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The Image of God

Discussion in 'General Baptist Discussions' started by th1bill, Jan 25, 2011.

  1. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    Many are they that cry out against God for the unfairness of it all. They are protesting their sin nature (Rom. 3:10,23) inherited from the father of mankind Adam. But the truth is that, for a couple of, and perhaps more reasons it can be no other way. I'm stepping off the deep end here to cause thought, meditation on the Word of God and research into that same Word.

    God created Adam in His own image and that is an entire subject, by itself. Many have determined that God has the physical appearance of a man, but does He? Is that the image God created man in? I think not. We see in the first three chapters of the Holy Bible that God created the star, planets, universes and critters of the Earth and finished His creation with His most cherished creation, man. When we read the beginning of the Bible we see that God walked in the cool of the evening with Adam, God loved Adam. For this reason it follows that the man, created in the image of God, can also love. When we look at young men and women today, heck, look at our own youth, at the courtship rituals we went through, we spent time with our perspective mates expressing our love for them. Can you see the image of God?

    Or a man or a woman to love they, absolutely, must have free will! A very similar free will to that of our Creator. We are much like our Father and yet, because of our free will we are different. My physical appearance is a combination of my mother's father and my birth father. My grandfather was a farming railroader and my birth father was a cab driving alcoholic but because of my free will I am a Christian that chose to follow my step-father into military service in Aviation. Just as Adam was made perfect, in God's image and chose to sin, in like manor I did my best to leave the bad behind me and be an honorable man who followed God. But as hard as I've tried, I still look like my father, in many ways.

    My point is and what I wish for you to consider is that we inherited certain qualities from God, our Creator but we also inherited certain qualities from Adam and Adam used his free will to sin. We, having that same free will, do not have to live in the sin of our choice! As men and women, of the image of the most Holy God, we can choose to live a holy life, separated to God. We can also choose to eat, drink and be merry and die, the choice is one we make by choosing God or by refusing to choose. In either case we make a choice that we will be bound to for eternity.
     
  2. annsni

    annsni Well-Known Member
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    I guess the question is this: Does God have free will?
     
  3. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    This is a much ignored subject that I would give anything to see folks begin to examine and consider.
     
  4. preachinjesus

    preachinjesus Well-Known Member
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    Since early Christian thought the imago Dei has usually been considered to be a spiritual image and not physical. Since God (Trinitarianly) is compositely simple it doesn't follow that this is a physical image. For God to possess the attributes of divinity He cannot have a physical form.

    Notice how the New Testament speaks about the incarnate Christ. In His pre-existence it was not a physical form. That physicality only took shape upon the incarnation in the womb of Mary through the power of the Holy Spirit.

    You won't get an argument from me about the parallel with God possessing free moral agency and that was conferred to mankind at Creation. I think it is a good point. That said one shouldn't rest their eggs in that basket. If the imago Dei has more to do with attributes those can mean things like cognition, creativity, love, compassion, etc. One can posit a deterministic viewpoint while also incorporating the imago Dei. Calvin certainly did.
     
  5. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    For the greatest part your comments are well thought out but, while I'll not disagree with you, the portion I've highlighted is not a thing I would front my statement with in this convoluted society we live in today. Any time you give the world a chance to jump on you and to run you down a rabbit trail they will seize the opportunity. And there is, entirely, too much of the world inside the Church today.
     
  6. Iconoclast

    Iconoclast Well-Known Member
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    This is completely false and un biblical.
     
  7. percho

    percho Well-Known Member
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    Did the first man Adam choose to sin or did he sin because he was created as a weak being having been made flesh and blood unable to resist the lust within?

    Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

    This is the man God (Eloyim) created in his image yet this is stated to have taken place before the creation of man. The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Why? Just in case the man in his image sinned or because that was the plan? Was this first man Adam created in the image of God or was he the beginning from which the last Adam to whose image we shall be conformed to, the completion of the image of God?

    Also resulting in this: Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

    The last enemy.
     
  8. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    Blanket statements are of no value, would you care to elaborate?
     
  9. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    If you will be so kind as to support you assertions with scripture I'd be delighted to respond in kind and in the exchange, perhaps, both of us could learn a little.
     
  10. calvin

    calvin New Member

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    Christ is the image of the invisible God...but i get what you are saying. i totally agree with your views on free will. Peace
     
  11. Aaron

    Aaron Member
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    It is impossible for God to lie, Heb. 6:18.
     
  12. Aaron

    Aaron Member
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    A corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit.
     
  13. Iconoclast

    Iconoclast Well-Known Member
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    Aaron has it correct. In the OP you are neither describing the biblical Adam,pre/or post fall.....and you are not accurately describing Adams descendants..
    All fallen men are bound in sin,and are the servants to sin,romans 6
    You make it sound as if man controls his own destiny,and does not need to be born from above. You did not mean to say that did you?:confused:
     
  14. percho

    percho Well-Known Member
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    Out of all of the billions of people that have lived and died only one to my knowledge lived a sinless life and I am not sure but I think without giving it a lot of thought he had more of the image of God in him than Adam did. Now it is said that he was tempted just as we are yet without sin, so does this mean we by our free will should be able to not sin? You would think out of billions you would have more than one if this is so. But when I think just a little about it we would still die whether we sin or not because we die in the sin of Adam. Paul says where there is no law there is no transgression yet men died from Adam to Moses so even if you could live a sinless life by free will you would still need a savior.

    If free will means do what you want to and scripture says God cannot lie then God must not have free will and I can't see him giving us something he doesn't have.
     
  15. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    Aaron, if you will not preconceive and in doing so, read into my presentation, that, which is not there, you will not find it difficult to understand that we were never in disagreement here.
     
  16. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    You have gone far beyond what I published by assuming and putting words and thoughts that I never published nor have I ever entertained. Preconception is a nasty habit.

    I will agree, you're confused but that is because you have read into the text, I did not say that ajnd if I should choose to teach that, it would be a lie.
     
  17. Aaron

    Aaron Member
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    Au contrair, you have stated unequivocally that man by his own nature can freely choose to do good works.

    You are saying that a corrupt tree can bring forth good fruit.
     
  18. Iconoclast

    Iconoclast Well-Known Member
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    Bill that is why I asked you the question.Could you clarify your original post,maybe give an example of that which you meant to say.
    I might not agree with you on this as I do not believe "freeWill" exists.
    We make choices but our will is bound by our nature.
    This is how I understood your post as written. Where if at all does God figure in to your understanding of these things.You did not pose it as a question.
    You stated a form of teaching in the original post,and as it stands I believe it is not scriptural. I would like for you to support your contention.
    Bill how do you see the verses in Romans 6:16-21?
     
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