June 7, 2023

So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

Genesis 1:27 esv

We often feel like being created means that we are something less than ourselves. Nothing could be further from the truth: James 1: 17-18 says that “every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.” On a creational basis - humanity has been endowed with the image of God, and received the call to dominion over all creation. When we put James’ statement on like a set of glasses and look at Genesis 1:27, we can see that the given-ness of our humanity is a gift. But it’s the sort of gift that can be mishandled - even the briefest glimpse at history shows the myriad and creative ways we have mishandled it; so does a moment’s reflection on our thoughts, words and deeds leading up to this present moment. 

Which brings me to the second way this passage is true - redemption. James is writing to Christians, so when he takes up the language of “firstfruits” it is like he’s handling a bag overflowing with content. Don’t take my word for it - look it up in the concordance at the back of your bibles. What is true of all humans is especially true of all Christians, whose humanity is revived by grace through according to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.  Our creation (and recreation) is a gift to be received and offered back to the LORD in faith with praise. Not an identity to be superficially “created” and consumed for our own pleasure. We have all tried to recreate ourselves apart from God in dozens of ways; some of us might be piqued over this next month to apply a “new” sexual identity like a fresh coat of paint, temporarily covering over insecurities, frustrations, or even past hurts. But before you try to reinvent yourself again, look at Genesis 1 through the lens of James 1, and let the Bible ask you what needs to be fixed. 

—Matt Allhands