Made in His Image · Resources

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Summary

Genesis 1 and 2 show us the world as it once was and one day will be — very good, whole, unbroken. Pastor James Drake opens with a treasured keepsake that came home from deployment in pieces: we all know the ache that something is not the way it's supposed to be. Made in the very image of God, both male and female carry inherent dignity and value — an identity received, not achieved. God gives us an image to bear and a work to do (dominion as stewardship), a Sabbath rest as a gift, boundaries in which to flourish, and marriage as the union of one man and one woman before the fall. It all points to the cross, where the second Adam undoes what the first Adam did.

Sermon Outline

1. 1

   That's Not the Way It's Supposed to Be ▶ 0:00

   A treasured keepsake comes home from deployment broken. We all sense that the world — and sometimes we ourselves — are not the way they're supposed to be. Genesis 1–2 shows what once was and what God will restore.

2. 2

   The Pinnacle of Creation ▶ 8:21

   Man and woman are the pinnacle of the created order, made in the very image of God. 'Let us make man in our image' hints at the Trinity and lays breadcrumbs toward the cross.

3. 3

   Received, Not Achieved ▶ 12:28

   We chase identity in what we do, what we have, or what others think. But our value is received, not achieved — like an athlete set free from fear at the plate. Only the Creator gets to say who we are.

4. 4

   An Image to Bear, a Work to Do ▶ 16:51

   Dominion is stewardship — the Great Commission of the Old Testament. Work is not a curse; it was good before the fall. We're called to create, cultivate, and be a blessing to the earth. God looks at it all and says: very good.

5. 5

   The Gift of Rest ▶ 20:27

   God embeds rest in creation. Freed from Egyptian slavery, Israel flourished by honoring the Sabbath. James shares his own struggle to rest and learning to receive the day as a gift, not a chore.

6. 6

   True Freedom Has Boundaries ▶ 28:41

   Even in paradise there was a boundary — the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. True freedom always has boundaries, like children free to play as long as they stay out of the road.

7. 7

   A Helper Fit for Him ▶ 31:31

   'It is not good that man should be alone.' Eve is taken from Adam's side — same image, same value, complementary roles. 'At last, bone of my bones.' Marriage — one man, one woman — is God's gift, established before the fall.

8. 8

   Back to the Cross ▶ 39:29

   Adam blamed his bride; Jesus rescues His. Adam stood by; Jesus protects His church. The second Adam makes all things right. We know who we are by knowing whose we are.

Key Points

• Genesis 1–2 shows the world as it once was and one day will be — very good and unbroken.
• Both male and female bear the very image of God, giving inherent dignity, value, and purpose.
• Our identity is received from the Creator, not achieved by what we do, have, or hear from others.
• Dominion means stewardship — work is good, and we're called to create, cultivate, and bless the earth.
• The Sabbath is a gift of rest that reminds us we are no longer slaves.
• True freedom always has boundaries in which we flourish.
• Marriage — one man and one woman in lifelong union — was established by God before the fall, and it all points to Christ and His church.

Quotable Moments

Scripture

Genesis 1:26-2:25 (ESV)

Genesis 1:26–2:25 (ESV) 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. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation. These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens. When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground—then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him. So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

Discussion Questions

1. 1

   Where in your life do you sense that 'this is not the way it's supposed to be'? How does the hope of Genesis 1–2 speak to it?

2. 2

   Are you tempted to find your identity in what you do, what you have, or what others think? What would change if your value were truly received, not achieved?

3. 3

   How do you view your work — as a curse to endure or a calling to steward? What would it look like to be a blessing where God has placed you?

4. 4

   What keeps you from resting? How could you begin to receive the Sabbath as a gift this week?

5. 5

   How does the picture of Adam and Jesus as the first and second Adam deepen your understanding of the gospel?

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