JUL 15

Colossians 1:15
Memorise John 1:14
“…the image of the invisible God...”

HOW IS CHRIST THE IMAGE OF GOD?

In Colossians 1:15, the word ‘image’ is the Greek word ‘eikon’, or icon, meaning something which represents the real thing. The same word is used in Hebrews 10:1 to describe the law as not the very image of what was to come, but only a shadow (like a sketch) of it. Christ is thus the very image of God. Since God is invisible, is it possible to have an image of something invisible? The answer is that Christ displays all the attributes of God in visible form, just as the Westminster Shorter Catechism gives the following answer to what God is: ‘God is a spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth’. Christ as God Himself came to teach men directly, in comparison to the prophets who brought the Word of God to men (Hebrews 1:1-3, Jon 1:14). While man is also made in the image of God, he is only capable of imperfectly displaying some of the attributes of God. Only Christ is the very image of God, meaning to say that He is indeed God himself, and displays all the attributes of God perfectly.


There were some heretics during the time of the early church who disputed either the full divinity or humanity of Jesus Christ. They claimed that He was not fully God or not fully man. This is heresy because in order to perfectly bridge the gap between God and man that is there because of sin, Christ had to be the perfect representative of both God as well as man in flesh, in order to save us.

There are some heretics today who point man to idols and claim these are god. You might get into someone’s car and see such a statue being placed on the dashboard, as if the idol might protect against accidents. You might read in the newspapers about certain people being idolized as modern day gods. Dear teen, if your friend or relative has fallen prey to such lies, ask them to seek who is both God and man, for surely no one should fully trust a dead statue or a living imperfection instead. Don’t just confess to them in your words that Christ is indeed the image of God, but also show through your testimony that you live your life patterned after Christ your perfect example rather than any other. It is sad when others see more of a Korean pop star in your behaviour than they see Christ.

Thought: Am I more like Christ or more like a human idol in my testimony?
Prayer: May I follow after Christ as my perfect example.