ICS Daily Devotions
Work in His Image
Genesis 2:15 Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.
We are created in God’s image. Generally, we understand this to mean we are like God in terms of our spirit, or personality—we have His nature. However, being in His image should also mean that we act like Him, so the way He worked should become the pattern for our work. We are to be creative in our work, just as He was in creating more out of He has already made—like how He made vegetation out of the ground. This requires imagination on our part. Imagination is like conceiving something out of nothing. The word ‘imagine’ comes from “image”, so to imagine is to form an image—to give shape and form to something that didn’t exist. That happens when we compose music, devise strategies and solve problems.
What God was doing at creation was not just for the Garden of Eden. God’s garden today is the world. Eden was a microcosm of what God wanted to do in the whole world. He worked, when He created. He filled the garden with all kinds of creatures, and within each species, a variety of sub-species. After He had created everything, He tended to it like a gardener. To top it all off, He handed it over to the man He had created, instructing Him to attend to all His creation, just like He did. This was the work that man and woman had to do. Their model for work was God Himself.
So what is our image of the work that we are doing? Do we see ourselves as God’s representative in our work? It is not just our presence that represents God, but our practices—the way we work. It is our way of life that is on display as we work, as well as our work practices every day.
Do we see our work as an integral part of the way of life that God intends for all people? Our work is not just about us—accumulating resources to have a good life just for ourselves, but it is our contribution to all of life. It goes towards the well-being and wholeness of the life of other people—our family members, colleagues and many others in our network of relationships.
Sermon Series: God At Work
