Since Question 2 affirmed that God is the Creator and Sustainer of all things, He is our Creator and Sustainer. Therefore, our present question addresses a subject of nearly supreme practicality (and notice the two-part structure of the question): How and why did God create us? The first sentence gives us the answer proper, while the second sentence provides a bit more explanation.

First, the answer to how God created us, male and female in his own image, is a summary of Genesis 1:27:

So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

God formed mankind in His image, after His likeness. Like a painted portrait or a carved statue reflects the image of a person, humanity was made to reflect the likeness of God. Of course, we should not think in physical terms, since God is spirit. Indeed, God only speaks of Himself anthropomorphically (i.e., having eyes, hands, etc.) so that we may be able to grasp something of what He is like. Instead, we are meant to be reflections of God’s character. As He is love, so we are also to love. As He is truth, so we are also to abide in the truth. And so on.

Even before the Fall, our reflection was by no means full, but sin, while not eliminating our bearing of God’s image, has greatly marred our reflection of Him. Only Jesus, being the eternal Son of God, is rightly called the image of the invisible God and the exact imprint of His nature.

We also note that God created humanity to exist in two genders. God did not create man to fully embody humankind, while merely creating the woman to be his personal servant. No, God always meant for mankind to have both male and female, which is a reflection of the nature of God and perhaps is part of what is meant by being image-bearers. Notice this: God is triune, one God existing in three persons. Father, Son, and Spirit are all God, but each has a different and unique role and personhood. Thus, God is both plural and singular. In Genesis 1:27, we find a similarity being made with mankind. First, the word man is used, along with the singular masculine “him”, but then male and female are used along with the plural “them”. Thus, male and female are both different and unique but also distinctly human. Each is human, but both are different. Michael Reeves argues that the humanity’s existence in male and female is the clearest picture (though still not a perfect analogy by any means) the Bible gives for how we are to think of the Trinity:

There is something about the relationship and difference between the man and woman, Adam and Eve, that images the being of God—something we saw the apostle Paul pick up on in 1 Corinthians 11:3. Eve is a person quite distinct from Adam, and yet she has all her life and being from Adam. She comes from his side, is bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh, and is one with him in the flesh (Gen 2:21-24). Far better than leaves, eggs, and liquids, that reflects the personal God, a Son who is distinct from his Father, and yet who is of the very being of the Father, and who is eternally one with him in Spirit.

Second, we are given the answer to why God created us in the second half of the sentence: to know him, love him, live with him, and glorify him. In some sense, these four statements are really four sides of one whole concept. To know God truly and experientially will mean loving Him. Loving God will cause us to long to be with Him and for Him to be with us. Knowing Him, loving Him, and being with Him will produce in us a desire to see Him glorified above all else. Indeed, we could simply say that God made us for Himself.

The second sentence gives explanation to why we ought to glorify God. A book exists for the purpose for which its author wrote it, and a piece of pottery exists for the purpose for which its potter formed and fired it. Likewise, it is right that we who were created by God should live to his glory. Or to approach the same matter from another angle, I greatly enjoy the answer to question 5 of the Catechism for Boys and Girls:

Q: Why ought you to glorify God?

A. Because He made me and takes care of me.

God is not only our Creator; He is also our Sustainer. He is our Potter as well as our Shepherd. Being made in His image, it is right that we would seek to know Him, love Him, live with Him, and glorify Him with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our strength. In the end, that is what it ultimately means to be human and to be made in God’s image.

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