What does it mean to be created in the Image of God?

From Jonathan Schultz at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Bixby, OK. One must consider several things in answer to the question “What does it mean to be created in the Image of God?” First we consider mankind is unique from all the rest of creation. God created all of the other creatures with a simple statement “Let there be” but in mankind’s creation God says “Let us make.” The fact that God also breathed into mans the breath of life further distinguishes man from all the other creatures “the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being” (Genesis 2:7) Next He says “after our own image.” He said this only about man and not the other creatures “…created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians. 4:24b). Man is not just another category of creature. There is mankind but no animal-kind or plant-kind. Man is unique. He is made in the image of his creator. Animals are not. Next we see that God created man to be in communion with Him. Mankind was created to be His companions. To this end He has given man emotions, the ability to reason, morals, a mind and a memory. Scriptures reveal the fact that God gives specific instructions to man because man can understand and relate to what He is saying. They are responsible to God. He has not given this to any of His other creatures. Man was given the ability to have dominion over all creation. He is to be in charge. “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.’ Then God said, ‘I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.’ And it was so” (Genesis 1: 28-30). We see further evidence of man being created in the Image of God in Genesis 9:6 “‘Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the Image of God has God made man.’” This implies that after the fall mankind retains the distinction of God’s image even though we lost the close relationship that was theirs at creation. It is permissible to kill animals but not other humans because they still are created in the Image of God. One is not to speak ill of other human beings. To do so would be speaking ill of God because mankind is created in His image. “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be” (James 3: 9-10).

St. Patrick's Day History

I found this on History Channel.com. In St. Patrick's honor we will be celebrating a Lenten service tonight at 7pm at Lord of Life Lutheran Church, 13160 South Memorial drive in Bixby, OK. Also our Coffeehouse, at the same address in Bixby, is offering Irish Cream Coffee, Lattes (hot or iced) and Frappe's All can be made Sugar free. Vicar Jonathan Schultz On this day in 461 A.D., Saint Patrick, Christian missionary, bishop and apostle of Ireland, dies at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland. Much of what is known about Patrick's legendary life comes from the Confessio, a book he wrote during his last years. Born in Great Britain, probably in Scotland, to a well-to-do Christian family of Roman citizenship, Patrick was captured and enslaved at age 16 by Irish marauders. For the next six years, he worked as a herder in Ireland, turning to a deepening religious faith for comfort. Following the counsel of a voice he heard in a dream one night, he escaped and found passage on a ship to Britain, where he was eventually reunited with his family. According to the Confessio, in Britain Patrick had another dream, in which an individual named Victoricus gave him a letter, entitled "The Voice of the Irish." As he read it, Patrick seemed to hear the voices of Irishmen pleading him to return to their country and walk among them once more. After studying for the priesthood, Patrick was ordained a bishop. He arrived in Ireland in 433 and began preaching the Gospel, converting many thousands of Irish and building churches around the country. After 40 years of living in poverty, teaching, traveling and working tirelessly, Patrick died on March 17, 461 in Saul, where he had built his first church. Since that time, countless legends have grown up around Patrick. Made the patron saint of Ireland, he is said to have baptized hundreds of people on a single day, and to have used a three-leaf clover--the famous shamrock--to describe the Holy Trinity. In art, he is often portrayed trampling on snakes, in accordance with the belief that he drove those reptiles out of Ireland. For thousands of years, the Irish have observed the day of Saint Patrick's death as a religious holiday, attending church in the morning and celebrating with food and drink in the afternoon. The first St. Patrick's Day parade, though, took place not in Ireland, but the United States, when Irish soldiers serving in the English military marched through New York City in 1762. As the years went on, the parades became a show of unity and strength for persecuted Irish-American immigrants, and then a popular celebration of Irish-American heritage. The party went global in 1995, when the Irish government began a large-scale campaign to market St. Patrick's Day as a way of driving tourism and showcasing Ireland's many charms to the rest of the world. Today, March 17 is a day of international celebration, as millions of people around the globe put on their best green clothing to drink beer, watch parades and toast the luck of the Irish.