Doing Justice and Loving Mercy: Compassion Ministries, Mentor's Guide, MG16

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D O I N G J U S T I C E A N D L O V I N G M E R C Y : C O M P A S S I O N M I N I S T R I E S

The Church is both the locus and agent of the Kingdom of God in the world but not of it . As such, the Church affirms that God is the God of all nature as well as the God of salvation, the God of creation as well as the God of covenant, and the God of justice as well as the God of justification. In its own ministry as the representative of the Kingdom of God, the Church is called to display and announce freedom to the world, to express God’s wholeness in the world, and to stand for God’s justice throughout the world. A good working definition of the imago Dei (i.e., image of God) in Scripture is “The unique condition of all human beings that they are made like God and therefore are worthy of our respect, protection, and care.” The affirmation of humankind being created in the image of God is a unique affirmation , no other creatures or angels are said to have been created in the image of God. While the precise manner in which humankind is created in God’s image is not explicitly stated in Scripture, evidence exists to suggest that human beings share in corresponding traits of God’s own person, namely, our personality, our reason, our ability to choose, and our moral capacity. The fact that humankind was made in the imago Dei suggests that all human beings share this image; all human beings, regardless of their individual or communal state, are therefore unique, precious, and priceless in and of themselves . The biblical implications of the imago Dei in humankind transforms our understanding of human persons. They are created in God’s own image, crowned with glory and honor, are fearfully and wonderfully made, and are providentially nourished by God. As such, human beings have been made the objects of God’s unmerited, unconditional favor and grace, and he identifies with the struggles, needs, and burdens of even the most vulnerable human beings on earth. Human beings, regardless of their background, can be so transformed and renewed as to become partakers of the divine nature through faith in Jesus Christ. While those who reject Christ do not share in this renewal of the image of God, they still share God’s likeness as human beings .

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