Christ as the Image of God VS Christ as the Treasure
2 Cor 4:6-7 - "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, has shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us."
Rom 12:2 - "Be not conformed to this world: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."
|
Aspect |
Christ as the Image of God |
Christ as the Treasure |
|---|---|---|
|
Meaning |
• Christ is God's outward expression and manifestation • The visible embodiment of the invisible God • The effulgence of God's glory and express image of His substance |
• The indwelling life in believers • The life-giving Spirit • The internal reality of God's glory |
|
Distinction |
• External: concerning God's manifestation • Objective: visible to all • Emphasis on Christ's outward expression |
• Internal: concerning life content • Subjective: requires personal experience • Emphasis on Christ's indwelling reality |
|
Examples |
• Christ's perfect expression of God in His earthly life • Disciples seeing the Father in Christ • Christ manifesting God in all attributes and virtues |
• Paul's experience of the indwelling Christ as treasure • Believers having Christ as treasure in earthen vessels • Knowing the glory of God in Christ's face in our hearts |
|
Application |
• Knowing God through beholding Christ • Expressing God's image in daily life • Mind renewal to see Christ as God's image |
• Enjoying Christ as inner life supply • Living before Christ's face to experience Him as treasure • Letting Christ shine from within |
|
Interrelation |
• Mutually complementary: external image brings in internal treasure • Internal treasure produces external expression • Both for full experience and enjoyment of Christ |
|
|
Related Scriptures |
Heb 1:3 - "Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, upholding all things by the word of His power." Col 1:15 - "Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature." John 1:18 - "No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him." 2 Cor 4:4 - "In whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ should shine unto them." |
2 Cor 2:10 - "To whom you forgive anything, I forgive also: for if I forgave anything, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ." John 3:16 - "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." 2 Cor 3:18 - "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." |
Conclusion:
These scriptures illuminate how Christ serves both as God's perfect outward expression and our internal treasure. Each scripture reveals how Christ functions as both God's complete manifestation and our internal treasure. Understanding and experiencing these two aspects helps us to fully appreciate and enjoy Christ in our daily Christian life.
1. Christ, as the image of God, is not only an outward manifestation, but also a true expression of God’s essence.
2. Christ as a treasure shines in our hearts so that we can know and experience Him.
3. Both of these aspects require us to have spiritual vision to see and to experience them in real life.
*Please refer to the July 2024 Anaheim, California, USA training Experiencing, Enjoying and Manifesting Christ (II) Week 17 Christ as the Image of God and as Treasure
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