Have you ever contemplated the words spoken by God when He declared, "Let Us make man in Our image"? Since God is Spirit and does not have physical form like humans do, being made in His image does not pertain to having a physical body. Rather, it signifies that our true essence, including our spirit and soul, manifests through a human body.
Every entity on this earth possesses an origin. A widely pondered question frequently arises: "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" It is the chicken. Similarly, humankind was initially fashioned as adults rather than babies. The genesis of all creation can be traced back to God; however, He moulded each creation distinctively, tailored to His satisfaction. Every element displays uniqueness. Trees distinguish themselves from shrubs, and the contrast between elephants and cats is immense.
Revelation 4:11“Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power; for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure, they are and were created.”
God looked at the physical realm that He had created and said it is very good.
Genesis 1:31 And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Colossians 1:16 For by Him were all things created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers: all things were created by Him and for Him.
God created both heaven and earth but is not confined to just heaven, God is omnipresent.
John 4:24 God is a Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth.”
Psalm 139:7-10 Whither shall I go from Thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from Thy presence? 8 If I ascend up into heaven, Thou art there; if I make my bed in hell, behold, Thou art there. 9 If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, 10 even there shall Thy hand lead me, and Thy right hand shall hold me.
God is Spirit and Spirit is real. He has created a physical creation according to His will and for His pleasure. He has no physical bodily parts, no arms or hands or eyes such as we have. God is not confined to a physical body. However, the scriptures testify that God has revealed Himself in human form.
God represents himself as having human characteristics physically or in personality. These are symbolic descriptions, which help to make God’s attributes, powers, and activities real to us.
His unlimited ability to see by the Spirit, and the spirit arms and hands of God which can touch everywhere all at the same time healing and performing miracles all over the earth.
This brings me to the thought that for the most part, we have made God to only have a right arm or hand.
In the realm of divine symbolism, the term "yaman" represents the right hand of God, symbolizing a profound friendship and intimate connection between humans and God. This intimate bond involves opening one's heart to God, while reciprocally allowing Him to reveal His divine wisdom and insights. To be cradled in the right hand of God illustrates being embraced tightly, and kept closest to His compassionate heart.
The word "right" is used with "hand" Generally the Hebrew word " means STRONGER, God's right hand is His strength and skill, or His wonderful ability to do all things. The implication is that the right hand of God is the good hand of God, doing good things.
Psalm 16:11 You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore
Psalm 118:15-16 The voice of rejoicing and salvation Is in the tents of the righteous; The right hand of the Lord does valiantly. 16 The right hand of the Lord is exalted; The right hand of the Lord does valiantly.
Isaiah 41:10 Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
Psalm 16:11 You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Those who inherit the Kingdom are seated in Christ Jesus on God’s right hand.
Ephesians 1:18-20 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power 20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,
Ephesians 2:5-6 Even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
It is there in Christ Jesus at the right hand of God that we are positioned with God, to see as He sees, the things at His right hand becoming the things at our right hand.
Matthew 25:31-46 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, in as much as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
The Kingdom of God has been prepared for the righteous since the beginning of time. This Kingdom is not a distant land adorned with luxurious palaces, streets paved with gold, splendid manors, dazzling nightgowns, suits, wings, and harps, where idleness prevails for eternity.
This is a majestic kingdom now. And by it being a kingdom, it signifies governance and progress in every conceivable form. It indicates the elevation of numerous individuals to a higher spiritual level than they have ever experienced before. It entails labour, accountability, a designated place for service, and the authority to bestow blessings. The Right hand of God.
Not much is said about the left hand of God or what it symbolizes.
The Hebrew word for "left" is "smowl" meaning DARK. It gives the idea of wrapping up or properly dark the north by Orientation, the left-hand
God is a perfect Father who not only gives gifts that we determine are good gifts. He also gives discipline which we do not always think is so good.
Proverbs 3:12 For whom the Lord loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights.
Hebrews 12:3-11 For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. 4 You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. 5 And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons:
“My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; 6 For whom the Lord loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.”
7 If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? 8 But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. 11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
I would say that God’s love involves the comforting, strong, and forgiving side but also the wrapping, up the north dark side. With His left-hand God affirmatively disciplines, corrects, forms, and shapes, until we become moulded into His image.
As we read the bible we like to read about a God of love in the New Testament and consider God in the Old Testament as a God of Wrath. The various plagues, famines, earthquakes, floods, massacres of women and children, and wars of violence and destruction that He allowed.
As we follow the life of Jesus, He was not always the sweet, gentle, mild Jesus we see in pictures. His was rough in His confrontations with the Pharisees, the Chief Priests, Elders, and teachers of the law, and He made a whip of small cords and drove the money changers out of the temple, overturning their tables, and pouring out their money ... the other hand of God became manifest!
Actually, in the Old and New Testaments, He is Both. He is a God of mercy? Is He absolute love, but He is also absolutely just.
Psalm 111:7-8 The works of His hands are [absolute] truth and justice [faithful and right]; and all His decrees and precepts are sure (fixed, established, and trustworthy). 8 They stand fast and are established forever and ever and are done in [absolute] truth and uprightness.
The two hands of God represent two aspects of God's dealings, two ways in which He moves and acts to accomplish His purposes.
Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
God will use even the bad circumstances in our lives, the positive and the negative. That which may seem destructive God uses to get our attention to break our rebellion. God will never use negative experiences to destroy us but to restore all to Himself. All discipline is aimed at restoration.
We do not minimize the workings of discipline, but we do rejoice in the beautiful balance between the work of God's right hand and that of His left hand which both lead to righteousness.
Psalm 33:4-5 For the word of the Lord is right, and all His work is done in truth. 5 He loves righteousness and justice;
God holds us in both of His hands skilfully moulding and shaping the clay of the earthen vessel in ways we do not understand. The embracing of His right hand is so precious, as He lets His love descend upon us like dew. It is through this gentle guidance that He unveils and reveals Himself and that which He has prepared for us. Ultimately, the majestic King, adorned in His splendid magnificence, refines our very essence and readies us to radiate His divine image with utmost perfection. Both the Right and Left hand of God
