Question from Dr Michael Rydelnik's email Q&A session on Saturday Mar 12, 2016: God is spirit and He does not have an actual physical body, so how are we the people made in God's image? Answer from Dr Michael Rydelnik: The idea we are made in God's image is we are His representative. God is the creator and ruler of the universe but He says he made humanity in God's image so that we will exercise dominion on the earth, that's one way that we reflect His image. He is the creator and has dominion, he now allows us to have subregions to be there in His image. The other way we reflect His image is this: God forbade making images of god because they are representations of God. The pagan gods have image and representations and they put it in the temple. So, God says they are representations of god and that we are representatives of Him on earth as in psalms 8. The other thing that we are representatives of Him is that we have the capacity to engage in spiritual relationships as only God did. The animal kingdom is wonderful and God loves animals but they can't engage in spiritual relationships. Another interesting aspects of God's image is when God says "Let us make man in our image and according to our likeness", so it's got a plurality and yet there is only one God. The very next verse says God made man in his image male and female. So, the fact that there is only one kind of being, called the human being and so there's a singularity there but there's also plurality male and female. Note that Jesus is called the image of the invisible God and Jesus comes in the physical body of a man.
Know the bible
Galations 6 16 And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God. -kjv 16 Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule—to the Israel of God. -niv 16 May peace come to all those who follow this standard, and mercy to the Israel of God! -hcsb Exposition by Dr Michael Rydelnik on openline March 5, 2016: Let's explore what the bible has to say about Israel, in particular this is the question - is the church the new Israel? The verse that they often cite is Galations 6:16. This is at the end of Galatians and Paul has given some very severe challenge to the Galatians who have fallen into legalism. Some were saying that they need to convert to Judaism to become followers of Jesus and Paul says no, that's a legalistic requirement, you must not do that. In saying that, he gave some very strong statements about justification by faith and at the end of the book, he's saying that may peace be on all those who follow this standard. In other words, he is wishing peace on everyone who follow the teachings of this book and then he says may mercy also be on the Israel of God. Now, this is the passage that people says that God is blessing the Church and calling the Church the Israel of God. Is that true? Is there ever a case in scripture that the Church is called Israel? In the new testament, the word Israel is used seventy-three times. Seventy-one times, it is totally undisputed it always refers to someone who is ethnically Jewish, someone who is a descendant, a participant, a part of ethnic Israel. The seventy second time it is used is Romans 9, and there some people have argued in the past that perhaps it means followers of Jesus and not necessarily people who are ethnically Jewish but that view has been discredited. No longer does anyone think that about Romans 9. It is clear in Romans 9 that when Paul talks about the true Israel, it is talking about Jewish followers of Jesus. So, what is Galatians 6:16 talking about? This is the one place that people refers to the Israel of God as the Church but I don't think so. There's two way we can take the key word and it's funny what the key word is ... it's the word 'and'. He is offering a blessing on everyone who follows his teaching and then he gives a special blessing on Israel. People who think this is the church think that word should be translated 'even the Israel of God'. 'May peace be on all those who follow the standard, even mercy upon the Israel of God', meaning the same people who are being blessed there. However, the simplest way of taking that word, the conjunction, is as 'and'. It's always wise to take the conjunction in its simplest way if we can and that's what it means here. He says may peace be on everyone who agrees with what I am teaching and after being so harsh on so many Jewish people who are adding this legalistic requirement, after saying all that, I want to add a special blessing of mercy on the Jewish follower of Jesus, the Israel of God. Once again, he is giving a special blessing and he's using the phrase 'Israel of God', not of the Church in general but rather on the Jewish follower of Jesus. So, one of the great truths that come from scripture is God has a special plan for Israel. Today, there is a righteous remnant of Israel and that's the Jewish followers of Jesus and at the same time, this righteous remnant, this is one of God's great gift, he has placed those righteous remnant into the body of the Messiah, the Church.
Jeremiah 31 31 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: 32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord: 33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. -kjv 31 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord. 33 “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 34 No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” -niv 31 “Look, the days are coming”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. 32 This one will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant they broke even though I had married them”—theLord’s declaration. 33 “Instead, this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days”—the Lord’s declaration. “I will put My teaching within them and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be My people. 34 No longer will one teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least to the greatest of them”—this is the Lord’s declaration. “For I will forgive their wrongdoing and never again remember their sin.” -hcsb Learned this from moody radio openline on 20 February 2016