The Son of God emptied himself and took on human flesh without the brokenness and corruption that all other humans own, and he lived up to God’s original design of humans, and thus restored the reality of a human in God’s image. He is the new Adam, the true image of God. He is the image of God that we humans are intended to be. When we know Jesus, we know what we are to be like. He was the first real human since Adam and Eve chose to reject their identity and destiny as the images of God on the earth.
But that’s not all. Here in Part 6, I want to show how Jesus restores us to the images of God. Mostly, I’ll share several sections of New Testament Scripture, and I think you’ll be able to see what they are saying about God’s work to fix his broken creation and dead images. Of course, I’ll have some things to say along the way.
The fourth chapter of the gospel of John tells us about Jesus meeting a Samaritan woman at a well and telling her he was the Messiah bringing water that will quench her deep soul-thirst. His disciples had gone into town for food and offered him some when they returned. Verse 34 says, “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” Finish his work. Remember way back in the beginning: By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing” (Genesis 2:2). He had created the universe, and that part was finished, including the creation of humans as his children to join him in making the universe his temple. The humans rebelled and broke God’s creation. Now God has come as a human to “finish his work” once again with a new creation and restored images.
Satan had scammed the first humans into rejecting God’s design and place for them so, “The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work” (1 John 3:8).
And, “Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death” (Hebrews 2:14-15).
Jesus came to deal with the serpent, the dragon, the adversary, and take away his authority and effect on God’s creation.
In addition, Jesus reversed the effects that Adam and Eve had put into play. Romans 5:12-19 explains:
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—to be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.
But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!
Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
Adam brought sin, judgment, condemnation, and death. Jesus brought grace, justification, righteousness, and life. He makes his people righteous – true to God’s design, intention, and will.
Now here comes the twist I mentioned in Part 1. Here’s the radical action that restores us to God’s image. Ephesians 2:1-5:
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
You may recall that I’ve said I believe that God’s warning to Adam and Eve 
that they would die if they ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil did happen, and that it was they being the image of God that died. I base that on this New Testament truth that in our disobedience and rebellion we are dead. Jesus did not fix this by shoving us aside and starting over with a whole new race of humans (or some other creature). He didn’t correct the problem by helping us improve ourselves or become a better version of ourselves (what version of dead is good?). No, he “made us alive.” We’re dead and he resurrects us.
2 Corinthians 5:14-21 shows us more on this:
For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
On the cross Jesus became “sin for us” and died. God raised him up. By faith in him, his death and resurrection deals with our sin and we are raised with him. God has reconciled us, brought us back to himself. The new creation begins, including us being made new images who can live for him and be the ambassadors (representatives) of God.
And there is more!
John 20:22: “And with that he [Jesus] breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit…'”
Galatians 3:14: “He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.”
2 Corinthians 3:17-18: “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all… are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
Just like God breathed into Adam and gave him of life, Jesus gave the Spirit to his followers so they become a new creation, a new person. The renewing of God’s design comes to us by the work of the Holy Spirit. We get to fulfill our identity and destiny. In our relationship with Christ, by the Holy Spirit working, God is renewing us. We are becoming what God created us to be – like him and ruling with him.
And look at this – Colossians 3:9-11: “…you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.”
Fig leaves aren’t needed anymore. We have our true identity. It’s not a certain race or religion or nationality or class or gender or anything that humans have come up with to make the old self look and feel okay. Now we wear the new self, which is what we were supposed to have had since the beginning. Now we have the Holy Spirit renewing us by God’s design. In a faith relationship with Jesus we can live as God’s images ruling his creation.
And now, once again, we can relate to God as his children.
John 1:12-13: “Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.”
1 John 3:2-3: “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.”
Through Jesus, God has re-made us as his offspring, living images to join him in finishing his creation. We have the mission to carry out God’s will, plans, and purposes for the earth. Our job is to expand the garden – the place where heaven and earth meet, the original temple – to encompass the entire universe. This is our restored identity and destiny. In Christ, this is who we are and what we are about.
I’m going to leave you with Colossians 1:15-23.
The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven…