All Human Beings Are Created in the Image of God

Teach the scriptures and statements that meet the needs of the sisters you visit. Bear testimony of the doctrine. Invite those you teach to share what they have felt and learned.

What Do We Know about Being “Created in the Image of God”?

Moses 2:27: “I, God, created man in mine own image, in the image of mine Only Begotten created I him; male and female created I them.”

President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910–2008): “Our bodies are sacred. They were created in the image of God. They are marvelous, the crowning creation of Deity. No camera has ever matched the wonder of the human eye. No pump was ever built that could run so long and carry such heavy duty as the human heart. The ear and the brain constitute a miracle. … These, with others of our parts and organs, represent the divine, omnipotent genius of God” (“Be Ye Clean,” Ensign, May 1996, 48).

President Thomas S. Monson: “God our Father has ears with which to hear our prayers. He has eyes with which to see our actions. He has a mouth with which to speak to us. He has a heart with which to feel compassion and love. He is real. He is living. We are his children made in his image. We look like him and he looks like us” (“I Know That My Redeemer Lives,” Tambuli, Apr. 1988, 6; Ensign, Apr. 1990, 6).

How Does Knowing I Am Created in God’s Image Make a Difference in My Life?

Elder LeGrand Richards (1886–1983) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles: “There are many who think their bodies are their own and that they can do with them what they will, but Paul makes it plain that they are not their own, for they are bought with a price, and that ‘If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are’ [1 Corinthians 3:17]” (A Marvelous Work and a Wonder, rev. ed. [1966], 380).

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles: “We should come to ‘know … the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent’ (John 17:3). ‘… To know God is to think what he thinks, to feel what he feels, to have the power he possesses, to comprehend the truths he understands, and to do what he does. Those who know God become like him, and have his kind of life, which is eternal life.’ … He instructed his Nephite disciples: ‘What manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am’ (3 Ne. 27:27)” (“Our Lord and Savior,” Ensign, Nov. 1993, 7).

Susan W. Tanner, former Young Women general president: “[Did] your mother or father ever [remind you] to ‘remember … that you are a child of God and must act accordingly’[?] Missionaries wear a badge as a constant reminder … to dress modestly and comely, to treat people with politeness, and to strive to have Christ’s image in their countenances. … By covenant, we too have all taken upon ourselves Christ’s name. His name should be engraven inwardly upon our hearts. Likewise, we are expected to act as worthy children of Heavenly Father, who, at least figuratively, has sent us to earth with the admonition ‘Remember who you are!’ ” (“Daughters of Heavenly Father,” Liahona and Ensign, May 2007, 107).

For additional study, see Job 7:17; D&C 110:2–3; Joseph Smith—History 1:17.

Photo illustration by Danilo Soleta; border: detail from Jesus Christ, by Harry Anderson