Lecture 3 - The Image of God Flashcards
“After God had made all other creatures, he created man male and female…In his image, in knowledge, righteousness, and Holiness. With living, reasonable and immortal souls”
1) Westminster Larger Catechism #17
2) Expounds on Gen. 1
3) Helps us understand how we are created in his image.
“God created man male and female, after his own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures”
1) Westminster Shorter Catechism #10.
2) Pulls from Eph 4 and, Col 3.
3) Locates the image of God in a triad of moral traits
“and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”
1) Ephesians 4
2) Tells us we should reflect Christs righteousness
3) Gives us 2 of 3 moral traits man was created with
“and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”
1) Colossians 3
2) As we grow in the knowledge of Christ we are renewed into his image
3) Affirms we were created with knowledge as a moral trait
Knowledge, Righteousness, and Holiness
1) - These three make up the moral Triad in which man was created
2) Foundation text Col 3, and Eph 4
3) Calvin refers to this as a Synecdoche “Part of a whole”
“The Christians Reasonable Service”
1) - Book authored by Brakel
2) According to Brakel knowledge = mind, righteousness = the will, Holiness = heart
3) This is Brakel’s interpretation of the Moral triad
Did God, then, create man so wicked and perverse?
1) Heidelburg Catechism #6
2) The Catechism answers this question with a “No”. Referencing the moral triad
3) The principle glory of man is that we are made in God’s image
Imago Dei
1) Latin; the Image of God
2) Turitan “ The Imago Dei is the principle Glory of man”
3) key text for Imago Dei is Gen. 1
Who is the “us”?
1) There is a sense of “togetherness”
2) A seed in growing understanding of the Trinity
3) A reason for why it is not good for man to be alone, since God is not “alone”
What is “image” and “likeness”?
1) Heb. Tselem “image, to carve out”; Heb. Demuth “likeness, resemble”
2) Parallels or synonyms
3) Man IS the image of God
Gen 1:26-28
1) The key text for Imago Dei.
2)
3) Key text for the cultural mandate
“The whole person is the image of the Triune God.”
1) Quote from Herman Bavinck
2) The wholistic definition of the Imago Dei
3) Whole person is reflected in 1) living souls 2) faculties 3) moral composition 4) human body
The Whole Person - covenantal relationship w/ God
1) The structural aspect (what kind of being man is) - reflection of God’s character/moral composition
2) The functional aspect (what man does) - exercise dominion
3) The Liturgical position (why we exist) - to commune, love, and worship God.
Image of God after the Fall
1) Gen 5 & Gen 9
2) Two key texts for the continuation of the image of God in man
3) Man is still the image of God after the fall & the institution of capital punishment because man is the image of God
Image of God in Christ
1) 2 Cor. 4
2) Heb 1
3) Col. 3