“In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:4, ESV)
Throughout time, nations put the symbols of their leaders on their coinage. The Greeks put images of Alexander the Great. Roman denarii often included the images of the emperors of Rome. Even the United States issues coinage with past presidents. The coins of many countries in the past also included deities. Aesculpus, Apollo, and other Roman gods were depicted on ancient Roman coins. Zeus was depicted on coins from Macedon. Because of the image of emperors and foreign deities were often worshipped and given honor, these coins were not allowed in the temple of Jerusalem. That is why they had moneychangers at the entrance to the temple. If you were going to give an offering of money at the Temple, you could exchange foreign coins with the images of foreign gods and goddesses and monarchs in exchange for more acceptable Jewish coinage, which did not contain such heathen images. The Jewish belief was that no “image” of a foreign god or human should ever grace the inside of the Temple. It would be sacrilege. It would break the second commandment’s requirement against “graven images”.
Contrast this view of images from coinage with the view of Paul given in the scripture for today. Here in 2 Corinthians 4:4, Paul desires that Christians and Jews alike would accept the “glory of Christ, who is the image of God”. Paul saw Jesus as a perfect representation of God the Father. Jesus, in earthly form, represented God in Heaven. Paul saw the image of Jesus not as something heathen or forbidden, but holy and revered. Jesus was the perfect representation of God. He brought “the light of the gospel” into the world.
In another contrast given in the scripture for today, Jesus as the giver of the “light of the gospel” is seen in direct challenge to the “god of this world”, Satan. Satan has “blinded the minds of the unbelievers” (2 Corinthians 4:4a). He has blocked their view of the light of Christ. Where God the Father would gladly shine the light of the gospel through Jesus to save the world, Satan would gladly deceive the world and keep it in darkness. What we have clearly portrayed in this scripture for today is a war between God and Satan, light and darkness, believers and unbelievers.
In order for Paul to keep the Christians and Jews of his day at the straight and narrow door that leads to salvation (Matthew 7:13), he uses Jesus as the “image of God”. Knowing it is forbidden for the faithful to use the image of a god or goddess or emperor as the focus of worship and adoration, Paul emphatically desires all of the earth to use the image of Jesus. Paul does not see the use of Jesus’ image as in any way blasphemous or unfaithful, because Paul sees Jesus as the perfect “image of God”. That is also why many ancient Christian coins from the latter Roman Empire used Jesus as an image on their coinage. Jesus wasn’t a false god or heathen leader. He was and is the “image of God”.
In Genesis 1, God created humankind “in the image of God”, but it wasn’t the same (Genesis 1:26). Humankind was fallible, sinful, and fallen. The god of this world, Satan, deceived Adam and Eve from the beginning. Human beings were never again seen as a true and faithful image of God, until Jesus graced the earth. Jesus changed everything. Through the gospel and stories of Jesus, it is possible to learn who God is and how God works. When Jesus forgives, it is the way God forgives. As Jesus would love, God would love. As Jesus would heal, God would heal. Jesus is the “image of God”.
While teaching the seventh-grade confirmands about the Bible one Sunday afternoon, a young girl asked, “What is God like?” It is a perfect question for learning theology. I turned to her and asked, “What was Jesus like?” She responded that Jesus was loving, forgiving, and obedient. She also described how Jesus showed compassion and healed and taught. I told her that since Jesus is “the image of God”, that is what God is like! By studying Jesus, who was God in human form (John 1:14), she could understand God Almighty.
The scripture for today explains that despite Jesus bringing “the light of the glory of the gospel” to the world, Satan continues to bring blindness and darkness to the minds of unbelievers. Satan would love to keep people in the dark, to not let them see the light of Christ, to hide from them the truth of the gospel.
Have you ever had an “Aha!” moment? That’s when something becomes clear, finally makes sense. You “get it”! Recently, a man approached a pastor with the question, “Can God really forgive sins?” The pastor responded with a simple, “Yes!”. The man looked at the pastor and questioned this line of thinking, mentioning all the terrible sins that people could do. The pastor again responded that if a person truly repented, he or she could be forgiven. The man simply said, “It’s too simple. It’s too easy! A sin can hurt so many people, damage so many lives! How can God forgive such a thing!” The pastor told the man how David was forgiven for the murder of Uriah and how Jesus forgave the woman who committed adultery. Then, the man asked the pastor if he could be forgiven for all his sins. The pastor responded simply, “Yes!”. The man said, “It’s too simple. It doesn’t feel right!” The pastor then told the man how Jesus took our sin to the cross and was the perfect sacrifice for our sin. This is the heart of the light of the gospel message. The pastor urged the man to pray with him to be forgiven and feel the joy that comes with grace. The man gave up fighting it, replying, “I’m ready.” The two prayed. After the prayer, the man told his pastor how it felt to have the weight of his sins removed. It was a powerful moment they shared.
The light of the gospel can lift the weight of your sins today. If you are willing to bring repentance and obedience to the table, Christ is ready to bring the full light of the gospel to your life. Don’t let Satan’s darkness blind you from the truth of the gospel. Let the weight of your sins be removed. Let the light of Christ shine in your life. Let the image of God, Jesus, guide you each and every day!
Contrast this view of images from coinage with the view of Paul given in the scripture for today. Here in 2 Corinthians 4:4, Paul desires that Christians and Jews alike would accept the “glory of Christ, who is the image of God”. Paul saw Jesus as a perfect representation of God the Father. Jesus, in earthly form, represented God in Heaven. Paul saw the image of Jesus not as something heathen or forbidden, but holy and revered. Jesus was the perfect representation of God. He brought “the light of the gospel” into the world.
In another contrast given in the scripture for today, Jesus as the giver of the “light of the gospel” is seen in direct challenge to the “god of this world”, Satan. Satan has “blinded the minds of the unbelievers” (2 Corinthians 4:4a). He has blocked their view of the light of Christ. Where God the Father would gladly shine the light of the gospel through Jesus to save the world, Satan would gladly deceive the world and keep it in darkness. What we have clearly portrayed in this scripture for today is a war between God and Satan, light and darkness, believers and unbelievers.
In order for Paul to keep the Christians and Jews of his day at the straight and narrow door that leads to salvation (Matthew 7:13), he uses Jesus as the “image of God”. Knowing it is forbidden for the faithful to use the image of a god or goddess or emperor as the focus of worship and adoration, Paul emphatically desires all of the earth to use the image of Jesus. Paul does not see the use of Jesus’ image as in any way blasphemous or unfaithful, because Paul sees Jesus as the perfect “image of God”. That is also why many ancient Christian coins from the latter Roman Empire used Jesus as an image on their coinage. Jesus wasn’t a false god or heathen leader. He was and is the “image of God”.
In Genesis 1, God created humankind “in the image of God”, but it wasn’t the same (Genesis 1:26). Humankind was fallible, sinful, and fallen. The god of this world, Satan, deceived Adam and Eve from the beginning. Human beings were never again seen as a true and faithful image of God, until Jesus graced the earth. Jesus changed everything. Through the gospel and stories of Jesus, it is possible to learn who God is and how God works. When Jesus forgives, it is the way God forgives. As Jesus would love, God would love. As Jesus would heal, God would heal. Jesus is the “image of God”.
While teaching the seventh-grade confirmands about the Bible one Sunday afternoon, a young girl asked, “What is God like?” It is a perfect question for learning theology. I turned to her and asked, “What was Jesus like?” She responded that Jesus was loving, forgiving, and obedient. She also described how Jesus showed compassion and healed and taught. I told her that since Jesus is “the image of God”, that is what God is like! By studying Jesus, who was God in human form (John 1:14), she could understand God Almighty.
The scripture for today explains that despite Jesus bringing “the light of the glory of the gospel” to the world, Satan continues to bring blindness and darkness to the minds of unbelievers. Satan would love to keep people in the dark, to not let them see the light of Christ, to hide from them the truth of the gospel.
Have you ever had an “Aha!” moment? That’s when something becomes clear, finally makes sense. You “get it”! Recently, a man approached a pastor with the question, “Can God really forgive sins?” The pastor responded with a simple, “Yes!”. The man looked at the pastor and questioned this line of thinking, mentioning all the terrible sins that people could do. The pastor again responded that if a person truly repented, he or she could be forgiven. The man simply said, “It’s too simple. It’s too easy! A sin can hurt so many people, damage so many lives! How can God forgive such a thing!” The pastor told the man how David was forgiven for the murder of Uriah and how Jesus forgave the woman who committed adultery. Then, the man asked the pastor if he could be forgiven for all his sins. The pastor responded simply, “Yes!”. The man said, “It’s too simple. It doesn’t feel right!” The pastor then told the man how Jesus took our sin to the cross and was the perfect sacrifice for our sin. This is the heart of the light of the gospel message. The pastor urged the man to pray with him to be forgiven and feel the joy that comes with grace. The man gave up fighting it, replying, “I’m ready.” The two prayed. After the prayer, the man told his pastor how it felt to have the weight of his sins removed. It was a powerful moment they shared.
The light of the gospel can lift the weight of your sins today. If you are willing to bring repentance and obedience to the table, Christ is ready to bring the full light of the gospel to your life. Don’t let Satan’s darkness blind you from the truth of the gospel. Let the weight of your sins be removed. Let the light of Christ shine in your life. Let the image of God, Jesus, guide you each and every day!