Genesis 1:26-31 (26)
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
I was surprised when I saw this literally taking place. Bro. Andrew had just taken Bro. Trussell and me to visit some of the church plants in the area surrounding Mandalay, Myanmar. Now we were in the large city of Mandalay. We visited a huge Pagoda (Buddhist temple), we saw the prison where Adoniram Judson was incarcerated and then Bro. Andrew pointed to a building we were passing. “That is where they make idols,” he said. It was picture taking time. Sure enough, in a ram shackled building men were pouring cement into large cast molds. All around the building we saw the finished products. Big Buddhas. Little Buddhas. Medium sized Buddhas. They were all staring lifelessly back at us.
So often we try to pour God into our own mold. “Let us make God in our image.” We want Him to think like us. We want His Word to say what we believe it should mean. We want a God we can manage. On the other hand, He created us to be like Him. We have failed miserably but that is still His desire. Romans 8:29 reminds us that God’s predetermined will is that we be “conformed to the image of His Son.
Dr. Gayle Woods