In My Image

“So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”(Genesis 1:27) This is how the story of humanity begins, and it is a fundamental starting point for how I see myself and others. It dictates how I treat people, because as image bearers of God I feel a moral imperative to love them as I love God. Although I admittedly still struggle with the practical out-workings of this philosophy, I feel like I have grown in this area of my life as I have aged. (If you think this is super prideful on my part, I would suggest you contemplate Numbers 12:3 where, according to tradition, Moses writes, “Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.”)

I think with each passing year I have progressively developed an even more insidious problem that is easy to not even realize exists. Somewhere along the way, I started to create God in my own image and likeness. The things that I love, surprisingly God loves too. This also means the things that I dislike, shockingly God dislikes as well. I don’t know if you know this, but God shares my exact same political, social, and moral views. Now, obviously this is a ludicrous thing to think, but it is the practical conclusion if you explored the premises behind my views. I would dare to say that I am not the only one guilty of this, because as I look at our broader society there appears to be as many Gods as there are people. 

How did I end up in this position? How did we end up in this position?

Creating God in our own image is not novel. Today's Gospel begins with the people of God ready to stone God made flesh, because he did not fit their conception of God. His claim to be God was blasphemous, because their expectations of the messiah was relegated to meeting their political desires for Israel. When their rigid view of God was challenged by God himself, they opted to kill God rather than change their personal perception of Him. Are we really any different? Changing our perception of God means changing our political, social, and moral views. It entails changing who we are because we are a reflection of this image of God. 

Does our inability to do this mean we love our views more than we love God? Maybe the litmus test for this question is when your republican, democratic, conservative, progressive, or _______________(fill in the blank of your personal ideology) perspective is challenged by God, which do you choose to stone? 

Am I even willing to take this test for fear of what I may find out about myself? 

“Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”(Mark 9:24)

Author: Koob Yohannes, Social Studies Department, Campus Ministry Team