Genesis 1:26 - Purposed to Rule

Genesis 1:26 “Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.'”

This past weekend was a very important weekend for many young people. Over these past few weeks from many universities and colleges graduated a group of people all starting a new life, a life outside academia and outside everything they have previously known.  Most of these recent graduates are trying to find their purpose in life, a purpose they have not yet found but have guessed enough to try and prepare for it with what education they could. As they try to find their vocation in life, they will most all of them make the mistake of deciding that what jobs they do will become their life's goal or purpose. Sadly, this is not true. Mankind was created with a  purpose, a purpose intended for each and every one of us. It does not matter which direction our lives take, our purposes are all the same.

God created us to rule, to be stewards of all that is in and on the earth for Him, and to do it wisely.  The Jackals, Hyenas, Ants, and Vultures were created to be nature's cleaners and sweepers. Bees, butterflies, and many birds were created to be the garden tenders of the world, ensuring that plants are spread and beauty is shown. Deer, Elk, and Locusts were created to keep that growth in check. Man was intended to oversee all this and to ensure the smooth operations of all the other jobs. It was not a very difficult job because all the other animals knew their jobs and did them without thought. Man was given thought, will, imagination, and soul. To man it was left to take the beauty of the flowers and arrange them into pleasing patterns and shapes. To man it was left to take the herds of grazers and ensure that no area is over grazed. To man it was left to create songs - not through mindless repetition or inherent words, but rather through personal knowledge – to glorify God. To man it was left to wisely manage this garden world of God's. For us to do this wisely, we must therefore know God and spend time with Him. Since the world pretty much ran itself at that time, Adam's sole purpose was to hang out with God and learn how to rule, how to manage, and how to arrange things to God's delight and desire. In short, Man was created to hang out and chill with God since in no way can we master everything God knows about even being a good steward! This is our purpose in life!

Yet when the world fell, we lost our sense of purpose, yet not entirely. Adam became a farmer, ruling his little section of it as best as he could. He still tried to glorify God. Likewise in this fallen world, our purpose is to be God's stewards over all that He entrusts to us. No matter where we are or what we are doing, we are stewards of God's will. Strangely enough it always turns out that the more time we spend just hanging out with God and spending time with Him, the easier it is to be a good steward. It just seems to happen naturally. Yet when we take our time back to ourselves and away from God's companionship and forgo it, then it becomes a struggle to be even a mediocre steward of our possessions, desires, and self not to mention the things around us.

So then this week let us remind ourselves of God's purpose for us and let us work hard to learn everything He has to show us about that purpose. Let us spend more and more time in fellowship with God and we will find that our duties of ruling over the little God has given us has become easier and easier.

God eternal has a purpose, formed in His eternal past,
Spreading to eternal future;  'twixt these ends all time is cast.
For with time there is the process, time for His accomplishment;
And in time we're merely travelers— for eternity we're meant. 
                                                                                    Ned Nossaman