Image Bearers

We are made in the Image of God. What does that mean?

It means that we are the closest analog to God in the Created realm.

So? It means that you are more important than anything in the world. Your value is not something you can control. God has said that you're an Image Bearer. We don't have a right to hold a low self esteem.

Humans and Angels

Angels are popular these days. I don't think it is controversial to state that Angels are lots more powerful than us mere humans. But Angels are NOT image bearers. What does this mean? Consider a deck of cards by way of analogy: It means that you may be a Deuce and an Angel a King, but you're Trump. So, they may be more powerful, but you're more valuable.

Consider the Gnostic notion of worshipping angels. Yeah, they're more powerful than us. Yeah, they can move in those cool spiritual dimensions. Yeah, they're probably smarter, too. But WE are the image bearers. An Angel would have to be a fallen one to accept worship from his betters.

Your identity isn't male or female, or republican or democrat, or any other attribute, possession, or belief you hold. Your identity is that of Image Bearer. This is a Higher Calling than any of those things.

Humans and Christ

Each Christian is an instantiation of Christ. We are all being "conformed to the image" of Christ. It's neat. You see old christians like my mother in law and she has a nexus of character traits. and you meet another, you see a trace of those same traits imprinted on another personality. We're image bearer's of God, expect a family resemblance

but we're all different, too. some of us are even ...atypical

Christ being more than 4D is imaged by each Christian slightly differently. Like the various renderings of a ray-trace when you move the eye point. The model of the ray-trace is 3D, but the imagery are 2D projections.

The Second Commandment

You've heard of the Ten Commandments. The Second Commandment says, "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below." What's an idol? It is an image. Suppose you were to carve a statue of Jesus and put it in your church. I think that's a Bad Thing(tm).

This is absurd. Suppose I were to worship God thru an Image of Him. Which Image would be the best one to use? An Image that I made? I'm not very good at art. Maybe an Image that Michaelangelo made? He was a good artist. But he's not the best...

How about if I were to worship an image of God thru an Image of Him that God Himself constructed? That's me. I am an Image Bearer. So, should I put up mirror in the front of the church? No, this is absurd. So, we worship God according to the 2nd commandment: without any image.