The Image of the Invisible God (Day 62)

“He is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn over all creation.
For by Him all things were created:
things in heaven and on earth,
visible and invisible,
whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities;
all things were created by Him and for Him.”
Colossians 1:15-16 (NIV84)

As we saw in our Day 61 post, the “He” described in these verses is our Lord Jesus Christ (Col. 1:3) [Day 32],
the Son God loves (Col. 1:13) [Day 58].

Today we turn our attention from God’s invisibility to His very Image, Jesus Christ.

We ended Day 61 with Jesus telling His original twelve disciples, “If you really know Me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him… Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father,” (John 14:7,9, NIV).

We can understand how Jesus said this to the men who were standing right in front of Him, who were living life with Him, day-in and day-out. What about us, apx. 2,000+ years removed from Jesus’ physical appearance on earth?

An image is meant to be seen, looked at, beheld with the eyes.
How do we, in the 21st century, see/look at/behold Jesus?
And how do we know God by seeing Jesus?

Seeing Jesus

We will not physically see Jesus until His return to earth, His Second Coming (and only God the Father knows when that will be! See Acts 1:7). Yet we can see and know Him through all Scripture, most obviously in the New Testament, and most pervasively through what we refer to as the Gospels:
Matthew, Mark, Luke, & John.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.
Let’s back up a little and start by defining terms.
What does “image” mean in Col. 1:15?

“He is the image of the invisible God…”

What does “image” mean?

I looked up the word “image” online at lexico, merriam-webster, biblegateway (MOUNCE), biblehub, and blueletterbible, and in print in the American Heritage College Dictionary, the New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, the Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible, the ESV Study Bible, the NIV/The Message Parallel Study Bible, and, finally, Vine’s Concise Dictionary of the Bible.

Rather than share with you copious amounts of information (aren’t you glad?), I’m going to post the applicable parts from Vine’s.

eikōn

From Vine’s Concise Dictionary of the Bible:

The Greek word Paul employs in Col. 1:15 is eikōn.

“eikōn (1504) denotes ‘an image’;
the word involves the two ideas of representation and manifestation.
‘The idea of perfection does not lie in the word itself, but must be sought from the context’ (Lightfoot); the following instances clearly show any distinction between the imperfect and the perfect likeness.
The word is used…
(3) of the relations between God the Father, Christ, and man,
(d) of Christ in relation to God, II Cor. 4:4, ‘the image of God,’ i.e., essentially and absolutely the perfect expression and representation of the Archetype, God the Father;
in Col. 1:15, ‘the image of the invisible God’ gives the additional thought suggested by the word ‘invisible,’ that Christ is the visible representation and manifestation of God to created beings; the likeness expressed in the manifestation is involved in the essential relations in the Godhead, and is therefore unique and perfect; ‘he that hath seen Me hath seen the Father,’ John 14:9. ‘The epithet “invisible”…must not be confined to the apprehension of the bodily senses, but will include the cognizance of the inward eye also’ (Lightfoot),”
(Vine’s, p.189-190).

From the dictionaries to the commentaries…

Becoming the Image

In his Thru the Bible Commentary on Colossians, J. Vernon McGee has this to say:

“1. He is the ‘image of the invisible God.’ ‘Image’ is eikōn. How could He be the image of the invisible God? You cannot take a photograph or an image of that which is invisible. How could He be that? John makes this clear in the prologue to his gospel: ‘In the beginning was the Word.’ That is a beginning that has no beginning — Christ has no beginning. ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God’ (John 1:1). And then John says, ‘And the Word was made [born] flesh…’ (John 1:14).
If you want the Christmas story in John’s gospel, that is it: He was born flesh. This is the way that He became the image of the invisible God. How could He be that? Because He is God. If He were not God, He could not have been the image of the invisible God,”
(Thru the Bible Commentary Series, The Epistles: Philippians and Colossians, p. 129).

Jesus became the image of God when He was born flesh, God Incarnate.

The Perfect Revelation

Warren Wiersbe, in his Colossians commentary, says Paul used the word “image” in Col. 1:15 to make clear the fact that Jesus Christ is not a created being, that He is eternal God.

“[Image] means ‘an exact representation and revelation.’ The writer to the Hebrews affirms that Jesus Christ is ‘the express image of His person’ (Heb. 1:3). Jesus was able to say, ‘He that hath seen Me, hath seen the Father’ (John 14:9). In His essence, God is invisible; but Jesus Christ has revealed Him to us (John 1:18).
Nature reveals the existence, power, and wisdom of God; but nature cannot reveal the very essence of God to us. It is only in Jesus Christ that the invisible God is revealed perfectly. Since no mere creature can perfectly reveal God, Jesus Christ must be God,”
(Be Complete: Become the Whole Person God Intends You to Be, p. 48-49).

Only Jesus can perfectly reveal God’s essence to us because He Himself is God.

Looking at the Son to See God

“We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. We look at this Son and see God’s original purpose in everything created,”
(Col. 1:15, MSG).

Now that we have a better handle on what “image” means, let’s turn to additional Scripture that asserts the idea of Christ as the image of God.

“Image” in another letter of Paul

The following reference to Christ as the image of God was also written by Paul, this time in a letter to the Corinthian believers:

“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God…
For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.”
II Cor. 4:4,6 (NIV)

Two significant questions are answered in these verses.

1) Why can’t everyone see that Christ is the image of God?

Unbelievers’ minds are blind to the truth about God in Christ.
They cannot see the light of the gospel.
Since it is the light of the gospel that puts the glory of Christ on display, they cannot see Christ’s glory, either.
They miss the image of God in Christ.

2) How is it that I can see Christ as God’s Image?

Believers, however, are no longer blind.
God has made His light shine in our hearts.
He has given us the light of the knowledge of His glory.
And where is it? It is “displayed in the face of Christ.”

Through faith in the Gospel*, we see Christ’s glory.
In the face of Christ, we see the Father’s glory.

_{*For a review of the Gospel, check out our Day 4 post.}

Faith makes the difference!

“Then Jesus said, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?'”
John 11:40 (NIV)

Faith is the key. If we believe in Jesus, we will see the glory of God.

DAY 62 PRAYER:

Father God,

Thank You that, though You are invisible, You have chosen to make Yourself known to mankind.

We bear Your image; though we are made in Your likeness, our own sin has distorted Your image in us. We repent of our sin.

Thank You for sending Jesus Christ Your Son, the very Image of God, to bear Your image perfectly on our behalf so Your image in us can be restored and bring You glory once again!

Thank You for making Your light shine in our hearts. We believe in the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; help our unbelief (Mark 9:24).

In His precious & powerful Name we pray,

Amen.