Image Breakers
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the full sermon here.
Preached by Pastor Mike Woodard
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We’re walking through The Big Picture—the story of God told in four movements: creation, fall, redemption, and restoration. Last week, we saw that God created us as His image bearers, designed for His glory and relationship. But in Genesis 3, everything changed. Humanity went from being image bearers to image breakers, and sin entered the world.
Sin Separates Us from God
Genesis 3 shows us the tragic moment when Adam and Eve chose rebellion over trust. The serpent deceived them with the promise of being “like God,” but instead of gaining freedom, they gained shame. For the first time, humanity tried to cover themselves—not with God’s presence, but with creation.
That’s still true today. We cover our brokenness with status, approval, or distractions. But Scripture is clear: sin separates us from God. It creates a divide we cannot fix on our own.
God Pursues Us Anyway
Even after Adam and Eve sinned, God didn’t abandon them. Instead, He pursued them with the question, “Where are you?”—not because He didn’t know, but because He wanted them to come out of hiding.
This is God’s heart for us too. Though sin creates fear and shame, He seeks us out as a compassionate Father. The Old Testament Law and temple system provided a temporary way to deal with sin, but it was never the final solution. It was a mirror showing our need for a Savior.
The First Promise of Redemption
In Genesis 3:15, God gave the first prophecy of Jesus: “He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” Satan would wound Jesus on the cross, but Jesus would ultimately defeat sin and death through His resurrection.
From that moment forward, the entire Old Testament pointed toward the coming of Christ. Every story—Noah’s ark, Joseph’s forgiveness, Hosea’s pursuit, David’s victory—was an arrow toward Jesus, the Savior we desperately need.
Why This Matters
The story of the fall shows us three truths about being image breakers:
Our sin separates us from God. We can’t cover it or fix it on our own.
We can’t deal with sin alone. Only God can bridge the gap.
We need a Savior. From the very beginning, Jesus was God’s plan for redemption.
Next week, as we celebrate Easter, we’ll see how Jesus redeems what was broken. The fall reveals the depth of our sin, but it also magnifies the greatness of His love.