For He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight. -Ephesians 1:4
My Identity.
In my last post I began the quest on finding my place in God’s story by asking the question “Who Am 1?”. This quest is not just for me, but for everyone especially those who have come to know Christ as their Lord and Savior. The answer to the question had to begin from the very beginning, with my and your first parents Adam and Eve. In that post, I said that when God made me, (and everyone else), He assigned me my:
Identity (made in God’s image)
Gender – Female (The Bible always equates gender with biological sex.)
Role (worshipper of God and help meet to the man).
The second part of understanding my place in God’s story is to explore my Identity. What it means to be made in the image and likeness of God.
Being made in the image of God or possession the imago Dei is what separates humans from animals. None of the animals were made in the image and likeness of God, only humans. To be in the image and likeness of God is to have some of the likeness of God in us. It does not mean we are gods, neither does it mean we possess the attributes of God. What it does mean is that in some ways, we have some resemblance to God. We resemble God in that we are:
Rational beings – we can reason and make decisions
Given dominion – ruling the creation
Moral beings – able to discern right from wrong
Relational
Being made in the image and likeness of God is what confers dignity on a person. Our life is valuable because of being made God’s image and likeness. This is where my identity can be found. I look like my Father. Just like my Father, I can think, I can rule/steward the creation under His authority, I am able to discern right from wrong and I was made for relationship, just like the God-Head. This is who I am. This is my identity.
God gave His hope and promise of a savior in Genesis 3:15 because the fall did not take Him by surprise. Nothing takes God by surprise…..God had already chosen out for Himself a people from the descendants of Adam and Eve before the foundation of the world. Ephesians 1:4
While I do resemble my Father, I am not entirely like my Father. I am not as holy as He is, I am not omnipresent like Him, I am not omniscient like Him, in fact I am not able on my own to walk into His presence or attempt to have a relationship with Him on my own. Why? Because of sin. We all know the story. Adam and Eve were not able to keep the first commandment ever recorded with consequences. They fell for the lies of the evil one. The devil deceived them into believing that if they ate the fruit from the tree, they will become like God, knowing good and evil. The irony was, they were already like God. They fell for the lies and deception of the enemy. What a great fall it was! That fall brough sin into the world. Since then, everyone of their descendants, everyone of us have been conceived and born into sin.
Their disobedience brought sin into the world. As God promised in the command, they died. They died spiritually that day and eventually died physically. Since then, death, disease, sickness and every bad thing came into the world and passed onto everyone one of their descendants.
Since Adam and Eve disobeyed and fell, did that change my identity? No, the fall did not change my identity, It marred it. Even in my fallen, sinful state, I am still an image bearer. God in His goodness and mercy did not change that. Praise His name!
After the fall, the Lord did not just leave Adam and Eve alone. He sought them out, pronounced their punishment on eat of them, but also gave them a hope and a promise to restore them back into the right relationship with Him. Genesis 3:15.
Why would God do this? Why did He not just kill Adam and Eve and start all over again? God gave His hope and promise of a savior in Genesis 3:15 because the fall did not take Him by surprise. Nothing takes God by surprise.
God had already chosen out for Himself a people from the descendants of Adam and Eve before the foundation of the world. Ephesians 1:4 – For He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight. Not only that, the names of the people of God had been written in the book of life of the Lamb had been slain before the foundation of the world for the people of God. (Rev.13:8) Hallelujah!!!
That Lamb was slain, so that the people of God, those who acknowledge their sin, repent and turn to the Lord will not perish, they will no longer be under the curse, but they will have eternal life with the Lamb of God, who is Christ our Lord.
The reason the Lamb was slain was because He took our place, we should have died. God made Him who knew no sin to become sin for us, so that His righteousness can be imputed to us. 2 Corinthians 5:17-21. My identity that was marred by sin, has been restored in Christ. So what does this mean? It means that I am no longer my own, I can no longer live as I want, my life does not belong to me anymore to use as I please. If I am not my own, then whose am 1? I will explore that in the next post.
Soli Deo Gloria!