We can agree that God created us in His image.

What is God’s image?

Our first answer comes in the first chapter of Genesis. In this recorded testimony of God’s creation (including man), we see His goodness (Genesis 1:31).

Goodness

One of the remarkable attributes our Lord shows is His undeniable goodness.

Before Adam and Eve disobeyed God (Genesis 3:11), they experienced His wholesomeness. Our Father was good to them and provided for their every need. They had an abundance of His generosity.

When God saves people, their consciousness of the goodwill He brings to the soul emerges. He embraces us with grace, places us in Christ, and anoints us with the Holy Spirit. The Lord gives us a rebirth (John 3:5-6), and Jesus’s light overpowers the spiritual darkness sin caused (John 1:4). This act of redemption radiates His incredible goodness.

God’s kindheartedness never ceases. He discloses it in many ways and always displays it when we need it most. And when we shine goodness on others, we behave in His likeness.

The Image of God’s Love

It’s hard to believe that many people remain blinded to God’s endless love. Indeed, only the people God saves gain access to His genuine affection. And once a believer finds this infinite love, the Holy Spirit fills the heart with an incredible awareness of God’s unbelievable sentiment.

The moment Adam and Eve sinned changed how our Father distributes His love for humanity. Their transgression against His commandment (Genesis 2:17) is why sin remains a factor today and separates from His love (Romans 5:12). But His eternal plan included atonement (Genesis 3:22).

In the Old Testament, God’s image of love came through His Prophets. He used them to show the Israelites a love anchored in forgiveness and centered in mercy.

One of the fascinating illustrations of His love came in Moses’s generation.

God equipped Moses with the power to release them from Pharaoh’s iron grip. Our Father decided to rescue the Israelites from captivity and bring them back into His love. It took ten of God’s plagues before Pharaoh let His people leave Egypt. After the death of Pharaoh’s firstborn son (tenth plague), he let them go (Exodus 12:30).

The most phenomenal demonstration of God’s love came at the Cross. When Christ died at the hands of evildoers, God’s miraculous love for humanity surfaced. At Jesus’s death, the Lord’s compassionate heart showed the world a love unlike any other.

God’s sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, shows us how much He loves us and wants to save us from eternal damnation. To receive this extraordinary love, one must accept Christ’s death and God’s truth of resurrecting Him from the tomb (Romans 10:9).

It’s hard to fathom that sin made us enemies of God. However, His love through Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension back to heaven abolished this reality. So, when we love those we despise, it highlights our connectedness to His sovereignty (Matthew 5:43-48).

God’s Holy Image

Reverence is the essence of God’s image. He created us with holy virtues. In truth, without God’s spiritual purity, my life is empty, useless, and destructive. But with His divinity, my mind, body, and spirit become engulfed with His sovereign grace.

Forgiveness is a divine attribute and a top priority in God’s eyes. Since He forgave me, it has become my responsibility to forgive others. Showing clemency to loved ones doesn’t take much effort because I’m willing to let go of their transgression. But the challenge comes when I’m faced with people with whom I don’t want to show mercy. In this circumstance, forgiving my enemy shows God’s holiness.

Christ shared the significance of forgiveness.

Jesus said:

“For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. “But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.

Matthew 6:14-15

In these two verses, Christ unearths God’s truth behind forgiveness. Nothing pleases the Lord more than to extend His reprieve for sinful action. One of the pastors I follow said we are more like God when forgiving. I agree with his outlook because when I forgave my ex-wife, God lifted this burden and replaced it with His love. As a result, I’m at peace with her.

Faithfulness is another holy action. God’s faith through Christ and administered by the Holy Spirit give testimony to their transcendent existence. This realness develops from our devotion. When we are faithful, especially during troubling times, they reward us with spiritual blessing.

Every promise God bestows on us shows He is faithful. Yes, without fail, God backs up His words. He used the Prophet Isaiah to unveil His New Covenant (Isaiah 7:14). So, when He delivered His Son Jesus into the world, it fulfilled the prophecy.

Faith in action is God’s image at work. For it’s through trusting Christ that the Holy Spirit carries out our Father’s faithful activities.

Conclusion

By no means is this a complete picture of being created in God’s image. No, the Bible has many other truths concerning this reality. The point is that He made us different than His other creations (Genesis 1:26-27).

How do you see God’s image?