MAN'S PLACE IN THE UNIVERSE

GENESIS 1:2

A. "AND GOD SAID, LET US MAKE MAN IN OUR IMAGE AFTER OUR LIKENESS; AND LET THEM HAVE DOMINION OVER THE FISH OF THE SEA, AND OVER THE FOWL OF THE AIR, AND OVER THE CATTLE, AND OVER ALL THE EARTH, AND OVER EVERY CREEPING THING THAT CREEPETH UPON THE EARTH"
  1. God's work in the creation of this world:
    1. Reaches its climax in the making of man
    2. He was made in the image and likeness of the Creator - Gen. 1:27
  2. This places man in perspective to other intelligences in God's creation:
    1. "A little lower than the angels" - Ps. 8:4
    2. "Crowned with honor and glory" - Ps. 8:4-5 B. LET US NOTE THE DIVINE DIRECTIVE TO MAN TO LEARN MAN'S PLACE AND FUNCTION IN GOD'S UNIVERSE
  3. "Be fruitful and multiply"
    1. Here we have the primary design or purpose of man's creation; become, as it were, a co-creator with his Creator
    2. The earth and the things on and in the earth were to become the workshop of man to master the things in nature, to make the earth beautiful and productive
  4. To fulfill the divine design, the Creator endowed man with the physical and mental powers by which man is set apart from the animal kingdom:
    1. Man is endowed with the powers of reason he is able to reason his way in life - Is. 1:18
    2. He has been endowed with the powers of manipulations; the spirit of inventiveness - Eccl. 7:29
  5. Had man remained loyal to his Maker:
    1. This world would have become, as it were, a showcase of the manifold wisdom and power of God, it's Creator, "The whole earth would have become full of the glory of God"
    2. Man's dominion would have been a blessing to His domain, instead of a curse - Is. 24:1-14
  6. Man's accomplishments in spite of the difficulties caused by sin:
    1. Are phenomenal - especially during the last century
    2. He has learned to master the forces in nature and is harnessing the powers of nature to a high degree beyond our imagination C. IT IS CRYSTAL CLEAR THEN THAT MAN'S PLACE IN THE UNIVERSE IS TO INCREASE THE VALUES OF THIS WORLD - TO THE GLORY OF GOD, THE AUTHOR OF CREATION
  7. There is the matter of material production:
    1. "Replenish the earth, and subdue it" - Gen. 1:28
    2. Man's inventive skill has provided him with machines that have given man access to the riches in the mineral world
    3. He is probing into the very recesses of the earth formerly hidden; minerals found in the earth and under the sea
  8. Mankind is also responsible for great mental production:
    1. This century has produced mental giants in many fields of human endeavor - Dan. 12:4
    2. We think of the present use of the computer; that invention alone points to the tremendous strides made by physical science
  9. The highest of all the values of the world, however, are the spiritual values:
    1. Men and women among all races, have enriched this world with moral powers without which this world would have fell doomed long ago
    2. We think of the men that gave us the Bible - 2 Pet. 1:19-20; 2 Tim. 3:15-17
    3. We think of the men that upheld moral principles in the face of death; Examples: Joseph - Gen. 39:9-14; Daniel and his friends - Dan. 1:8; 3:15-23
    4. We think of men and women that enriched the world with a saving faith in God's promises - Examples: Abraham and other patriarchs; then the long list of witnesses as recorded in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews
    5. We think of the men and women of prevailing prayer that have become a universal incentive to prayer - Examples: Jacob - Gen. 32:26-28; Paul - Eph. 3:14
  10. Man's place in the universe:
    1. Will be dramatized when the redeemed are put on display before the universe
    2. When sin and the effects of sin will have been removed from the earth


Design © John Bryant 2011