WEBVTT 00:00:00.240 --> 00:00:07.100 Amen. There are some questions that Genesis 1 and 2 helps us to answer to do with our identity. 00:00:07.280 --> 00:00:15.820 Who am I and why am I here are questions of massive importance. One of my favorite movie 00:00:15.820 --> 00:00:23.839 characters is Jason Bourne. When he is first introduced on the screen, he is floating in the 00:00:23.839 --> 00:00:29.379 sea. He's rescued and it turns out he doesn't know who he is. He doesn't know why he's there. 00:00:29.379 --> 00:00:34.420 He doesn't know what he's capable of. It turns out he's this super skilled secret agent, special 00:00:34.420 --> 00:00:40.259 agent kind of guy, but he doesn't know it. He doesn't know who he is or what his purpose is. 00:00:41.840 --> 00:00:48.299 It makes for great entertainment as the series develops. But to not have a sense of who we are 00:00:48.299 --> 00:00:58.560 is no joke. Amnesia must be a terribly frustrating or frightening thing to lose your memory, to lose 00:00:58.560 --> 00:01:05.540 a sense of self, to have no idea who I am, who my family is, what am I here for. It's a terrible 00:01:05.540 --> 00:01:16.920 thing. In our modern day identity crisis, many people would recognize that it's the case that 00:01:16.920 --> 00:01:26.219 we know more than ever in one sense about ourselves in terms of biology and chemistry and psychology. 00:01:27.299 --> 00:01:34.640 But that doesn't lead us towards satisfying answers about who are we as people. It doesn't 00:01:34.640 --> 00:01:40.879 always help us to answer the question, what is the meaning of life? So knowledge and technology 00:01:40.879 --> 00:01:47.699 advances, but those questions still haunt us. And one of the great blessings that we have as 00:01:47.699 --> 00:01:54.739 Christian people and one of the great gifts that God has given us in the Bible are that we can know 00:01:54.739 --> 00:02:03.000 who we are and we can know why we are here. So that's what we're going to focus on today, 00:02:03.159 --> 00:02:10.560 our identity and this reality that we are made in God's image. And because that's true and because 00:02:10.879 --> 00:02:17.579 the Bible teaches, we are never going to be able to fully understand ourselves until we first know 00:02:17.579 --> 00:02:27.800 God our creator and we learn to see ourselves in relation to our God. So we get our sense of identity 00:02:27.800 --> 00:02:38.319 and our purpose from the one who has created us. The Bible tells us in so many ways that as humans we are 00:02:38.319 --> 00:02:47.879 unique. God is revealing his glory today throughout his universe and as people uniquely we are both 00:02:47.879 --> 00:02:57.519 spectators to that. We get to see God's glory, but we are also actors in that because we bear God's 00:02:57.519 --> 00:03:06.099 image. So there is something, some semblance of glory in us also as image bearers. So we're going to 00:03:06.099 --> 00:03:11.299 consider what it means to be made in God's image. We're going to think about the reality as we find 00:03:11.299 --> 00:03:16.879 it here. We're going to think about the rejection that we find in Genesis 3 and then we're going to 00:03:16.879 --> 00:03:23.000 think about restoration. Probably spending most of our time on the reality that we are made in the image 00:03:23.000 --> 00:03:32.039 of God. So Genesis 1, we discover that human beings were created on day 6 by God. We were created 00:03:32.039 --> 00:03:41.199 and from the beginning it becomes clear that as people we are dependent on God for our life, for our food, 00:03:41.739 --> 00:03:47.780 for our abilities, so many things. And we are also accountable to God. That it becomes clear that God is 00:03:47.780 --> 00:03:54.659 in charge as creator, that he sets the agenda. So as we begin to read the Bible, we read as those who have 00:03:54.659 --> 00:04:01.460 not been self-made and we are not the products of chance or chaos, but we have been designed, we've been 00:04:01.460 --> 00:04:07.659 given life by God, our creator. We've been knit together in our mother's room, to use the language 00:04:07.659 --> 00:04:15.180 of Psalm 139. So let's think about this image that speaks to us about identity that we find in verse 26 00:04:15.180 --> 00:04:26.620 and 27 of Genesis 1. Then God said, let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness. So God created 00:04:26.620 --> 00:04:37.259 mankind in his own image. In the image of God he created them, male and female he created them. Now huge 00:04:37.259 --> 00:04:43.519 amounts have been written about this, entire books have been written about this. I want us to notice four 00:04:43.519 --> 00:04:52.099 basic realities that we can see from Genesis 1 and 2. The first reality is that in the image of God 00:04:52.099 --> 00:04:58.879 we have been given the responsibility to rule. Now you see that there in verse 26. 00:05:00.359 --> 00:05:06.819 Let us make mankind in our image so that they may rule over the fish, the birds, the livestock, 00:05:06.819 --> 00:05:17.819 the wild animals. So God is the king, but he gives humans this high honor and dignity that we rule for 00:05:17.819 --> 00:05:29.399 God in this world. We act as stewards of creation. We care for living things and natural resources and 00:05:29.399 --> 00:05:36.740 our environment. God is the king, we are vice kings. We have this reality in the image of God that 00:05:36.740 --> 00:05:47.480 we rule for him. In ancient times, icons and statues were placed by kings around their kingdom to remind 00:05:47.480 --> 00:05:55.780 their people, this is the king who rules here. And the Bible makes plain that God intends that we 00:05:55.780 --> 00:06:06.420 are living icons. That we are giving testimony that God rules everywhere. And it becomes clear in 00:06:06.420 --> 00:06:15.080 Genesis 1 and 2 that God is king because God is the one who issues commands. Chapter 2, verse 16, 00:06:15.160 --> 00:06:20.740 the Lord God commanded the man, you are free to eat from any tree, but you must not eat from the tree of 00:06:20.740 --> 00:06:29.080 the knowledge of good and evil. So we rule for God, but we also submit to God as people made in his image. 00:06:29.079 --> 00:06:41.639 Another reality that's so important is that idea of reflecting God's glory. So when it says in verse 28, when God says 00:06:41.639 --> 00:06:52.319 to Adam and Eve, fill the earth and subdue it. What are we to fill the earth with? Well, the Bible talks about 00:06:52.319 --> 00:07:02.980 filling the earth with the glory of God. As Adam and Eve lived in the garden, as they reflected God's image, 00:07:03.300 --> 00:07:11.120 they were filling the garden with glory. Because mirrors, they're like mirrors reflecting the glory of God. 00:07:12.779 --> 00:07:17.300 Adam was told, and Eve was to be part of this, in chapter 2, verse 15, 00:07:17.300 --> 00:07:25.000 to work the garden, to take care of the garden. That garden was to be filled with God's glory. 00:07:25.439 --> 00:07:32.720 God's design was that that garden would be extended, that the glory of God might fill the whole earth. 00:07:33.500 --> 00:07:41.740 That our purpose as people is to reflect how glorious and good our God really is. 00:07:41.740 --> 00:07:48.280 Again, to think about our dignity. It is people who are the highlight of God's creation. 00:07:49.780 --> 00:07:57.939 Not a sunrise. Not the stars that we're seeing as the sky is so clear. Not Mount Everest or some great 00:07:57.939 --> 00:08:09.819 natural place. It's us. Billions of people. Every life has incredible value and dignity. 00:08:09.819 --> 00:08:18.279 And think about that. Since we are image bearers designed to reflect God's glory, when people look 00:08:18.279 --> 00:08:25.719 at us, or when we look at other people, we should be learning something about our God. 00:08:27.259 --> 00:08:34.939 And this is one reason why sin is such a big deal. Because that leads us to distort the image of God. 00:08:34.940 --> 00:08:43.420 When we lie, we are saying God is like this. When we are proud, we are saying God is like this. When we 00:08:43.420 --> 00:08:50.500 are rude, or when we cheat, we are robbing God of glory. So because we are called to fill the earth 00:08:50.500 --> 00:08:59.640 with his glory, it matters for our obedience. Here's the third reality, and it's a wonderful one as well. 00:08:59.639 --> 00:09:10.779 In the image of God, we are made to relate. Relating. Just to go back to verse 26, again, a reminder of 00:09:10.779 --> 00:09:17.580 the fact that we are the high point of creation. This is the one point in the creation story where 00:09:17.580 --> 00:09:22.419 Father, Son, and Spirit get together and hold a divine council. Then God said, 00:09:22.419 --> 00:09:31.459 let us make mankind in our image. And one of the wonderful things about being made in God's image 00:09:31.459 --> 00:09:39.379 is that we are made for relationship. So chapter 2, verse 18, God, having created Adam, recognizes it's 00:09:39.379 --> 00:09:48.719 not good for the man to be alone. He needs the suitable helper. And Adam and Eve will relate to one 00:09:48.720 --> 00:09:58.000 another in a highly complex way. You know, other animals relate in very basic ways. If you, you know, 00:09:58.080 --> 00:10:03.500 hear dogs around the neighborhood, you'll hear barking of various kinds. They, I presume, are saying 00:10:03.500 --> 00:10:10.840 something to one another. But people relate in a far more complex way. And most wonderfully of all, 00:10:10.840 --> 00:10:19.860 God relates to us in a special way. Notice again, what verse, chapter 1, verse 28, and chapter 2, 00:10:19.920 --> 00:10:26.540 verse 16, have in common. God blessed them and said to them, be fruitful and increase in number. 00:10:27.720 --> 00:10:35.960 Chapter 2, verse 16, the Lord God commanded the man, you are free. God is speaking directly 00:10:35.960 --> 00:10:47.560 to Adam and Eve. As image bearers of God, we have this privilege that we are invited to know our God. 00:10:48.259 --> 00:10:58.340 We can enjoy relationship with our God. Here's the fourth reality that we can think about. It's that of 00:10:58.340 --> 00:11:07.519 resting. Chapter 2, and verse 2, by the seventh day, God had finished the work he'd been doing. 00:11:07.519 --> 00:11:15.259 So on the seventh day, he rested and he blessed the day. Adam and Eve's first full day in the Garden 00:11:15.259 --> 00:11:26.180 of Eden was a day of resting, to enjoy God's world and to enjoy God himself. It's an invitation 00:11:26.179 --> 00:11:34.559 to joy and to worship. Ten commandments. Give us that. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy, 00:11:35.000 --> 00:11:43.579 to remember our Creator, to remember our Savior. So God has given to us as image bearers this rhythm 00:11:43.579 --> 00:11:51.079 that includes rest. A day like today, that we can draw near and be in God's presence, 00:11:51.080 --> 00:12:00.020 our Creator and our Savior, that we can worship and enjoy him. So here is the reality that we discovered 00:12:00.020 --> 00:12:07.180 in Genesis 1 and 2. Who am I? I am someone who's made in God's image. I am the high point of God's 00:12:07.180 --> 00:12:16.800 creation. And why am I here? I am here to know God. I am here to trust God. I am here to serve God. 00:12:16.799 --> 00:12:28.859 I am here to love and to enjoy God. And to understand that identity is a huge privilege and blessing. 00:12:29.319 --> 00:12:37.019 And it's one that has massive implications. Just thinking about some sort of contemporary 00:12:37.019 --> 00:12:47.759 ways that this connects. Think about issues of war and justice. As we see those terrible scenes, 00:12:47.860 --> 00:12:56.340 as we hear of injustice, we are called to recognize each person bears the image of God. 00:12:57.299 --> 00:13:02.840 So the unjust targeting and killing of civilians matters. It matters in God's eyes, 00:13:02.840 --> 00:13:10.200 and it should matter in our eyes because we're made in God's image. So it matters for war and justice. 00:13:11.259 --> 00:13:19.920 It also matters when we think about the emergence of artificial intelligence. Maybe this isn't something 00:13:19.920 --> 00:13:24.040 that you've thought much about. I'm very grateful to Simeon for helping me to think through some of 00:13:24.040 --> 00:13:32.080 these things. Did you know that in Tokyo, you can go to a Shinto temple and a robot priest called 00:13:32.080 --> 00:13:42.280 Mendar can preach a sermon for you? Can robots preach? Can ChatGBT deliver sermons? 00:13:43.879 --> 00:13:54.500 COVID introduced the reality of care bots to churches. Can a care bot organize our pastoral care? 00:13:54.500 --> 00:14:02.559 Can it lead us into prayer? Can it lead us into prayer? These are issues that are beginning to be wrestled with. 00:14:03.279 --> 00:14:10.240 And there's complex technological issues. But one thing is clear, that it's only people made in the image of God 00:14:10.240 --> 00:14:17.460 who are able to worship in spirit and in truth, body and spirit. It's always true that human caregivers 00:14:17.460 --> 00:14:23.920 will always be needed. We weep and rejoice with fellow image bearers. 00:14:25.680 --> 00:14:32.379 Another issue that it touches upon that's still very much in the news is the whole gender issue, 00:14:32.879 --> 00:14:40.519 gender confusion. The Bible is really clear. God makes us male and female. 00:14:40.519 --> 00:14:47.679 To think about what we were talking about last week, global mission. Why do we care about global 00:14:47.679 --> 00:14:54.039 mission? Because people are made in the image of God to know and to enjoy their God. So it's essential 00:14:54.039 --> 00:15:01.600 to our identity to see that we are made both by God and we are made for God. And without that, 00:15:01.600 --> 00:15:08.540 people can feel lost and hopeless. And there can be a real sense of confusion. 00:15:10.220 --> 00:15:18.500 Now let's move from there to Genesis chapter 3 and think about the rejection. There's our second 00:15:18.500 --> 00:15:26.620 point if you're following in the worksheet, is rejection. Defacing or spoiling the image of God. 00:15:26.620 --> 00:15:36.679 Again, the protest group Just Stop Oil are often in the news. I think it was last year they entered an 00:15:36.679 --> 00:15:46.560 art gallery in the UK and they threw tins of soup at Vincent van Gogh's masterpiece called Sunflowers. 00:15:46.560 --> 00:15:55.399 Now, for the sake of art lovers, it's good that that art could be restored and cared for. 00:15:55.399 --> 00:16:06.379 But it was defaced in that act of vandalism and protest. Genesis chapter 3 takes us to the entry of 00:16:06.379 --> 00:16:15.439 sin into the world. And when we think about man in the image of God, what we have in this fall into 00:16:15.439 --> 00:16:25.139 sin is that God's masterpiece, people made to mirror God's glory, that masterpiece has been 00:16:25.139 --> 00:16:35.659 damaged and defaced and spoiled. Let me read Genesis 3, 5 to 7. So this is the point where the serpent 00:16:35.659 --> 00:16:44.120 has come and he's tempting Eve. Adam is not on the scene at this present moment. For God knows, 00:16:44.179 --> 00:16:48.639 he says to the women, that when you eat from it, your eyes will be opened and you'll be like God, 00:16:48.639 --> 00:16:55.159 knowing good and evil. When the women saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to 00:16:55.159 --> 00:17:01.699 the eye and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her 00:17:01.699 --> 00:17:07.180 husband who was with her and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened. They realized that 00:17:07.180 --> 00:17:11.480 they were naked, so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. 00:17:11.480 --> 00:17:18.279 Here's this dreadful moment in world history where sin comes into the world. Here is this moment where 00:17:18.279 --> 00:17:26.019 image bearers reject the idea of ruling for God. They want to say no to God in his word so that they 00:17:26.019 --> 00:17:33.940 might be God-like. Here is the moment where they fall into sin when people stop reflecting the glory of 00:17:33.940 --> 00:17:40.960 God because they're more concerned for their own glory. Here is the tragedy of people 00:17:40.960 --> 00:17:46.360 breaking relationship with God. And we see shame and fear and hiding. 00:17:47.940 --> 00:17:55.640 Here is when Adam and Eve lose that joy of resting in God's place, in God's presence. 00:17:56.880 --> 00:18:07.779 They'll be sent out from the holy place due to sin. We call this the fall. That fall from that high 00:18:07.779 --> 00:18:16.279 place, the glory of God made in his image. This fall into sin impacts every part of our lives. 00:18:17.019 --> 00:18:26.000 Our reasoning is affected. Our love is affected. Our actions are affected. That the masterpiece has 00:18:26.000 --> 00:18:35.779 been spoiled and defaced by sin. That because of common grace we still see traces of beauty. 00:18:35.779 --> 00:18:41.839 that people are still capable of kindness and truth and justice and love. But still it is true 00:18:41.839 --> 00:18:51.220 that there has been a real and a massive loss. That original knowledge of God. That original 00:18:51.220 --> 00:18:58.779 living with God in perfect relationship. That original living in holiness without sin. 00:18:58.779 --> 00:19:12.420 that original perfect obedience to God now has all been lost. And this feeds into our current identity 00:19:12.420 --> 00:19:27.200 crisis. Because we have become separated from our creator, God. And that to deny God as Adam and Eve sought to do 00:19:27.200 --> 00:19:37.200 is to deny an essential part of our identity. We only know ourselves when we know ourselves in relationship 00:19:37.200 --> 00:19:47.519 to our creator, God. And so we find so many people searching desperately for an identity. 00:19:47.519 --> 00:20:03.519 It was Augustine that said hundreds of years ago, our hearts are restless until they find their rest in God. And we can see that today. And maybe we can feel something of that in our own hearts. 00:20:03.519 --> 00:20:16.900 Well, thankfully, because God is gracious, that's not where the story ends. Because we also need to think about the truth of restoration. 00:20:16.900 --> 00:20:30.660 That Jesus Christ comes to restore believers to the image of God. Here is good news from the Bible. God has a plan to restore his image. 00:20:31.040 --> 00:20:40.660 That his glory might indeed fill the earth. And that plan involves the sending of his son, Jesus. 00:20:40.660 --> 00:20:55.960 A couple of hugely significant verses to do with Jesus. Colossians 1 verse 15. Paul gives this testimony that the son is the image of the invisible God. 00:20:57.040 --> 00:21:09.000 The author of Hebrews puts it this way, the son is the radiance of God's glory. The exact representation of his being. 00:21:09.000 --> 00:21:28.000 To put simply, to see Jesus is to see God. When we read the gospels, we are reading of the son of God, the perfect image bearer who perfectly reflects God's glory. 00:21:28.440 --> 00:21:38.180 He is the son of God who comes to establish his rule, to establish the kingdom of God. And he rules not for his own glory, but for his father's glory. 00:21:39.000 --> 00:21:52.240 To read the gospels is to meet Jesus who perfectly reflects the glory of God. His righteousness, his holiness, his goodness, his love. 00:21:52.240 --> 00:22:05.660 To read about Jesus is to read of the one who relates to his God perfectly. We were thinking about the praying life of Jesus last week. 00:22:06.420 --> 00:22:10.420 He loved his father. He wanted to do his father's will. 00:22:10.420 --> 00:22:25.400 And Jesus is one who is able to rest, to trust, to enjoy life with his father. And he invites us into that rest also. 00:22:26.120 --> 00:22:32.060 So Jesus is the perfect image bearer. He is the son of God. 00:22:32.059 --> 00:22:35.639 Jesus then goes to the cross. 00:22:36.319 --> 00:22:40.279 Where his physical body is defaced. 00:22:41.279 --> 00:22:44.279 Where Jesus dies. 00:22:45.339 --> 00:22:47.419 But in his sacrifice, 00:22:48.419 --> 00:22:51.079 as our faith is in him, 00:22:51.740 --> 00:22:54.059 the guilt of our sin is removed. 00:22:55.059 --> 00:22:57.759 We are washed whiter than snow. 00:22:57.759 --> 00:23:02.960 We become new creations in Christ Jesus. 00:23:04.019 --> 00:23:14.980 This gracious gift of salvation that comes to us by repenting of our sin and by faith and trust in Jesus as Lord. 00:23:14.980 --> 00:23:17.980 And then wonderfully, 00:23:18.519 --> 00:23:21.880 as we become one of God's people, 00:23:22.400 --> 00:23:24.420 and by God's grace, 00:23:25.220 --> 00:23:27.819 he begins to work in us. 00:23:28.240 --> 00:23:32.259 He begins a renovation work in us. 00:23:33.940 --> 00:23:37.319 Perhaps you've watched a building project. 00:23:38.019 --> 00:23:41.360 You've overseen a project in your own home or a public space. 00:23:41.359 --> 00:23:45.439 Think about an old family home. 00:23:45.559 --> 00:23:48.179 Perhaps it's fallen into disrepair. 00:23:48.559 --> 00:23:51.500 Used to home families for generations, 00:23:51.679 --> 00:23:53.259 but now it's unfit for purpose. 00:23:53.359 --> 00:23:55.639 Well, as the builders come, 00:23:55.759 --> 00:23:57.659 and they spend months working away, 00:23:58.000 --> 00:24:00.639 as they engage in that renovation process, 00:24:00.639 --> 00:24:01.539 when it is complete, 00:24:01.619 --> 00:24:05.219 it becomes a home fit for purpose again. 00:24:05.220 --> 00:24:14.440 It gives us a picture of what God wants to do and is doing in the hearts and lives of his people. 00:24:14.860 --> 00:24:17.740 God is at work in his people, 00:24:18.680 --> 00:24:19.960 renovating us, 00:24:20.360 --> 00:24:21.519 so that one day, 00:24:22.339 --> 00:24:26.039 God's image will be perfected in us again, 00:24:26.980 --> 00:24:31.500 either when we return to Christ or when Christ returns to the earth. 00:24:31.500 --> 00:24:36.299 Again, a couple of verses from Paul. 00:24:36.460 --> 00:24:38.099 Colossians 3, verse 10. 00:24:38.960 --> 00:24:41.140 As he speaks of putting off the old self, 00:24:41.240 --> 00:24:41.539 he says, 00:24:42.140 --> 00:24:44.079 because you've put on the new self, 00:24:44.500 --> 00:24:47.980 which is being renewed in knowledge, 00:24:48.440 --> 00:24:51.079 in the image of its creator. 00:24:52.079 --> 00:24:54.920 Being made new in the image of God. 00:24:55.019 --> 00:24:56.420 Or Ephesians 4, verse 24. 00:24:56.420 --> 00:25:00.220 Again, the language of put off and then put on, 00:25:00.300 --> 00:25:01.779 put on the new self. 00:25:02.320 --> 00:25:05.140 Created to be like God. 00:25:05.880 --> 00:25:08.320 In true righteousness and holiness. 00:25:08.620 --> 00:25:11.000 That's the work that God is working in us. 00:25:11.220 --> 00:25:12.460 Making us righteous. 00:25:12.900 --> 00:25:13.940 Making us holy. 00:25:14.240 --> 00:25:17.160 Until we are with Jesus and that work is complete. 00:25:19.380 --> 00:25:21.360 In Christ, when our faith is in him, 00:25:21.460 --> 00:25:25.740 a day is coming when we will know and enjoy our God perfectly. 00:25:26.500 --> 00:25:29.140 When we will be perfectly righteous and holy. 00:25:29.359 --> 00:25:33.460 When we will again perfectly reflect the glory of God. 00:25:34.920 --> 00:25:36.039 Today, if you're a Christian, 00:25:36.200 --> 00:25:39.200 God is in the business of renovating you. 00:25:40.039 --> 00:25:43.359 And that process will last a lifetime. 00:25:44.480 --> 00:25:45.799 But day by day, 00:25:46.559 --> 00:25:47.859 God's spirit is working 00:25:47.859 --> 00:25:49.759 to make us little by little, 00:25:49.880 --> 00:25:50.420 bit by bit, 00:25:50.519 --> 00:25:52.120 more like Jesus. 00:25:52.119 --> 00:25:56.259 So that we are able to bring glory to God 00:25:56.259 --> 00:25:59.099 until we go to be with him forever. 00:26:02.079 --> 00:26:03.899 This is our Christian privilege. 00:26:04.619 --> 00:26:06.000 That we know who we are. 00:26:06.539 --> 00:26:07.839 And we know why we're here. 00:26:09.519 --> 00:26:10.479 Our society, 00:26:10.599 --> 00:26:11.819 and you know this as well as I do, 00:26:11.879 --> 00:26:13.919 is full of restless hearts. 00:26:13.920 --> 00:26:15.400 It may be here, 00:26:15.519 --> 00:26:16.120 over and over, 00:26:16.220 --> 00:26:17.620 be whoever you want to be, 00:26:17.700 --> 00:26:19.120 whatever you want to be, 00:26:19.539 --> 00:26:21.400 that you can reinvent yourself constantly. 00:26:21.519 --> 00:26:22.700 That's exhausting. 00:26:24.220 --> 00:26:25.539 If you're here today, 00:26:25.640 --> 00:26:27.580 and you are exhausted 00:26:27.580 --> 00:26:29.380 from trying to figure out who you are 00:26:29.380 --> 00:26:30.420 and why you're here, 00:26:30.420 --> 00:26:34.320 there is good news. 00:26:35.000 --> 00:26:36.800 There is good news in God's word. 00:26:36.900 --> 00:26:38.259 There's good news from God's son, 00:26:38.340 --> 00:26:39.060 the Lord Jesus. 00:26:39.539 --> 00:26:40.019 He says, 00:26:40.320 --> 00:26:40.840 come to me. 00:26:41.539 --> 00:26:42.180 Come to me, 00:26:42.240 --> 00:26:43.320 the perfect image of God, 00:26:43.360 --> 00:26:45.340 the one who laid down his life for you, 00:26:45.880 --> 00:26:48.640 and I will give you rest. 00:26:50.240 --> 00:26:52.160 Jesus would take our sin 00:26:52.160 --> 00:26:54.240 and pay the price in full. 00:26:54.960 --> 00:26:56.600 Jesus would restore us 00:26:56.600 --> 00:26:57.779 to life with God. 00:26:57.779 --> 00:26:59.220 Jesus would give us 00:26:59.220 --> 00:27:01.819 a new identity in Christ. 00:27:01.980 --> 00:27:03.259 Jesus would give you 00:27:03.259 --> 00:27:04.839 security for now 00:27:04.839 --> 00:27:07.079 and for eternity. 00:27:09.579 --> 00:27:10.599 Come to him. 00:27:10.859 --> 00:27:11.399 Trust him. 00:27:12.139 --> 00:27:13.019 And for those of us 00:27:13.019 --> 00:27:14.099 who are Christians already, 00:27:15.200 --> 00:27:17.779 let's not forget our privilege, 00:27:18.000 --> 00:27:20.079 that privilege of being an image bearer. 00:27:20.759 --> 00:27:23.059 Let's not forget our calling, 00:27:23.579 --> 00:27:25.519 that we are called to spread 00:27:25.519 --> 00:27:27.319 the glory of God. 00:27:27.779 --> 00:27:29.299 inviting others 00:27:29.299 --> 00:27:31.519 into the joy and the rest 00:27:31.519 --> 00:27:33.639 that we have come to find for ourselves. 00:27:34.339 --> 00:27:35.420 Let's pray together. 00:27:37.899 --> 00:27:39.619 Lord, our God, 00:27:40.119 --> 00:27:42.000 as we have just scratched the surface 00:27:42.000 --> 00:27:43.720 of what it means 00:27:43.720 --> 00:27:46.099 that we are made in your image, 00:27:47.299 --> 00:27:48.619 we want to thank you 00:27:48.619 --> 00:27:49.839 for the privilege 00:27:49.839 --> 00:27:53.519 of being able to relate to you, 00:27:53.519 --> 00:27:55.599 to know you, 00:27:56.440 --> 00:27:57.879 to enjoy your goodness 00:27:57.879 --> 00:27:58.920 and your love. 00:27:59.779 --> 00:28:01.839 Thank you for sending us Jesus 00:28:01.839 --> 00:28:04.180 to show us 00:28:04.180 --> 00:28:07.539 the perfect image of God. 00:28:09.099 --> 00:28:12.700 Lord, he is our true role model. 00:28:12.700 --> 00:28:15.940 And he is the one 00:28:15.940 --> 00:28:17.640 who saves us 00:28:17.640 --> 00:28:19.140 by his grace. 00:28:19.660 --> 00:28:20.220 He is the one 00:28:20.220 --> 00:28:22.440 who graciously is working in us 00:28:22.440 --> 00:28:23.819 to make us more and more 00:28:23.819 --> 00:28:24.759 like himself 00:28:24.759 --> 00:28:25.559 by the Spirit. 00:28:26.559 --> 00:28:27.319 Lord, we thank you 00:28:27.319 --> 00:28:28.259 for the great hope 00:28:28.259 --> 00:28:29.039 that we have 00:28:29.039 --> 00:28:30.200 that one day 00:28:30.200 --> 00:28:31.380 we'll be like Jesus 00:28:31.380 --> 00:28:32.480 and we'll see him 00:28:32.480 --> 00:28:33.680 as he is. 00:28:35.039 --> 00:28:36.080 Lord, may you give 00:28:36.079 --> 00:28:36.859 to your people 00:28:36.859 --> 00:28:38.639 real hope 00:28:38.639 --> 00:28:39.799 and dignity 00:28:39.799 --> 00:28:40.899 and honour 00:28:40.899 --> 00:28:42.619 and peace 00:28:42.619 --> 00:28:43.619 and rest 00:28:43.619 --> 00:28:44.659 in knowing 00:28:44.659 --> 00:28:45.379 that we are made 00:28:45.379 --> 00:28:46.359 in the image of God. 00:28:47.299 --> 00:28:48.359 And for those here today 00:28:48.359 --> 00:28:49.779 who are not as yet Christians, 00:28:49.980 --> 00:28:51.179 may you use 00:28:51.179 --> 00:28:52.399 this teaching 00:28:52.399 --> 00:28:53.939 from your word 00:28:53.939 --> 00:28:55.659 that they too 00:28:55.659 --> 00:28:56.319 might know 00:28:56.319 --> 00:28:57.339 that privilege 00:28:57.339 --> 00:28:58.179 of knowing 00:28:58.179 --> 00:28:59.519 and enjoying their God 00:28:59.519 --> 00:29:01.259 through faith in Jesus. 00:29:01.859 --> 00:29:02.539 And we pray it 00:29:02.539 --> 00:29:03.199 in his name. 00:29:03.759 --> 00:29:04.059 Amen. 00:29:06.079 --> 00:29:07.119 Now we're going to close.