Hannah Sorenson’s Reviews > In His Image: 10 Ways God Calls Us to Reflect His Character > Status Update

cont’d

Instead, he talks about the coin itself; he talks about image bearing. He says, in effect, “The coin is engraved with the image of a ‘god,’ marking what belongs to him. You on the other hand, are engraved with the image of God himself, marking what belongs to him.^

^Coins minted during the reign of a particular emperor were stamped with a picture of his face and inscription. The inscription circling the face of Tiberius reads, “Caesar Augustus Tiberius, son of the Divine Augustus,” reinforcing the common claim that the Caesar’s themselves were gods.
[…]
When Jesus responds to his adversaries, he doesn’t really talk about taxes at all.

^There is a difference between self-help and sanctification, that difference is the motive of the heart.

We seek to be holy as God is holy as a joyful act of gratitude. We never seek holiness as a means to earn God’s favor or to avoid his displeasure. We have his favor, and his pleasure rests upon us. The motive of sanctification is joy.^

^It is not coincidental that a lack of discernment and a neglected Bible are so often found in company.^

^But how does God give wisdom? How can we hope to develop this inner sense of discernment between good and evil? We do so by declaring as Solomon did, “Bring me a sword”: “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12).^

^Immediately, Solomon finds himself in a very public trial of his abilities to govern. With the eyes of a nation upon him, he hears two women plead their case against each other.

They are prostitutes, living in the same house, both recent mothers of baby sons. It’s remarkable that their case is heard at all, as they inhabit the very bottom of the social ladder.

^We may speak of a malevolent person as an “evil genius,” but we do not credit wisdom to him. Wisdom implies moral goodness, which God possesses in infinite supply.^

^What is the will of God for your life? His will is that you know the truth (John 8:31). That you walk in the truth (3 John 1:4). That you speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). That you be sanctified in truth (John 17:17). That you rejoice in the truth (1 Cor. 13:6). That you rightly handle the truth (2 Tim. 2:15). That you obey the truth (1 Pet. 1:22).^

^The Christian worldview is a rational view. It is such because it is reality. It is not just rational; it is also good. God’s truth is a good truth.^

cont’d

- Origin: We are not a cosmic accident; we were created by God.
- Purpose: We exist to bring glory to God and to enjoy him forever.
- Problem: Like Adam and Eve, we exchanged the truth of God for a lie and rebelled against our Creator, rendering us spiritually dead.
- Solution: God sent his Son to redeem us from death to life.^