Daily Reading
The Imago Dei
May 2, 2023
Today's Daily Reading is an excerpt from Morgan Snyder's book Becoming a King
The desire to be powerful transcends both social constructs and our boyhood dreams of becoming firefighters, policemen, NFL football players, Olympic athletes, fighter pilots, or soldiers. This longing transcends because it is the image of God in us.
We need to look no further than the opening chapter of Genesis for this reminder. God formed us from soil into his image, then breathed us to life in order that we might rule and reign under the authority of his goodness. To share valiantly and effectively in God’s power was the first mission entrusted to humankind. With deep anticipation, God declared to Adam and Eve, “I want you to rule.”
When we strip away the religious veil, this command is more rousing than we might first think; it is the invitation to become who we were meant to be. As bearers of God’s image, we were meant to embody God’s heart, character, and power, partnering with God to fulfill his purposes in our days. As John shares in Waking the Dead, we were meant to rule, “like a foreman runs a ranch or like a skipper runs his ship. Better still, like a king rules a kingdom, God appoints us as the governors of his domain.” A kingdom is, as Dallas Willard pointed out, simply the range of our effective will. It is where we have say, where our will is done. It is within the context of kingdom language and kingdom thinking that we must reconsider God’s design for effective power-sharing with created yet creative human beings.
Want more? Order your copy of Becoming a King today.
The desire to be powerful transcends both social constructs and our boyhood dreams of becoming firefighters, policemen, NFL football players, Olympic athletes, fighter pilots, or soldiers. This longing transcends because it is the image of God in us.
We need to look no further than the opening chapter of Genesis for this reminder. God formed us from soil into his image, then breathed us to life in order that we might rule and reign under the authority of his goodness. To share valiantly and effectively in God’s power was the first mission entrusted to humankind. With deep anticipation, God declared to Adam and Eve, “I want you to rule.”
When we strip away the religious veil, this command is more rousing than we might first think; it is the invitation to become who we were meant to be. As bearers of God’s image, we were meant to embody God’s heart, character, and power, partnering with God to fulfill his purposes in our days. As John shares in Waking the Dead, we were meant to rule, “like a foreman runs a ranch or like a skipper runs his ship. Better still, like a king rules a kingdom, God appoints us as the governors of his domain.” A kingdom is, as Dallas Willard pointed out, simply the range of our effective will. It is where we have say, where our will is done. It is within the context of kingdom language and kingdom thinking that we must reconsider God’s design for effective power-sharing with created yet creative human beings.
Want more? Order your copy of Becoming a King today.