Genesis 1:27-28
God created man in his own image. In God’s image he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them. God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
When we ask ourselves, “What is our purpose in life?” it is logical to go back to the beginning of life, and we have mankind’s beginning right here in Genesis 1:27. The amazing fact that we discover about us is that God made us in His own image. There is no other creature who can claim this, not even the angels. In other words, out of all of God’s creatures only mankind was made to display what God, Himself is like.
I believe that this fact forms a basis for our meaning in life. There is so much more detail to learn in the Bible, but this tells us a great deal. Since we were made by God to bear His image, we were intended to honor Him in a very special way by our very existence. Our value is not primarily based on what we do but in who we are. Even though we are born imperfectly, we all bear God’s image. Each person that God brings to life is important even if they seem small in this world. The fact always remains that our purpose is bound up in who we are, not what we do. Men and women were meant to act in a “godly” way and it only makes sense because of who they are. This also explains why evil men and women cannot continue to exist without punishment. At some point, God must deal with all ungodliness or else His name would continue to be dishonored.
Notice that God blessed man and woman and told them to reproduce and fill the earth. Having natural families that reproduce is what God intended. Notice that both man and woman are in made God’s image. Both deserve equal respect and honor.
Finally, I want to discuss the occupation of mankind. Notice that we were to both “subdue” and “dominate” the earth. These are military terms for a place in which absolutely no military is needed! I believe that these terms accurately describe the hard work that mankind is intended to do, even in a perfect world! I think that another way to put this is that it is our job to learn how to take control of and organize the earth to develop benefits for all living creatures. I believe God is asking us to do things like He does after we study and learn how.