1 00:00:00,360 --> 00:00:07,480 This morning we will be in, you guessed it, Genesis chapter 1. 2 00:00:08,240 --> 00:00:10,000 Go ahead and turn there if you would. 3 00:00:10,760 --> 00:00:14,760 We've been looking at the creation days and here we are on 4 00:00:14,760 --> 00:00:23,160 the last day, if you will, of creation of the Creative act. 5 00:00:23,880 --> 00:00:29,880 So we'll be finishing Chapter 1 and then in a couple weeks we 6 00:00:29,880 --> 00:00:35,080 will jump into Chapter 2. We will be finishing, we'll be 7 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:38,400 up through Chapter 3 before we get to the Advent season. 8 00:00:38,800 --> 00:00:42,400 So, so we'll we'll pick it up a little bit here. 9 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:50,480 Now when we look at pictures, they immediately take us 10 00:00:50,720 --> 00:00:55,000 somewhere. So when I look at this picture, 11 00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:59,440 for example, I'm immediately transported back to one of my 12 00:00:59,440 --> 00:01:02,040 most favorite places in all the world. 13 00:01:02,760 --> 00:01:06,360 The ocean is there on the near side of the bridge in the Bay is 14 00:01:06,360 --> 00:01:10,160 passed it on the far side and you see the city San Francisco 15 00:01:10,320 --> 00:01:14,760 in the background there. And I remember the drive across 16 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:18,160 the Golden Gate that was to happen a few minutes after this 17 00:01:18,160 --> 00:01:21,560 picture was taken. I remember later that afternoon 18 00:01:21,560 --> 00:01:26,680 when when just Aria and I went to the Art Museum, the Legion of 19 00:01:26,680 --> 00:01:31,120 Honor, just daddy and daughter. Just a wonderful time and we 20 00:01:31,120 --> 00:01:37,680 enjoyed looking at the arts. I remember how what should have 21 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:42,440 been an hour drive from where we were staying to this location 22 00:01:43,680 --> 00:01:50,880 ended up being hours as we sat on 80 in a lot of traffic on a 23 00:01:50,880 --> 00:01:54,520 Saturday morning, not a weekday morning. 24 00:01:57,120 --> 00:02:01,040 The picture isn't the experience, but but the picture 25 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:06,280 points back to to an experience and all the memories that are 26 00:02:06,680 --> 00:02:11,760 attached to it. This morning as we as we 27 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:15,880 continue in our study, we'll consider how how we're like God. 28 00:02:16,840 --> 00:02:20,320 No, we aren't actually God, but we like that photo. 29 00:02:20,320 --> 00:02:24,240 We are representations of something. 30 00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:30,320 So if you're able, would you stand as we read from Genesis 31 00:02:30,320 --> 00:02:34,600 chapter 1, We'll begin at verse 26. 32 00:02:38,960 --> 00:02:44,280 Then God said, let us make man in our image after our likeness, 33 00:02:44,280 --> 00:02:47,680 and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the 34 00:02:47,680 --> 00:02:51,360 birds of the heavens, and over the livestock, and over all the 35 00:02:51,400 --> 00:02:54,640 earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. 36 00:02:55,360 --> 00:02:57,960 So God created man in his own image. 37 00:02:57,960 --> 00:03:02,440 In the image of God. He created him, male and female. 38 00:03:02,680 --> 00:03:08,040 He created them, and God bless them and, and God said to them, 39 00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:11,920 be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, 40 00:03:12,160 --> 00:03:15,040 and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of 41 00:03:15,040 --> 00:03:18,440 the heavens, and over every living thing that moves on the 42 00:03:18,440 --> 00:03:21,160 earth. And God said, Behold, I have 43 00:03:21,160 --> 00:03:24,200 given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all 44 00:03:24,200 --> 00:03:27,080 the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruits. 45 00:03:27,680 --> 00:03:30,080 You shall have them for food, and to every beast of the earth, 46 00:03:30,080 --> 00:03:32,840 and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that 47 00:03:32,840 --> 00:03:36,640 creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I 48 00:03:36,640 --> 00:03:38,920 have given every green plant for food. 49 00:03:39,520 --> 00:03:42,640 And it was so. And God saw everything that He 50 00:03:42,640 --> 00:03:45,280 had made, and behold, it was very good. 51 00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:47,720 And there was evening, and there was morning. 52 00:03:47,960 --> 00:04:00,160 The 6th day you may be seated. Here in the creation account, 53 00:04:00,160 --> 00:04:04,960 the phrase and God said is always followed by let there be 54 00:04:04,960 --> 00:04:09,440 or or let's this happen each time this happened, God is 55 00:04:09,440 --> 00:04:14,480 speaking by order of what we call divine Fiat, his spoken 56 00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:18,880 word issuing A decree, God speaking into nothing and 57 00:04:18,880 --> 00:04:24,040 created something simply through decree, commanding it to be. 58 00:04:25,240 --> 00:04:29,040 But when we come to humanity, however, it's a little 59 00:04:29,040 --> 00:04:31,760 difference. After declaring all the 60 00:04:31,760 --> 00:04:36,640 creatures of the earth good, verse 26 changes it up as the 61 00:04:36,640 --> 00:04:39,960 text deviates from the previous literary structure. 62 00:04:41,240 --> 00:04:43,600 And this should be a clue to pay attention. 63 00:04:45,160 --> 00:04:51,960 God said let us make man. The text is suddenly moved out 64 00:04:51,960 --> 00:04:56,080 of the realm of the impersonal, if you will, and into the 65 00:04:56,080 --> 00:04:58,680 personal. The previous commands weren't to 66 00:04:58,680 --> 00:05:02,680 anybody in particular and and involved a sort of distance 67 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:05,920 between God and and his creation. 68 00:05:06,240 --> 00:05:09,520 God would speak and and something would happen. 69 00:05:09,520 --> 00:05:11,800 Something would come into existence. 70 00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:17,480 But now God says, let's make humanity. 71 00:05:19,680 --> 00:05:22,240 Now, if you're paying attention, this might cause you to seek 72 00:05:22,240 --> 00:05:25,760 assurance. There's only one God, right? 73 00:05:26,880 --> 00:05:29,960 If there's one God, then why is he using the first person plural 74 00:05:29,960 --> 00:05:34,200 and saying, let's us? When it comes to this creative 75 00:05:34,200 --> 00:05:38,560 act, it's important for us to start from the right 76 00:05:38,560 --> 00:05:43,280 perspective. So we begin by defining us. 77 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:48,120 We're going to define what US means. 78 00:05:49,520 --> 00:05:53,800 Over the millennia, a number of explanations have been offered 79 00:05:53,800 --> 00:05:58,120 regarding the usage of the first person plural us, rather than 80 00:05:58,120 --> 00:06:02,360 the first person singular me. A few weeks ago, I mentioned 81 00:06:02,360 --> 00:06:07,640 first of all that the word Elohim, the word for God, is 82 00:06:07,640 --> 00:06:11,760 plural in form. This plurality along with the 83 00:06:11,760 --> 00:06:16,840 use of us has led to various different interpretations. 84 00:06:17,640 --> 00:06:21,840 Some suggestions have been that the use of us as a remnant of 85 00:06:21,840 --> 00:06:26,640 polytheistic religions. Or perhaps God is calling to his 86 00:06:26,640 --> 00:06:29,400 creations the heaven and the earth and saying let's make 87 00:06:29,400 --> 00:06:34,760 humanity more popular notion is the idea of divine honor and 88 00:06:34,760 --> 00:06:37,280 majesty. A king might say something like 89 00:06:37,800 --> 00:06:43,960 let us go and do this or perhaps God is deliberating with himself 90 00:06:44,400 --> 00:06:47,160 self. What would you like to do today? 91 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:51,040 Well self, let's go make humanity. 92 00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:55,960 Others have proffered the notion of addressing A heavenly court 93 00:06:55,960 --> 00:07:03,080 of angels, the spiritual beings. However, all these explanations 94 00:07:03,080 --> 00:07:07,280 have issues and and some of them frankly have no basis in what 95 00:07:07,280 --> 00:07:10,400 Scripture is trying to communicate. 96 00:07:11,760 --> 00:07:15,560 The best understanding of the usage of the first person plural 97 00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:20,280 is that it is actually referring to the Godhead, the Trinity. 98 00:07:23,480 --> 00:07:25,680 I believe it's referring to the Trinity. 99 00:07:25,880 --> 00:07:29,160 Some will argue this passage doesn't clearly communicate the 100 00:07:29,160 --> 00:07:33,280 doctrine of the Trinity, and you're not wrong. 101 00:07:34,120 --> 00:07:37,120 This passage doesn't explicitly spell out the Trinity. 102 00:07:37,120 --> 00:07:41,560 But when we consider other passages of Scripture, we're 103 00:07:41,560 --> 00:07:44,240 able to arrive at this conclusion. 104 00:07:45,440 --> 00:07:50,280 The Godhead exists in in three Co equal but distinct persons, 105 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:54,480 Father, Son and spirit, and all three of these persons were 106 00:07:54,480 --> 00:08:01,880 complicit in creation. First, God the Father is found 107 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:04,960 all throughout this narrative. It, it opens up and says in the 108 00:08:04,960 --> 00:08:08,800 beginning, God create the heavens and the earth and then 109 00:08:09,040 --> 00:08:12,520 and then each time there's a creative act that says God said 110 00:08:12,520 --> 00:08:19,080 and God said and God said so on. So we see God the Father all 111 00:08:19,080 --> 00:08:23,640 throughout this. Then verse 2 we saw that the 112 00:08:23,640 --> 00:08:31,600 Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters and then 113 00:08:32,880 --> 00:08:37,080 to determine Jesus part in creation we go to John's gospel. 114 00:08:38,440 --> 00:08:42,600 So we jump all the way to the New Testament, John 11. 115 00:08:43,240 --> 00:08:47,400 There it reads in the beginning was the Word and the Word was 116 00:08:47,400 --> 00:08:51,800 with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with 117 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:56,520 God, that is the Father. All things were made through him 118 00:08:56,800 --> 00:09:01,800 and without Him was not anything made that was made. 119 00:09:02,840 --> 00:09:06,440 John opens up one of the most powerful Christological passages 120 00:09:06,440 --> 00:09:08,400 in all of Scripture by saying Jesus. 121 00:09:08,440 --> 00:09:11,640 Jesus is the word that we see there in John 1. 122 00:09:12,720 --> 00:09:15,320 Jesus was there at the beginning, and not only that, 123 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:19,680 but He was involved in creating the world and nothing was made 124 00:09:19,840 --> 00:09:26,160 apart from Him, it says. So when we take all these verses 125 00:09:26,400 --> 00:09:29,400 into consideration, the logical conclusion is for us to 126 00:09:29,400 --> 00:09:34,280 interpret the plural us as referring to the Godhead, 127 00:09:34,440 --> 00:09:41,640 Father, Son, and Spirit. So this is who did the creating. 128 00:09:41,640 --> 00:09:47,400 Now we're going to look at what the creation was and Simply put, 129 00:09:47,960 --> 00:09:57,960 the creation was human. Verse 26 read Then God said, let 130 00:09:57,960 --> 00:10:02,280 us make man in our image after our likeness and let them have 131 00:10:02,280 --> 00:10:04,680 dominions. So God created man in his own 132 00:10:04,680 --> 00:10:08,360 image, in the image of God. He created him male and female. 133 00:10:08,440 --> 00:10:13,880 He created them. The word for man found here in 134 00:10:13,880 --> 00:10:20,200 verse 26 is is a Dom. And yes a Dom does become 135 00:10:20,680 --> 00:10:26,360 eventually that specific human's name, Adam as as we would say. 136 00:10:27,040 --> 00:10:31,120 But here it doesn't refer specifically to A to a single 137 00:10:31,320 --> 00:10:36,040 entity, a single person. Rather it refers to humanity. 138 00:10:37,200 --> 00:10:42,440 This is further corroborated by the fact God refers to them a 139 00:10:42,440 --> 00:10:45,840 couple times here. Here in these verses he he uses 140 00:10:45,840 --> 00:10:50,840 the word them. So how did God do this? 141 00:10:51,880 --> 00:10:57,240 Genesis 27 tells us that the Lord God formed the man of dust 142 00:10:57,360 --> 00:11:00,760 from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the 143 00:11:00,760 --> 00:11:04,040 breath of life, and the man became a living creature. 144 00:11:05,560 --> 00:11:09,920 So God has an intimate connection with this new 145 00:11:09,920 --> 00:11:13,840 creation. This connection is deeply 146 00:11:13,840 --> 00:11:17,520 personal and it feels like the relationship perhaps of of a 147 00:11:17,520 --> 00:11:21,920 Potter with his clay. And nowhere else does this 148 00:11:21,920 --> 00:11:25,880 relationship between God and his creation exist. 149 00:11:26,520 --> 00:11:30,680 Not with the sun, moon, stars, fish, birds, not even with the 150 00:11:30,680 --> 00:11:35,200 land animals, the the other nefeshis, the other soulish 151 00:11:35,200 --> 00:11:38,840 beings. As as we learned last week, 152 00:11:41,040 --> 00:11:47,240 verses 26 and 27 refer to humanity being in God's image. 153 00:11:47,640 --> 00:11:50,960 They were made in his image after his likeness. 154 00:11:52,200 --> 00:11:54,840 So what does it mean to be an image of God and bear his 155 00:11:54,840 --> 00:11:58,640 likeness? As we consider this, we'll now 156 00:11:58,640 --> 00:12:02,960 turn our attention to the question, what is special about 157 00:12:02,960 --> 00:12:07,000 humanity? Because some will have you 158 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:10,240 believe that there's nothing special about being humans. 159 00:12:10,240 --> 00:12:14,440 It was just enough time transpired for humanity to 160 00:12:14,440 --> 00:12:19,000 evolve. But that is not what we believe 161 00:12:19,360 --> 00:12:21,320 because Scripture tells us otherwise. 162 00:12:22,600 --> 00:12:24,920 So there's a lot that could be said regarding what it means to 163 00:12:24,920 --> 00:12:28,320 be created in God's image, but there are four primary areas I 164 00:12:28,320 --> 00:12:33,120 want to highlight this morning. The first thing of note is this 165 00:12:33,120 --> 00:12:39,080 phrase specifically that we are image bearers, we are image 166 00:12:39,080 --> 00:12:45,640 bearers, we we bear God's image. Now in the ancient Near East, 167 00:12:46,360 --> 00:12:50,120 regular people like like you and I weren't thought to be in the 168 00:12:50,120 --> 00:12:53,600 image of God. The idea of the image of God 169 00:12:53,600 --> 00:12:59,440 referred primarily to an idol like a king or, or to the image 170 00:12:59,480 --> 00:13:03,800 of that king. Idols would be set up around 171 00:13:03,800 --> 00:13:08,280 around cities and towns and, and this was viewed as as that God's 172 00:13:08,280 --> 00:13:13,600 presence was, was there in that idol on earth. 173 00:13:14,280 --> 00:13:17,480 And then so because of that, the places where these idols were 174 00:13:17,480 --> 00:13:19,640 set up would become, would become sacred. 175 00:13:19,640 --> 00:13:22,600 They would become hallowed ground and and people would 176 00:13:22,600 --> 00:13:29,040 flock to these locations so that they could worship that God, 177 00:13:29,040 --> 00:13:36,320 that idol there rulers would also sometimes be referred to as 178 00:13:37,080 --> 00:13:41,640 images of God. Ramses the second was worshipped 179 00:13:41,640 --> 00:13:45,920 as the very image of RA, the sun God. 180 00:13:46,320 --> 00:13:50,720 He was Raz representative on Earth, viewed as equal with him 181 00:13:50,960 --> 00:13:56,560 along with the entire pantheon of the Egyptian deities. 182 00:13:57,840 --> 00:14:01,560 The Pharaoh or or king acted to ensure the well-being of his 183 00:14:01,560 --> 00:14:06,600 people on behalf of the God or or gods as it were. 184 00:14:07,920 --> 00:14:11,760 All rulers of the ancient Near East enjoyed an elevated status 185 00:14:11,760 --> 00:14:17,360 and were considered sons of God, intermediaries between God and 186 00:14:17,360 --> 00:14:19,920 man. And the king was worthy of 187 00:14:19,920 --> 00:14:24,320 worship, so the temple would often be connected to his house, 188 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:27,880 to his palace, as as he was that nation's priest. 189 00:14:29,280 --> 00:14:39,640 So it's a radical thing when Moses writes, God made humanity 190 00:14:41,240 --> 00:14:46,800 in his very own likeness, in God's likeness. 191 00:14:49,320 --> 00:14:53,840 In a single verse, value had been added to all of God's 192 00:14:53,840 --> 00:14:56,280 creation. Everyone, regardless of wealth 193 00:14:56,280 --> 00:15:00,520 or or status, is a child of God in the sense that they are made 194 00:15:00,920 --> 00:15:06,080 in his image. However you might choose to 195 00:15:06,400 --> 00:15:12,000 organize society, all of it is in a sense placed on the same 196 00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:14,280 level. This clearly has nothing to do 197 00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:18,320 with a person's contributions to society or their perceived value 198 00:15:18,320 --> 00:15:24,480 or intellect, rather has everything to do with the 199 00:15:24,480 --> 00:15:28,720 creator and the assigned value that he gives his creation. 200 00:15:29,680 --> 00:15:33,560 He's the one who confers value on all of his creations, but 201 00:15:33,560 --> 00:15:39,120 most especially humans. Rich, poor, powerful, weak, 202 00:15:39,120 --> 00:15:42,920 male, female, young, old, moral and immoral. 203 00:15:43,880 --> 00:15:49,120 Everyone is a child of the Creator and loved by him. 204 00:15:53,040 --> 00:15:54,920 What actually is the image of God? 205 00:15:56,840 --> 00:16:06,560 The word used here is is Salem, that is TSELEM Salem and and 206 00:16:06,560 --> 00:16:12,800 this word almost always refers to an idol to to a carved image. 207 00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:18,840 In fact, only a few times in Genesis does does it is it 208 00:16:18,840 --> 00:16:24,000 translated as something other than or meaning something other 209 00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:29,160 than an idol. But here Yahweh is going to use 210 00:16:29,160 --> 00:16:32,920 this word to 1st establish something about human. 211 00:16:34,080 --> 00:16:41,000 Human is apparently a sort of Salem human is made to represent 212 00:16:41,000 --> 00:16:47,000 God on earth. So we image God in that, in that 213 00:16:47,000 --> 00:16:52,800 we represent him and, and his character to to all of the 214 00:16:52,800 --> 00:16:57,840 world. And this happens when when we 215 00:16:57,840 --> 00:17:02,400 exhibit Yahweh's communicable, communicable attributes. 216 00:17:02,720 --> 00:17:06,880 His communicable attributes are those attributes which are gods, 217 00:17:06,880 --> 00:17:12,560 but which we can also live out. These are attributes like love, 218 00:17:12,560 --> 00:17:16,880 mercy, goodness, wisdom, justice, creativity. 219 00:17:17,079 --> 00:17:22,000 All of these attributes are found in God, but also found in 220 00:17:22,000 --> 00:17:28,160 humanity as well. So each of us represents God 221 00:17:28,160 --> 00:17:31,200 here on earth. And the first part we find here 222 00:17:31,200 --> 00:17:35,240 in Genesis 1 is that humanity is to rule. 223 00:17:35,960 --> 00:17:40,760 Humanity's job is to rule, to have dominion is what the text 224 00:17:40,760 --> 00:17:45,640 says. One way humans are set apart 225 00:17:45,640 --> 00:17:50,160 from all other creatures is they're told to subdue the 226 00:17:50,160 --> 00:17:54,440 earth. In verses 26 and 28 we find the 227 00:17:54,440 --> 00:17:58,280 command to have dominion. This command has been much 228 00:17:58,280 --> 00:18:02,240 perverted and misinterpreted over the years. 229 00:18:03,600 --> 00:18:08,480 I get the sense that when people hear this word, sometimes they 230 00:18:08,480 --> 00:18:11,680 think of someone who has no regard for the land and the 231 00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:17,200 creatures of this world. Someone see the command to have 232 00:18:17,200 --> 00:18:22,400 dominion as permission from God, to clear cut forest, to kill all 233 00:18:22,400 --> 00:18:28,760 the bison that roam the Midwest, or to exploit people, enslave 234 00:18:28,760 --> 00:18:31,920 them for the purposes of prophets. 235 00:18:33,560 --> 00:18:39,600 But that's not what God has in mind when He calls humans to 236 00:18:39,600 --> 00:18:43,480 rule. The first component to 237 00:18:43,480 --> 00:18:47,760 humanity's rule is in relationship to the land. 238 00:18:49,480 --> 00:18:51,680 So first of all, it's in relationship to the land. 239 00:18:53,800 --> 00:18:59,560 Adam was made chief gardener. In chapter 2, verse 25, we see 240 00:18:59,560 --> 00:19:03,240 Adam was placed in the garden to work it and to keep it. 241 00:19:04,440 --> 00:19:10,600 His role as as head gardener is to maximize the land, to make 242 00:19:10,600 --> 00:19:15,480 the most use of it so so that it too could be fruitful and 243 00:19:15,480 --> 00:19:21,200 multiply and then in turn feed all the inhabitants of the land. 244 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:25,000 All you gardener types. We got lots of those in his 245 00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:29,920 body. You're being just like Adam and 246 00:19:29,920 --> 00:19:34,320 Eve were in the garden. You are doing what God told them 247 00:19:34,320 --> 00:19:37,160 to do. Good job, somebody's got to do 248 00:19:37,160 --> 00:19:39,600 it. I would not be good at it. 249 00:19:41,640 --> 00:19:45,840 Now. It should be said that Adam's 250 00:19:45,840 --> 00:19:50,800 job, it was a lot easier than the way you have it now. 251 00:19:53,440 --> 00:19:54,880 After that day. When? 252 00:19:55,200 --> 00:19:59,880 When he and the woman took a bite of the forbidden fruits, 253 00:20:00,760 --> 00:20:04,120 everything changed. And before that, before that 254 00:20:04,280 --> 00:20:06,640 there were no weeds, no no thistles. 255 00:20:06,640 --> 00:20:09,880 The weather was perfect for farming and and the crops were 256 00:20:10,120 --> 00:20:14,360 were responsive and would just grow so easily. 257 00:20:15,840 --> 00:20:20,560 These were ideal conditions for developing and farming the land. 258 00:20:23,480 --> 00:20:27,600 Now in recent years, the word sustainability has gained 259 00:20:27,600 --> 00:20:32,360 popularity. Sustainability seeks to look at 260 00:20:32,360 --> 00:20:36,160 our products and resources and and provide these products that 261 00:20:36,160 --> 00:20:39,560 we've come to love, whether it's clothing, food or other products 262 00:20:40,000 --> 00:20:45,520 in a way that is sustainable. It is the practice of meeting 263 00:20:45,720 --> 00:20:50,320 the needs of this present of the present without compromising the 264 00:20:50,320 --> 00:20:54,680 ability of future generations to meet their own needs for this 265 00:20:54,680 --> 00:20:57,400 product. This is all about using 266 00:20:57,400 --> 00:21:00,800 resources in a responsible manner in order to maintain 267 00:21:00,840 --> 00:21:04,720 ecological balance and ensure the long term well-being of both 268 00:21:04,720 --> 00:21:08,240 humans and the earth. And when you do this, you take 269 00:21:08,240 --> 00:21:12,880 into consideration factors like the economy, the environment, 270 00:21:12,880 --> 00:21:16,000 and there's lots of social dimensions that go into this as 271 00:21:16,000 --> 00:21:18,320 well. But at the heart of this 272 00:21:18,320 --> 00:21:24,960 movement is the notion that if I keep using this product in a 273 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:29,600 negligent manner, then it's possible someday there will be 274 00:21:29,760 --> 00:21:32,720 no more of this product and it'll disappear from the face of 275 00:21:32,720 --> 00:21:36,960 the earth, or at least be more difficult to come by. 276 00:21:39,560 --> 00:21:44,160 While while current use of the word sustainability may have 277 00:21:44,160 --> 00:21:48,760 been rooted in in climate alarmism and doomsday theories 278 00:21:48,760 --> 00:21:54,720 about our planet, sustainability does jive with what God teaches 279 00:21:54,720 --> 00:22:00,520 us here in Genesis 1. Taking care of our planet makes 280 00:22:00,720 --> 00:22:04,680 sense and it confers respect on both the planet and God's 281 00:22:04,680 --> 00:22:08,680 creatures, which is the second aspect of exercising dominion. 282 00:22:09,640 --> 00:22:14,000 The second component of ruling is in relationship to the living 283 00:22:14,320 --> 00:22:21,760 creatures. Verse 30 reveals to us that God 284 00:22:21,760 --> 00:22:26,720 gave living creatures every green plant for food. 285 00:22:27,480 --> 00:22:32,720 This means all the sustenance of the earth wasn't just for the 286 00:22:32,720 --> 00:22:37,360 humans, it was for the living creatures as well. 287 00:22:38,280 --> 00:22:41,000 First of all, this tells us there's enough food for all the 288 00:22:41,000 --> 00:22:45,000 creatures, both human and animal, and humans aren't to 289 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:48,040 subdue the earth in a way that leaves no room and no sustenance 290 00:22:48,320 --> 00:22:52,960 for the other creations we share the earth with to them. 291 00:22:52,960 --> 00:22:55,720 Also, God is given the right to live off the soil, and that 292 00:22:55,720 --> 00:23:00,400 means our rights to land do have some limits, if you will. 293 00:23:02,560 --> 00:23:08,040 Now, I believe it's apropos for us to pause here to look at the 294 00:23:08,200 --> 00:23:12,800 only Torah reference to a King's behavior in Israel. 295 00:23:14,600 --> 00:23:18,920 God knew the people would one day desire a king, so he 296 00:23:18,920 --> 00:23:22,520 preemptively gives them permission to place a king over 297 00:23:22,520 --> 00:23:28,520 them in in the Promised Land. However, God has stipulations 298 00:23:29,080 --> 00:23:34,240 for for how a king should rule over the people of God. 299 00:23:35,320 --> 00:23:41,960 Deuteronomy 17 says only he must not acquire many horses for 300 00:23:41,960 --> 00:23:45,440 himself or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to 301 00:23:45,440 --> 00:23:49,400 acquire many horses. Verse 17 and he shall not 302 00:23:49,400 --> 00:23:53,080 acquire many wives for himself, lest his heart turn away, nor 303 00:23:53,080 --> 00:23:56,840 shall he acquire for himself excessive silver and gold. 304 00:23:57,640 --> 00:24:01,960 Then verse 19 tells the king to follow the law and fear the Lord 305 00:24:01,960 --> 00:24:07,520 so that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers. 306 00:24:09,440 --> 00:24:14,760 Here God is laying out his vision for royal rule. 307 00:24:15,760 --> 00:24:20,160 God's expectations of his king are different than than the 308 00:24:20,200 --> 00:24:24,680 other cultures. The king is one among his 309 00:24:24,680 --> 00:24:27,600 brothers and sisters, his fellow Israelites. 310 00:24:27,880 --> 00:24:30,200 He's not to accumulate wealth or arms. 311 00:24:30,200 --> 00:24:33,720 That is the that was found in the going back to Egypt to to 312 00:24:33,720 --> 00:24:37,160 accumulate horses. He's not to indulge himself in 313 00:24:37,160 --> 00:24:43,120 any of the ways that kings would normally be accustomed to by 314 00:24:43,440 --> 00:24:48,040 accumulating wives or or massive amounts of wealth. 315 00:24:49,680 --> 00:24:54,880 And it's only through humility and solidarity with his people 316 00:24:55,680 --> 00:25:00,360 that the king is able to rule for the benefit of the people. 317 00:25:02,800 --> 00:25:09,080 So the task for humans is to adopt this royal rule that that 318 00:25:09,080 --> 00:25:13,360 God has set out. Only when humans live in a way 319 00:25:13,360 --> 00:25:17,360 that benefits the king will they be able to exercise their 320 00:25:17,360 --> 00:25:21,760 authority over the creation in a manner that benefits the 321 00:25:21,760 --> 00:25:27,920 creation. Were God's images placed in this 322 00:25:27,920 --> 00:25:34,040 world as representatives of the one true king, as a king might 323 00:25:34,040 --> 00:25:37,800 erect an image of himself in the land in order to remind people 324 00:25:37,800 --> 00:25:41,880 of his rule and his claim to dominion, his claim, his power 325 00:25:41,880 --> 00:25:45,680 over them. So humanity is placed on this 326 00:25:45,680 --> 00:25:52,120 earth in God's image as God's representatives of his rule. 327 00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:55,520 We aren't the actual rulers per SE. 328 00:25:55,720 --> 00:26:00,600 We're representatives of the ruler acting as ambassadors 329 00:26:00,600 --> 00:26:04,360 tasked with maintaining and forcing God's claims to dominion 330 00:26:05,000 --> 00:26:09,440 here on earth. Now before we move on, it's not 331 00:26:09,440 --> 00:26:17,800 unusual for someone to ask well I get to see my dog in heaven. 332 00:26:19,640 --> 00:26:22,880 Well guess what? Scripture doesn't tell us that 333 00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:29,200 not even not even sure what our relationships with our spouses 334 00:26:29,200 --> 00:26:36,040 will be in heaven as we won't be married when we're in heaven, 335 00:26:36,920 --> 00:26:44,840 but as as we eventually return back to a garden like state. 336 00:26:46,560 --> 00:26:50,160 It seems to me, and I think scripture communicates that, 337 00:26:50,600 --> 00:26:56,440 that animals will be very present in heaven as as I read 338 00:26:56,440 --> 00:27:02,280 last week in the When the wolf lays down with the lamb, the 339 00:27:02,280 --> 00:27:08,880 leopard chooses to not eat the goats, the child is able to pick 340 00:27:08,880 --> 00:27:14,560 up a serpent without fear. Animals will be very present and 341 00:27:14,560 --> 00:27:22,800 parts of the new creation. So whether that includes Fluffy 342 00:27:22,800 --> 00:27:29,720 or Fido, I don't know, but I think it will be a very 343 00:27:29,720 --> 00:27:35,000 enjoyable time for us for sure as we return back to light, back 344 00:27:35,000 --> 00:27:39,960 to that garden like state as we continue. 345 00:27:40,960 --> 00:27:45,680 So we're image bearers and and we adopt God's royal rule in 346 00:27:45,680 --> 00:27:49,280 exercising dominion over land and creatures. 347 00:27:50,600 --> 00:27:54,440 Humans are also meant to reproduce. 348 00:27:55,560 --> 00:27:59,360 We're meant to reproduce, to propagate life and help it 349 00:27:59,360 --> 00:28:07,320 flourish on the earth. It's possible you hadn't noticed 350 00:28:07,320 --> 00:28:10,240 a little detail here. I hadn't noticed it until my 351 00:28:10,240 --> 00:28:15,520 research. Previously, when God created all 352 00:28:15,520 --> 00:28:19,240 other creatures, he created them in mass. 353 00:28:19,480 --> 00:28:24,240 He didn't just create a single Organism or even 2 of them. 354 00:28:25,040 --> 00:28:30,640 Allah the ark. No, God created them in 355 00:28:30,640 --> 00:28:33,320 abundance. The sea swarmed with fish, the 356 00:28:33,320 --> 00:28:37,480 skies were filled with birds. The land brought forth all kinds 357 00:28:37,480 --> 00:28:45,480 of living creatures. However, human Adam was created 358 00:28:46,360 --> 00:28:53,360 initially alone at first one man and all the animals. 359 00:28:54,520 --> 00:28:58,480 Then chapter 2. I know most of us know this. 360 00:28:58,760 --> 00:29:03,640 Chapter 2 tells us there wasn't a a helper for for a Dom. 361 00:29:03,640 --> 00:29:05,520 There wasn't a counterpart to the human. 362 00:29:05,520 --> 00:29:09,960 So God created a helper for him. We'll go into that more in a few 363 00:29:09,960 --> 00:29:14,920 weeks, but here we are. The beginning of humanity starts 364 00:29:14,920 --> 00:29:18,200 with just a single pair in the command. 365 00:29:18,720 --> 00:29:23,600 Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. 366 00:29:24,960 --> 00:29:28,240 Now obviously you it takes a while for this to happen, right? 367 00:29:28,760 --> 00:29:33,160 With a gestation period of nine months and the fact most humans 368 00:29:33,160 --> 00:29:36,480 don't typically produce litters of children. 369 00:29:37,320 --> 00:29:43,680 Some do, but most don't. The command to be fruitful 370 00:29:43,680 --> 00:29:47,200 begins here, but it doesn't stop here. 371 00:29:47,200 --> 00:29:50,640 These words are are then repeated after the flood and 372 00:29:52,040 --> 00:29:58,960 then if we think Genesis 22, God's promise to to Abraham 373 00:29:59,600 --> 00:30:06,120 echoes this same sentiment. I will surely multiply your 374 00:30:06,120 --> 00:30:12,160 offspring is what God says. So here we get a glimpse into 375 00:30:12,160 --> 00:30:17,480 God's heart. God gave humanity the ability to 376 00:30:17,720 --> 00:30:23,560 create more humans, the ability to reproduce image bearers. 377 00:30:24,840 --> 00:30:30,120 Not only that, but God wants a world full of them. 378 00:30:33,320 --> 00:30:39,480 We live in a sad time where pregnancy and children are are 379 00:30:39,480 --> 00:30:45,720 seen as barriers to living life. Liberalism has so demeaned 380 00:30:45,720 --> 00:30:49,040 motherhood and children that it now sees these things as 381 00:30:49,280 --> 00:30:54,280 weakness and burdens. Increasingly, certain sectors of 382 00:30:54,280 --> 00:31:00,280 women decry marriage and men, They're so fiercely independent 383 00:31:00,440 --> 00:31:03,960 that they hate men, literally hates men. 384 00:31:04,280 --> 00:31:06,960 And they find the thought of someday having children 385 00:31:07,280 --> 00:31:14,120 absolutely repulsive. They believe is so much so that 386 00:31:14,120 --> 00:31:19,240 late last year hysterectomies and tubal ligations, that is, 387 00:31:19,240 --> 00:31:26,520 having your tubes tied, began to surge simply in protest against 388 00:31:26,800 --> 00:31:31,800 conservative values. This is sad. 389 00:31:34,800 --> 00:31:39,760 And I will say this was one thing to be commended, another 390 00:31:39,760 --> 00:31:42,600 thing I should say to be commended about Charlie Kirk. 391 00:31:43,200 --> 00:31:48,480 He was not ashamed to speak to God's design. 392 00:31:49,000 --> 00:31:52,640 He did not say women had to be at home. 393 00:31:52,640 --> 00:31:57,800 That's not what he said. But he was very unashamed to say 394 00:31:58,040 --> 00:32:03,920 one of your greatest joys in life is your children. 395 00:32:06,640 --> 00:32:12,320 Our society can't grasp the truth that children are a 396 00:32:12,320 --> 00:32:15,640 blessing, the truth of Psalm 127. 397 00:32:16,840 --> 00:32:21,160 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the the fruit 398 00:32:21,160 --> 00:32:25,640 from the fruit of the womb. A reward like arrows in the hand 399 00:32:25,640 --> 00:32:28,160 of a warrior are the children's of 1's youth. 400 00:32:29,000 --> 00:32:32,040 Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them. 401 00:32:33,880 --> 00:32:42,920 I am curious how many arrows went into a quiver, like 2-3, 402 00:32:43,360 --> 00:32:49,640 six, or was it some of you I know come from 10's and stuff 403 00:32:49,640 --> 00:32:55,000 like that? I don't know, but the point is 404 00:32:55,600 --> 00:32:59,880 people with lots of children are blessed. 405 00:33:02,080 --> 00:33:07,720 Lastly, humanity is a recipient of God's divine blessing. 406 00:33:09,360 --> 00:33:17,480 We receive His divine blessing. God made humanity and the first 407 00:33:17,480 --> 00:33:21,880 thing we see after this creative act is in verse 28. 408 00:33:22,280 --> 00:33:27,400 God bless them. It says we were created to be 409 00:33:27,560 --> 00:33:30,520 the recipients of joy and blessing from God's hand. 410 00:33:30,840 --> 00:33:35,640 He made us so He could then pour out His goodness on us. 411 00:33:36,760 --> 00:33:39,280 God wants us to find enjoyment in life. 412 00:33:41,240 --> 00:33:47,480 Ecclesiastes 518 reads Behold what I've seen to be good in 413 00:33:47,480 --> 00:33:52,280 fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil 414 00:33:52,280 --> 00:33:56,160 with with which one toils under under the sun the few days of 415 00:33:56,160 --> 00:34:00,360 his life that God has given him. God saying, find enjoyment in 416 00:34:00,360 --> 00:34:04,080 your work, in what you do. Then Paul even writes in First 417 00:34:04,080 --> 00:34:09,199 Timothy 6 As for the rich in this present age, charge them 418 00:34:09,199 --> 00:34:12,800 not to be haughty or proud, nor to set their hopes on the 419 00:34:12,800 --> 00:34:18,239 uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with 420 00:34:18,719 --> 00:34:23,840 everything to enjoy. All the enjoyments of life come 421 00:34:24,280 --> 00:34:31,199 from God. All the plants and and fruit 422 00:34:31,199 --> 00:34:35,920 trees were intended not only for the humans use and enjoyment 423 00:34:36,400 --> 00:34:38,280 before the animal Kingdom as well. 424 00:34:40,000 --> 00:34:46,639 As best as I can tell animals and man were initially 425 00:34:46,639 --> 00:34:51,080 vegetarian. This is the ideal that that 426 00:34:51,080 --> 00:34:56,239 Genesis 1 sets up and I think we have reason to believe we'll 427 00:34:56,440 --> 00:34:59,960 we'll see that coming back into view in the new Earth. 428 00:35:02,160 --> 00:35:07,760 Human had all he could ever want right there in the garden. 429 00:35:09,800 --> 00:35:12,920 It was a perfect environment, perfect climate, the perfect 430 00:35:12,920 --> 00:35:18,520 partner with whom with whom human could fully enjoy life. 431 00:35:19,560 --> 00:35:23,400 God says be fruitful and multiply. 432 00:35:23,400 --> 00:35:30,120 It was at that moment God looked upon all of his creation, 433 00:35:30,520 --> 00:35:38,600 everything that he had made and he says it was very good. 434 00:35:40,080 --> 00:35:42,200 Everything was just as he wanted it to be. 435 00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:46,200 The birds were flying, the the fish were swimming, trees and 436 00:35:46,200 --> 00:35:51,320 plants growing, and animals and humans flourishing. 437 00:35:52,560 --> 00:35:56,920 Life was easy as they lived in the fullness of God's blessing. 438 00:36:00,040 --> 00:36:03,800 I close with John MacArthur summation of the creation up to 439 00:36:03,800 --> 00:36:06,680 this point. As he conveyed in his book 440 00:36:06,680 --> 00:36:12,320 Battle for the Beginning, the creation of the human race was 441 00:36:12,320 --> 00:36:15,560 the central object of God's creative purpose from the 442 00:36:15,560 --> 00:36:19,560 beginning. In an important sense, 443 00:36:20,080 --> 00:36:24,720 everything else was created for humanity, and every step of 444 00:36:24,720 --> 00:36:30,520 creation up to this point had one main purpose, to prepare a 445 00:36:30,520 --> 00:36:38,480 perfect environment for Adam. The human race is still at the 446 00:36:38,480 --> 00:36:43,800 center of God's purpose for the entire material universe. 447 00:36:44,200 --> 00:36:48,080 The unfolding of creation establishes a theater in which 448 00:36:48,080 --> 00:36:52,120 the great redemptive saga can be played out. 449 00:36:54,000 --> 00:37:04,640 Man is the main character. God's own son even becomes a man 450 00:37:05,360 --> 00:37:08,280 in the climax of Redemption's drama. 451 00:37:10,200 --> 00:37:14,760 And this is the purpose for which the entire universe was 452 00:37:14,760 --> 00:37:20,200 created, so that God's grace, His mercy, His compassion could 453 00:37:20,200 --> 00:37:26,000 be lavished on this creature whom God had created in his own 454 00:37:27,040 --> 00:37:30,240 image. Let's bow our heads and close 455 00:37:30,240 --> 00:37:47,150 our eyes. God, it's humbling to to 456 00:37:47,150 --> 00:37:53,950 consider the task that you have set out for humanity to rule 457 00:37:53,950 --> 00:38:00,470 this world in in a way that is befitting of you, to be your 458 00:38:00,470 --> 00:38:06,190 representatives, your ambassadors, your image bearers 459 00:38:07,680 --> 00:38:19,400 here in the world. What is man that you are mindful 460 00:38:20,560 --> 00:38:26,720 of him? We are just humbled to consider 461 00:38:27,000 --> 00:38:34,400 that you would seek to put your qualities, your nature in US. 462 00:38:38,200 --> 00:38:43,520 Thank you for your love, your care, your concern for us and 463 00:38:43,520 --> 00:38:50,040 may we in part show that to other humans that we come across 464 00:38:50,040 --> 00:38:52,880 each day as we go about our lives. 465 00:38:54,080 --> 00:38:56,880 It's in Jesus name we pray, Amen.