Are We Made in the Image of God?
Inviting friends to write on imagination has been very encouraging as we can enjoy the variety of facets we each carry in the illumination of a topic. I initially asked three questions as a jumping-off point. Here's Roger's response to my second question: What is a common misconception or concern about using the imagination?
One common (perhaps the most common) misconception regarding using our imagination is a belief that our imagination resides strictly in our mind instead of within our spirit, which has been made alive through union and regeneration with the Holy Spirit [II Cor.5:17 - “…if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new”.]
This misconception results in our being susceptible to believing the attacks and the lies of the enemy.
Many, if not most, Christians adhere to the generally accepted doctrine of our being tripartite beings (three parts) made in the image of God. As God consists of three parts: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we likewise consist of three parts: body, soul, and (human) spirit. Similarly, our soul also consists of three parts: our mind, our will, and our emotions.
Western culture and education, which is based mainly on a Greek philosophical mindset that places knowledge above all, instructs us to accept that our lives function in two expressions: those being the ‘secular’ and the ‘sacred.’ We are hardwired throughout our lives to believe that our mind is relegated to the ‘soulish’ part of us and is therefore engaged only in our ‘secular’ life, being separated from our ‘sacred’ or spiritual life. Never the two should meet.
This misconception results in our being susceptible to believing the attacks and the lies of the enemy, which will inevitably come whenever we attempt to approach the spiritual realm using our imagination. I know. I was attacked. Among the lies I ‘heard’ were: “…it’s all in your mind…” – “…it’s not real…” – “…you’re making it all up….”
To counter the lies from the enemy, we need truth – not worldly knowledge, but the Spirit of Truth. We need to have our minds transformed and renewed by the Spirit of God [Rom.12:3 - “…do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…”].
The lies that the enemy assails us with are overcome by using the example that Jesus gave us when he was tempted by Satan in the wilderness. He overcame by proclaiming the Word of God [see Matthew 4:1-10].
When the enemy attacked me with “…it’s all in your mind…”, I could therefore thwart his assault on my mind with the scripture I Cor.2:16b - “But we have the mind of Christ”.
When he attacked with – “…it’s not real…”, I was able to deflect his lie with II Cor.4:18b - “For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
When he attacked with “…you’re making it all up…”, I could answer with Heb.11:1,3 - “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”; “ …the things which are seen [are] not made of things which are visible.”
Before engaging your imagination, then, I encourage you to arm yourself with the Word. Believe that you have, as sons and daughters of the King, the right to ‘see the unseen.’ Engage your faith to activate your divine imagination, then strap in and enjoy the ride. Our Father, Jesus, and His Spirit are able and willing to “…do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to [His] power that works in us”. [Eph.3:20].
Roger Hanson
All scriptures are from The New King James Version, 1996, Broadman & Holman, pub.
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