In my daily devotional from David Jeremiah, I came across this. I particularly liked the way he put the two realities of either worshipping idols or worshipping the One True God together so that we could see the difference. Idols are made in our image with all of our characteristics, whilst God makes us in His image which then means that our character can be like Him rather than ourselves. We are saved by God’s wisdom and through His creation. See what you think as you read this extract below.
“Ancient pagans spent much time trying to meet their gods’ demands and beg them for blessings. Sacrifices — even human sacrifices — were a central part of their efforts. Pagan peoples approached their gods the same way they approached other people because they created the gods (idols) in their own image. Because human beings can be unpredictable and vengeful, so the gods they created were the same. The character of the gods reflected the character of those who made them.
But the God of the Bible is different. He created mankind in His image, not vice versa. God’s character has been eternally the same, a character summed up in one word: Love. The Bible says “God is love,” and there is nothing that can separate us from His love as revealed through Christ. Everything God does is based on His character of perfect love. There is nothing we can do to earn God’s love or favor. We are loved because He created us in His image to be loved by Him.” Dr David Jeremiah
So as in today’s passage from Scripture and picking up from the Beatitudes we looked at last weekend, we can see that if we have a will to allow God to speak into our lives and give Him the right to mould us and shape us according to His will, then we actually have the possibility to live our lives as He would have them for us. The reason it’s possible? Because that greatest of acts of mercy and love, Jesus’ coming into our midst, taking the cost of all our sin onto His back at the Cross, conquering death itself as an act of His free will, and then rising again as unequivocal proof that He reigns over all things and calls us to follow, has been done. The door has been opened and He calls us through. God loves us into life!