Lesson 14: In God’s Image, Again

God’s people are always formed by His Spirit. That was true in the beginning when “the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature” (Genesis 2.7). And it was true when God made Israel into His special people. The prophet Isaiah recounted how the Lord “put in the midst of them his Holy Spirit, who caused his glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses” (Isaiah 63.11-12) and that “the Spirit of the Lord gave them rest. So you led your people, to make for yourself a glorious name” (Isaiah 63.14). The Lord’s presence, His Spirit, formed Israel and brought them to Himself.

However, the Scriptures record how through sin, all men have fallen short of God’s glory (Romans 3.23). Even God’s special people, Israel, rejected their Creator and went after other gods. But God foretold that the day would come when He would have a people who were once again in His image; this people would have His Spirit (Ezekiel 36.25-27). Christians are those people; we’ve been born again (John 3.5) and have received what He promised… a new spirit, His Spirit (Acts 2.38).

The New Testament Theme Of Recreation

The promise of the Holy Spirit is one of recreation, i.e. man being restored to what God purposed for him, to be in His image. This recreation was promised in the Old Testament (Ezekiel 36.25-27) and a recurring theme in the New Testament. We’ve already seen this theme found in Jesus’ words to Nicodemus in John 3.3-9. There we saw that entrance into the Kingdom requires a second birth, one of water (baptism) and the Spirit. We’ve also seen the same theme in Paul’s words in Titus 3.5-6, “he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior”. Let’s note some other New Testament passages where this idea of recreation is found.

2Peter 1.4-8

• What has God allowed us to become partakers of?
• How does this shape our conduct?

Ephesians 4.22-24

• What are we to put off?
• What are we to put on?
• How are we now created?

2Corinthians 3.18

• What are we beholding?
• How are we beholding this image?
• Into what are we being transformed?

Through the prophets God foretold that He would pour His Spirit onto His people (Isaiah 44.3; Joel 2.28), but for what purpose? Not to reveal new truths to each individual, for revelation came through the Spirit to the apostles and prophets of the first century. Not to overpower our will, for to have God’s Spirit requires one to set his mind on the Spirit (Romans 8:6). No, the purpose is for our spirits to become new, to be recreated in the image of God’s Spirit!

Now One With Christ

Consider Paul’s words in 1Corinthians 6:17, “But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.” I once conducted the funeral of a sister in Christ who had been married to her husband for 60 years. While they had distinct personalities, they embodied the “one flesh” concept that is God’s ideal for husband and wife (Genesis 2.24). In many ways it was hard to tell where one ended and the other began. That is God’s intent for us. We are joined to Christ, we are to become one with Him… we are one spirit with Him! Consider Jesus’ illustration of the vine and the branches: “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:4–5, ESV) Where does the vine end and the branch begin? Where does Christ’s influence in me end, and where do I begin? If I’m one spirit with Him, there is no beginning and ending.

Results Of A New Spirit

1. If I’ve become one spirit with the Lord, then I am truly His temple, the place where God now dwells among men. Remember, if we’ve joined ourselves to the Lord, we’ve become one spirit with Him (1Corinthians 6.17). Significantly, it’s just two verses later that Paul states, “Or do you no know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you…” (vs. 19). We are God’s sanctuary because our spirits have become one with His Spirit!
2. If I’ve become one spirit with the Lord, then I am truly His child.“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” (Romans 8:14–17, ESV) If I’m being led by the Spirit (setting my mind on the Spirit, making His will, my will) then I have the assurance that I’m God’s child, the Spirit bearing witness with my spirit because they are united!
3. If I’ve become one spirit with the Lord, then I am fruitful. Since I am being led by the Spirit, I will naturally bear the fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control,” (Galatians 5:22-23). Since I’m in the Lord, and He is in me the natural thing is for me to bear His fruit (John 15:4-5). This is where a Christian’s intuition, conscience and feelings play an important role. No, the Spirit doesn’t lead us through these (there’s no support in the Bible for such a notion), it’s much better than that! Since our very nature, our spirit, has become one with God we begin to think how He thinks about things, feel about people the way He feels about them. Yes, we can still stumble at times (consider Peter’s stumble in Galatians 2), but since we have set our mind on the Spirit, it’s little wonder we begin to feel and act differently than we once did. 
4. If I’ve become one spirit with the Lord, then I am sealed. “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,” (Ephesians 1:13, ESV) An ancient seal was a mark of authentication. A king would place his seal on a letter or legal document, authenticating it as belonging to him. How do we know that we belong to the Lord, what authenticates us? Having His Spirit as our spirit shows that we belong to Him!
5. If I’ve become one spirit with the Lord, then I have a guarantee. “who (the Spirit) is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” (Ephesians 1:14, ESV) How do we know that heaven is our inheritance? By becoming one spirit with Him we are now in His image and of His nature (2 Cor 3:17-18; 2 Peter 1:4). And it is those who are like God who will ultimately be in Heaven with Him.