The Goal of Faith part 1
The Image of God
Today, we begin a new series in which we will explore the goal of our faith. As way of introduction and reminder of previous sermons, turn with me to Colossians 3.
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming. In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.
This last point is what we will dissect for today. Paul spends two chapters, plus 3:1-4, explaining who Christ is and what He has done. Only then does he begin discussing how a Christian should live. It is quite backwards compared to the popular way of looking at faith.
Most people view Christianity only in terms of “being good.” It’s an interesting story, but the moral of the story is what really matters. Parents tell their children to be good so God will be pleased with them. Tim Allen, in one of favorite shows of all time, Home Improvement, described going to church as getting credit. It didn’t matter that he slept through the sermon, he got credit with God for being there. This opinion fits well in our postmodern world where it really doesn’t matter what someone believes, so long as they are nice to each other.
And yet, that is not what the Bible teaches. In fact, no part of the Bible says any such thing. As Christians, we are called to a higher standard of belief and ethic. We are bound with Christ and must follow where He leads us. So, naturally, that leads to the question, “Where is He leading?”
Paul has answered that question for us. We are putting on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its Creator.
When we walked through 1 Thessalonians I defined the Goal of Faith as:
The Goal of Faith is to be fully transformed by the love of God, able to stand firmly and boldly on the Day of Jesus’ Return, knowing you have been faithful.
Our series is going to explore this goal in light of the biblical narrative. What do I mean by “biblical narrative”? The Bible consists of 66 books (more if you belong to other traditions), but each book is a part of the wider story of the Bible. From Genesis to Revelation, there is an overarching story of what God has done, and will do, in history. The story of how we received our Bible, and how it is organized, is a fascinating history. I will certainly touch on it at times. But for today I want to simply introduce this wider story. And we have just read Paul’s summary of its climax. God created the heavens and the earth, but sin has corrupted the earth. In response, God sends His Son into the world to save it. In doing so, God is re-creating His Creation.
What makes humanity so special in all this is that we were created in God’s image. We are to be small pictures or sculptures of God. This last week I had someone ask me what I meant by ‘image’ and I responded this way:
God has a set of attributes—everything that makes God, God. As His image bearers, we are to be like God, especially in terms of ethics. Now, we are not God, or gods, ourselves, but we do share in His likeness. It is just like a sculpture. When you see a large statue of George Washington, David, or some other figure, you are not looking at the person himself, but if the artist has done their job well, we see a likeness that resembles the real thing. We are not God, but we were meant to look a lot like Him. But as we will look at in a moment, sin has destroyed that image. The giant, ugly pigeon that is Satan, has pooped sin all over God’s image.
But through Christ we are made clean. And so, as Christians we are being “renewed in the knowledge after the image of its Creator.” It is a spiritual reality that is manifested in the physical world of ethics. That is why Paul then continues with how Christians should behave. The Household Code that follows concerning husbands and wives, children, servants and masters, all stem from this renewed knowledge of the image of God.
So the main point of entire series is:
As followers of Christ, we are called to reveal the Image of God through an active, transformed ethic.
We do not follow the Christian ethic in order for God to like us or be proud of us. He already loves us and has demonstrated that love on the cross. The Christian ethic comes out of what God has already done in our lives.
So let us begin walking through the biblical story and see how God has worked in the history of humanity to reveal His Image in us. And in doing so, we shall see what He has in store for us in the near future.
The Rise and Fall of the Image of God : Genesis 1-3
We do not have time for all of Genesis 1-3, unfortunately, but skim through it with me.
1:1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
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 heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
And God blessed them…
31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
From this we can note two things.
Humanity’s special place in Creation is that it was made in the likeness, or image, of God.
We are meant to be representative of God in this world. His administrative dominion over Creation, His creativity, and most importantly, His ethic is all wrapped up inside His image in us.
In the beginning God’s Creation was good.
It takes six days for God to complete His Creation, and on each day, He looks and says, “It is good.” Then, after surveying all that He had made, He looks and says, “It is very good”—tov meod. God’s design is good. I reinforce this point, because people are in the habit of blaming God for their own mistakes—just wait until chapter 3.
But the problems of this world are not God’s fault. For that, turn to Genesis 3.
In Genesis 3, we are introduced to the serpent, the craftiest of the beasts of the field. Read with me the first part of chapter 3, and see if you can catch how he persuades Eve to take the forbidden fruit.
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.
He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 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 who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.
Did you catch it? It’s worth catching, because the devil’s schemes haven’t changed since the Garden.
First, he gets Eve to question what God said by twisting what God actually did say. He quotes God as saying, “You shall not eat of any tree in the garden,” but the command was to avoid only the tree at the center of the garden. Apparently, Adam added to Eve the part about not even touching it, because that phrase is not in 2:17.
Next, he gets Eve to question the consequences of disobedience. “You will not surely die. You’ll become like God, knowing good and evil.” Now pause here, and think about what Eve is hearing. Eve only knows ‘good.’ All that God created was good. One of you will ask about this serpent, and we will return to him another day, but the short version is even Satan had a good place in Creation. But he wandered from it, leading a third of the angels with him. For Eve, all she knows is good. She is being enticed by the lure of something new—something with consequences she doesn’t understand. She is being lured into believing something good can come from what is forbidden. It is the same lure given to teenagers and immature adults.
She looks at the fruit. She sees it is edible. It looks wonderful. And, she concludes it will make her wise. Now, her only evidence is coming from a talking snake, but she has decided in her heart to eat the fruit. She does so, and then gives some to her husband—who has shirked his own duties by allowing this whole exchange.
Immediately, shame overtakes them. Before they were naked, but without shame because there was no need for shame. They were one image in two persons—united in harmony. Now, they have sinned, and that sin has broken the relationship. They are ashamed of what they have become.
Sin affects our relationships with each other—even those closest to us.
Everything that is wrong with humanity stems from this root problem. Look at what happens next.
3:8 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. But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
They hide from their Creator. They are ashamed to be seen by the One who loves them most. The Lord calls out to them (of course He knows where they are), and they respond timidly.
Sin affects our relationship with God—it makes us hide from Him.
In our sin we are naturally drawn away from God. The reason it is so difficult for humanity to recognize God when He is working is because our every inclination and instinct is to hide from Him. When we find ourselves close to seeing God, sin makes us want to flee.
Look at what has happened in only a few verses. Humanity has gone from bearing God’s image, the crown of His Creation. They are at peace with the world and each other. They are in a garden specially made for them. They only have one rule—don’t eat from the forbidden tree.
Now, they are ashamed of themselves and each other. They are fearful of the One who created them. Then, God will pronounce a curse upon the serpent, upon Eve, and upon Adam.
But even in this curse, there is a glimmer of hope. Look closely.
14 The Lord God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock
and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.
I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
The serpent is bound to the ground. Now, this isn’t just an explanation for why snakes crawl, it is a metaphor for Satan’s power. It is grounded and limited. We must be wary for Satan’s temptations, but keep in mind, he is a limited foe. But more importantly, God pronounces enmity between him and the woman, and between their offsprings. One will come from Eve who will be struck on the heel, but he will crush the snake’s head.
The Messiah was foretold as soon as the Fall occurred.
The plan for the restoration of God’s Creation was already in place before the Fall. This inevitably leads to philosophical questions for why God created us anyway, but the important truth is this: God has always had sovereign control over creation. There has never been a point in history, nor will there ever be, when He was not in control. Some answers for why God has done what He has will come in time, but in our questioning, we must never forget: The Lord is in constant control.
16 To the woman he said,
“I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children.
Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you.”
For the woman, she must bring forth children with great pain, and her desire is “contrary” (or you may have “toward” in your translation) her husband. There has been a bit of a debate on exactly what the Hebrew is trying to say here, but the gist of it is this: husbands and wives will continue to have problems. Remember, sin had already brought shame to Adam and Eve. Now, there will be desire for each other, but they will have to work to make the relationship healthy.
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 pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field.
By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
Adam now must work the ground to eat. The garden will no longer grow fruit naturally. Thorns and thistles will grow and choke the fruited plants. And, humanity will return to the dust from which it came. Death has entered the world.
Creation itself has been corrupted by sin—including God’s image in humanity.
The earth is no longer as it should be. If ever you wonder how it is that we can read Genesis 1, with all the times God says, “It is good,” and see all the pain and hurt in this world, it is because of Genesis 3. Why do people hate and hurt each other?
Why do families break apart?
Why do parents abandon and abuse their children?
Why are some afflicted by cancer, disease, addictions, natural disasters, and the myriad of things in this world that seem to want to kill us?
It is because we have wandered from God’s design. Sin has us captive.
But there is good news! Look at verse 21.
21 And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.
God sacrifices one of his animals in order to create clothes for the couple. Now, this is not just to give them clothes. It is symbolic of what is to come. They naked, ashamed, and separated from each other and their God. But, God provides the means for clothes, for absolution of shame, and He draws near to them to bring them all together.
They must leave the garden, but even that is an act of mercy. They are not allowed to eat from the tree of life, because if they do they will live forever in their horrid state. Instead, they are sent out to work the ground and build a new life while God works in the background to bring about their salvation.
This sacrifice is what is known as a typology. It is an historic event that foreshadows a coming event. Here, God sacrifices one of His creatures in order to provide for humanity. 2000 years ago, the fulfillment of this typology happened when Christ came.
Jesus came to undo the Fall by cleansing humanity of sin.
Today, we are reminded to “put to death” the old self, because it is the old self that is tainted by sin. It is the cause of all the chaos and death we see around us. We put to death the old self, so that we can put on the new self. God has provided His Son in order for us to be clothed with righteousness, to be cleansed of our guilt, and to be drawn closer to each other, and more importantly, our Creator who loves us and spared no expense to demonstrate that love through the death and resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ.