THE IMAGE OF A RIGHTEOUS GOD

By Gary Ray Branscome

The fact that Adam was a finite being tells us that the divine image did not consist of an infinite nature. And, the fact that Adam and Eve were deceived by Satan tells us that they were not all-wise or all-knowing. In addition, the fact that Satan (who was not created in the image of God) has an intellect and is able to speak tells us that the divine image did not consist of such things. What Adam had that constituted the divine image was a righteous nature. That is why the Bible says, “Put on the new nature, which after the image of God is created in righteousness and true holiness” (Ephesians 4:24). Furthermore, because Adam had a righteous nature, he could look into his own heart and know the heart of God. That is why the Bible says, “Put on the new man, who is renewed in knowledge after the image of the One who created him,” (Colossians 3:10). That knowledge is why those who come to faith in Christ no longer see God as a harsh taskmaster, but as a loving Father.

The words, “God has made men upright; but they have sought out many inventions,” tell us that man did not have a sinful nature when he was created (Ecclesiastes 7:29). And, the words, “The woman said to the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden, but of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat of it,” tell us that before Satan set to work Adam and Eve were perfectly willing to do what God told them to do (Genesis 3:2-3).

The words, “Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them, and whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name,” tell us that far from being a brute, Adam was created with a good intellect (Genesis 2:19). And, the words, “God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the cattle, over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth. So God created man in His own image… and God said to them… have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth,” tell us that God created man to have dominion over the earth and all of the animals (Genesis 1:26-28).

Since God originally intended for man to live forever, and since man was created to have dominion over the entire earth the immediate results of the divine image were immortality and dominion. Whether Adam and Eve would have lived forever on earth had they never sinned, or whether God would (in time) have translated them to a higher plain of existence as He did Enoch, the Bible does not say (Genesis 5:24). However, God knew that they would sin, and the words, “The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world,” tell us that He planned from the beginning to provide salvation for us (Revelation 13:8).