God said, “Let us make humans in our image, according to our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the wild animals of the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.”
Genesis 1:26
Dear members and friends,
Reading Genesis 1:26, many people focus on the phrase “have dominion over …”. Thus, this particular verse has been and still is commonly used to justify human supremacy over other creatures on earth, which has led to abuse and cruelty. However, the true message of Genesis 1:26 is in the phrase “in our image, according to our likeness.” Humans were empowered by the Creator to have dominion over all creatures on earth only because they were made in the image of the Creator, and according to the likeness of the Creator. This is important because God Creator did not empower humans with a blank-slate birth right to dominate all creatures however they like, but rather a divinely-commissioned duty to nurture them with love and wisdom. Being made like the Creator means being enabled to do what the Creator does: creating, loving, and nurturing all creatures. And we become the image and likeness of God when we are able to live wisely in accordance with love from God.
One thing that we should know clearly is that God does not resemble us, but we resemble God. I am emphasizing this because I found that people tend to visualize the image, nature, and characteristics of their Creator in accordance with their own images and likenesses. But there is a significant difference between who resembles who. Being made in the image and likeness of the Creator focuses on entering the presence of God through spiritual devotion, cultivation, and humility. Meanwhile, Creator resembling humans makes the experiences of God real by means of what is already familiar to the people. In other words, the former leads us to spiritual reality with integrity, while the later simply forges a delusional spiritual certainty affirmed by our own logic and reasoning.
My brothers and sisters in God, let us take a moment of prayer this week. Let us take an internal journey into our minds and hearts. Let us ask our Creator God to guide us to acknowledge the true inner reality: God is always present within our souls.
Blessings,
Rev. Junchol Lee