Family resemblances make for an interesting discussion.
Where do your looks come from? Do you have your mother’s nose, your father’s eyes, or your grandmother’s shape? Genetics are passed from generation to generation. Common traits reveal themselves and cause people to say, “You remind me of your mother.” Your traits go beyond generational genetics. They go back much farther than the family tree you may have been able to generate.
In fact, as we learn in this week’s study, you are a reflection of God.
Since Mother’s Day is next weekend, a celebration of moms everywhere, we’re bringing you a reading and study of Genesis 1:26-31 from the NIV Mom’s Devotional Bible… You Look Like God
Bible Study Reading: Genesis 1:26-31
Key Verses:
So God created mankind in His own image, in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them. – Genesis 1:27
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. – Psalm 139:13
…and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. – Colossians 3:10
A mother tends to define herself most easily in terms of externals:
I am a mom. I am a wife. I am a daughter. I am a graduate. I am a teacher. I am a volunteer. I am what I do. I am what others need me to be. I am what I accomplish.
While these descriptions may be true, they are incomplete. They overlook the vital fact that we are made, inside and out, by God. We are created in His image and for His purposes. When we gaze into the mirror of God’s Word, we find that God has stamped on our being a reflection of His character, His essence, His being. That is not to say we are mini-gods in any sense. But just as children reflect the physical, mental, and personality traits of their parents, and even adopted children can share the mannerisms and habits of their families, so we who are fashioned by God manifest elements of His character in our beings.
Who are you, Mom?
Genesis 1 and 2 spell it out. You are God’s image-bearer (see Genesis 1:26-27).
God expresses His being through both genders, male and female. You are a co-laborer with all of God’s people in His world (see Genesis 1:28-31). When you live in the fullness of who you are, you show your children, your family, and your world a full and accurate picture of your God. So there, Mom.
Take the definition of who you are from how God made you. You are a unique being fashioned after the God of the universe – inside and out!
Think about this: How often do you define yourself by the negatives? Who you aren’t, what you haven’t accomplished, what you aren’t doing. How might this negative definition of yourself affect your mood as well as your daily choices? How might it impact others around you? Switch your sight to God’s view of you and get ready for great changes!
Study Questions
1. The devotion, from the NIV Moms Devotional Bible, states that you are God’s image-bearer (see Genesis 1:26-27).
- What does it mean to you to be made in God’s image?
- How should it affect the ways in which you view yourself?
2. The text says that God created male and female in His image.
- What part of us did God make in His image? Discuss your ideas.
3. Genesis returns to the creation of man and woman in the second chapter. Read Genesis 2:19-25 we see a description of the creation of the woman.
- What value does Adam place on his wife?
- What can families learn about how wives and mothers should be treated?
4. In various passages throughout the Bible, God shows himself through more feminine terms. What can we learn about God through the following passages? Matthew 23:37, Luke 13:34, Isaiah 42:14, Isaiah 66:12-13, Psalm 131:2
5. Using the same references you just read, what does it say about the nature of a mother, and the role she plays with her children?
6. When we read Genesis 1:28-31, does God place any restrictions on the role of men and women? What were His instructions, and to whom were they directed toward?
7. Read Genesis 49:22-26. In this passage God speaks of things He has blessed.
- What has God given his special blessing on?
- What did the Lord mean when he ended the passage with “Let all these rest on the head of Joseph?”
8. In a world where the deceiver attacks things, which God has blessed, what has happened to God’s blessing on the breast and the womb?
- How has the deceiver warped the world’s view of these parts of a woman?
- How can Godly men help return them to a place of honor?
9. The scripture reveals that God begins to nurture faith, and spiritual vision in a mother’s womb. Read the following passages and discuss possible ways a mother can support God’s work in the womb. Isaiah 46:3-4, Isaiah 49:1, Psalm 22:9-10, Isaiah 49:5, Psalm 139:13-14 10.
Perhaps the greatest value God placed on the wife and mother is described in Ephesians 5:25-27. God used the wife as a prototype of the church and gave very specific instruction to husbands about how to treat their wives.
- What are God’s instructions?
- How can husbands focus on spiritual things to honor their wives this Mother’s Day?
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Your Turn
Moms, when you look in the mirror, who do you see? How do you define yourself? Spend some time today with the Lord asking Him to give you a fresh vision of your value in His eyes! We’d love to hear your comments today on our blog!
