --> 00:35:49.399 Why? 00:35:50.739 --> 00:35:54.539 Because that teenager is made in the image of God. 00:35:54.599 --> 00:35:55.899 They have infinite value. 00:35:55.900 --> 00:35:59.660 And the world can't account for this. 00:36:00.460 --> 00:36:05.280 Thankfully, the world knows that murder is bad, but they can't explain why. 00:36:06.579 --> 00:36:08.019 But we have the true reason. 00:36:08.200 --> 00:36:09.240 This is why. 00:36:10.079 --> 00:36:11.780 We actually have dignity. 00:36:14.000 --> 00:36:17.780 And this really should shape how we view people with disability as well. 00:36:19.460 --> 00:36:24.320 After the fall, the image of God has become marred with sin and illness. 00:36:24.320 --> 00:36:29.800 We don't reflect God as well as we could or should anymore. 00:36:30.800 --> 00:36:33.059 But we are still the image of God. 00:36:34.740 --> 00:36:39.720 And so inherently, whoever you are, you still have dignity and worth. 00:36:41.059 --> 00:36:43.059 You are the crown of creation. 00:36:43.240 --> 00:36:49.320 And so human value, it's not about usefulness or whether or not you're a financial burden. 00:36:49.320 --> 00:36:55.680 No, human value is found in that we are the image of God. 00:36:58.480 --> 00:37:04.539 And finally, this has massive relevance on how we view the unborn. 00:37:04.539 --> 00:37:13.880 Now, I know this is a big discussion and we can't get into all the details, but this is a critical thing that we must consider whenever we talk about this. 00:37:14.900 --> 00:37:19.440 Every child in the womb is made in the image of God. 00:37:20.619 --> 00:37:23.420 With dignity and infinite value. 00:37:23.420 --> 00:37:27.519 That is a soul that will last forever. 00:37:29.000 --> 00:37:36.180 One that relates to God and God has made them special to reflect and represent him. 00:37:36.740 --> 00:37:38.619 They are the crown of creation. 00:37:40.460 --> 00:37:44.039 And so it is not a light thing to destroy a crown. 00:37:44.039 --> 00:37:54.239 And this is why Kirsten's work with Hope Pregnancy Centre is so important. 00:37:58.139 --> 00:37:58.699 Sorry. 00:38:00.639 --> 00:38:08.940 And so, often as Christians, we can consider how bad humanity is. 00:38:08.940 --> 00:38:12.760 Because we're sinners, aren't we? 00:38:13.639 --> 00:38:14.380 We're fallen. 00:38:14.559 --> 00:38:16.139 And we're going to consider that in a few weeks. 00:38:17.260 --> 00:38:22.619 But I hope you can see today, actually, being a human is something really special. 00:38:24.000 --> 00:38:26.539 There is nothing in the universe like this. 00:38:26.840 --> 00:38:27.539 Like us. 00:38:28.780 --> 00:38:30.840 We are incomparably unique. 00:38:30.980 --> 00:38:32.420 We are images of God. 00:38:34.240 --> 00:38:35.420 And where can we see this best? 00:38:35.579 --> 00:38:37.400 Well, Christ is the true image of God. 00:38:38.940 --> 00:38:40.840 He's the perfect human. 00:38:41.039 --> 00:38:44.820 He is the one who truly reflects who God is. 00:38:45.760 --> 00:38:49.720 With true knowledge and righteousness and holiness. 00:38:50.760 --> 00:38:53.460 Truly representing God as he rules over creation. 00:38:55.519 --> 00:39:03.099 And over the next few weeks, we're going to see, in our fallenness, Christ is restoring us into that image. 00:39:03.099 --> 00:39:07.500 The gospel is not only about the forgiveness of sins. 00:39:07.619 --> 00:39:10.839 But it's about restoring us to what we should be. 00:39:11.759 --> 00:39:15.880 Restoring humanity to be the true image of God. 00:39:17.619 --> 00:39:19.460 That's what Christ is doing on earth. 00:39:19.559 --> 00:39:21.480 And that's what we will see in glory. 00:39:23.420 --> 00:39:26.199 And so, yes, on the one hand, we are creatures of the dust. 00:39:26.199 --> 00:39:29.419 But we are so, so much more. 00:39:30.919 --> 00:39:32.619 And this should not make us arrogant. 00:39:33.839 --> 00:39:35.619 But this is deeply humbling, isn't it? 00:39:36.419 --> 00:39:39.500 The Lord God has made us for something great. 00:39:40.980 --> 00:39:44.460 We are made to image the righteous and holy God. 00:39:44.460 --> 00:39:47.940 We've got a few minutes for questions. 00:39:47.940 --> 00:39:47.940 00:39:47.940 --> 00:39:48.059 Thank you.