Imago Dei And Mutual Submission

Here is an interesting excerpt from the Blog Targuman:

The fact that “the image of God” is represented by both male and female reminds us that God is neither gender. The Bible does consistently use masculine imagery (and verbs of which God is the subject are always conjugated in the masculine form), but this is more due convention and the confines of language than a theological position. When it is appropriate, God and his traits (e.g., wisdom) are described in feminine forms. Fundamentally, however, God transcends gender. Where he is complete and perfect, we are partial representations that require fulfillment in order to approximate his likeness.

This passage also emphasizes that we are to be partners with others in this life. The first man and woman were not created in isolation, but in a relationship with one another. Notice also that this relationship is not purely sexual. They are called to “be fruitful,” but also to work together in order to oversee the world and its care. Each have individual traits and characteristics which are most effective when in harmony with the other.

There is also no inherent hierarchy in this account. Man and woman are created at the same time and are given the same directive. Some who write on this topic refer to this as the “complementarian” model. Each brings different talents and has a different role to play. These roles, however, are not explicated here. Instead Gen. 1 presents us with a true equality of man and woman; created in the same instant the combination of both uniquely represent the image of God.

If Gen. 1 teaches us anything at all about the relationship between husband and wife, wife and husband, it is that they are equal partners in the divinely appointed task of reflecting God’s image and obeying his commands. Together we are to be fruitful, not just in procreation, but in all our works; we are to govern, not as a despot, but following the divine model of a caring and conciliatory king.

Resources For Our Genesis Study

Continuing from my previous post---here are some good online resources on Genesis:

On the side of Theistic Evolution:

Here are 2 interesting postings from one of my Presbyterian friends: The Rev's Rumbles: Creation and Blessing: In the Beginning---here is a highlight from this post:

Much to our chagrin, the Bible does not tell us how God did this work, the specific times, or how many watts of power were needed. The only thing we are told is that creation happened by the power of God's spoken word. As J. I. Packer has written, "The act of creation is mystery to us; there is more in it than we can understand. We cannot create by fiat, and we do not know how God could. To say that he created 'out of nothing' is to confess the mystery, not explain it" (Packer, J. I., "Creation: God is the Creator," Concise theology : A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs [Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House, 1995, c1993]).

There are still those who fret about the exact amount of time God used in creation. Were the six "days" of creation a form of poetry and symbolism, or were they literally twenty-four-hour days? I choose to believe the former, but you can read the arguments for yourself, if you want to take the time. But, as R. C. Sproul cautions us, "It is always dangerous to shout where God has whis pered." One way or another, the Bible is crystal-clear as to the "Who" of creation, and ultimately I think that's enough.

And: The Rev's Rumbles: Creation and Blessing: In God’s Image---here is a highlight from this post:

So what does it mean to be made in the image of God? Well, to be created by this design means that we are able to participate in this incredible phenomenon called thinking, reflecting, deciding, learning, feeling, and knowing.

We are also gifted with a moral sense—truly knowing right from wrong. You cannot speak as Reformed theology does of the "fall" of humankind without granting that there was somewhere to fall from. We were created intelligent, moral creatures, and it's from there that we fell.

To me the most significant reflection of the image of God is humankind's capacity for relationship. According to traditional Reformed theology, God is three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—who enjoy perfect communication, flawless empathy, and unfettered relationship. We mirror that capacity to be in relationship with one another, to magnify the reflection of God's glory through our mutual love for others, especially the relationship of marriage.

We have been made for that which is sacred and holy, in God’s image, to fulfill the purposes of God . . . "for God's glory."

Dr. James McGrath has several postings on Genesis worth going through---here is his latest post on Genesis: Exploring Our Matrix: Review of The Lost World Of Genesis One, Part Ten.

Here are a few posts from Drew Tatusko on evolution vs. creationism: ken ham: religious hack, dr. ken miller breaks down human evolution, 200 years of god denying evilutionism or, darwins birthday and Evolution and Human Suffering among others.

Henry Neufeld's posts on the subject can be found: Here.

Here are some interesting postings on Genesis from my friend Christian Beyer: What if a Woman had Written Genesis? and Faith and Evolution Need Not Be Irreconcilable.

Of general interest is this Blog: An Evangelical Dialogue on Evolution.

And here is all that I've posted on Genesis: Genesis and evolution versus creationism.

On the Creationist side:

Here are some postings from a Reformed Fundamentalist who visited my Blog a few times: Rhoblogy: BEAR 3 - Assume you are a better designer,Rhoblogy: BEAR 2 - Assume it happened, Rhoblogy: Bad Evolutionary Arguments Refuted 1, Rhoblogy: What is BEAR? and Rhoblogy: Naturalism as alchemy among others.

Here are a few posts from a conservative Arminian Blog that I like to read: Arminian Today: Celebrating Darwin? and Arminian Today: Initial Reactions to "Expelled" Movie.

Of general interest are these links: http://raycomfortfood.blogspot.com/, Answers In Genesis, http://www.icr.org/, http://www.drdino.com/ and http://creation.com/.

I'll list more resources as needed along the way in other posts.