You are Created in the Image of God
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. 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.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1.26-27
You are not a cosmic accident. When God created the world, He made everything perfect. He made everything with a purpose. All things were made by Him, for His glory, and ultimately to reflect sovereign control. But when God came to His final creation, He proclaimed that it was different from the rest. This was not just something that revealed His control; it was a creation that revealed His image.
God’s image is found in every human being. It is found specifically in the substance of humanity. People are like God because they can reason, love, and worship. They are like God in their essence.
God’s image is also found in the relational aspect of human beings. God is triune, meaning He is three persons in one God. The trinity represents the perfect relationship, three parts coexisting as one. Humans are also given this ability to become one (though in a different form than God) in spiritual, emotional, and physical relationship.
God’s image is found is also found in dominion. God placed people as the ruling class of this earth. Humans are responsible to rule and care for the earth in relation to how God does.
So what does all of this mean for you? Your value is not in your hands. You have value because God gives it to you, but this value does not exist to be hidden. You are created in the image of God so that you can image Him. Your life is to be one of proclaiming God’s glory through the essence of who you are (as a new creation in Christ), through relationship (loving because Christ has loved you), and through dominion (being a steward of the wonderful blessings that God has given us).