Session 3: The Image

Session Overview

Creedal Statement

I believe in God the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth;
And in Jesus Christ
his only begotten Son our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried;
he descended into hell [to the dead];
the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into heaven, and
sits on the right hand of God
the Father Almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge
the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit;
the holy catholic church;
the communion of saints;
the forgiveness of sins;
the resurrection of the body; and
the life everlasting.
Amen.

Key Elements

• Key Passage - Genesis 2:4–25
• Scripture Memory - For You formed my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works, and I know this very well. Psalm 139:13–14
• Catechism - Q: Who is the crown of God’s creation? A: Humanity.

Introduction

For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.

Our wisdom, in so far as it ought to be deemed true and solid Wisdom, consists almost entirely of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves …. Man never attains to a true self-knowledge until he have previously contemplated the face of God, and come down after such contemplation to look into himself.

Humans are magnificent creatures, created by God for a divine purpose. In his sovereign design, God made humans to uniquely function in his created world, reflecting his character and exhibiting his kingdom rule. Created to be royal representatives of God throughout the earth, humans were endowed with a sense of nobility. Sadly, when the first humans disobeyed God, their dignity, value, and honor were grievously defaced. In the current state of a fallen world, human beings simultaneously lament this tragic loss of nobility and experience a deep longing for restored dignity. Intrinsic to the divine imprint of God’s image on humanity, human dignity connects with an inbuilt quest for identity and self-understanding. To understand God truly is, in the end, to understand oneself best. Human dignity is also evidence of the interpersonal and relational nature of humanity. The intimacy and ecstasy of human relationships are wonders to experience and profound mysteries to explore. Beings fashioned as God’s image-bearers in the world, humans have been created with purpose, identity, dignity, and relationality.

Despite the distinct and dignified origins of humanity, we intuitively sense that humans have fallen from their original noble status. Although each human birth is cause for great joy, something is fundamentally broken in the world. Human experience attests to this. We long for bliss but find it fleeting or unattainable. Confused about our core identity, we try to rewrite the God-designed essence of human existence. These self-manufacturing efforts only serve to further distort humanity and foster pain. Existentially, we wander in search of vocation and purpose. Interpersonally, we experience dissension, conflict, and disunity in our most intimate relationships. Human life is lived in tension: we have been created with a God-given dignity, yet we live in a broken world with recurring disappointment. To navigate a world of hardship and heartbreak, we must return to the story of human origins. It is here where we learn about our divinely given charter and find hope in God’s intent to restore human nobility.

In Genesis 2:4–25, we witness God create human beings, the pinnacle of his creative work. On day six, we learn that humans were created as God’s image bearers (cf. 1:26–31). As his royal representatives over creation, humanity was to rule creation, multiply offspring, and fill the earth. It was on day six that God declared his creation very good. When God created the first humans, like a skilled potter, he formed Adam out of the dust of the ground and animated him with divine, life-giving breath. God set the first man in the Garden of Eden to guard and serve it. He permitted him to eat from every tree except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Truly, the Garden was a blissful paradise. Nevertheless, one facet of God’s creation was not good: the man, Adam, was alone. God had Adam name all the animals in creation, but the first man could not find a companion suitable for him. As a result, God caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep. He took a rib from Adam and created the first woman. Since this extraordinary beginning, men and women would form family units as a typical way to experience the joy of relationship and companionship while fulfilling God’s purposes on earth.

The story about human origins is foundational to establishing mature Christian belief. As we come to trust God as sovereign Creator, we also need to understand who we are as human beings. As God’s image-bearers in creation, we occupy a sacred place in God’s cosmic purposes. Although we no longer enjoy the bliss of Eden or experience the full dignity of our sinless condition, we know that the original human condition provides a key to understanding the Christian life and faith. Learning how God first created humanity will enable us to navigate the tensions of a fallen world and understand God’s redemptive plan to restore his people. Let us read and study the biblical narrative about the first humans with discernment, conviction, and hope, rooting ourselves in God’s intended plan for our lives and his world.

Biblical Interpretation: Hearing the Word

Study the Text: The Bible is God’s inspired word to his people. Christian disciples mature in the faith when they are grounded in God’s word. In this movement, you will study the basic details of the biblical text.

Observation Questions

Read (or listen to) the whole passage of Scripture. Discuss the questions below for each section of the story. Pay attention to the details of the text to recall what the passage is saying. Use the focus verses to guide your conversation.

Storycraft

Retell the story in your own words, recounting the overall flow of the narrative, the main segments of the story, and the major developments that take place.

Narrative Elements

Story Retell

Theological Dialogue: Discussing the Plot

Explore the Text: God’s word is his trustworthy and sufficient revelation to his people. We grow as Christ’s disciples by rooting our lives in God’s unchanging truth. In this movement, you will explore vital teachings of this biblical passage.

Discussion Questions

Summarize the biblical story. As a community, discuss the following questions. Be attentive to the truths taught in this text. Use the commentary on the next pages to uncover core principles this passage teaches about the Christian faith.

Biblical Commentary

Use this commentary to help you understand the meaning of the text. Refer to the infographic on the next page to think through how narratives work.

Passage Introduction

Key Idea

Of all that God has made, humans are the crown of God’s creation—his very noble image—created to represent his rule, reveal his character, enjoy his presence, and spread his glory.

Passage Overview

At the apex of creation, God made human beings. Created as the image of God, fashioned together as body and spirit, supplied with the delights of paradise, and endowed with joyful and meaningful work, humans were a specimen of God’s creative work. When the first human, Adam, was incomplete and alone, God created a helper who would provide companionship for him. From the origins of humanity, God established the family. For human history, the family would function as a training ground for interpersonal relationships and a foundation of larger society. Human beings were created to enjoy fellowship with one another as well as to exhibit the intimacy of the triune God’s own relationship with himself. The narrative of God creating humanity helps us recall core elements of human nature, purpose, and dignity. Even under the effects of sin—devastating as they are—humans still evidence something of their original nobility. Explore the commentary below as an aid to help you understand the scriptural account of God creating the first humans.

Passage Outline

God’s Image Formed and Fashioned

When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place—what is man that You are mindful of him, or the son of man that You care for him? You made him a little lower than the angels; You crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler of the works of Your hands; You have placed everything under his feet.

Things common to all men are more important than the things peculiar to any men. Ordinary things are more valuable than extraordinary things; nay, they are more extraordinary … The sense of the miracle of humanity itself should be always more vivid to us than any marvels of power, intellect, art, or civilization. The mere man on two legs, as such, should be felt as something more heartbreaking than any music and more startling than any caricature. Gilbert K.

Introduction

To be established in the Christian faith is to understand the nature, purpose, and dignity of humanity. Living in a sinful world, we do not find it easy to believe correct things about humanity. Conflicting ideas compete against one another in an attempt to (re)define the essence of what it means to be human. Some philosophies place humans on the same plane as animal life, overlooking the unique role that humans occupy in the world. Other belief systems elevate humans to divine status, inflating our perspective of humanity’s power and autonomy. Humans are neither equal to God nor mere beasts of the earth. One can imagine how erroneous beliefs about human nature lead to wrong ways of living. Thankfully, Scripture provides an accurate record of God’s creation of the first humans. In this story, we find a framework to understand the original design of humanity, a key to discerning human brokenness in our present world, and a prophetic portrait of God’s promise to restore his fallen humans.

Indeed, the story of Genesis 2:4–25 brings us back to human origins. In this record, we learn how God fashioned the first human from the dust of the earth. Animating this man, God breathed his own breath into his nostrils. God made man a steward of the created paradise—the Garden of Eden. At this time, no sin had infected the universe. In this perfect world, man was commissioned as a caretaker of creation and called to responsibly follow God’s commands. While only one man occupied the garden paradise, the creation mandate could not be fulfilled—a single human being could not obey God’s original command to be fruitful and multiply (cf. 1:28). It was not good that man was alone. After the man failed to find a suitable helper from among the animals, God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep and created the woman from one of the man’s ribs. Then, the man and woman were united, forming the first family.

We cannot understand humanity correctly without returning to the origin story that tells how and why God brought humans into existence. While the picture of humanity in God’s original paradise does not exactly mirror our experience in a fallen world, this ancient account helps to make sense of our deep longings, present struggles, and future hope. Additionally, it helps to reframe a Christian understanding of humanity. As we read the story of the first man, Adam, we cannot help but anticipate the coming of God’s eternal Son, Jesus, who is sometimes called the second Adam. Being born a human, Jesus would restore humans from their fallen state even as he revealed the fullness of what it means to be human. The key to understanding our lives and the gospel is to learn the foundational truths about the first humans. To this end, we return to this early chapter in Genesis in order to know what was divinely intended in paradise, what was lost in the fall, and what may be regained (only) in the God-Man, Jesus Christ.

Let Us Make Man: Retrieving Human Identity as God’s Image Bearers

Biblical Narrative (Genesis 1:26–31)

Humans were created on the sixth day of creation (cf. 1:26–31). Although the creation account in Genesis 1:1–2:3 teaches us much about God and creation, it also gives us a foundational understanding of human nature. The account in Genesis 1:26–31 sets the context for the present story of Genesis 2:4–25. Having already framed and filled his created world in six days, God’s final act of creation on day six was to make humans. During the only act of creation in which God deliberated among himself (as a triune God), God spoke, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness” (1:26). Bringing this speech to reality, “God created man in His own image; in the image of God” (1:27). Created for communion and relationship with other humans, God made humanity “male and female” (1:27). Then, as the pinnacle of his creation, “God blessed” (1:28) his human creation.

God created humanity for a unique and significant purpose. God made humans—both male and female—to exercise dominion over his created world: “to rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, and over all the earth itself and every creature that crawls upon it” (1:26). Not the tyrannical, abusive, and oppressive rule of which humans in the current world are all too accustomed, this rule over paradise would be a godly, gracious, and gentle care over God’s creation. Humans were designed to be loving stewards of God’s world. In marriage, one man and one woman would form families and populate the earth—to “be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it” (1:28). This procreating humanity was to spread throughout the world in order to fulfill a God-given and honorable duty to “rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every creature that crawls upon the earth” (1:28). In presence and vocation, humans were God’s regal agents who represented God’s benevolent care and sovereign authority to all that God had made.

As humans fulfilled their God-ordained purpose to care for creation with a righteous rule, they would also enjoy God’s sustaining care for them. In short, humans were to enjoy the provision of God’s creation (1:29) as they cared for the newly fashioned world. As God provided for his creation (1:30), humans were to watch over the created world with sincere concern, loving care, and obedient service. So fantastic was the placement of humans over the created order that God declared it “very good” (1:31). As the capstone of God’s creation, God rested on the seventh day and declared it a holy day because the work of creation was complete (2:1–3). In this account, we learn that God made humans to be his royal and righteous representatives over the created order.

Biblical Principles

Dignity and Humility. The record of human creation in the first chapter of Genesis orients us to foundational aspects of what it means to be human. In this portion of the story, we learn that humans were created to be God’s image (1:26–27). Being created in God’s image endows humans with an incredible sense of dignity and worth. Humans are unique and above all other created things. But being created in the image of God means humans are not equal to God. As humans, we are only God’s image. Being God’s image is an incredible privilege, but not a reason to boast beyond our actual status as created beings. Created to rule over all creation, we understand that it is proper to esteem and honor humanity as having great dignity and worth. As one of God’s creation, each human being should also humbly recognize his subservience before God. Unlike the self-existent God, people are completely dependent upon God for their existence, just like the animal creation. Humans should live in the tension of their lowliness and dignity, humility and honor, and subservience and responsibility. Frustration and ruin result when this tension gets out of balance.

Community. As God’s image-bearers, humans were created as one yet many: God made one human race as male and female. Hints of God’s own triune nature in this opening biblical narrative—hints of God’s simultaneous threeness (cf. 1:1–2, 26) and oneness (1:27)—are reflected in human unity and diversity. Created in God’s image, humans were created for community—to be in relationship with each other. That God created humans “male and female” (1:27) emphasizes the communal and interpersonal nature of humans. Individual and isolated, humans could not realize the fullness of what it meant to be God’s image. It was the union—simultaneous diversity and oneness—of humanity as male and female (eventually a unity and diversity to be expressed in different cultures and ethnicities) in which God’s image was manifoldly displayed by humanity. Humans realize their humanness in relationship with God and others. Social relationships are a crucial component of being human. The strain and brokenness of human relationships readily remind us of the central importance of relationships. In this fallen world, we live with a hope for our relationships to be more reciprocal, harmonious, and selfless.

Royal Representatives. The important phrase, “image of God,” also underscores that humans—unlike the rest of creation—were to be God’s representatives throughout the created world. Specifically, humans had a royal function in God’s creation. They were to exercise dominion (1:26) and subjugation (1:28) over creation. As God’s royal emissaries, God’s sovereign rule would be recognized as creation interacted with human beings. The mere presence of humans evoked a sense of reverence and respect for God. Humanity also served as God’s royal emissaries by their own submission to God. Although royal, an emissary is truly regal in submission to the true king. Humans exhibit their true humanity in surrender to and in service of God’s rule. No human or society truly enjoys life in the world when we act as self-governing creatures seeking “freedom from God.” Independence from God is only a path to despair. In fact, humans who exercise authority and power in the world without deference to God dishonor and dehumanize others. As God’s royal representatives, humans experience meaningful existence, deep dignity, and overwhelming joy in service to God.

Blessing and Joy. Human joy is also part of being made in God’s image. Although God is sovereign over his creation, he is not a harsh taskmaster. In the original work of making the world, God blessed his creation (1:28; cf. 1:22; 2:3). God delights in seeing his creation flourish. When God made the world, humans were to find provision from the very creation they were to oversee. In this way, God shows us that he intends for humans to experience delight and satisfaction as they go about his work in the world. Certainly, human ambitions can cause us to stray from God’s clearly revealed paths. When we stray, we seek delight outside of God’s provision. Humans were created for God, and any attempt to find ultimate joy outside of God will lead to disappointment and dismay. In the world’s present state, our incessant and insatiable longings for fulfillment remind us that God provides for the blessing of his people. Humans relish true joy when they rest in the provisions of their Maker.

The Breath of Life: Affirming Human Dignity from God’s Creative Work

Biblical Narrative (Genesis 2:4–7)

Human creation occurred within the larger act of creation: “the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made them” (2:4; cf. 1:1). Importantly, humans play a central role in God’s created world, but not as central as God himself. While humans are to be considered special and honored, they are also to be humble and reverent, recognizing their created status within a larger creation and the duty and homage they ultimately owe to their Creator God.

At the time of humanity’s creation, “no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth, nor had any plant of the field sprouted” (2:5). God had already created many things: terrestrial form, celestial objects, plants, and animals. By the time God created the first humans, God had already created and filled his world (cf. 1:3–31). At this time, “the Lord God had not yet sent rain upon the earth” (2:5) but “springs welled up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground” (2:6). In addition, “there was no man to cultivate the ground” (2:5). God created a thriving world, but the work of creation was not complete. There remained the need to make a steward who would be a faithful caretaker over all that God had made.

At this time, God brought humanity into existence (cf. 1:26–31). The divine sculptor God “formed man from the dust of the ground” (2:7). In this act, God shaped the first man in his bodily form. However, this sculpted creature was not yet alive. Consequently, God “breathed the breath of life into his nostrils” (2:7). When God did this, “the man became a living being” (2:7). Different than creating things by speaking (cf. 1:3–31), God created the man in an act of artistic and aesthetic skill. In this scene, we see how God designed, shaped, and animated the first human.

Biblical Principles

Created Creatures. Humans were made within God’s larger project of creation (2:4). Human identity, purpose, and dignity arise from a human’s proper role within God’s creative order. While humans form an important part of God’s creation, humans are certainly not the ultimate focus of creation. While humans are divinely appointed custodians of God’s creation, all creation itself speaks of and testifies to God’s glory. Humans mediate God’s rule on the planet, but this use of power is to mirror God’s righteous and just character. God is superlative; humans are derivative. Human dignity is shamefully marred when it presumes glory that belongs only to God. Truly, God is in a class by himself. Human dignity is also defaced when humans are devalued and dishonored, being treated as nothing different than the beasts of the field. Humans are like the rest of creation in that we owe our existence to God. Humans are unlike the rest of creation (i.e., animals, plants, etc.) in being given a special role over God’s created order. Humans must be warned against thinking too highly or too lowly of themselves. Pride, arrogance, and narcissism err in inflating one’s importance. Conversely, self-deprecation, abuse, and violence err by demeaning human dignity and worth.

Body and Soul. This portion of the biblical text helps us understand the composition of human beings. Both material and immaterial, humans are physical and spiritual creatures: visible bodily form and invisible spiritual substance in one united person. Each human is made up of body and spirit. Effectively, humans can be thought of as an enfleshed (i.e., embodied) soul or ensouled body. Human beings exist as a body-soul union. In the story of the creation of the first human, the man only became a “living being” (2:7) when God breathed his life-giving breath into a body formed out of the dust of the earth (2:7). That is, the first man was a body only animated when God breathed into him his own breath (i.e., spirit). Both physical and nonphysical aspects of human nature are to be valued, honored, and served. Parenting, counseling, health care, social policy, education, and even faith development are best accomplished when they focus on the bodily and spiritual dimensions of human nature. Death is to be lamented because it separates body from spirit. The resurrection of Christ is to be celebrated because its triumph over death secures the eventual restoration and reunion of each believer’s body and soul for all eternity.

All That Is Pleasant: Locating Human Joy in God’s Bountiful Provision

Biblical Narrative (Genesis 2:8–14)

After God made the first man, God placed him in the garden paradise of Eden. When God made the world, “the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east” (2:8). In this garden, God “placed the man He had formed” (2:8). God caused the ground to yield vegetation: “out of the ground the Lord God gave growth to every tree that is pleasing to the eye and good for food” (2:9). Since God had made a perfect and flourishing world, the earth was plentiful in its produce, pleasing in its effect, and nourishing in its design. God placed man in the garden to take delight in God’s created world. Later in the narrative, we learn that God would grant extensive permission for Adam to enjoy the fruit of the garden: from every tree but one, Adam was permitted to find nourishment (cf. 2:16–17).

Two special trees were in the garden: “the tree of life” and “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (2:9). These trees represented God’s good intent for his created world. God wanted his creation to enjoy unending life in a blessed world. To enjoy this fullness of life, however, creation was obliged to fully submit to God’s ways. As long as humanity served creation as faithful stewards and submitted to God as accountable creatures, they would experience God’s goodness. However, if humanity sought alternative means or methods of joy, humanity would forsake the delight of paradise. The promise of delight always comes with a severe caution: joy pursued outside of God’s created design will afflict humanity with pain, grief, and loss. God’s goodness, bounty, and provision are offered to those who fully yield to God.

The garden was apparently well-watered: “a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it branched into four headwaters” (2:10; cf. 2:5). The four branches of this river went to other places in the land. Pishon went to Havilah, Gihon went to Cush, and Hiddekel (and Euphrates) flowed in Assyria (2:11–14). The story mentions, in particular, how the first river, Pishon, flowed to the land of gold and precious stones: “there is gold … and bdellium and onyx are found there” (2:11–12). Recalling God’s good work of creation in Genesis 1, it notes that “the gold of that land is pure” (2:12). The rivers that came from Eden depict a lush and rich land filled with bounty, fertility, and abundance. Speaking to the scope of God’s goodness, “the second river is Gihon … [which] winds through the whole land of Cush” (2:13). As humans were created to mediate God’s blessing to the world, so the river from Eden brought its plentiful, life-giving streams to other places in God’s creation.

Biblical Principles

Joy and Delight. Humans experience delight and joy in God’s presence and provision. Lasting joy comes from a life that functions within God’s designated boundaries, commands, and limits. As seen in the story of creation, true freedom occurs by submitting to God’s delimiting decrees, not by forsaking his commanding word. Much of the brokenness in the world befalls humans when we circumvent God’s pathways for joy. Sin’s great deception attempts to cause human distrust in the goodness of Creator God. This was the great rebellion of the first humans (cf. 3:6), and it is our own folly each time we sin. When we believe that God is cruelly withholding joy, delight, and blessing from us, we will seek alternative means of pleasure. Rather than bringing us to our desired destination, these alternative paths lead us outside of God’s clearly revealed ways and always result in ruin and judgment. In fact, God’s judgment on human sin is a matter of God giving humans the final and failing end of anything that occurs outside of God’s blessing.

When humans give themselves in abandon to God’s created gifts (rather than in surrender to the giver of these good gifts) or deny the rightness of joy and delight (in the name of religious asceticism), the intent of God’s creation is lost. The rivers of paradise (2:11–14) remind us of God’s intent to place humanity in a paradise of delights. God wants humans to enjoy the rich and satisfying world. In the biblical text, the river of Eden fed other rivers, which led to bounty and blessing. Misplaced pleasure-seeking can lead to idolatry, indulgence, impulsiveness, and self-destructive gluttony. Ascetic restraint can be based upon a crude critique of God’s good world. Both uninhibited indulgence and self-righteous austerity are misplaced and harmful.

Blessing that Blesses. God created humans and placed them in a perfect world of joy and delight. The lushness of the garden is important to consider. The river coming from Eden not only served the garden (2:10), but it also served other areas of the world (2:11–14). Branching into other areas, the verdant Eden led to the fecundity and fertility of other places in the land. The blessing and bounty of the garden multiplied beyond itself. True joy is not meant to be selfishly guarded. As God created the world out of the overflow of his goodness, so the goodness of Eden flowed into other places. Our joy works the same way. To find delight in God is to overflow with joy that reaches out to others with generosity and magnanimity. The blessing we receive from God should mobilize us to bless others. As much as human joy is best (and safest) when it orients us to God, it is fullest when the overflow of our delight leads to the enrichment of the world around us. Devoted to God and motivated by a generous heart, true joy in God leads us to a life of faithful service in his name.

At Your Service: Locating Human Vocation in God’s Divine Call

Biblical Narrative (Genesis 2:15–17)

The paradise garden was where God “placed the man He had formed” (2:8). Formed as a living creature—body and spirit—God set his creation steward “in the Garden of Eden to cultivate and keep it” (2:15). Before sin had entered into the world, humans were created for work. In particular, the first human, Adam, was put in the garden to serve it as a caretaker and guard it as a custodian. As a steward of paradise, humanity was endowed with a meaningful vocation. Although Adam was allowed to enjoy the blessings of Eden, he also found meaning and satisfaction in his service to God. As a steward, Adam was not the supreme king. Rather, his royalty extended only to the degree that he was a caretaker of God’s world. God was the one and only supreme ruler over all; humanity was God’s caretaking representatives. Ruling by service, subjugating by stewardship, and providing oversight by caretaking, Adam was to go about his vocational duties in the garden paradise.

God also gave Adam a vocational call to obedience: a life of deference to God’s authoritative commands. Fidelity to God in his life preceded faithfulness to God in his vocation. As such, the Lord told Adam that he “may eat freely from every tree of the garden” (2:16), but he “must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (2:17). God permitted Adam to enjoy the full scope of creation, only withholding from him one specific tree. God warned Adam about the consequences of defying God’s command. If Adam forsook his call to obedience and disobeyed God’s command, Adam would “surely die” (2:17). Vocational service in God’s work must always be subservient to vocational obedience in one’s life. Adam showed humanity for all time—even fallen humans—that the call to serve God must be preceded by a submission to follow God.

Biblical Principles

Vocational Obedience and Service. As stewards of God’s ordered world, God summons humans to be benevolent caretakers of his good creation. Although they are brief, the instructions to Adam form a vocational map for humanity. Adam was called to steward the garden. In this work, he was to serve and guard it. Importantly, these terms—“cultivate and keep” (2:15)—would later refer to acts of worship (cf. Exodus 20:5; 23:25) in the service of God and acts of obedience (cf. Exodus 12:24; 20:6) to God’s commands. Both ideas emphasize devotion to God. They are also inseparably interrelated. Faithful deference to God in life encourages faithful service of God’s purposes in the world. Likewise, faithful service in God’s world is based upon devotion to God himself. In the present world, many associate vocation only with one’s place of employment. Although this is a fair description of one aspect of God-ordained work, vocation itself cannot be limited to payrolled employment. A biblical view of vocation involves the entirety of one’s work—a lifework that encompasses one’s devotion to God and service for God—in all areas of life.

The Goodness of Work. God’s permission that Adam “may eat freely from every tree of the garden” (2:16) is only qualified with the one restriction that he “must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (2:17). Even in the opening account of Genesis 1:1–2:3, we learned that creation enjoyed freedom within God-ordained boundaries and limits. The same principle applies here. The first human would enjoy freedom only when he honored God’s prohibition. In Adam’s service of the garden, he was to enjoy the blessings of paradise around him. God is not a harsh or abusive taskmaster. God did not create humans as slaves. Instead, God created humans to enjoy his goodness through their vocational service.

Prior to sin, humans enjoyed paradise with healthy and holy work habits. Although work would be greatly affected after sin entered the world, work itself was not a curse from which humans needed to escape or a burden which humans needed to eliminate. In their sinless and blessed condition, work was part of God’s design for his creation stewards. In the current state of the world, however, work can be arduous and oppressive. Extremes of workaholism and laziness are equal but opposite distortions of God’s intended plan for human work. People struggle to find fulfillment, meaning, and just treatment in the workplace. Although we presently experience trouble, toil, and pain in our work, the Christian faith holds a redemptive optimism about work and vocation. Inasmuch as Christ recovers the dignity of fallen humans, he also restores life-giving joy in our work, engaging our vocation as an invitation to exhibit our devotion to God.

No Longer Alone: Remembering Human Community in God’s Original Design

Biblical Narrative (Genesis 2:18–23)

The first human, Adam, was created in the image of God, animated by God’s life-giving spirit, provided the delights in the garden of paradise, and commissioned to a vocational purpose. Even though Adam was living in God’s flourishing and good world, creation was not complete. After saying that everything in his creation was good (cf. 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31; 2:9, 12), God himself said that “it is not good for the man to be alone” (2:18). As a result, God decided to “make for him a suitable helper” (2:18). Adam could not fulfill his God-given mandate without a suitable helper. Not only would a suitable helper be a relationally meaningful companion for Adam, but this companion would also allow Adam to fulfill other important aspects of humanity’s divine calling: reflecting God’s likeness (1:27), multiplying the human population (1:28; 2:25), and expressing God’s rule over the created realm (1:26–28). A fitting helper would bring companionship to Adam and completeness to creation. Man and his helper would fulfill God’s calling—and enjoy God’s creation—in a way neither could do alone.

To find a suitable helper, God brought the beasts of the field and sky to Adam. Just like Adam was formed from the dust of the ground, “out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air” (2:19). One might think that a suitable helper would be found from these creatures that were also created from the ground. Consequently, God “brought them to the man to see what he would name each one” (2:19). Endowed with God-given authority and responsibility, “whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name” (2:19). Discharging his role as a caring steward and loving ruler over God’s created world, “the man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field” (2:20).

As Adam named the animals, he was not able to identify a helper who could serve alongside him as a fitting companion: “for Adam no suitable helper was found” among the animals that he named (2:20). Although the created beasts were good and were created from the ground, they were not suitable for Adam. As a result, “the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep” (2:21). As the man slept, God “took one of the man’s ribs” (2:21). God “closed up the area with flesh” (2:21) and used “the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man” (2:22) to make Adam’s helper. Consequently, God “made a woman” (2:22). Created from Adam’s rib and created for Adam’s help, the woman would be man’s suitable and fitting companion.

When God brought the woman to the man, Adam responded with ecstatic joy. He celebrated the woman. He exclaimed that she was like himself: “this is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh” (2:23). Adam also expressed that “she shall be called ‘woman,’ for out of man she was taken” (2:23). Being created from Adam’s rib—“out of man” (2:23)—woman bore a likeness and similarity to Adam. But the woman was also different and distinct from the man. She corresponded to Adam in a way that completed him. Similar to and distinct from Adam, the woman was truly a fitting and suitable helper for the man.

Biblical Principles

Relationship. Humans were created to function in relationship with one another. God eternally exists in relationship with himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The natural expression of this divine communion is that humans would also enjoy meaningful relationships with one another. Although Adam could not find this companionship among the animal creation—“no suitable helper was found” (2:20)—God would resolve Adam’s predicament by creating a fitting companion. Only another human—a creature who had corresponding likeness and difference to Adam—would meet the need for human companionship. Thus, we learn important principles of human relationships and community. Neither complete sameness nor unbounded diversity is a fertile context for thriving human relationships. Rather, essential unity with diverse expression provides ingredients for a full and flourishing community. When this diversity-in-unity is expressed in God’s plan, it offers an intimacy of relationship that is rich, rewarding, and life-giving.

Male and Female. While the first man inhabited the garden, creation remained incomplete. Only after creating woman would humanity express the full image of God. It is in God’s “own image” that God created humanity, and this image was explicitly expressed as “male and female” (1:27). While man was “alone” (2:18), he could not fully exhibit God’s image. It is only with the suitable helper of “woman” (2:23) that God’s image is displayed. Male and female are unchanging and biological realities of human nature. One’s gender cannot be altered as it represents a God-given and God-decreed aspect of a person’s identity. Any erasure of gender distinctions violently assaults the integrity of what it means to be humans created in God’s image. Any denigration of one gender or domination of one gender against the other also dehumanizes humanity. Only when each gender—male and female—is equally celebrated and clearly distinguished can humanity experience God’s original design for humanity.

Naked and Unashamed: Enjoying Human Intimacy as Part of God’s Plan

Biblical Narrative (Genesis 2:21–25)

The provision of the woman for the man was a gift from God. Not only did she allow humans to fully express God’s image to the created world, she also served the formation of the family unit. That the woman was taken from man (2:22, 23)—specifically created from a rib (2:21–22)—means that she bore a stark resemblance and likeness to man. That she was called “woman” (2:23) and was created as a separate human being (2:22) means that she was distinct and different from man. Truly, woman was man’s counterpart—“bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh” (2:23). That God “brought her to [the man]” (2:22) highlights the fact that she was a gift to Adam, a companion to be enjoyed in a most intimate relationship.

Together, the man and woman would form the first family. At the time of woman’s creation, “the man and his wife were both naked, and they were not ashamed” (2:25). This describes an uninhibited and unencumbered relationship between man and woman. The first man and woman were united as husband and wife. They enjoyed a close and intimate relationship with one another. The joy of this relationship would also bring about the first human family. The biblical text explains that “for this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh” (2:24). God created humans to enjoy intimate relationships within the boundaries of marriage and the family unit. The joy of this intimate relationship would also serve God’s creation mandate for humans to multiply and fill the earth (1:26–28).

Biblical Principles

Human Intimacy. At the end of this narrative, we learn that the man and woman enjoyed a close and intimate relationship with each other. The absence of shame in this first human relationship is a powerful testimony. That they were “both naked” and both “were not ashamed” (2:25) attests to the goodness of God’s creation and the possibility of humans enjoying close relationships with one another. Epitomized in the covenant relationship of marriage, husband and wife enjoy an intimate relationship in which they “become one flesh” (2:24).

In the current condition of the world, we are all too familiar with shame introducing pain, heartache, and frustration into human relationships. The lack of innocence before God and the sense of our own unworthiness erect barriers in our relationships with others. No longer do we live in a world where people experience nakedness without shame. Exposing one’s body to the world is shameful and humiliating. We spend our lives covering our bodies (and lives), hiding parts of ourselves from others. The intimacy of the first marriage may be marred, but through Christ’s advent, crucifixion, and resurrection, God ensured that it would not be entirely lost forever.

Family Foundations. Human relationships thrive when enjoyed following God’s design. The most intimate relationship humans can enjoy is the bond of marriage. When a man and a woman pledge themselves to each other in covenant faithfulness, the foundations of family are created. This very text elaborates on the origins of the human family: “a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh” (2:24). Forming a family involves leaving one’s family unit and creating another family unit through the union of marriage. The family is foundational to society. It is a means of procreation, an incubator of values, and a source of human wellbeing. When the family deteriorates, society decays.

Conclusion

Humans were created as God’s image bearers. Together as male and female, they were created to represent God’s rule in the world as they multiplied and filled the earth. When God created humans, he first created man. He fashioned him out of the dust and brought him to life by breathing into him his life-giving breath. Enjoying dignity as a human, delighting in the blessings of paradise, and receiving a commission for worthwhile and worshipful work, humanity originally enjoyed a flourishing identity, dignity, and vocation. Although this paradise was perfect, man was not able to fulfill his vocation without a suitable helper. God addressed this by creating a woman, a fitting companion to complete the created order and a loving helper to serve alongside Adam. Together, Adam and Eve would form the first family, enjoying a human relationship and intimacy with one another and God.

Above all that God had made, humanity stands in a unique place, embodying the pinnacle of God’s creative work. As humans occupy the planet, we experience a life that feels quite different than the original paradise. We experience infidelity rather than covenant faithfulness. We suffer under shame rather than enjoying the freedom of unencumbered intimacy. Rather than stable families as foundations of a thriving society, we witness the collapse and corruption of the family around us. Many marriages end up in divorce or separation. Despite these glaring contrasts to the paradise of Eden, we do well to consider the origin story of humanity. In this story are keys to unlock God’s vision for a restored humanity, a restoration that is made possible through the redemptive work of Jesus.

Session Synopsis

SESSION 3 SYNOPSIS
Understanding the Nature and Purpose of Humanity	In this passage, we learn about the nature and purpose of humanity. God made humanity as the crowning achievement of his creative work. Humans were created in God’s image to multiply throughout the world, rule over the earth, and care for God’s creation. God placed humanity in a garden paradise in Eden. In this garden of perfect bliss, humanity was to fulfill its purpose and enjoy the presence of God. This narrative gives further details about how God created man and woman. In this account, we learn about the nature of humanity, gender roles, God-given work, and family dynamics. A summary of this story’s principles is outlined below.
Image of God	God created humans in his image (1:26–28). The image of God gives humans great dignity and worth. As God’s image-bearers, humans reflect God’s character, represent God’s rule in the world, share in relationship with one another, and serve God with devotion and delight.
Body and Soul	Man was created as body and soul (2:5–9). Both the physical (body) and immaterial (soul or spirit) of humans are vital to what it means to be human. Although humans are distinct from animal life and not equal to God, they are like God in that they are created in his image.
Blessing, Joy, and Delight	God blessed humans (1:28) and called them to enjoy the good things of his created world (1:29–31; 2:16). God placed the first humans in a garden paradise that was lush, thriving, and abundant (2:10–14). Just as God shared his goodness with creation, God wants people (and creation) to enjoy God’s blessings and share these blessings with others.
Vocation and Work	God appointed the first man to do good work. Humans were made to be caretakers and stewards of the created world (2:5, 15–17). Human vocation involves both obedience to God’s commands and service of God’s purposes in the world.
Gender Roles	God made humanity as two distinct, unchanging genders: male and female (1:27; 2:7–8, 22–23). Men and women are equal in worth, distinct in role, and complementary in their relationship with one another (2:20–24).
Marriage and Family	God appointed marriage and family. One man and one woman are to leave their family and cleave to one another in a covenant relationship of marriage to form families and propagate on the earth (2:24–25). The marriage relationship is the most intimate relationship and is meant to reflect God’s own relationship with himself (1:26–28).

Personal Reflection: Entering the Story

Apply the Text: The word of God is binding and authoritative, the only reliable guide for faith and godliness. True disciples submit themselves to God’s word. In this movement, you will apply God’s word to your lives.

Reflection Questions

Encourage one person to share a testimony about how this story has impacted them so far. Use the reflection questions to examine your life in light of this biblical passage.

Spiritual Practice

Ministry Practice: Rehearsing the Script

Minister the Text: God’s word is living and active. Through God’s word, the Christian community is edified. In this movement, you will utilize the biblical passage to minister to other believers and build them up in their faith.

Application Questions

Look at the infographic below. Use the questions to think about how to minister this text to other believers.

Missional Outreach: Publicizing the Truth

Witness the Text: The Bible is a message of God’s gracious salvation to the world. In word and deed, God’s people proclaim the good news of the gospel. In this movement, you will use this biblical passage to reach out to unbelievers.

Strategy Questions

Reflect on the infographic below. Consider how you can use this passage to witness to the surrounding world. Use the suggested ideas to prime your imagination. Then, put together a plan to share this passage with unbelievers, Afterward, reflect on this mission experience.