A Perfect Self-Image
by Gene Schrader

Before the Fall, everything in creation was in perfect alignment with its Creator. Man and woman were secure in who they were created to be:

We were created with dignity (Genesis 1:26-27).

We were created with authority (vs. 26).

We were created to receive a blessing and provision (vs. 28-29).

We were created with purpose and meaning (Genesis 2:15-19).

We were created with a sense of freedom and boundary (vs. 16-17).

We were created to have love and intimate companionship (vs. 20-25).

Adam and Eve had a lot going for them in their new relationship. Oh sure, they were perfect. So was something else—their self-images. They had unblemished, crystal clear pictures of the male and female image. They knew who they were.

"And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."(Genesis1:27)

Both were created in the image of God, not in the image of each other. Man was not made in the image of woman. Woman was not made in the image of man. Because God was the image-maker, Adam was not running around the Garden of Eden saying "I don't know who I am, give me a woman to tell me!" He was connected with the perfect source of his image. The same was true of Eve.

As Adam and Eve interacted with each other and their environment, all the information they gathered through their senses was true. There was nothing to distort the truth. Everything they saw was true. Everything they tasted was true. Everything they smelled was true. Everything they heard was true. Everything they felt was true. But the Fall threw everything out of whack.