The Doctrine of Mankind

Robbie taught last week on the doctrine of mankind, the 8th sermon on the "Glorious Doctrine" series. If you want to watch the video sermon, you can watch it by clicking here. This sermon focused on bringing an awareness and a holy reminder to our minds of who we are so that our hearts would be better informed and more accurately lead to worship our Creator, for the glory of God.

THE WORD RENEWING MY MIND

1. THE STARTING POINT - As Creator God is Worthy of My Worship

“Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.” – Rev 4:11

God my Creator is worthy of my worship. "The doctrine of mankind must begin with the source of mankind - not to mention the source of all creation". This is indeed the starting point in understanding the doctrine of man – the deepest, purest, and truest understanding of who we are as human beings. Everything that it means to be human, every purpose for humanity, and every source of identity as a human race is found in the fact that we are creatures – we are not just beings, we are intentionally and purposefully created by God.

2. THE FOCAL POINT - I've Been Made in the Image of God

“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” - Gen 1:27

Human beings are the pinnacle of God's creation. Men and women have been created in the likeness of God and they are more "like" God than anything else in all creation. We were created to represent the character and nature of God. Our worth is not autonomous, our worth is not separated from God. We have no value apart from our Creator. Sin, even though it distorts God's image in us, it does not remove God's image from us. God created and continues to create every human being in his own image. We bear God’s image in 5 different ways:

Spiritually:

We are spiritual beings – we have a soul. No other created thing biological creature has a soul that will live eternally whether in heaven or in hell. We have the ability to interact in the spiritual realm - we can understand and see the spiritual things in this world, we can pray, we can worship.

Morally:

We are moral beings – we have consciences that weigh down on us when making decisions. We were created to make moral decisions and with a sense of “right” and “wrong” that is not inherent to any other creatures.

Mentally:

We have a mind that is unparalleled in all creation – we are the most intelligent creatures in the universe (maybe not the smartest all the time…) but the things our mind is capable of are not seen anywhere else in the universe. The hundreds of languages, all the arts, the sciences, the mathematics… Our minds are created in the image of the Lord

Relationally:

We are relational creatures, in the image of God. God has always existed in the perfect and holy community of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He has created with a need, dependence, and desire for relationships. We can have a deep relationship with God, unlike any other creature.

Physically: (this one I found a little tricky to understand)

This does not in any way imply that God is a physical being. We are created in the image of God, and that means physically too. While God does not have any physical attributes to Himself, He created us with physical bodies unlike anything else in all creation. These physical bodies were perfectly designed to reflect the glory of God and to reflect His “image”. Our fingers and thumbs allow us to work the ground like no other creature, our brains allow us a level of understanding and communication necessary to communicate and understand the truths of God. 
 

3. THE TURNING POINT - I Have Been Created for God's Glory

“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” - Col 3:17

Fundamental to understanding the doctrine of mankind is understanding the purpose of mankind. The purpose of mankind is to live seeking to give God the glory and honour He is due. God created us with the purpose of being honoured, that is the reason we were created and exist. When man seeks glory, we are seeking something that is not ours and we rob God of the glory that is His. When God seeks glory for Himself, he does not rob anyone of anything they deserve, and therefore He can be justly, and perfectly good to demand all His creation for honour, reverence, and worship.

THE WORD TRANSFORMING MY HEART 

These truths have lead my heart to rejoice and worship God for the intentional way in which I have been created. I have also been reminded that God is most glorified in me, when I am most satisfied in Him. My daily pursuit of living in a way that accurately and purely reflects the character and the nature is really a pursuit of living joyfully. I am pursuing the highest level of satisfaction by pursuing this! There is nothing more fulfilling as a human being created in the image of God than to live our purpose out. 

THE WORD FORMING MY BEHAVIOUR

These affections for my Creator will advise and determine my day to day life. I will seek to love others, with the mind that all people bear the image of God and have an infinite value because of that. I will seek to "think God's thoughts" and walk in His ways. If I am to be a mirror to reflect who He is, my decisions, thoughts, and attitudes should all reflect His character and what has been revealed about Him. Lastly, I will long for continued growth in the likeness of Jesus Christ. Sin has distorted God's image in me, but through daily battle with the sin nature within me, sanctification will daily transform me to conform more and more to the image of Christ. I do all this with the hope that one day in glory, my glorified "me" will perfectly reflect the glory of my God in heaven, forever.

CLICK TO WATCH THE ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION ON THIS SERMON