DAILY TEXT, From today Friday, December 15, 2023, Let us make human beings in our image (Gen. 1:26).

DAILY TEXT, Friday, December 15, 2023, Let us make human beings in our image (Gen. 1:26).

Let us examine the scriptures every day 2023

Friday December 15

Let us make human beings in our image (Gen. 1:26).

Jehovah honored us by creating us in his image. Because we are made in the image of God, we can cultivate and demonstrate many of his precious qualities, such as love, compassion, loyalty, and justice (Ps. 86:15; 145:17). When we strive to do so, we honor Jehovah and show him gratitude.​—1 Pet. 1:14-16. If we do what pleases our heavenly Father, we feel happy and satisfied. Furthermore, because Jehovah made us in his image, we can become the kind of people he wants to have in his family. Jehovah prepared a special home for us. Long before creating the first man, God prepared the Earth for humans (Job 38:4-6; Jer. 10:12). Because he is so good and generous, he made countless things for us to enjoy (Ps. 104:14, 15, 24). He occasionally spent time thinking about what he had created, and “saw that it was good” (Gen. 1:10, 12, 31). w21.08 3 paras. 5, 6.

How does Joshua 24:15 show that human beings have freedom of decision?

Jehovah has given us freedom of decision. Because of this gift, we can decide what we will do with our lives (read Joshua 24:15). Our loving God is happy when we choose to serve Him (Ps. 84:11; Prov. 27:11). There are many fields in which we can put our freedom of decision to good use. Let's look at the example that Jesus left us.

Tell one way Jesus used his freedom of decision.

Jesus decided to put the interests of others first, and we can follow his example. On one occasion, Jesus and his apostles were very tired, so they went to a quiet place to rest. But they did not succeed, because a large crowd of people came to where they were to hear the teachings of Jesus. Far from being upset, he was moved by those people and “began to teach them many things” (Mark 6:30-34). When we imitate Jesus by using our time and energy to help others, we bring glory to our heavenly Father (Matt. 5:14-16). And so we show him that we want to be part of his family.

What should parents keep in mind?

Jehovah has given us humans the ability to have children and the responsibility to teach them to love and serve him. If you have children, do you value that special gift? Although Jehovah has given angels power to do impressive things, he has not given them the ability to have children. With that in mind, parents should be grateful for such a beautiful privilege. They have been entrusted with the sacred responsibility of raising their children “according to the discipline and counsel of Jehovah” (Eph. 6:4; Deut. 6:5-7; Ps. 127:3). In order to help them, God's organization provides them with many Bible-based tools, such as publications, videos, songs, and online articles. It is clear that our heavenly Father and his Son love our children (Luke 18:15-17). Jehovah is pleased to see that parents trust him and do their best to care for his children. Parents who do this give their children the opportunity to become part of Jehovah's family forever.

What has Jehovah made possible through the sacrifice of his Son?

Jehovah gave his most beloved Son to give us the opportunity to once again become part of his family. As we saw in paragraph 4, Adam and Eve lost their place in Jehovah's family and caused their children to lose their place as well (Rom. 5:12). Because Adam and Eve disobeyed God by choice, they deserved to be expelled from God's family. And what would happen to their descendants? Out of love, Jehovah did what was necessary to adopt those who were obedient into his family. As? Thanks to the sacrifice of his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ (John 3:16; Rom. 5:19). This sacrifice made it possible for God to adopt 144,000 faithful human beings as sons (Rom. 8:15-17; Rev. 14:1).

Furthermore, there are millions of obedient people who are doing God's will. They hope to become full members of their family after the final test that will take place at the end of the 1,000 years.​—Ps. 25:14; Rom. 8:20, 21. Thanks to that hope, they now address Jehovah, their Creator, as “Father” (Matt. 6:9). On the other hand, those who are resurrected will also have the opportunity to learn what Jehovah expects of them. Those who decide to obey him will also become part of his family over time.

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