Reflections: Image of God

I continue to ponder the clergy conference from last week.

I want to return to one of the theological questions which served as our framework.  "Who am I?" is a central question, or at least one of them. Riding in my car a few days ago I heard "The Logical Song" by Supertramp. It is the ballad of a young man who has lost the magic of life trying to become "sensible, practical, clinical, logical." It is, of course, also the song of a young man who is immature, unwilling to see his responsibilities (a reason why it has lost some of its emotive power now that I am no longer a young man). The emotion resonating in the question: Who am I? is related to many concerns. Do I matter? Am I doing it right? How to related to others?

The answer: "I am the image of God (imago dei)" is foundational. If all human being is a function of God's image, we have an important starting place for discussing the meaning of life and ethics.

In the Old Testament God gave Moses the Ten Words (we call them the Ten Commandments). One of the covenant expectations is that the Jews will make "no graven images." There are few concerns which resonate throughout the OT with as much frequency as the issue of idols. They are considered to be very offensive to God. The Divine cannot be captured and represented in this way. No images are allowed.

Yet, at the beginning of Genesis, we hear that God made humans in His own image and likeness. It was many years before I learned the connection between the anthropology of the bible and the idolatry command. The Lord has created humans in such a way that divinity can be found in humanity. It is stunning.

In the NT (Colossians), we read about Jesus, that "He is the image of the Invisible GOD, the first born of all creation." Our humanity, it seems, is a reflection of His perfect humanity. He is the model by which we understand ourselves. So what is He an image of? The Father. And within God, secretly and far outside of our intellectual grasp, God is Father, Son and Spirit. The expression, God is love, is expressed in the mutual love of three persons in one nature. It is also the source of the love poured out into creation and the world.

"God is love" First John says. But there are many other, much more frequent descriptors. God is holy. God is just. God is merciful. The problem I see with "God is love" is the word love. Since the 1960's love has been stripped of its meaning, hollowed out and diminished. Since Love Story's famous line, "Love mean never having to say you're sorry," there is little connection to the Christian understanding of the word.

We are the image of holiness ("Be holy for I am holy" appears as a demand in both testaments). I think holiness is the core identity of God. God is holy. We need to understand love in the context of holiness. It will save us from much of the silliness in the church today.