Topical Studies
Image and Likeness of God
(From Forerunner Commentary)
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1. Man was created after the God-kind, and kind reproduces after kind. Man is not just different. He did not spring from animals or angels, but God! And when we are changed, we will be changed into what we have sprung from. 2. The way that we are different from the rest of the physical creation is that we have mind, not instinct. Unlike animals who merely react according to preset patterns, we must gather knowledge, analyze, understand, and choose to do the right as stipulated by law. This is what sets character in the mind, for good or bad. 3. Character sets in the mind according to the image the person is conforming to, that is, making choices to be like. In the world before our calling, we really did not have a choice; we just conformed to the world around us. For the Christian, though, we must be conformed to the image of Christ. All the while we were in the world, we were slaves of this urge to conform. We had no real choice in the matter. All we could do was to make slight variations in our conformity. However, when God intervened in our lives and called us, opening our minds, we were given the choice of whom we would be transformed into. 4. Being brought to the image of Christ is a creative effort by God. The converted person is viewed as a new creation, created in Christ Jesus, unto the righteousness and true holiness of God. That is a choice the converted person makes; it is our part in the creative process.
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 1)
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Genesis 1:24-25 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
God is setting the stage in these verses to show that mankind, intoduced in verse 26, is different from what was previously created—in regard to the law that kind only reproduces after its own kind, as well as to origin. Notice the earlier verses say, "Let the earth bring forth. . . ." Of course, cattle did not just spring out of the earth! God certainly created the animals, but "earth" is used as a reference to origin in terms of what is physical. That is, He is pointing to a physical origin for those beasts of the field and the inhabitants of the sea. Verse 26, by contrast, does not contain any reference to the earth in regard to the origin of man, the source of man's life, or to kind-after-kind.
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 1)
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Genesis 1:26 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Moses writes that man is created in God's "image" and "likeness." Any reliable lexicon mentions that "image" and "likeness" reinforce each other in a manner common to Hebrew. It means we are like God in form and implies that, like Him, we have a spiritual capacity which animals do not have.
John W. Ritenbaugh
God Is . . . What?
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Genesis 1:26-27 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Here in the Bible's first chapter, God states His goal: He is making man in His own image! By using both "image" and "likeness," God explained that He would create man to be just like Him! Man would not only look like God, but humanity would also have a spiritual ability to understand His nature and learn to conform to it. Through the experiences of life and the process of building godly character, humankind can put on the image of God and be resurrected into His Family (I Corinthians 15:49-53).
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
God's Master Plan
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Genesis 1:26-27 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
When God molded Adam of the dust, He shaped him in the outward form of Himself; He gave this unique form to man alone. Besides this, God gave man dominion over his environment, and to do this job, He gave him abilities like His own. Man can think, reason, make decisions, and plan. He can originate and evaluate ideas and bring them to completion. He can communicate and express complex concepts that can be understood by other men. Mankind understands and marks the passage of time. No animals have these abilities! But there is more: Man has a unique ability to imagine and desire life after death (Ecclesiastes 3:11)! Men want to live forever! The problem is that without the revelation of God, they have NO IDEA how to attain it!
William Gray
Taking It Through the Grave
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Genesis 1:26-27 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Notice the overall context of these verses. It is the very first chapter of the Bible, and God is laying the foundation for what will follow. If the foundation is not laid correctly, then the rest of the building is crooked. God is beginning to establish our vision of what His purpose is and where we are headed with our lives, and being what we are, we need to have some insight into what He is. So He tells us immediately that we are made in His image and His likeness. He contrasts us with the animals. Each one of them reproduces after its kind. And when they reproduce, they look like their parents. They look like each other. God is clearly implying that He is reproducing Himself and that His purpose is that we will be exactly like Him when He is finished with us. Even now, in our physical forms, we are made in His image so that we will have the potential to be exactly like Him. Virtually every explanation of these two verses begins with an assumption: that God did not really mean what He clearly states. Verse 26 says the creation of man is about to occur. It is yet future. Verse 27 says the creation in the past tense. By the time the statement in verse 27 is done, man is already in His image. It is not future. It is past tense. It is not an image and likeness in progress as in the creation of a character image, but within the context, the image was already accomplished. A physical image and likeness of God has been made. Who knows better? The God who authored the Book and the people He used to write these things down—or people who are looking at it centuries after the fact and have never seen God or heard His voice, people who are using a combination of Bible verses, metaphysics, philosophy, science, and assumption? What is the assumption based on? It is usually on men's definition of the word "spirit." They combine that with John 4:24, which says that "God is Spirit." Adam Clarke provides a typical explanation: "Now as a divine being is infinite, he is neither limited by parts or definable by passions. Therefore he can have no corporeal image after which He made the body of man" (vol. 1, p. 38). That is a direct contradiction based upon an assumption. It is based upon disbelief. Certainly, God does not have a material body, but that does not address the issue. The issue is whether He has a spiritual body, which served as a model for mankind, and whether He has a body that has parts. This is important because men within the church of God are now telling members that God does not have form in mind at all in this verse, but only character image. This is important to us in understanding the nature of God and getting a correct perspective of the goal and purpose of life itself. They are associating Him with being not much more than the Catholic beatific vision or with man becoming part of a vague, immaterial blob without independence. This would effectively do away with the doctrine of being born again into a constructive and developing Family of creators.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 1)
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Genesis 1:26-27 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The implication here is very clear! When man is compared to the animals, man's image is not just of himself (let each reproduce after his kind) but in the image of God! The implication is that man is reproducing after the God-kind! It is not directly stated, but it is strongly implied when the contrast is made between verses 26 and 27 in reference to man and to the other verses that address the beasts of the field and of the sea and of the sky. Man is not just different—he is like God! Man is after the God-kind—not animal-kind and not angel-kind! But how is man like God? It is not merely a matter of form and shape, though that is certainly included. It is principly in terms of more important things: intelligence; broad, emotional capacity; self- and other-consciousness; abstract, spatial, and artistic thought; creative powers to bring plans to pass; and most of all, desire for and capability to grasp spiritual content such as living forever. Man has mind! That is how man is like the God-kind. Man has mind in which the character of God can be created! Certainly, these verses do not say all of that here. They can be gathered from other parts of the Bible, but the ground work for it is laid right here at the very beginning, as God shows that man, though physical and mortal, is after the God-kind. God does not hide vital truths like this by putting them in some obscure book—like the book of Obadiah, one chapter long and which few people ever read! Yet, almost everybody reads the first chapter of Genesis! And there it is—right at the very beginning of the book! The first strong implication that man is after the God-kind is in the very first chapter! Man is different! Man is distinctive from all other created beings!
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 1)
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Genesis 1:26-27 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
From the beginning of the Bible, man is shown to be in an exalted position, different from the rest of the natural creation. He is given dominion over all of the earth. Man's exaltation, his glory, is in the fact that he is in the image of God. In the Old Testament, the primary thrust of being in the image of God involves shape and form. God strongly implies that man is created after the God-kind. What we can derive from this, when connected to other scriptures that show the same general principle, is that when we are changed—when we are transformed (Job 14:14; I Corinthians 15:35-54)—we will be changed into the kind from which we have sprung—God!
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 2)
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Genesis 1:26 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
At the very beginning of the Book, God tells us what He is doing. His project, His work, began with the formation of man as a physical being in the bodily form of God, and it will not end until mankind is in the nature and character image of God. To accomplish this, God gave men free moral agency to enable us to choose to follow His way and assist in the development of His image in us, since we cannot be in His image unless we voluntarily choose to do so. Then the character is truly ours, as well as being truly His, because it is inscribed in us as a result of what we have believed and experienced. God is not merely eternal. He is supreme in every quality of goodness, and in Him absolutely no evil dwells. In the Bible, this goodness is called holiness, which is transcendent purity. It permeates every aspect, every attribute, of God-life. God's character is holy, and it flows out from Him in acts of love, making it impossible for Him to do anything evil. This is the state towards which He is drawing us. Law must be seen in this context. If we tear law from the context of God's purpose, then we can come up with anything we want to say about law. We can say, "Oh, it is all done away," or "We do not need to do this." However, we cannot tear it away from the purpose of God, and there is a reason for this. Does God abide by law? The creation screams at us that He does! Everything He creates operates by law, and it does so because it came from His wonderfully orderly and organized mind. It is a reflection of what His mind is like because this is the way He is. He is a law-abiding God. However, we cannot see Him—not literally, with our eyes. It is here that faith enters the picture: We can see evidence of Him, and we can believe what He says. His law outlines the way that He lives. It is the way of this holy, law-abiding God.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace and Law (Part 20)
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Genesis 1:26-27 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
In God's pattern for all life, like reproduces like. And just as each created form of plant or animal reproduces after its own kind, so man reproduces man. But unlike any of the animals created by God, man was created in God's likeness. These scriptures refute the theory that man is merely the "highest" of the animals, having "evolved" from lower mammals. They clearly state that God created man after His own "image" and "likeness"! God made man like Himself—same form and shape. And He is now creating men after His kind! Only a very few have really grasped the tremendous significance of this astounding truth, but this is what salvation is all about. This revelation affirms that God is reproducing Himself. Our destiny is to become the literal "children" of God—members of His own divine Family! There is a vast difference between spirit and dust. Although man was created in the very shape and likeness of God, he was not created out of the same material (Genesis 2:7; John 4:24) but of the dust of the earth, subject to decay. But God's purpose is to eventually create him out of spirit! In I Corinthians 15:46 we read: "Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. The first man [Adam] is of the earth, earthy: the second man [Christ] is the Lord from heaven. . . . And as we [speaking of converted Christians] have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly" (verses 46-49). Clearly, man is much more than any animal. Man has the potential to become divine spirit—just as GOD is spirit!
What It Means to Be Born Again
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Genesis 1:26-27 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The Hebrew words of Genesis 1:26-27 reveal God's great plan and ultimate purpose for mankind! When God molded Adam of the dust, he was shaped in the "likeness"—the outward form and shape—of God Himself. God did not form any of the other creatures to be an exact clay replica of Himself. This unique form and shape was given to man alone! Notice again that God says, "Let Us make man in our image. . . ." The Hebrew here indicates far more than merely the outward form and shape of God—His likeness. "Image" refers to mind and character! God intended for man—to whom He gave the gift of a thinking, reasoning mind—to develop the very mind and character of God! Each animal was created with a brain suited for each animal kind. But animals do not have the potential of mind and character, which God gave only to man. No animal was ever given the gift of mind power! It is this very special attribute of mind and character that separates men from animals. Animals do not have reasoning, self-conscious minds. Animals follow instinctive habit patterns in their feeding, nesting, migration, and reproduction. God has "programmed" their brains, so to speak, with particular instinctive aptitudes. Thus beavers build dams, birds build nests, etc. These aptitudes are inherited—they are not the result of logical cognitive processes. For example, thousands of birds flock south each year as winter approaches in the Northern Hemisphere. They do not stop to "reason" why, they do not ask themselves whether they should, they do not "plan ahead" an itinerary for the trip. At a given signal—like the pre-set alarm of a clock—they leave their summer feeding grounds in the north and travel thousands of miles south. Scientists do not even now fully understand why—they merely observe the operation of this animal instinct. Each species or kind of bird builds different nests, feeds on different foods, and migrates in different ways at different times to different places. But none of these actions is planned by the birds. They are merely the capability and proclivity which Almighty God built into the instinct of each kind at creation. But man is vastly different. Man is able to perceive and understand various ways to do any one thing. Man can reason from memorized facts and knowledge, draw conclusions, make decisions, will to act according to a thought-out plan. Each man may build a different house, eat different foods—live an entirely different way of life—from every other man. If a man wants to change his way of life, he can! Man is not subject to instinct. He is not governed by a set of pre-determined habit patterns as animals are. Man can choose—he has free moral agency. He can devise codes of conduct and exercise self-discipline. Man can originate ideas and evaluate scientific knowledge because he has a mind which is patterned after God's own mind! Man can devise, plan, and bring his plans to fruition because he has been given some of the very creative powers of God! Man alone can wonder, "Why was I born? What is life? What is death? Is there a purpose in human existence?" Man, unlike the animals, not only "knows" how to do certain things, but he also knows he knows—that is, he is aware that he has "knowledge." He is conscious of the fact. He is self-conscious, aware of his own existence as a unique being. The attributes of mind and character make man God's unique physical creation. God has shared some of His own qualities with man and expects him to develop the "image" of God's perfect mind and holy character!
Just What Is Man?
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Genesis 2:24 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
In Genesis 2:24, when the marriage covenant is ordained, man and woman are designated as "one flesh"—one unit. God is indeed creating a Family modeled after His own characteristics, but not all Godlike characteristics are found in one sex or gender, any more than they are found in one race. It bears repeating that God did not create a superior and inferior sex, any more than He created a superior and inferior race. God has characteristics (revealed throughout Scripture) that are considered to be masculine and feminine. Our own bodies mirror this. Human reproductive glands, for example, manufacture both male and female hormones. Women's ovaries produce small, but significant amounts of androgen (a male hormone). Likewise, men's testicular canals produce not only testosterone, but also a small but significant amount of estrogen (female hormones). God has also designed the human anatomy so that both sexes have vestigial equipment of the opposite sex. No one is 100% male or 100% female—not even the most muscular man or the curviest woman can claim this distinction. Together, men and women make up a composite image of the living God. Individually, we are incomplete, partial, and lacking something in our personality. One of the reasons God gave us marriage state (a God-plane relationship) is to learn how the other half of the God-image behaves. We learn from our mate's traits and characteristics of the opposite sex in order to become complete God-beings. The Bruce Willis/Russell Crowe macho-warriors and the Nicole Kidman/Meg Ryan goddess stereotypes are insufficient models for a God-being. God the Father is not in the process of making macho-warriors or goddesses, but balanced members of His Family. Part of this process—incredible as it sounds—involves the male incorporating Godlike feminine (not effeminate) characteristics such as tenderness, mercy, and patience. Similarly, the female needs to learn or adopt masculine (not tomboy or butch) characteristics such as strength, assertiveness, and decisiveness. If we make a thorough search of the Scripture, we would find the masculine and feminine traits of God equally distributed. Ironically, if gender-neutral advocates had their way, these delightful differences would be blotted out. Space permits elaboration on only a few from each list. We see ample and abundant masculine traits in the Bible: strength, power, decisiveness, aggressiveness, provider, ruler, and leader. Feminine traits are also abundant: beauty, grace, mercy, tenderness, caring, and affectionate. In order to qualify as members of God's Family, both men and women need to incorporate all these characteristics into their personalities. Men often have a hard time being as loving and affectionate as their wives are. Little boys know that Mommies make the best pillows, and Daddies make the best armrests. If some of the women in the congregation would enlist the aid of the men in the congregation to hold their babies, the men might break out in a cold sweat. Nevertheless, motherly feelings and instincts come from God. It did not bother Jesus Christ to express a motherly instinct: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem. . . ! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. . . !" (Matthew 23:37).
David F. Maas
Is God a Male Chauvinist?
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Genesis 9:5-6 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
This context, though we see only a small, essential portion of what God instructed Noah about life after the Flood, is enough to know that God is providing a basis for the establishment of laws regulating social conduct. Why is that necessary? The reason given is because man is in the image of God! Man is being prepared for something far exceeding that of any other aspect of Gods creation! Man, like God, is a being who can make choices. Unlike the rest of the physical creation, man is not a creature of instinct, reacting according to preset patterns, but one who must analyze and choose to do the right as stipulated by law. Animals do not react by understanding and analyzing law and making a decision. Yes, they react to laws, but they are reacting to ones set within their brains, instinctive patterns according to which they must react. Man does not react instinctively. Because he has mind, he is free to do the wrong thing! But he is also free to do the right thing, as stipulated by law.
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 1)
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Genesis 12:1-3 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Critics assert that Israel's history demonstrates the weakness of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in that their God could not keep His promises. Is that so? We need to set the record straight. The Old Testament is a chronicle of Israel's repeated failure to obey God, of its refusal to keep His commandments and statutes. In Psalm 78:10-11, 40-42, 56-57, the psalmist mentions that Ephraim (meaning Israel at large) did not keep the covenant of God; they refused to walk in His law, and forgot His works and His wonders that He had shown them. . . . How often they provoked Him in the wilderness, and grieved Him in the desert! Yes, again and again they tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel. They did not remember His power. . . . Yet they tested and provoked the Most High God, and did not keep His testimonies, but turned back and acted unfaithfully like their fathers. II Kings 17:7-8 speaks of the sins of the Kingdom of Israel, up north: For so it was that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, . . . and they had feared other gods, and had walked in the statutes of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel. The prophet Jeremiah, in Jeremiah 32:30, quotes God's scathing indictment of the people of both Kingdoms: "[T]he children of Israel and the children of Judah have done only evil before Me from their youth." Because of their sins, as II Kings 17:18-20 indicates, God was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight. . . . Also Judah did not keep the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made. And the LORD rejected all the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of plunders, until He had cast them from His sight. In Psalm 78:59-62, the psalmist Asaph relates that God, when He became aware of the idols of Israel, was furious, and greatly abhorred Israel, so that He forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, . . . and delivered His strength into captivity, and His glory into the enemy's hand. He also gave His people over to the sword, and was furious with His inheritance. As early as the days of the founder of the Kingdom of Israel, Jeroboam I, God understood the direction Israel was taking. In I Kings 14:15, God warns that He will ultimately strike Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land which He gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the [Euphrates] River, because they have made their wooden images, provoking the LORD to anger. Much later, Amos warned Israel, "Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are on the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from the face of the earth" (Amos 9:8). The patriarchs were, as God attests again and again, faithful. However, the people of Israel failed to observe the terms of God's conditional promises to them. Israel exhibited again and again its refusal to obey God. As a result, it has yet to enter into the peace, prosperity, and eternal possession of the land He promised the patriarchs. Hebrews 3:8-11 summarizes the matter: "In the day of trial in the wilderness, [the children of Israel] . . . tested Me, proved Me, and saw My works forty years. Therefore I was angry with that generation. . . . So I swore in My wrath, 'They shall not enter My rest.'" Because of the peoples' recalcitrance, God withheld His blessings, ultimately separating Himself from them by casting them out of the land He had promised the patriarchs. God punished Israel for its disobedience by deferring the fulfillment of His promises to the patriarchs. This deferment did not make Him unfaithful to the people, because His promises to them were conditional, based on their obedience to His revelation. In fact, it is not perverse to assert that God was completely faithful to the children of Israel, doing to them exactly what He promised He would do if they persistently sinned against Him. At the right time and for the right people, God will honor His unconditional promises to the patriarchs. Israel's sad history is the consequence of peoples' faithlessness, not of their God's weakness.
Charles Whitaker
Searching for Israel (Part Eight): The Scattering of Ten-Tribed Israel
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Genesis 18:1-9 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The Lord appeared, and Abraham saw Him coming. What did He look like? He looked like a man. But it was the Lord because Abraham bowed down and worshipped Him, and the Lord did not reject his worship. In verse 4, Abraham says, "Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet." God has feet. Then he says in verse 5, "And I will bring a morsel of bread." We find that God took the bread and the meat, and the three of them ate. He spoke, so He had a voice, and He conversed with Abraham and Sarah. God shows other qualities here that are interesting to think about. How long did it take Abraham to run, order a calf killed, have someone slaughter it, bleed it, skin it, butcher it, roast the meat, and then serve it to Him? It must have taken a few hours at least. In the meantime, God is sitting under a tree, and He is at the same time running the whole universe. He must have been handling all of the other things that go on in the universe from that chair or pillow He was sitting on. Do we ever feel rushed because we have too many things to do? Yet, here is the busiest Being in all of creation, and He had enough time to sit down, wash His feet, and wait patiently while they made Him a meal. Do we ever become impatient? In this example, we see patience exemplified. So, we see God exhibits qualities other than form and shape, even though they may not be mentioned directly.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 2)
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Genesis 19:1 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
These angels are the other two who were with the Lord when He was entertained by Abraham. The other two "men" are identified conclusively as angels. It is interesting that the story begins in Genesis 18:1 as though these three spirit beings just suddenly appeared, as if one moment Abraham could not see them, and the next moment three people were suddenly there. Apparently, Abraham was of such experience that he recognized immediately who they were. He certainly was not nonplussed because he immediately bowed down and worshipped one of them, recognizing that One as the Lord.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 3)
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Isaiah 64:8 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Putting this together with Job 14:14-15, the work (the molding and shaping of the Potter) will not be finished until the resurrection of the dead. In the meantime, as we yield He continues to re-form and re-shape us, from what we have been in this world into the image of His Son. The illustrations of this are throughout the entire Bible. All that is required of any honest, truth-seeking individual is to put these scriptures together and honestly conclude that God is reproducing Himself! God's creation continues! And its purpose is to bring us into the image of His Son and Himself.
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 1)
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Daniel 7:13-14 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The Ancient of Days, the One who became known as the Father, is seated on a throne. He wears clothing and has shining white hair. Yet, the "One like the Son of Man" is also a divine Being. So, we see two God Beings in the same place and at the same time, and it is designated that the second is the One who will bear rule in the kingdoms of men.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 2)
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Matthew 17:1-5 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
When Peter recollected in II Peter 1:16, he was recalling the event in Matthew 17. When Jesus was transfigured, glorified before them, He did not take on a different shape and form than He had before. He still had a recognizable face. He still had clothing on, but everything became shining and bright. Undoubtedly, this was done to impress on the minds of these three men that this Jesus was God in the flesh.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 2)
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Luke 24:36-40 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Consider the context and the time. He is resurrected, composed of Spirit. He is God. Does He indicate at all that being in the body is only a part-time experience for God? No, instead He teaches them that a spirit being's body is not vaporous like a ghost and that it is not composed of earthly flesh and bone. The implications are important in relation to other parts of the Bible. In this case, what He does not say is important because He wants them to answer in their own minds just the opposite of what they originally thought, "This is a ghost. It has no form or shape." Yes, He did have form and shape, and it was solid to the touch. They felt Him, and their hands did not pass through Him. He is saying that He has flesh and bones, but they are not physical. They are spirit flesh and bones.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 1)
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John 1:1-3 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
John 1:1 and Genesis 1:1 are two accounts of the same event—the original creation of the universe. They both reveal that these two Supreme Beings of the God Family created all things. The Greek word translated into English as "Word" in John 1:1 is Logos. It can also mean spokesman, or one who speaks. It was actually the Logos, the "Spokesman"—the "Word" of the God Family—who said, "Let us make man in Our image" (Genesis 1:26), thus executing His awesome office as the executive of the God Kingdom. Everything was created and made by the divine Being who later became the human Jesus Christ!
What It Means to Be Born Again
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John 3:5-8 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Ruach is translated as "wind" in the Old Testament. Here, the Greek word is pneuma, which is the equivalent of the Hebrew ruach meaning "an invisible force or power." The illustration refers to wind. A person cannot see air, but it is real, is it not? Its molecules can be packed so solidly, so close together, that they will lift a huge airplane right off the ground. One cannot see the molecules, the atoms, the electrons, or protons, but they are there. We deal with other invisible forces or powers, like electricity and light, on a daily basis, and they certainly exist. That is the gist of the meaning of spirit. No one would argue that air, of which wind is constituted, is not real, and though it is invisible, it is made up of particles too small for the unaided eye to see. The Bible provides ample evidence to prove that God and angels are not universal nothingness floating around in nowhere. God is not universal mind, conscience, or goodness. He is not an abstract power filling the whole of space. Except for the vast differences in power and potential, the only difference between humans and God is that mankind is earthly flesh and bone whose life is in the blood, while God's body is also flesh and bone but composed of Spirit and immortal. This has practical ramifications that must be explored because it means that God cannot be omnipresent in the body. The Bible's consistent description of God shows Him at one place at one time, and He is generally seen managing or participating in His creation. We see Him sitting, standing, walking, talking, eating, drinking, commanding, etc., in specific locations. Nowhere is there any mention of God's size, and therefore the conclusion must be that He is of ordinary, human size, and when He became a man, the Scripture says, there was nothing notable about Him except His character and His powerful teaching.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 3)
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John 4:24 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The King James has wrongly translated this verse from the Greek. It really says "God is spirit," not "a" spirit—there is no indefinite article in the Greek. Basically, Jesus is saying that God is invisible and immaterial. This scripture directly refers to the Father. "Spirit" is used in the sense of composition. However, just because the Father and the Son are spirit does not mean they have no form. If they had no form, how could the Bible honestly say that humans were created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26)? They do have form. Physically, we are in Their image.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Holy Spirit and the Trinity (Part 1)
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John 5:16-17 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
"Hitherto" is not a word that we are familiar with. It means, "to here," so in this context it implies "to this very day." Jesus is saying, "My Father is working right up to this point of time, and I am too." God is an active Creator. He did not create everything physical, and then just sit back, cross His legs, and twiddle His thumbs. He is an active Creator. God created this universe to carry out the next step in His purpose, which is His ongoing work. He is creating a Family of beings just like Himself. He is reproducing Himself by creating us in His image. "Conversion" is the word that describes this process of transformation—"from glory to glory"—from the glory of man to the glory of God. We are being brought into the image of God. This image is not in the way that we look, but in certain knowledge and attitudes that we believe, accept, submit to in thought and in conduct. It is accomplished by an impregnation or begettal of the mind of God in us. This spiritual impregnation or begettal, just as in human impregnation and begettal, begins a growth process. In our case, it is the growth of God's mind in ours. God's mind, just like ours, is more than words. It is also attitudes, feelings, moods, passions, inclinations, and perspectives. These things can be described by words, but they are not words. They develop through the combination of knowledge and experience, most frequently within relationships. We really cannot relate to a machine, but we can relate to other beings—we can have relationships with God and men—fellowships, social intercourse, work, play, and interaction. From these experiences, these mental, emotional, and attitudinal aspects of the mind, beyond mere words, create and develop. As is happens, nothing actually is produced that has form, weight, or can be measured. Rather it is knowledge gleaned from experience, and it is accompanied by God personally and actively working and creating to enable us to accomplish our part in carrying out His will. Remember, Paul said, "For it is God who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13).
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Holy Spirit and the Trinity (Part 6)
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John 14:10-11 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The word in could prove to be quite a puzzle because, if we understood it as "inside" rather than "in union with," we would have God and Christ crawling inside and out of each other. It would create a farcical, "Where is He now? The Son is in the Father. No, the Father is in the Son." Or, because Christians are included in verse 20, it would be, "No, He's in me." "No, He's in you." Or, "No, I'm in Him." We could get all confused. But God is logical. Here, the sense is definitely "in union with." The Father and Son are two separate Beings who sit side by side in carrying out the responsibilities of providing for and maintaining the operation of His creation both physically and spiritually. When the Son was on earth, He was in union with the Father, and the Father was in union with Him. It is almost as if they were—well, humanly, we would say "one flesh." When a man and a woman marry, are they two different beings? Yes, they are. Are they commanded by God to marry for the purpose of becoming one, in union with each other? Yes (Genesis 2:24). Do they crawl in and out of each other? No, of course not. Nevertheless, a blending takes place: a blending of mind and personality. And what eventually happens? It is something that begins even before the two become married. No matter where one of them goes, because of their experiences together, he or she carries the presence of the other with him or her, and they can call up those memories in the blink of an eye. Is that not simple? The same principle is involved in the union of the Father and the Son—and the union of God and the Christian.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 4)
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John 15:5 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
He speaks directly to us, stating a principle we must learn to live with. The power to do spiritual works, to overcome, to produce the fruit of God's Spirit, to be used by God in any righteous manner comes from above. Israel's journey through the wilderness illustrates this. Every step of the way was physically empowered by the manna and water God provided. Understanding God's hand in our preparation for the Kingdom of God is also advanced by remembering that we are the clay sculpture our Creator is molding and shaping (Isaiah 64:8). Does any work of art—any painting, carving, drawing, tapestry, work of literature, or fine meal for that matter—have inherent power to shape itself? The natural man, even apart from God's purpose, is a magnificent work of art. David writes in Psalm 139:14, "I am fearfully and wonderfully made." Yet, when born into the Kingdom of God, we will be the most magnificent masterpieces there are, far superior to what we are now. To mold and shape us into God's image requires love, wisdom, and multiple other powers far beyond anything any person—even Jesus as a human being—has.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Power Belongs to God (Part Two)
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Romans 5:6-10 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Sanctification and justification are not the same. They are, however, different processes within the same purpose, and they are definitely related issues. They both begin at the same time: when we are forgiven, justified, and sanctified. Justification has to do with aligning us with the standard of God's law that in turn permits us into God's presence. We will never be any more justified than we are at that moment; justification does not increase as we move through our Christian lives. Some believe that Jesus Christ lived and died only to provide justification and forgiveness of our sins. However, those who believe this are selling His awesome work short. As wonderful as His work is in providing us with justification, His labors in behalf of our salvation do not end there. Notice that verse 10 says we are "saved by His life." Jesus rose from the dead to continue our salvation as our High Priest. God's work of spiritual creation does not end with justification, for at that point we are far from complete. We are completed and saved because of Christ's labor as our Mediator and High Priest only because He is alive. Sanctification unto holiness continues the process. Hebrews 2:11 states that Jesus is "He who sanctifies," and those of us who have come under His blood are called "those who are sanctified." Note these verses carefully: » John 17:19: And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth. » Ephesians 5:25-26: Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it, that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word. » Colossians 1:21-22: And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight. . . . » Titus 2:14: . . . who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. Sanctification has a definite purpose that is different from justification. In one respect, justification—as important as it is—only gets the salvation process started. Sanctification takes a person much farther along the road toward completion. It occurs within the experiences of life generally over the many years of one's relationship with the Father and Son. How long did God work with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, and the apostles to prepare them for His Kingdom? By comparison, will our perfection be achieved in just a moment? Sanctification is the inward spiritual work that Jesus Christ works in us. Notice His promise, made on the eve of His crucifixion, in John 14:18: "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you." Moments later, when asked by Judas, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?" (verse 22), Jesus replies, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him" (verse 23). These clear statements show that Jesus would continue His work with them following His resurrection. As our High Priest, He continues that work in us after our justification. He not only washes us of our sins by means of His blood, but He also labors to separate us from our natural love of sin and the world. He works to instill in us a new principle of life, making us holy in our actions and reactions within the experiences of life. This makes possible a godly witness before men, and at the same time, prepares us for living in the Kingdom of God. If God's only purpose was to save us, He could end the salvation process with our justification. Certainly, His purpose is to save us, but His goal is to save us with character that is the image of His own. Notice Hebrews 6:1: "Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God." This verse and those immediately following confirm that, at the time of justification, we are not perfect or complete. Justification is an important beginning, but God intends to complete the process of spiritual maturation that He began with our calling. When sanctification begins, our Christian walk truly begins in earnest. Sanctification, then, is the outcome of God's calling, faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, justification, and our becoming begotten of God by receiving His Spirit. This combination begins life in the Spirit, as Paul explains in Romans 8:9: "But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His." At this point in Christian life, the principles of Christianity must be practically applied to everyday life. At this juncture, it might help to recall what righteousness is. Psalm 119:172 defines it succinctly: "My tongue shall speak of Your word, for all Your commandments are righteousness." The apostle John adds to our understanding in I John 3:4: "Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness." Both rectitude and love concisely characterize the same standards, the Ten Commandments, and we are required to labor to perform both.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Is the Christian Required To Do Works? (Part Four)
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1 Corinthians 2:10-11 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
There is a human spirit in which all of mankind shares. It is what, more than any other component of what we are, that enables us to be in God's image, and yet each person is a different personality. We are distinct from each other so that each person's spirit is also distinct. It is his own. Your spirit is yours, and my spirit is mine. My spirit projects John Ritenbaugh. It projects my personality, my mind, my attitudes, my knowledge, my understanding, my wisdom, and my discernment—things that have come to me as a result of my experiences. Yours is exactly the same way. What spirit goes back to God when we die? Is the spirit that goes back to God after your death different from the one that goes back to God from me when I die? Of course it is. Mine is mine, and yours is yours. In reference to God, His Spirit is Holy Spirit, but it is uniquely His. Are not He and the Son distinct from one another? They are.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 3)
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1 Corinthians 15:35 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Do things ever change, or do the same questions keep coming around all the time? This sounds as modern as last year—God has no body. So people in the first century were questioning what kinds of body the sons of God will have in the resurrection. Why were they questioning that? Because there were undoubtedly people, most likely of the Gnostic persuasion, who were saying that God does not have a body. And, they argued, since we are to be made in the image of God, we will not have a body either.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 1)
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1 Corinthians 15:42-49 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The image Paul speaks of is not merely that we will be composed of spirit even as Christ is, but that our very nature and character be like His. If God desired that we merely be spirit, He could have made us like angels. Angels, however, are not God; they are angels. God is doing a work in us through which we will become like Him, not like angels. His purpose requires that we cooperate. Though our part is very small by comparison to what He is doing, it is nonetheless vital. Notice how Paul draws this beautiful section of I Corinthians to a conclusion by drawing our attention to what it will take on our part to make God's purpose work: "But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord" (I Corinthians 15:57-58).
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Elements of Motivation (Part Three): Hope
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1 Corinthians 15:45-48 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The heavenly man is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is God! Those who are after the heavenly man, so also are those who are heavenly! As we have borne the image of the man of dust, Adam, so we shall also bear the image of the heavenly man! We were one with Adam. Under a new rule of life, we are one with Christ. Even as Adam is the pattern of what we are now, Christ is the pattern for what we shall be. We shall therefore share His life and His being. The conclusion is inescapable. The present body, Paul shows, is corruptible. The future body is incorruptible, unfaded. It has beauty that will never lose its sheen! The present body is dishonest. The future body will be holy, no longer be subject to carnal passion. It will be a pure instrument of service. The bodies we now have full of weakness. The new body will be one of power! So often we are frustrated by our limitations. There is so much more that we wish we could do, but we are encompassed by weakness. We get tired and weary. In the resurrection, we will be clad with power! This present body is natural, subject to sickness and death. The resurrected body will be spiritual and eternal. It will be just like Christ's!
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 2)
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1 Corinthians 15:49 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Are we sons of Adam? Why do we have this image? Why are we like him? Because we are his offspring! We have been born into this earth, the offspring of Adam, as Acts 17 clearly proves;. One day, we will be born again—this time as a born son of God—and we will bear the image of our Father. We will be just like Him (I John 3:2), even as we are now just like Adam was. We will be God! Incidentally, the word image means "that which corresponds to and reproduces the original." No image—whether it is a reproduction in a flat mirror, a three-dimensional hologram, or a living child of a parent—is an exact replica or image, because each person has his own peculiarities. That is so evident and logical that everybody should be able to understand that nobody can be God exactly as God is God, because each person is an individual personality. We will be a reproduction of Him, but we will be unique—because we are who we are, and He is who He is. He has His life and His history, and we have ours. However, we will still be God. We will be just as much "God" as a baby in the human family is a "human" like its parents.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace and Law (Part 1)
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1 Corinthians 15:49 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The "heavenly Man" is Jesus Christ. We will be transformed to be like His glorious body. If we are to have a body, which will be like His, then He must also have a body now. When God restored Him to His former glory (Jesus' prayer in John 17:3-5 requests He be restored to the glory He had with the Father before the world was), He then returned to the kind of body He had before when He was the model for Adam. Do we understand what this means? When He was resurrected, He was restored to what He was before when He was the model for mankind. As the model for Adam, He was like He was when He was resurrected. He was God. The composition was spirit, not flesh, but His body had shape and solidity (remember that He was touched in His resurrection appearances).
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 2)
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1 Corinthians 15:49 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
As we are now flesh, we shall be spirit?at the resurrection, that is, when we shall be "born again"?when we shall see, enter into, the Kingdom of God?when we are spirit?at the resurrection!
Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986)
Life After Death?
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1 Corinthians 15:49 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
I Corinthians 15:49 shows the end of the process, which it encompasses in just a brief phrase, "we shall also bear the image of the heavenly." We were born into the human family, and we have borne the image of that family, an image that all of mankind has in common. All of us have the human spirit. We may be different ethnically. We may look different from the person sitting next to us, but now in Christ Jesus He is building a commonality, one God intends us to use to increase our fellowship with Him, as well as increase and deepen the respect and fellowship that we have for each other until we come to bear the image of the heavenly. Then, of course, the fellowship will be in totality. That is where Christians are headed.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Truth (Part 4)
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2 Corinthians 5:17 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Each Christian is a new lump of clay—being molded and shaped by a Master Potter! We are already physical and mortal, so He must be forming, creating something else in the image of God! God's creative efforts did not end in Genesis 1. He merely reached a stage, a platform, from which springs the most important aspect of the creation. The new creation is the creation of a new order, a Family in His image—and not just physically, but also spiritually. He wants our minds and hearts in His image as well. Ephesians 4:13 says that we to grow to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 1)
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Galatians 4:5 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
It is an obscene fallacy to consider that mankind needs to be "redeemed" from God's law. The law does not keep one in bondage—sin does. The law just points out why that man is in bondage. As the notes at Galatians 4:3 show, God's intent and desire is to free us from the bondage of sin, just as He redeemed the Israelites from Egypt. Right before God gave Israel the Ten Commandments, in a preamble of sorts, He stated very clearly, "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage" (Exodus 20:2). God's law points out to people why they are reaping the negative consequences of the choices they make—why they are in bondage to sin and condemned to pay the physical and spiritual price. Jesus Christ was supernaturally conceived ("made of a woman") and took on the consequence of all of our sins ("made under law"), so He could redeem—pay the price for—everyone who was also under the condemnation of the law. We are redeemed from the bondage of sin and its consequences, not from the perfect law of God! It should be noted that He did this for all men, not just for the Jews. Hence, the "redemption" could not be referring to redemption from the moral instructions of what is right and wrong, simply because the Gentile Galatians were not familiar with God's law before He called them. Prior to God's call from this satanic system, we were Satan's children. We bore his image, and resembled him in word, deed, and attitude (Ephesians 2:1-3; John 8:38-44). When God calls us into a relationship with Him, He justifies us—brings us into alignment with His perfect law—and gives us a measure of His Spirit so we may begin to understand His ways. To those that He chooses and who properly respond, He gives the authority to become His sons (John 1:12). This sonship is by adoption, because our first father was Satan the Devil! At the beginning of our relationship with God, we are begotten by Him but not yet born (John 3:3-8; I Corinthians 15:20-54; I John 3:9; 5:18). Genesis 1:26 shows that God's intent is to recreate Himself and to have a Family of spirit beings. Because He loves us, He gives us the opportunity to be called the "sons of God," which alienates us from the world because the world still bears the image of Satan (I John 3:1). Through the sanctification process we are changed, and become more and more in His likeness, and upon our resurrection we will be raised with incorruptible spirit bodies, fully born into the Kingdom—the Family—of God.
David C. Grabbe
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Ephesians 1:3-4 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
"For I am the LORD. I do not change" (Malachi 3:6). He has never deviated from His purpose from the foundation of the world. Once He had planned what He would do, He set out on to fulfill His purpose, and He has never strayed from it. Genesis 1:26 suggests this strongly: "Let Us make man in Our image." What is He doing? He is reproducing Himself. If He is creating man "in His image," then He is reproducing Himself!
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace and Law (Part 1)
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Ephesians 4:10-13 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
When He ascended, He was resurrected as very God. He was an immortal spirit being once again! These verses show the goal, the focus, the very reason the church exists—why we have been impregnated by the Spirit of God: "till we come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God." Paul is describing something that will not occur while we are still physical beings, yet he is pointing to the great goal that lies beyond the resurrection of the dead! Our hope and goal is found in verse 13. What we have to do is begin to expand on what Jesus Christ is now—that is what the apostle Paul is pointing to. Our standard is not Jesus merely as a man before He was crucified and resurrected, but the great goal is Jesus Christ as He is now—ascended and at God's right hand! We are still mortal and physical, but we are in the image of God (Genesis 1:26), not just in form and shape. The image of God that He is concerned about is the fact that we have the power of mind. Because of this and with the help of the gifts of God, we can come to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 1)
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Ephesians 4:17-32 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Most of us realize that the unity of the church of God courses through the book of Ephesians as a general theme. Paul illustrates the church as a complete body of which Jesus, though in heaven, is the Head, and the elect here on earth comprise the rest of it. Early on, Paul declares how God has planned the organization of His purpose from the very beginning, determining whom He would call, give His Spirit to, and perfect as His children. In Ephesians 4, the apostle begins to clarify our Christian responsibilities regarding works. He appeals to us in verse 1 to make every effort to live a manner of life that measures up to the magnificence of our high calling. He then makes sure we understand that we must carry out our responsibilities in humility, kindness, and forbearance as we strive to maintain doctrinal accord in purity. He explains that Christ has given each of us gifts to meet our responsibilities in maintaining the unity of God's church. Foremost among these gifts are teachers who will work to equip us for service in the church and eventually in the Kingdom. This same process will enable us to grow to completion, to mature, no longer wavering in our loyalties, certain in the direction of our lives, and not deceived by the craftiness of men. With that foundation, the "therefore" in verse 17 draws our focus to the practical applications necessary to meet the standards of the preceding spiritual concepts. We must not conduct our lives as the unconverted do. They are blinded to these spiritual realities and so conduct life in ignorance, following the lusts of darkened minds. Because we are being educated by God, the standards of conduct are established by His truths and are therefore exceedingly higher. We must make every effort to throw off the works of carnality and strive to acquire a renewed mind through diligent, continuous effort so that we can be created in the image of God in true righteousness and holiness (verse 24). In verses 25-29, Paul moves even further from generalities to clear, specific works that we must do. We must speak truth so that we do not injure another through lies, as well as to maintain unity. Because deceit produces distrust, unity cannot be maintained if lying occurs. We must not allow our tempers to flare out of control, for they serve as an open door for Satan to create havoc. We must be honest, earning our way so that we are prepared to give to others who are in need. We must be careful that what we speak is not only true but also edifying, imparting encouragement, empathy, sympathy, exhortation, and even gentle correction when needed. In verse 30 is a brief and kind reminder that, in doing our works we must never forget that we owe everything to our indwelling Lord and Master. We must make every effort to be thankful, acknowledging Him as the Source of all gifts and strengths, enabling us to glorify Him through our works. In the final two verses of the chapter, Paul delineates specific responsibilities concerning our attitudes toward fellow Christians within personal relationships. This brief overview of just one chapter shows clearly how much works enter into a Christian's life as practical requirements that cannot be passed off as unnecessary. How else will a Christian glorify God? How else will he grow to reflect the image of God? How else will he fulfill God's command to choose life (Deuteronomy 30:19) except by faithfully doing those works that lead to life? Through the whole process of sanctification, the Christian will make constant use of two additional works: daily prayer and Bible study, which must be combined with his efforts to obey God. No one who is careless about performing these works can expect to make progress growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ during sanctification. Why? Without them, he will have no relationship with either the Father or the Son, and thus will not be enabled to achieve the required works. They are the Source of the powers that make it possible for us to do the works God has ordained. If we do not follow through on these two works, we will surely hear ourselves called "wicked and lazy" and be cast into "outer darkness" where there is "weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matthew 25:24-30).
John W. Ritenbaugh
Is the Christian Required To Do Works? (Part Four)
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Ephesians 4:22-23 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The heart changed. The way that man is like God does not have so much to do with form and shape as it does with qualities of mind. It is while we were in the world that the mind became corrupted because we just absorbed—we conformed to—the image of this world, which is the image of Satan the Devil in its many forms. This is why we have to be renewed in the spirit of our mind, to be created in the image of His Son.
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 1)
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Philippians 3:21 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
There is nothing ambiguous, cloudy, or vague about this. Our bodies will be conformed to be like His. It does not say they will be conformed to be like an angel's. It does not say they will be conformed to be like a better human being. They are going to be conformed to be like His body. Paul is referring to the Lord, who is God! Our bodies will be like God's body. The word conform or, as it is in the King James, fashioned means "to make similar to or identical with." Will our bodies be "similar to" or "identical with" God's? Which one does Paul intend us to understand? John writes in I John 3:1-3: Behold, what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God. Therefore the world does not knows us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now are we are children of God, and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be. But we know that, when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. When he says, "it has not yet been revealed what we shall be," he means that we do not know some of the specifics about what our nature will be like, but we do know what it will be in a generality: "We shall be like Him." What other creature that God has created has been given the Spirit of God and is being conformed to His image? Angels? Hebrews 1 says that the angels of heaven worship Jesus Christ. He is greater than angels, and we are going to be conformed to Him! We are not going to be conformed to angels. The conforming is to be to God. Another thing that John adds here is that this hope—to be conformed to the image of God in Jesus Christ—is what motivates a person to purify himself. It is the engine that drives a person along the Way, because he knows where he is headed. He is not going to be someone slightly above angels but someone like the Son of God, one who is worshipped and is worthy of the worship of angels. This doctrine is not ambiguous in any way. We are going to be like Him, and He is worthy of worship. Does it not say in Revelation 3:9 that people will worship the saints? Do people worship angels? No, the angels tell them, "Get off your knees, because I am a servant as you are" (see Revelation 19:10). God says we will be worthy of worship as part of the God Family.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace and Law (Part 1)
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Philippians 3:21 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
When Jesus was resurrected, He took pains to make it clear to His disciples that He was not a ghost, not merely an essence. He had flesh and bone. He was plainly saying that there was substance to what He was then—and thus to what He is today. To put it bluntly, He was saying that He was corporeal. Corporeal from Webster's means "having tangible qualities of a body such as shape, size, and resistance to force." If a person leans against the wall, it resists him. Why? Because it is solid, tangible. If Jesus was not solid, whenever His disciples stretched their hands out to Him or perhaps ran their fingers against the palm of His hand where the nail marks were, they would have felt nothing, yet there was substance.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 2)
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Colossians 1:15 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Some have said that firstborn here means "preeminent." Undoubtedly it can be used as such, but its more natural meaning is "the first to open the womb." Creation (ktisis) "denotes a particular created thing" (Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary New Testament, p. 897), meaning in this case, "humans" or "humanity." This phrase, then, could be translated: "the first born of humanity." But was not Adam (or more technically, Cain) the firstborn of humanity? This does not seem to fit Jesus Christ. He was the firstborn of Mary, but He came four thousand years after Adam and Cain! What does Paul mean here? He is not discussing preeminence, especially when he links it to "the image of the invisible God." Man was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26). Paul is writing about humanity being born into the Family of God! Jesus Christ is indeed first! He is the first of all humanity to be born as God. Three verses later he writes, "He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead" (Colossians 1:18). It is so obvious! He is writing about a resurrection, a birth from physical to spiritual, from humanity to God!
John W. Ritenbaugh
You Must Be Born Again!
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Colossians 3:10-15 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
When Paul speaks of putting on the new man here, he gives us several attitudes we need to emulate as followers of Christ. Most of them involve the way we deal with each other because a major part of what God is teaching us has to do with building and solidifying our relationships. As we see in the next few verses, he comments specifically on the husband-wife, parent-child and employer-employee relationships. Why? Largely, our judgment by our Savior hangs on the quality of our relationships. We should never forget the principle found in the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats: "Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me" (Matthew 25:40, 45).
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
The Road Less Traveled
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Colossians 3:10 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
It is not just a general picture of God, but specifically the image of Christ, who created us, that we are being formed into. He becomes the goal of salvation of redeemed men. To be conformed to the world requires little or no effort; we just naturally blend. But the Christian must consciously put on Christ. Those traits of character and personality are not something that is put in us by fiat. They must be acquired.
John W. Ritenbaugh
We Shall Be God! (Part 2)
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Hebrews 2:10 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
God plainly shows it is His purpose to increase His divine Family by bringing many sons into it. Jesus Christ is actually the "firstborn" of many sons of God (Romans 8:29; Colossians 1:18). The gospel Jesus brought to mankind is simply the "good news" of the Kingdom of God—and that Kingdom is dual. It is not only the ruling government which Christ will establish on the earth when He returns, but it is also the Family of God—the God Kingdom composed of the spirit members of the God Family. And, incredible as it may sound, Jesus taught that humans can be "born" into the Family, or Kingdom, of God. There are only two members in the God Family or Kingdom at the present time—God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son. But God is increasing His Family, and you can be "born" into it!
What It Means to Be Born Again
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1 Peter 1:2-5 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
We have been summoned to a great cause. The summons is personal and specific. It presents us the challenge of choosing to live a life worthy of the awesome vocation to which God has summoned us. Our calling has become our life's work. God has summoned us to yield to His creative efforts of reproducing Himself, just as II Corinthians 3:18 instructs us: "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord."
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Elements of Motivation (Part Five): Who We Are
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Revelation 7:9-12 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The Bible tells us that all the redeemed will see God's face. Here is a picture of the redeemed, projected forward to the time when they are in the Kingdom of God before His throne. What are they looking at? The Bible says they will see His face. God has a face, prosopon, which literally means "toward." It also means "the eye" or "the face." When used in reference to a person, it means "the part toward, at, or around the eye," "the face," or "the countenance." Why would John use this word? When one person is talking with another, they are looking at each other, beholding what is toward each one, and the focus of their attention is on the other's face, that is, the eyes and what is around them. Hence, this word is almost variably translated face, countenance, presence, or person in the New Testament, depending on how expansive the context is.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Image and Likeness of God (Part 2)
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Revelation 20:12-13 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Since all are to be judged according to their works, what if one claiming to be Christian has no works to show when God clearly expects them? James 2:19-20 clinches the argument: "You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?" This entire issue is actually quite simple. No amount of works can justify us before God. Justification by faith in Christ's atoning blood makes one legally free to access God and to begin a relationship with Him. However, from that point on, works are absolutely required for sanctification unto holiness—to the extent that, not only is one's reward contingent upon them, but also salvation itself. Will God reward one who can show no works at all, or provide salvation to one whose faith is so weak it produces bad works? Such a person would be totally out of place, unfit for living eternally in the Kingdom of God. Ephesians 2:8-10 makes this reality even stronger. Even though we are saved by grace through faith, the very reason we are created is for good works that God Himself prepared beforehand for us to walk in. The gospel of the Kingdom of God provides the reasons for which works are required—the major one being to prepare us for living in God's Kingdom. God intended Israel's forty-year journey through the wilderness to prepare them for living in the Promised Land. However, even though Israel had the gospel preached to them and had godly leadership provided by the likes of Moses, Aaron, and Joshua, in their stiff-necked unbelief they refused to submit in obedience to God's commands. They thus failed to receive the necessary preparation for using the Promised Land rightly, becoming an eternal example of why works of preparation are needed (Hebrews 4:1-2). Can we learn a lesson from their examples? When God brings us out of spiritual Egypt, He is not done with us yet. In fact, a great deal of spiritual creating within us remains to be accomplished before we will be fit to live and occupy a working position in God's Kingdom. We are being created in Christ Jesus, created in His image. Can we honestly say we are already in His image when we are merely legally cleared of sin? Absolutely not! As great as this is, it is not the end of God's creative process. God is not merely "saving" us. His purpose is far greater than that.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Is the Christian Required To Do Works? (Part Six)
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