The Civic Pew
Week 5 · Life

Life and the Image of God

From the first chapter of Genesis to a baby leaping in the womb: why every human life has worth, and what that means for the laws we support.

By The Civic Pew

Many public debates come down to one question: what is a human being worth? Our answer shapes how we think about the unborn, the elderly, the disabled, the poor, the prisoner, and the stranger. Scripture’s answer is clear from its first chapter, and it gives Christians a consistent ethic of life in a culture that often values people by what they can do.

1. Made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26–27)

“God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” (Genesis 1:27, NASB 1995)
NKJV: “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”

That truth is the root of human dignity. No one is a “potential” person or a “lesser” person. A child with Down syndrome, an Alzheimer’s patient, a refugee, and a member of Congress all bear the same image.

2. The image is why life is protected (Genesis 9:6; Exodus 20:13)

After the flood, God gave Noah—and through him all humanity—a basic law for every society:

“Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made man.” (Genesis 9:6, NASB 1995)
NKJV: “Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed; For in the image of God He made man.”

The reason God gives is not usefulness or social cost. It is the image of God. Murder is an attack on someone who belongs to Him. The Ten Commandments put it in just two Hebrew words: לֹא תִּרְצָח (lo tirtsach), “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13). Even our speech is measured by the image: James warns against cursing “men, who have been made in the likeness of God” (James 3:9).

3. Known before birth (Psalm 139:13–16; Jeremiah 1:5)

David marveled at God’s care before he was born:

“For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb.” (Psalm 139:13, NASB 1995)
“Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.” (Psalm 139:16, NASB 1995)
NKJV: “Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.”

God told Jeremiah the same:

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5, NASB 1995)
NKJV: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”

4. A baby leaps for joy (Luke 1:41–44)

When pregnant Mary visited her relative Elizabeth, “the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit” (Luke 1:41). Elizabeth explained, “the baby leaped in my womb for joy” (1:44). John, still unborn, responded to the presence of Jesus, Himself only recently conceived.

5. Speak up for those who cannot (Proverbs 24:11–12; 31:8)

God calls His people to defend the defenseless: “Open your mouth for the mute, For the rights of all the unfortunate” (Proverbs 31:8). “Rescue the weak and needy; Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked” (Psalm 82:4). And He does not accept the excuse of ignorance: “If you say, “See, we did not know this,” Does He not consider it who weighs the hearts?” (24:12).

That calling is broad. It includes the unborn child and also the mother facing a frightening pregnancy, the disabled adult, the elderly person told he is a burden, and the victim of violence. A Christian ethic of life protects the vulnerable at every stage—and offers grace to the wounded. For anyone who carries the grief of a past abortion, the gospel is real: “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

What American history adds

The Declaration of Independence lists “Life” first among the unalienable rights with which people are “endowed by their Creator.” Thomas Jefferson later wrote, as he left the presidency in 1809, “The care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only legitimate object of good government.” Our nation has not always lived up to that—slavery is the starkest example—but the principle is right, and it comes from Genesis before it comes from Philadelphia.

So what does this look like in real life?

Every person you will meet today bears the image of God. That is why life matters, and why Christians should work for laws and communities that welcome and protect every human life—from the womb to the last breath.

For reflection

  1. Where in your community are people treated as if their lives matter less?
  2. How can your church support mothers, families, and caregivers in practical ways?
  3. How does the image of God change the way you speak about people you disagree with?

Peace and Love,
The Civic Pew

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