Genesis 1.26
In two episodes of the Science Channel’s “Through the Wormhole” a few nights ago, two intriguing issues were raised. In “How Does the Universe Work?”, the question of a theory of everything was addressed. This “final theory,” a single mathematical formula that governs and explains the workings of the entire universe, is a kind of Holy Grail for the scientific community. Thus far, the theory has eluded the best scientific minds of human history. In “Faster than Light,” the discussion was about how scientists are grappling with the limitations of speed. Supposedly, nothing can travel faster than the speed of light. The program highlighted the theories of those who have developed ideas about how the limitations of the speed of light can be circumvented. What does all this have to do with the image and likeness of God in man?
First of all, the problems of space travel associated with the limitations imposed by the law of the speed of light highlight an interesting feature of the creation story in Genesis 1. God imposed limiting categories when he created the physical universe. The physical laws God instituted in creation are universal: they apply at all times and all places. To work well and efficiently, we all must honor and conform to these laws (the same is true of ethical and spiritual laws). For instance, in flying, mankind uses the laws of aerodynamics to help him overcome, in a sense, the law of gravity. These laws of aerodynamics must be honored and obeyed if we are to fly. Further, the law of gravity cannot be ignored when “flying machines” are constructed.
The laws of gravity and aerodynamics are, in essence, mathematical formulas. These formulas are immutable and sovereign; we ignore them at our peril. Additionally, some see in these formulas the hope of identifying a theory of everything. If such a theory could be advanced, some argue, then we would be able to understand how our universe and all its constituent parts work. Interestingly, Scripture gives us a “theory of everything,” or, we would argue, the truth about everything. The biblical truth of everything is rooted in the person of God himself.
At this point, we encounter the “image and likeness of God” in man and the paradox of man and the theory of everything. First, if the theory of everything, the final theory, can be stated as a mathematical formula, then all things in the universe can be expressed in terms of mathematics. The paradox for theoretical scientists and their final theory, as I see it, is the wholly irrational behavior of human beings. How can our illogical and irrational behavior, based on decisions in themselves irrational and illogical, be reduced to a mathematical formula?
“Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.” Interestingly, both image and likeness are words referring to physical expressions. The term “likeness” is found in Exodus 20.4: “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.” Further, Paul used the equivalent Greek term for likeness in Romans 1.23 where he stated mankind had “exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.”
We believe, though, the image and likeness of God is more than a simple physical manifestation. We look for something deeper, something internal, something by which we humans are defined and distinguished from all other life forms. Perhaps, the paradox of man’s irrational and illogical behavior is a clue to understanding the image of God. We are free to choose to obey or disobey God’s laws. We have a will; we are capable of making decisions. We can choose to do one thing or the other. All other life forms are without the ability to make these kinds of decisions.
We are sentient beings, so, we are conscious of ourselves and others. We choose to interact with others or not to interact with them. The great apes, for instance, operate within the laws of nature, their every behavior being predetermined and scripted. Apes do not choose to interact with humans; we choose to interact with them. Gorillas and chimpanzees do not gather for the purpose of deciding which group will live where, or how they will share food resources. The life and behavior of apes might be expressed in a mathematical formula. We humans, on the other hand, cannot be described with a formula. Too much of our behavior is unscripted and surprising. Some kill animals, some do not. Some give their lives to preserve life, while others take life to preserve their own. We humans are, as Mr. Spock often observed, illogical beings.
We are the way we are because of how God made us. When we recognize and accept the image of God in ourselves, we then live productive and healthy lives. When we ignore that image and likeness, we sin, and pay the price for our freedom to choose. As a result of our freedom to act, we have incurred a terrible consequence: death. This consequence of our sin resulted in another mathematically irrational act: the vicarious death of Jesus on the Cross. If law was supreme, we would all be without hope and would die the ultimate death: eternal separation from our Creator.
Fortunately for us, God is sovereign, not the laws he instituted. Thus, he was able to solve the problem of our irrational and illogical behavior, our sin, and offer to us the opportunity to accept that solution and avoid the consequence of our sin.
The sad truth about any final theory scientists might articulate is the utter hopelessness of such a theory. If all we are can be reduced to a mathematical formula, then, all we can do is live and die. That is what physical law alone demands. Thankfully, God, not physical law, is sovereign. “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The law of Grace, not a theory of everything, is our hope.
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