Man and woman were made in the image of God with individuality, the power and freedom to
think and to do. Though created free beings, each is an indivisible unity of body, mind, and
spirit, dependent upon God for life and breath and all else. When our first parents disobeyed
God, they denied their dependence upon Him and fell from their high position under God. The
image of God in them was marred and they became subject to death. Their descendants share
this fallen nature and its consequences. They are born with weaknesses and tendencies to evil.
But God in Christ reconciled the world to Himself and by His Spirit restores in penitent
mortals the image of their Maker. Created for the glory of God, they are called to love Him and
one another, and to care for their environment.

Genesis 1:26-28; 2:7

(1) 26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have
dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all
the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth." 27 So God created man in
his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 And
God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue
it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living
thing that moves upon the earth."

(2) 7 then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the
breath of life; and man became a living being.

Psalms 8:4-8

4 what is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou dost care for him? 5 Yet
thou hast made him little less than God, and dost crown him with glory and honor. 6 Thou hast
given him dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet, 7 all
sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, 8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the sea.

Acts 17:24-28

24 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not
live in shrines made by man, 25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything,
since he himself gives to all men life and breath and everything. 26 And he made from one
every nation of men to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and
the boundaries of their habitation, 27 that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel
after him and find him. Yet he is not far from each one of us, 28 for 'In him we live and move
and have our being'; as even some of your poets have said, 'For we are indeed his offspring.'

Genesis 3

1 Now the serpent was more subtle than any other wild creature that the LORD God had made.
He said to the woman, "Did God say, 'You shall not eat of any tree of the garden'?" 2 And the
woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but God said,
'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you
touch it, lest you die.'" 4 But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not die. 5 For God
knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing
good and evil." 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a
delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit
and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both were
opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made
themselves aprons. 8 And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the
cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God
among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, "Where
are you?" 10 And he said, "I heard the sound of thee in the garden, and I was afraid, because I
was naked; and I hid myself." 11 He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten
of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" 12 The man said, "The woman whom thou
gavest to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." 13 Then the LORD God said to
the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent beguiled me, and
I ate." 14 The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you
above all cattle, and above all wild animals; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall
eat all the days of your life. 15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your
seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel." 16 To the woman
he said, "I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children,
yet your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you." 17 And to Adam he said,
"Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree of which I
commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you shall
eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth to you; and you shall
eat the plants of the field. 19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the
ground, for out of it you were taken; you are dust, and to dust you shall return." 20 The man
called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. 21 And the LORD God
made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins, and clothed them. 22 Then the LORD God
said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, lest he put
forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever" -- 23 therefore the
LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken.
24 He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a
flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.

Psalms 51:5

5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Romans 5:12-17

12 Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death
spread to all men because all men sinned-- 13 sin indeed was in the world before the law was
given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. 14 Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses,
even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one
who was to come. 15 But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one
man's trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift in the grace of that one man
Jesus Christ abounded for many. 16 And the free gift is not like the effect of that one man's sin.
For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many
trespasses brings justification. 17 If, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that
one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of
righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:19, 20

19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses
against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 So we are ambassadors for
Christ, God making his appeal through us. We beseech you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to
God.

Psalms 51:10

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.

1 John 4:7, 8, 11, 20

7 Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God, and he who loves is born of God and
knows God. 8 He who does not love does not know God; for God is love.

11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

20 If any one says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his
brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.

Genesis 2:15

15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.
CREATION