(ThyBlackMan.com)
And just as we have borne the image of the man made of dust, we will also bear the image of the heavenly man.
1 Corinthians 15:49 HCSB
What is this image of this heavenly man, and how does that compare to the image of the dusty or earthly one? In what capacity do we bear these images, and why is it noteworthy? These questions naturally arise from looking at this text, and such will be the basis of our discussion. The man Adam, and the Son of man, Jesus Christ, both have distinct impacts on our beings and, as such, influence our lives in various ways. Understanding their effect as it relates to our relationship with God is beneficial in helping us direct our lives.
Dear Christian, Adam, our forefather, did the world a great disservice when he sinned. He marred the then-perfect and beautiful creation God had made. He introduced a presence, an image, that was before absent and uninvited in God’s ordered world—the aesthetic of God’s goodness and peace abode upon all creation from the stars to the insects. Nothing fought for dominion or control; everything in relation to itself and other created things dwelt in solace, and this serenity was to be perpetuated by the man made of earth. Alas, Adam chose to rebel against his Father’s wishes, consequently bringing judgment to the entire world. Through Adam’s choice, sin’s presence now abides on all creation.
Every creature now groans, awaiting its redemption. The saddest effect of sin was how it contorted the image of Adam. Adam, made in the image of God, now tainted this image through his rebellion into a new image of what theologians call “fallen humanity.” Though we still bear the image of God as a human race, it now resides inside us, influenced by Adam’s transgression. The natural and innocent proclivities to follow and obey God are now deformed into a selfish desire to gratify ourselves regardless of the cost. And now, as bearers of this broken, earthly image, we must carry with it the judgment of the same: separation from God. So man is born innocent but soon discovers the pleasure of self-gratification which produces distance between themselves and God, the Righteous.
Now, at this juncture, God could, and would be well within His rights, wipe mankind and creation out of existence, dismiss it as a failed experiment, and throw it into an ethereal trash. However, this isn’t God’s disposition towards this disgusting image of selfishness. Though His hatred of sin is ever present, His love towards what He initially called good hasn’t diminished. As He did with our forefather in covering his warped image with an animal’s fur, so does He wish to cover us with a new image, a restored image, which necessitates a new Adam, a Second Adam. Que the Lord Jesus Christ. “So it is written: The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 15:45.
Here we see the commission of this bright Angel, this Restorer of the Breach, this Prince of Peace to live and demonstrate the divine image, successfully resisting the temptation of sin and selfishness and adequately securing salvation and regeneration for fallen humanity. Jesus accomplished this through His death on the cross, described as a sweet-smelling savor. Fragrance entered into an odorous world. Perfume sprayed upon noxious creation, and with it, the power to transform the earthly, rotten, fetid image of old Adam into the heavenly, fresh, aromatic image of the last Adam, who tasted death for every man. This blessed scent applies to all those who place faith in Christ, resulting in a new life of conforming to the image of the Lord.
Staff Writer; C. E. Davis
This man of God can also be found online over at; InfiniteTruth Devotion.
One may also drop an email: CEDavis@ThyBlackMan.com.