Systematic Framework: The Image of God in Christ

I. Ontology (Being: What is the Image?)

1. Creation
   
   

   • Humanity is created in the imago Dei (Gen 1:26–27).
     
     

   • Ontologically, this means we are relational beings — our existence is grounded in representing and participating in God.
     
     

   • The image is not a separate “part” of us but the whole human reality oriented toward God.
     
     

2. Distortion (Sin)
   
   

   • Sin is a darkening of the image — not annihilation, but misrepresentation.
     
     

   • We still bear God’s mark, but fractured like a broken mirror.
     
     

   • Ontologically, sin is a false mode of being: turning from communion (light) to isolation (darkness).
     
     

3. Christ the Image
   
   

   • Jesus Christ is the true and perfect Image (Col 1:15, Heb 1:3).
     
     

   • As God: He ontologically is the Image of the Father.
     
     

   • As man: He embodies the true vocation of humanity — the “new Adam” (Rom 5:14).
     
     

   • Ontology is healed in Him: He re-establishes what it means to be human.
     
     

II. Epistemology (Knowing: How is the Image Revealed?)

1. Human Misperception
   
   

   • The fall is rooted in false perception of God (the serpent’s lie).
     
     

   • Humanity came to “know” God falsely, projecting distortion and fear.
     
     

2. Revelation as Light
   
   

   • Christ is the revelation of God’s true image (John 1:18).
     
     

   • In Him, we see not misrepresentation but truth: God as love, mercy, self-giving.
     
     

   • Knowledge is therefore relational: to know God is not abstract data but communion with Christ.
     
     

3. Restored Knowing
   
   

   • Through the Spirit, perception is healed:
     
     

     • “Beholding the glory of the Lord, we are being transformed into the same image” (2 Cor 3:18).
       
       

   • True knowing is participatory — union with the Image transforms both knower and known.
     
     

III. Ethics (Living: How is the Image Expressed?)

1. Distorted Living
   
   

   • Sinful ethics = false representation: lying about God through selfishness, violence, exploitation.
     
     

   • Actions become icons of darkness rather than light.
     
     

2. Christlike Living
   
   

   • The ethical task of humanity is to live as icons of the true Image:
     
     

     • Love of God (worship, obedience).
       
       

     • Love of neighbor (compassion, justice).
       
       

     • Care for creation (stewardship, not domination).
       
       

   • This is not legalism but participation: Christ living His life in us (Gal 2:20).
     
     

3. Virtue as Imaging
   
   

   • Virtues are not arbitrary rules but reflections of God’s character.
     
     

   • Humility = reflecting God’s self-emptying in Christ.
     
     

   • Mercy = reflecting God’s forgiveness.
     
     

   • Patience = reflecting God’s long-suffering love.
     
     

   • Ethics is thus iconic: to act is to image either truth or distortion.
     
     

IV. Eschatology (Destiny: What is the Fulfillment of the Image?)

1. Present Renewal
   
   

   • Through baptism, faith, and the Spirit, the image is already being renewed in Christ (Col 3:10).
     
     

2. Future Fulfillment
   
   

   • At Christ’s return, the image will be fully glorified:
     
     

     • “When He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:2).
       
       

     • No more distortion — only face-to-face communion (1 Cor 13:12).
       
       

3. Cosmic Dimension
   
   

   • Humanity restored as image-bearers means creation itself is renewed.
     
     

   • Our final vocation: to reign with Christ as priests of creation, reflecting God’s light eternally.