7 day plan

Power and Weakness

Day 3 of 7

CSB

Genesis 1:26-27

26Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.”

27So God created man

in his own image;

he created him in the image of God;

he created them male and female.

Reflection:  (See Gen 2:5-7 for further reading)

The Bible presents us with a multi-faceted portrait of human beings. On the one hand, there is a stream of thinking in the Bible about how powerful and effective human beings are. In the ancient world to be in the image of God was a status largely reserved for the kings, the Pharaohs, and for the mighty. Human beings are royalty
But that is not the only facet of what it means to be human. You can sometimes twist the teaching of the Bible, not because you say something wrong, but because you say too little.
If you only see humans as made to be powerful and strong, then you don’t understand enough of the Bible’s teaching.
Because the other great stream of Scriptural thinking about human beings is how fragile we are. We are made from the dust. We cannot draw breath without the sustaining power of God. Hear well the words of Psalm 103:13-16

As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
14 for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.
15 The life of mortals is like grass,
they flourish like a flower of the field;
16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.

Humanity is royal dust – crowned with glory and honour, and yet fragile and dependent.

Question: Do you see yourself as royalty? Do you remember that you are dust?

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, I praise you for making me in your image. I delight in the knowledge that you want me to make a difference in this world, shaping it and cultivating it for your glory and for the blessing of my neighbour. Help me to remember that I am also fragile and dependent upon you. Compel me to come to you always in prayer, to give thanks to you in all things, and to do my work empowered by your grace. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers

Days

1
2
3
4
5
6
7

Genesis 1:1-31

The Creation

1In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

2Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. 3Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. 5God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was an evening, and there was a morning: one day.

6Then God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters, separating water from water.” 7So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above the expanse. And it was so. 8God called the expanse “sky.” Evening came and then morning: the second day.

9Then God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10God called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering of the water he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good. 11Then God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.” And it was so. 12The earth produced vegetation: seed-bearing plants according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13Evening came and then morning: the third day.

14Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night. They will serve as signs for seasons and for days and years. 15They will be lights in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth.” And it was so. 16God made the two great lights — the greater light to rule over the day and the lesser light to rule over the night — as well as the stars. 17God placed them in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth, 18to rule the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19Evening came and then morning: the fourth day.

20Then God said, “Let the water swarm with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” 21So God created the large sea-creatures and every living creature that moves and swarms in the water, according to their kinds. He also created every winged creature according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22God blessed them: “Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.” 23Evening came and then morning: the fifth day.

24Then God said, “Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that crawl, and the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25So God made the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that crawl on the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

26Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.”

27So God created man

in his own image;

he created him in the image of God;

he created them male and female.

28God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.” 29God also said, “Look, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the surface of the entire earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. This will be food for you, 30for all the wildlife of the earth, for every bird of the sky, and for every creature that crawls on the earth — everything having the breath of life in it — I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31God saw all that he had made, and it was very good indeed. Evening came and then morning: the sixth day.

© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers