Who Am I?ಮಾದರಿ

You are a man or a woman personally made by God in the Image of God to enjoy and exalt the Glory of God.

This is who you are.

Yet it’s probably not how you think of yourself much of the time. And it’s probably not how you think of others either.

So what went wrong? How did Humanity lose sight of God’s Imprint on us?

The answer can be found starting in the third chapter of the Bible, and then illustrated on every page after that. Every human (except for One) has sinned against God, marring the Image of God in us and warranting the Judgment of God forever.

As we did yesterday, let’s unpack that statement.

Romans 3:23 spells out what we know in our hearts: We have fallen short of the Glory of God. Every human (except for One) has sinned. Looking at the picture of sin in Genesis 3, we see that sin is . . .

• Rejecting God’s Word.
• Spurning God’s Authority.
• Denying God’s Good Character.
• Trying to take God’s place.

Sin doesn’t mean we lose the Image of God. It means the Image of God is distorted in us; we are less like God. Which begs the question: Can it be made right?

Can The Image of God Be Fully Restored In Us?

Yes! In the words of John 3:3, we need to be born again. That’s the language Jesus uses. The Good News of the Bible, the Greatest News in all the world, is that our Creator has made a way for this to happen.

Jesus, the Perfect Human who had no sin, came to save us from our sin through His Death on the Cross and Resurrection from the grave. All who follow Him—all who are born again—are being conformed to His Image. It’s a process that the New Testament tells us is a daily struggle, as God gradually transforms our minds (Romans 12:1–2), our desires (1 Peter 2:11), our affections (1 John 2:15), our wills (Philippians 2:12–13), and our bodies (2 Corinthians 6:16–7:1).

One day, in Heaven, this process of transformation will be complete. That will be the Perfectly Good Life. But what are we to do in the meantime? How can we reflect the Image of God here on Earth as humans who are still being conformed to God’s Likeness?

The answer to that question—which we’ll cover tomorrow—addresses some of today’s most profound debates.