Why Parents Should Consider the Image of God
The Bible’s doctrine of humanity is grossly neglected, and I believe that’s a problem. You won’t find it included in many parenting books, especially in books for parents of teenagers —where you’re more likely to find writers joking about whether or not teenagers even qualify as human—and that’s a shame. Understanding what it means to be created in God’s image will help you and your kids see how their faith in Christ shapes their daily life, whether they’re animal lovers, artists, or athletes.
God created humanity in his image, as living icons of his glory and goodness in this world. We want our kids to honor the Lord in everything, so others would see their lives and give glory to their Father in heaven (Matt. 5:16). This is God’s purpose in creating humanity, and it’s also our objective in parenting. Amid all the conversations about how to help our kids discover who they are, we’ve often overlooked the importance of teaching them what they are: human beings, created in God’s image. This is why I wrote Iconic: Being God’s Image in Your World for youth and young adults, to help them discover how their identity is anchored in what it means to be human.
“Amid all the conversations about how to help our kids discover who they are, we’ve often overlooked the importance of teaching them what they are: human beings, created in God’s image.”
Parents are the lead disciple-makers in their children’s lives. That’s why parents of children, teenagers, and young adults need to understand this doctrine, and I want to help you guide your children to live as faithful icons of Christ Jesus. Here are five iconic ways parents can benefit from digging into the Bible’s message about what it means to be created in God’s image.
1. This doctrine Clothes parenting with god-given dignity
Every person is created in God’s image and is worthy of dignity and honor. Sin has corrupted and twisted our ability to bear God’s image faithfully, but it hasn’t corrupted what we are as human beings. Both godly Christians and vile sinners who have willfully rejected God were made in God’s image. Even after sin’s corruption, David celebrates the truth that God made us “a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor” (Psalm 8:5 ESV). When you’re raising your children, you’re doing more than raising people who reflect on you; you’re raising living icons of God’s glory and goodness.
2. It reflects what the gospel accomplishes in us
Honoring the image of God in every person doesn’t mean we deal lightly with sin. Just the opposite! Helping our kids see how sin corrupts the image of God within us will help them see why sin is so evil and worthy of judgment. Sin twists and warps the glory and goodness of God that’s embedded within us in ways that lead us to seek our own glory, and to pursue our own definition of “goodness.”
Instead of living for our own glory, the gospel sets us free to fulfill the mission God gave Adam in the Garden of Eden. It sets us free to be living icons of God’s glory and goodness in our world. The gospel unites us with Christ Jesus, the one in whose image we were created! When we grow in Christlikeness, we’re embracing what it means to be fully human.
3. It shapes our relationships
Our Triune God lives in eternal relationship within himself. This is why loneliness cuts so deeply for image-bearers. We learn how to love and be loved by embracing what it means to be iconic. As his icons in this world, we’re given four fundamental relationships: with God, with one another, with creation, and within ourselves. Each of these relationships is a blessing from God, but they aren’t equal. For example, if you expect your family to give you what only God can deliver, you’ll heap unrealistic expectations on your family, expectations only God can meet.
4. It Guides us in Holiness
The gospel saves us from sin and conforms us to Christ’s image. That means the image of God guides us in our pursuit of holiness. One of my favorite portions of Iconic to write was the section in chapter 8 that links the fruit of the Spirit with the communicable attributes of God. The fruits of the Spirit aren’t arbitrary; they reflect God’s very nature. This is why the Holy Spirit produces them in believers’ lives in the first place! Raising our children to know, love, and serve Jesus is grounded in our desire to see them reflect God’s glory and goodness in their world.
5. It Gives us Hope
Christian hope is as secure as God’s holiness. When our kids struggle with the same habitual sins, when they experience heartache, or when the sting of death, sickness, divorce, or disability strikes, we can lead them to God. Hoping in God isn’t a last resort or sad cliche. He hasn’t abandoned his image-bearers, but has secured our salvation, and he will deliver us gloriously, for all eternity. Instead of making this life a hollow “trial run,” the biblical vision of eternity fills us with godly motivation to faithfully bear God’s image today because our bodies will be resurrected in glory. There we’ll be gloriously human, fully sanctified image-bearers, living in perfect fellowship with our loving God.
Being Iconic
The image of God doesn’t immediately seem like the most practical doctrine for parents to explore, but it’s at the heart of the entire human story. We’re created in glory, fallen into sinful corruption, redeemed into the image of Christ, and glorified in the new creation. If we want to raise a new generation who will be salt and light in the world, I can’t think of a better place to start than by teaching them what it means to be iconic.
Mike McGarry, DMin, served as a youth pastor for nearly twenty years. He is the founder/director of Youth Pastor Theologian. He and his wife, Tracy, have two teenagers and are committed to investing in the next generation. Mike is the author of A Biblical Theology of Youth Ministry, Lead Them to Jesus, Discover: Questioning Your Way to Faith, and Iconic: Living as God’s Image in Your World, and he has contributed to Gospel-Centered Youth Ministry. He writes and speaks frequently through Youth Pastor Theologian.