Image of God in Man Research Paper
Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary
The Image of God in Man: A Critique of True Humanity
A Paper
Submitted to Dr. Graves
In Partial Fulfillment
Of the Requirements for the Course
Theology I
THEO 525
By
Christopher Jessee
Waynesville, Ohio
2010
Thesis Statement
The image of God in man is a doctrine that is fundamental to understanding the soteriological implications of humanity, which is best understood through the examination of Christ’s humanity with regards to various views held.
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION 1
THE IMAGE ITSELF 1
MAJOR VIEWS TO THE IMAGE OF GOD IN MAN 3
IMPLICATIONS TO THE IMAGE OF GOD IN MAN 5
THE HUMANITY OF CHRIST 8
CHRIST AS THE IMAGE OF GOD 12
CONCLUSION 13
BIBLIOGRAPHY ……………………………………………………………………………. 15
Introduction
The image of God in man is a topic that has been discussed for centuries. This debate has lasted so long due to the fact that the Bible has very little specifics regarding what the image actually is. In the research proposed, one can begin to form a theology on this topic by looking specifically at what the image is, the major theological views of the image, the implications of the image of God in man, and the humanity of Christ himself. The humanity of Christ however, is an extremely important topic when discovering what true humanity really is, since Christ came incarnate to live as an example for all of humankind.
The Image Itself When one looks closely at the Bible it is discovered that the Image of God in man is never thoroughly discussed. No one really knows why, but since the Bible is fully inspired by God according to 2 Timothy 3:16, God apparently wanted it to be a mystery. The Bible does speak of the image quite often though. First of all, Genesis 1:25 is the first mention of the image. In this verse, God is set forth as personal, rational, creative, competent, and morally good. This implies that the image of God
The Image of God in Man: A Critique of True Humanity
A Paper
Submitted to Dr. Graves
In Partial Fulfillment
Of the Requirements for the Course
Theology I
THEO 525
By
Christopher Jessee
Waynesville, Ohio
2010
Thesis Statement
The image of God in man is a doctrine that is fundamental to understanding the soteriological implications of humanity, which is best understood through the examination of Christ’s humanity with regards to various views held.
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION 1
THE IMAGE ITSELF 1
MAJOR VIEWS TO THE IMAGE OF GOD IN MAN 3
IMPLICATIONS TO THE IMAGE OF GOD IN MAN 5
THE HUMANITY OF CHRIST 8
CHRIST AS THE IMAGE OF GOD 12
CONCLUSION 13
BIBLIOGRAPHY ……………………………………………………………………………. 15
Introduction
The image of God in man is a topic that has been discussed for centuries. This debate has lasted so long due to the fact that the Bible has very little specifics regarding what the image actually is. In the research proposed, one can begin to form a theology on this topic by looking specifically at what the image is, the major theological views of the image, the implications of the image of God in man, and the humanity of Christ himself. The humanity of Christ however, is an extremely important topic when discovering what true humanity really is, since Christ came incarnate to live as an example for all of humankind.
The Image Itself When one looks closely at the Bible it is discovered that the Image of God in man is never thoroughly discussed. No one really knows why, but since the Bible is fully inspired by God according to 2 Timothy 3:16, God apparently wanted it to be a mystery. The Bible does speak of the image quite often though. First of all, Genesis 1:25 is the first mention of the image. In this verse, God is set forth as personal, rational, creative, competent, and morally good. This implies that the image of God
Bibliography: Benson, Clarence Herbert. Biblical Faith: Doctrines Every Christian Should Know, Biblical essentials series. Wheaton: Crossway Books. 2003. Packer, J.I. Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs. Wheaton: Tyndale House. 1995. Shepherd, Norman. “Image of God.” In Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, edited by Walter A Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel, 1017-1020. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1988. Smith, S. M. “Kenosis.” In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, edited by Walter A. Elwell , 651-63. Grand Rapids: Baker House Company, 2001. Wallace, R. S. and G. L. Green. “Christology.” In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, edited by Walter A. Elwell, 239-245. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House Company, 2001. [ 2 ]. Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1998), 298. [ 3 ]. Norman Shepherd, “Image of God,” in Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, ed. Walter A Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1988), 1019. [ 4 ]. R. Laird Harris, Robert Laird Harris, Gleason Leonard Archer and Bruce K. Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, electronic ed. (Chicago: Moody Press, 1999), 767-68. [ 7 ]. Stanley . Grenz, “Jesus as the Imago Dei: Image of God Christology and the Non-Linear Linearity of Theology.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society (December 2004), 620. http://www.etsjets.org/JETS/47-4 (accessed November 21, 2010). [ 8 ]. Clarence Herbert Benson, Biblical Faith: Doctrines Every Christian Should Know, Biblical essentials series (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2003), 21. [ 22 ]. Wayne A. Grudem, Biblical Foundations for Manhood and Womanhood, Foundations for the family series (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2002), 20. [ 23 ]. John F. MacArthur, Jr., Different by Design (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1997), 17. [ 24 ]. Dr. Norman Geisler, Systemactic Theology (Bloomington, MN: Bethany House, 2003), 2: 287. [ 28 ]. C. Blaising, “Homoousios,” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids: Baker House Company, 2001), 574. [ 29 ]. S. M. Smith, “Kenosis,” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids: Baker House Company, 2001), 651. [ 30 ]. G. C. Berkouwer, The Person of Christ, (Grand Rapids: W .B. Eerdamns Publishing Company, 1954), 30 [ 31 ] [ 33 ]. R. S. Wallace and G. L. Green, “Christology,” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House Company, 2001), 239. [ 34 ]. William Greenough, Theyer Shedd, and Alan W. Gomes, Dogmatic Theology, 3rd ed. (Phillipsburg: P & R Publishing, 2003), 668. [ 38 ]. Allen C. Myers, “Image of God,” in The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987), 515.