There has been much discussion as to what is the image of God, or imago Dei, in mankind. Some have argued against evolution by citing that man was created in the image of God. They reason that because we were created in God’s image we could not have evolved from another creature that had a different physical appearance. While I affirm that man originated through God’s supernatural special creation, I cannot support the use of the imago Dei argument in this fashion. If it were true that we were created in a physical image or likeness of God, we would all have a similar physical appearance; his is certainly not the case.
Some of the confusion around what is meant by the image of God surrounds a misinterpretation of the two words used to describe this concept in Genesis 1:26. Some have interpreted the Hebrew words tselem (image) and dĕmuwth (likeness) as used in v.26 to indicate two separate concepts, while some have argued that these words simply present a Hebrew parallelism. The church fathers rather uniformly distinguished between the terms image and likeness. John Calvin, on the other hand, considered the terms image and likeness similar.[1] Whether one uses the word image or likeness, the significant issue to bear in mind is that the image does not have any materialistic properties. The image of God is restricted to man’s immaterial part.[2] This explains the wide variance in physical appearance of human beings.
Understanding that the image of God in not found in the physical appearance of man leaves us with the question of where the image of God is found. This immaterial image can be found in the fact that man is a personal, rational, and moral being. These are all attributes that man shares with God, except that for man these attributes were marred (not altogether lost) at the fall. That humanity by creation uniquely bears the image of God is a fundamental biblical doctrine—as is also that this image is sullied by sin and that it is restored by divine salvation.[3] This picture of salvation in Christ leading to the restoration of the imago Dei within man is illustrated in Colossians 3:10. This passage points to regeneration as the beginning of this renewal, which is being worked out through our sanctification.
