The Image of God: Biblical-Theological Foundations (Lane Tipton)

really is a pleasure to be here I didn't realize it was for time flies yeah I'm getting lost in all of the fun this this evening I I want to confess something I'm not going to give you historical overview of varying positions we covered a lot of that in our pre-conference discussion and one of the reasons we covered that is that as I was preparing this initial lecture the lecture turned toward more biblical and Theological foundations for understanding the image of God as it is taught in the pages of Holy Scripture and so it's instead of being a kind of overview of a taxonomy of views this is more of what we would commend as a biblical and reformed understanding of the image of God and in the design of this lecture is to lay something of a scaffolding or a foundation on which or around which we're going to build in the following lectures and so I won't be able by design to say everything by any stretch of the imagination but I want to try in around 40 to 50 minutes hopefully no longer to clarify and define what we mean when we're talking about the creaturely image of God and I want to offer some preliminary comments that will expound the nature of the image as it is taught in Scripture and I'm going to begin by trying to summarize some of the salient features that you'll find treated in the confessional tradition of reformed churches especially I'll be commenting just briefly on the Westminster Shorter Catechism and use that as a point of departure to then expand the biblical and Theological foundations of the image of God in man now there are two initial foundational texts that I'm going to want to treat one will be Genesis 1:26 through 28 and the second this may surprise you will be Genesis 2:15 through 17 and you'll see the reason why we do this as the lecture unfolds the first text is Genesis 1:26 through 28 I'm going to read it make some commentary on it through the confessional tradition and then start to expound it in relation to our other text so here the reading now of God's inspired an inerrant word Genesis 1:26 through 28 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 and God said to them be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth now building on text like Genesis 1:26 through 28 the reformed tradition has sought to develop the covenant --all and the eschatological understanding of the image of God in man for instance in the Westminster Shorter Catechism question 10 the image of God is a focal point for understanding the nature of man as a creature of God how did God create man answer God created man male and female after his own image in knowledge righteousness and holiness with dominion over the creatures now a a Hajj in his commentary on the Westminster Confession of faith comments that the double phrase in Genesis 1:26 in our image and after our likeness that double phrase intensifies the emphasis and brings into view the uniqueness of man as an image-bearer distinct from every other created reality that reveals God and he then distinguishes two aspects of the image of God one that he calls constitutional and the other that he calls moral and spiritual if you were here for the pre-conference think broad and narrow think moral agency moral excellency and you're in the conceptual ballpark he says this the constitutional likeness of man to God is of a rational moral and voluntary character this likeness man has never lost and never can lose in any world then he goes on the moral and spiritual likeness consisting in spiritual knowledge righteousness and true holiness which the children of Adam have lost in the fall and which is restored to all believers in Christ by the Holy Spirit in their regeneration and sanctification now here's what I want you to note for introductory purposes in this distinction between the constitutional and moral aspect of the image of God the constitutional aspect of the image of God pertains to the rational free agency of the image bearing creature those who are created in the image of God are distinguished from all other creatures in their rational freedom and that rational freedom exists for one primary purpose and this is absolutely indispensable it exists in order to facilitate communion with God fellowship with God the rational free agency of man is a necessary condition for a higher end and that end is self conscious communion with fellowship service of the triune God image bearing creatures have rationality and freedom so that they might worship and serve God the moral aspect of the image of God pertains to the knowledge righteousness and holiness possessed by by Adam I'll use him as an example as a creature who is created in communion with God so if the rational and the moral and the spiritual is unto communion with God then the righteousness holiness and knowledge defines the character of that communion bond what does that communion bond in rational free agency look like it is a communion bond that is defined by moral excellence by being set apart and consecrated to serve God holiness by conforming in an unwavering way to his moral law as a covenant of works righteousness and it consists in knowing him that is knowing him in submission and worship and trust and obedience you see the moral aspect of the image of God is characterized by knowing God in loving fellowship image of God constitutional and moral aspects bring into view the service of God in a bond of communion in true righteousness holiness and knowledge and these two aspects of the image of God are given in the single event of creation from the dust of the ground in the case of that that is in genesis 2:7 when Adam is formed from the dust of the ground and God by his spirit breathes the breath of life into him and constitutes him a living being in that twofold event the formation and the impartation Adam is formed with both constitutional and spiritual aspects constitutional and moral aspects they are con created basic and native to Adam and Eve as image bearing creatures and they subserve the communion bond with God that lies at the heart of the Covenant that God makes with Adam and Eve now other theologians will speak of this constitutional dimension we talked about as the broad aspect of the image of God we talked about that pre-conference it cannot be lost by the fall the moral is described as the the the the pardon me I'm gonna set up the constitutional is the narrow aspect of the image of God that cannot be lost the moral is the broad aspect of that image that can be lost in fact is lost because sinners are no longer holy and righteous and the way that they know God is in rebellion and repression of his truth a final way to make the distinction we're making is between moral agency and moral excellence which we've talked about also in the conference now pre conference discussion now that is a kind of preamble a kind of theological overview a kind of giving us our bearings on what one catechetical statement about the image of God and one commentary from a reformed theologian a a Hajj yields what I want us to do for the rest of this lecture is look more closely at the image of God as it is presented in Genesis 1 in 2 and start to think about the image of God conferred upon Adam particularly as a federal head not denying or depreciating the way that Eve images God but I want us to think about the image of God as we reflect on the nature of Adam as a priest king and a guardian of the e Zdenek theocracy I want you to think about that and I want you to see the way that the image of God theme is developed in Genesis 1 and 2 and then later in the rest of Scripture now what that's going to involve is a reading of Genesis 1:26 through 28 with Genesis 2 15 through 17 as mutually explanatory texts that unveil for us the significance of the image of God in Adam and by extension I called the distinction between Genesis 1:26 and 2 15 through 17 and this isn't novel the Dominion mandate Genesis 1 and the probation mandate Genesis 2 and the mini thesis I'm making at this point in the lecture is that the probation mandate is a concentrated and focused application of the Dominion mandate now remember we've read Genesis 1:26 through 28 and what I want you to think about is the fact that as an image-bearer Adam is called and Eve are called to have dominion over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth 26 be fruitful and multiply 28 fill the earth subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves upon the earth this is a derived form of Dominion that expresses on a creaturely realm something of the absolute and unqualified Dominion of the Great Creator King Adam and Eve bear in their persons as image bearers listen a royal grant of Dominion at the creaturely level and the the issue before us in light of Genesis 1 and 2 is that there is a narrowing and focusing of that Dominion mandate in the probation mandate of Genesis 2:15 through 17 hear this and let me say two different way you do not understand the Dominion mandate on its own terms independently of Genesis 2:15 through 17 the Dominion mandate and the probation mandate are mute qualifying commandments that elucidate one another and here's that commandment the Lord God took the man put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and guard it and the Lord God commanded the man saying you may surely eat of every tree of the garden but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat for in the day you eat of it you shall surely die now here's what I want you to think about the Dominion mandate is organically tethered to the probation command in Genesis 2:15 through 17 and Adam as a priest king under God a priest consecrated to God and holiness a king ruling under God in righteousness Adam as a priest King and representative head of the race is to fulfill the Dominion mandate in a specific focal testing of his obedience in conflict with the dragon the ancient serpent the devil the Dominion mandate funnels itself into conflict with the serpent conflict with the devil and the focal point if the test is this and I'm going to put it this way then explain why will Adam as a priest king under God exercise his Dominion in obedience to God and will he slay the dragon will he slay the serpent will he destroy the unholy intruder who creeps into the identic holy realm to defile the realm to defile the people and to rebel against and blaspheme the creator king that's the way this narrative is focused why do we say that Adam is poised in such a way here's one reason the same language of guarding or keeping Shamar is used with reference to the Levitical priests role relative to guarding the tabernacle so that the the the the priests under the Old Covenant had a guardianship function of the tabernacle which was what the holy place where God would meet with his people through the shedding of blood and it was not a place into which unauthorized people could enter but only those duly sanctioned by God and set apart as priests this word translated keep Shamar in 215 is used with reference to Israel's priests let me give you two examples and I'll read one well I'll read two but what the second one will be more abbreviated numbers 3 7 through 10 and in numbers 18 1 through 7 we have to note this that the Levitical priests are to guard the tabernacle against unclean things that would enter into it by extension think now Adam is to guard the identic sanctuary from anything unclean that would enter it and listen to the nature of the guardianship ok listen and they shall perform the priests the duties for him and for the whole of the congregation before the tent of meeting to do the service of the tabernacle they shall also keep all the furnishings of the tent of meeting along with the duties of the sons of Israel to do the service of the tabernacle you Shalvis give the Levites to Aaron and to his sons they are wholly given to him from among the sons of Israel priestly consecration so you shall appoint Aaron and his sons that they may keep their priesthood but listen the layman who comes near shall be put to death the guardianship of the tip illogical holy realm the tabernacle dwelling of God was protected or guarded by the Levitical priests with extreme prejudice that would express itself in the death of the unholy intruder the one who was unauthorized to enter in to that holy place the same language is used in numbers eighteen seven I am giving you the priesthood as a bestowed service but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death now I want you to recognize this this is very graphic militaristic imagery that is utilized in the context of carom warfare at later points in Israel's history you are to strike to death those who oppose the Lord those who occupy the holy realm that he is granting to Abraham and his offspring these texts indicate that anyone who would defile the holy sanctuary realm are to be put to death by the priests who guard and keep it and it is not a push to say that it would be a a mortal blow that would be struck whether with spear or sword or some other form it is a blow that brings death to the unholy intruder this is the nature listen of the royal guardianship of the holy realm of the tabernacle by analogy this is precisely what Adams role in the Garden of Eden was to be to put it differently Adam was not first and foremost a farmer Adam was first and foremost a priest devoted to the Lord and a king ruling in his name and under his authority and the realm that he guarded was a holy realm where communion with God was to be primary and protected he was to guard and keep the holy temple realm of Eden he was to guard and protect his holy wife Eve and he was to put to death any who would defile it primarily any who would enter in creeping upon the ground and speak a word against the Lord the Creator King so Adams imaging of God in royal dominion turns on his obedience to God's commands not merely in a general sense of dominion over all creatures but in a focused concentrated sense of destroying the works of the devil he was authorized by God to protect the holy sanctuary realm to hallow his father's name and to destroy the works of the devil with all of the resources that God had given him and the outcome of his obedience the outcome of his bruising the head crushing the head destroying the work of the devil would result in at least three things the broadest way to put it it would be the end of his probation the time of testing would be over and a time for resting would begin first he would be able to reach out his hand and eat from the tree of life and advance to life beyond probation as long as Adam is in the garden listen as long as Adam and Eve are in the garden situation and as long as the serpent is seeking to sift them like sand as long as the threat of death is cast over them so that in a sense they are walking through the valley of the shadow of death death threatened against them for disobedience as long as that condition continues they have not advanced to the highest and most glorious permanent form of human existence in unbreakable communion with God the communion bond is always open to rupture as long as the threat of death and as long as the serpent exists if Adam were to eat from the tree of life he all of his posterity represented in and included in him would advance from innocency to glory from a mutable form of life to a permanent form of life second he correlated to this he would enter into Sabbath rest he and his posterity would enter into Sabbath rest Sabbath rest I can't prove this we could do it in a QA and another time but Sabbath rest according to Hebrews 4 4 which is the only text in the New Testament that expounds and quotes directly Genesis 2:2 Sabbath rest is not only descriptive of God's rest but is prescriptive for the rest of God's people you are commanded and exhorted to enter that rest it's a rest into which others are invited to enter and you can enter that rest through the our chaos the forerunner Jesus Christ who has been raised into heavenly places and entered into rest had Adam obey had he slayed the dragon that rest would have been conferred upon him and his posterity so that eternal life would issue and Sabbath rest that's the significance of Tree of Life and seventh rest and third and to our point the image of God would be broad to eschatological perfection the communion bond with God in perfected righteousness holiness and knowledge that communion bond with God would reach its highest permanent form of consummation and perfection the righteousness and holiness that were mutable through Adam's probation would be confirmed irrevocably and permanently in consummation and he would gain listen this is the paradise of him the paradise of God he would gain full and free and permanent access to God in a bond of communion that knows no end that is the Telos of the image of God but see these are precisely the things that Adam did not attain because he failed to consecrate himself his wife and a realm to God as a priest and he failed to exercise the Dominion of a king under the authority of God hence God entered into a second covenant a covenant of grace and he promised a second Adam who would realize the purposes that Adam failed to realize in his perfect personal exact and entire obedience now let me give you a line of confirmation that we read the guardianship into 15 through 17 properly how can we confirm not only through what the high priest would do the priest would do to someone who would try to enter into the tabernacle he would by guarding it he would do what he would slay the intruder but we can confirm what Adam should have done by reference to genesis 3:15 what is the primal gospel promised as it is announced in genesis 3:15 that the Lord promises a seed from the woman and there will be a seed coming from the sea plural there will be one who will do what to the serpent he will bruise your head you will bruise his heel this is language also translated in certain translations he will what he will crush your head you will bruise his heel what does that tell you it tells you this that the second Adam the seed from the woman will be a priest king who succeeds in his probation in conflict with the serpent and the form that his victory takes is a death blow to the serpent is a crushing of his head a bruising of his head what does that tell you that the second Adam will do to the serpent what the first Adam failed to do and he will crush his head Luke for if I can remind you of lecture I guess this was three years ago these all fit together in certain ways what is the first thing the baptised spirit-filled Messiah does first thing he's driven into the wilderness and for forty days and forty nights he is tempted by the devil and each time he is tempted by the devil what does he do as a priest he is consecrated to God as a king what does he do he crushes the Serpent's head in faithfulness and obedience right by saying what it is written it is written it is written climactically in the cross he crushes the Serpent's head rises up from the dead and in those events death and resurrection he exercises his priestly and kingly guardianship of his people and he destroys the one who defiles he destroys the one who blasphemous genesis 3:15 is an embryonic iteration of the gospel of Jesus Christ as a second and last Adam figure now with regard to Genesis 3:20 there are two other things that happen in Genesis story in Genesis 3 2000 the Adam and Eve with sacrificial animal skins and I want to tell you what the reformed tradition has said historically about this and it's very important and very wonderful for us to appreciate what did God say to Adam and Eve on the day that they sin on the day that you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in dying you will die that's climactic judgment and being removed from the presence of God in Thailand that's what's in view but on the day that they eat God clothes Adam and Eve with animal skins assuming what sacrifice has been made on their behalf without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin and so what does God do God clothes them with the blot with the garments the skins of sacrificial animals and you know what this is an anticipation of the mosaic sacrificial system where blood is shed on behalf of God's people and sacrifice is given as a substitute for the sinner now in addition to this and I won't talk as much about this as we could but growing out of this in verses 23 and 24 you see a flaming sword that guards entrance back into Eden so that as Adam and Eve are cast out of Eden what do they look back on they look back on it got a cherubim guardian a flaming sword that faces in every direction in it it bars entrance back into Eden and access to the Tree of Life what is that tip illogically what does that communicate here's what it communicates the second and last Adam will not only destroy the works of the devil he will not only provide a sacrifice for the sins of his people but he will pass under the flaming sword of divine judgment and eat from the tree of life and confer that life upon his people see Genesis 3 gives you the gospel of Jesus Christ in seed form and it's critical that we see that now those points are basic they can be found within the reformed tradition in standard expressions but I want to call your attention to something that is not often noted I'd like you if you have your Bible open look look at Genesis 3 and I want you to note a verb that is used that is very easy to pass over in verse pardon me it's not 20 it's 21 in verse 21 now listen to this language the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skin and clothed them he clothed them now not only do the animal sacrifices typify the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ and anticipate the coming of the mosaic sacrificial system but that language of clothing is unique God clothed Adam and Eve in garments of animal skins here's what I want to call your attention to if you read the Greek Old Testament the Septuagint it's very interesting that the same route for clothes in Genesis 3:21 is used in numerous places in the New Testament and I want to give you two examples in Colossians 3:10 and Ephesians 4:24 the same verbal route to clothe or to put on is used and listen to the way Paul speaks in Christ Jesus you have put on there's the verb you have put on you have clothed yourself with the new self being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator the fees for 24 you are to put on there's the verb clothe yourself you are to put on or clothe yourself the new self created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness notice that the clothing imagery the same verbal route that you find in Genesis 3:20 involves putting on what putting on the image of God in Christ the clothing imagery is imagery associated listen with image endowment you have been clothed with Jesus Christ you have been formed in His image and so you have put on clothe yourself with a new self created in Christ Jesus after the image of God in knowledge Colossians 3:10 righteousness and holiness 4:24 what does this suggest it suggests that in the new testament the clothing imagery that you find in Genesis 3:20 is to be understood as not only sacrificial skins that are placed upon Adam and Eve but it also contains within it a notion of redemptive image endowment God in Genesis 3:21 is not merely sacrificing animals for Adam and Eve but he is listen he is clothing them in the image of the sacrifice and the sacrifice typifies Christ not only in being an offering for guilt and sin but in providing clothing in providing an image endowment it means that not only is there tip illogical offering for sin in Genesis 3:21 but Adam and Eve are clothed TIPA logically in the image of the promised seed the image of the promised one who will destroy the works of the devil 3:15 clothe his people in his image likeness full with forgiveness of sins 3:21 pass under the flaming sword in his death rise up and eat from the tree of life and become in himself life-giving spirit and confer his image upon his people let me try to put it this way God some some exegetes will say this God is not mocking Adam and Eve and saying your animal-like he's not saying see here are some animal skins you animals you act like animals you're dressed like animals he's not demeaning them he's not chiding them he's not showing that they've been reduced to the level of the animal they're supposed to have Dominion on over that is exactly not what he's doing he is clothing them in a tip illogical image endowment that is a sign and image of Jesus Christ himself it's a clothing in the image of the promised Messiah and so as we start to look at this text we notice that this clothing imagery this putting on is not simply limited to Colossians 3:10 and to Ephesians 4:24 you find something of even greater programmatic significance in 1st Corinthians 15 49 and in verses 53 and 54 turn to that and let me read it for you let's look at this in 1st Corinthians 15 49 listen to the way the Apostle Paul speaks and I'll read all the way down through verse 55 ok verse 49 just as we have borne the image of the man of dust we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven now what is that that's saying that those who descend from Adam by ordinary generation bear his image those who have been united to Christ by the Spirit through faith will bear His image the image of the heavenly man the image of the one raised into the heavens never to die again it's about bearing the image of the resurrected one of heaven and now verses 50 through 54 and following explains listen explains the how of this image endowment how will this image endowment occur well I tell you this brothers flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable behold I tell you a mystery on the mystery something hidden in the secret counsel of God and now revealed we shall not all sleep but we shall all be changed in a moment in the twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet for the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperishable and we shall all be changed for the perishable body must put on the imperishable same root from Genesis 3 20 kilometer diffusions 4 24 the perishable must put on the imperishable the mortal must put on immortality and when the perishable is clothed with the imperishable and the mortal is clothed with immortality then shall come to pass the saying death is swallowed up in victory Oh death where is your victory Oh death where is your sting in the moment like that twinkling of an eye by the supernatural and sovereign power of the spirit that raised Christ from the dead you will put on the image of Christ and be raised in imperishable and immortal glory you see and in Genesis 3:20 you get the adumbration of this because the one who will be sacrificed and in whose image you are made will pass under the flaming sword eat from the tree of life and Eve will name Adam will name Eve the mother of the living and not the dead you see first Corinthians 15 49 reflecting on the resurrection of the church at the end of the eighth the bodily resurrection of those for whom Christ is firstfruits verse 20 says just as we have borne so we will bear the image of the man of heaven and he uses the clothing imagery to communicate that idea now what does that tell you it tells you that in Eden in Genesis 3:21 what you get is a proleptic initial promise not only of forgiveness of sin but being Rhian Daud in the image likeness of the one in whom and through whom you are forgiven you bear the image of your Redeemer and when death is swallowed up in victory and when deaths sting is removed forever what remains for you let me tell you eternal life remains for you Sabbath rest remains for you you will be summoned from the dust of the ground an embarrassing glory in to Sabbath rest and life that never ends for what purpose that you might know and be known by God that you might have his name written upon your forehead and that he might dwell with you and you might dwell with him in a sacred and inviolable bond of Union and communion forever this is the heart of what the Christian faith is all about and it is communicated in the language of image endowment but it is not the bear or naked image of God it is not the image of the man of the earth it is the image of the man who is of heaven the heavenly image and when you think about this a different way that it's put is in the concluding chapters of the book of Revelation that I just want to remind you about what what it means to have the fruition of this image and to enter into the holy dwelling place of God I think is narrated really helpfully in revelation 21 verses 1 through 8 I'll read selectively a new heaven and new earth appeared the holy city the New Jerusalem came down out of heaven prepared as a bride adorned for her husband Eden you know what Eden was Eden was a proto logical replica of this holy realm you know what the tabernacle and temple were they were tip illogical replicas of this holy room and it is coming down out of heaven where Christ is it is coming down out of heaven and John says I heard a loud voice from the throne saying behold the dwelling place of God is with man he will dwell with them and they will be his people and God will be with them as their God he will wipe away every tear from their eye death shall be no more neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain for the former things have passed away and he who was seated on the throne said behold I am making all things new those things that are made new and put in this cosmic apocalyptic imagery we've seen described in Paul as the image endowment from God that inaugurates the perfection of communion with God and his dwelling in the midst of his people this image endowment tethered as it is to a holy realm tethered as it is to the worship and of and communion with the holy God this image endowment will be the permanent and final expression of God giving himself to a holy people in a holy realm through the obedient resurrected federal head the last Adam the life-giving spirit Jesus Christ so and this is what dr. Busey's going to talk about I'm stealing none of his thunder Paul puts it elsewhere being united to Christ is being conformed to his image Romans 8:29 that's dr. Busey's text he's going to be working on that and here's what it means I just want to leave this for the image of God has been perfected in the image of Christ because it has been perfected in Christ as raised and this means that the image into which you are being conformed is a dynamic eschatological reality that finds its fulfillment in God and the worship and communion of God and how is that worship of God and communion with God realized by being united to Christ by spirit forged faith I'll leave it to dr. Busey and others to expand on some of these points throughout this conference thank you

Channel: Reformed Forum

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Keywords: reformed theology, image of god, systematic theology, biblical theology, calvinism

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Length: 52min 51sec (3171 seconds)

Published: Wed Oct 12 2016