7 Statements on How the Image of God Points to the Gospel

I illustrate patterns of argument that show how the image of God points to the Gospel.

The image of God points to the Gospel. The Bible makes this connection in many ways, as I have suggested elsewhere. But I understand that the argument may not be common. So to clarify what I mean, I wrote out seven statements that trace patterns in Scripture which illustrate how the image of God points to the Gospel.

The image of God reveals what we can become

What we are tells us what we may become. An acorn holds the potential to become an oak tree. A puppy becomes a dog, a boy a man. What we are hints at what we might become. By being made in the image of God, we learn about our creative potential—what we are meant to be.

That is why Genesis 1:28 immediately tells us what we will do because we are created in God’s image (Gen. 1:27):

“And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’”

The image of God leads us to marriage, which is a mystery of the Gospel (Eph 5:32)

God made us in his image to be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth (Gen. 1:28). Genesis 2:18–25 shows that this fruitfulness unfolds in the covenant of marriage, while Genesis 4 demonstrates that marriage leads to the filling of the world through procreation. Since marriage points to Christ and the church, our being made in God’s image for marriage points to the greater reality that marriage signifies: the Gospel.

The image of God leads to procreation and family, which signify our adoption by grace into God’s family

Being fruitful and multiplying means marriage and children. Since the image tells us we are made for marriage, and marriage tells us we are made for the Gospel, children must also signify something important. After all, fathers and families exist because God the Father was eternally the Father of the Son (Eph. 3:14–15).

In the Gospel, we are adopted into the family of God. Jesus becomes our brother (Heb. 2:11); God becomes our Father. We speak to each other as sons and fathers. Paul calls Timothy his child and himself a father (1 Cor. 4:17; 1 Tim. 1:2; 2 Tim. 1:2; Phil. 2:22). Why? Because as we go into the world and make disciples, we extend God’s household.

The image of God leads to filling the earth, which signifies the Great Commission and the coming Kingdom

If the image of God leads to marriage and marriage to procreation, it follows that filling the earth with image-bearers points to the spread of the Gospel among the nations. This becomes even clearer when we see that Scripture speaks of believers being re-created and renewed in the image of God in Christ (e.g., Col. 3:10; Eph. 4:23–24; 2 Cor. 3:18; 4:4–6). Eventually, God will reign over all families of the earth in the kingdom.

The image of God points to the Image of Christ

We are made in God’s image and remade in Christ’s. The many passages that speak of being born again, made new, and renewed in the image of God or of Christ all reveal that salvation in Christ is a new creation—a new birth and a renewed image of God.

The image of God leads to—but does not require—marriage or children to realize its gracious end

Since the image of God leads to marriage and family—and these are signs of the Gospel and of our adoption by grace—it follows that one does not need to marry or have children to fulfill the image’s gracious result. Marriage and family are natural ends of the image, but they point beyond themselves to their divine fulfillment. One can therefore be single and still fully share in the fruit of the image’s gracious ends.

The image of God retains the goodness of its natural ends even as it points to the Gospel

Marriage remains good, yet it always points beyond itself to Christ’s love for the church. Children remain good, yet Paul could call Timothy his child in the faith. Filling the earth remains good, yet we now also fill it through the Great Commission.[1]

If anything, knowing the image’s gracious end deepens and intensifies the meaning of marriage and family. They are signposts of the Gospel and of our adoption by grace. So we must keep the sign clear—for when the sign grows dim, the Gospel itself becomes harder to see.

Conclusion

Much more could be said, but these statements trace patterns of thought that help us see how the image of God ultimately points to the Gospel. I do not claim that I have provided sufficient evidence to prove my statements. I only wanted to illustrate patterns of argument that show how the image of God points to the Gospel.

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[1] This paragraph mostly comes from a prior article: https://www.wyattgraham.com/p/we-are-made-in-gods-image-and-remade