Glory Robbers

A guest post by Gino Curcuruto:

It doesn’t take long living where I do (sadly, or anywhere else) to see people being devalued. So often people are seen less as image bearers of God and more as objects we can use. In our neighborhoods we see this everyday. Women whom God created in His own image are objectified and used to serve the sinful lusts of men. We have multiple establishments where women are paid quite well not to be expressions of God’s likeness but rather to be objects used for man’s sinfulness.

And when I bring this up, when I mention what goes on in a strip club, are you sitting there (like most people do) thinking, “How horrible...What’s wrong with those people... That’s just sick.” Yes, it is disturbing. But are you able to think about how despicable it is that God is being defamed when his image bearers are objectified? That is the greater horror.

Human beings are the pinnacle of God’s creation and have inherent value because we are made in God’s image; created to bring him glory. Yet, we treat God’s creation as objects for our own interest. We take what was made to bring glory to God and twist it into something that brings glory to us. And in doing so, we “steal” God’s glory. We are Glory robbers.

But you don’t have to go out to strip clubs to see people being objectified. You simply need to look inside your own heart. Have you ever dismissed someone as insignificant? Have you ever said, “Oh, I’ll be okay. I’ll just get Mary to do it.” Or, “Don’t worry about Joe, he doesn’t really matter.” You’ve thought these things, I’ve thought these things. We’ve even said them. We may not be paying women to be objects of our perverted sexual fantasies but we certainly have perverted the value of people by making them objects used for our gain. We belittle people by using them as tools to get what we want. We fail to recognize them as unique beings created in God’s image for the purpose of bringing Him glory. No, we see them as useful accessories that can help us achieve our desires and bring us glory and happiness.

Oh how wonderful it would be if we could see people the way God sees them! As broken individuals rather than objects. To see them as sheep without a shepherd or sinners in need of a savior. To the degree that the gospel has penetrated our hearts, we can begin to see people the way they really are: a broken piece of God’s good creation.