Doors Of Perception

Originally posted by MrGordon: ↑

Clearly the Bible states that God, "Created" humans in His image. It does not say we can develop into the image of God.
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The first couple were created in God's image.... but they didn't stay that way. After Adam and Eve sinned and were in a dying state they procreated producing children that inherited this terminal state.
(Genesis 5:3) Adam lived for 130 years and then became father to a son in his likeness, in his image, and he named him Seth.

All of Adam's children are more like him than like God.
(Romans 5:12) That is why, just as through one man (Adam) sin entered into the world and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because they had all sinned—.

That does not mean we should surrender to the state we're in. With God's help humans can begin to become more like God.
(Colossians 3:10) and clothe yourselves with the new personality, which through accurate knowledge is being made new according to the image of the One who created it,(Ephesians 4:23, 24) And you should continue to be made new in your dominant mental attitude, 24 and should put on the new personality that was created according to God’s will in true righteousness and loyalty.

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All of Adam's children are more like him than like God. Now that is pure story telling. It is illogical.

Adam is a generic devise that represents all humans. There may have been a first human in the sense that the state of being human is dependant on recognising God and there may have been somebody who firstly understood the truth that God existed. Apart from that, humans have existed for hundreds-of-thousands of years, along with their religious beliefs.

"Now through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin." This points out that sin is inherent in each and every one of us. Nobody is immune from the passions of the self, because we have all evolved from the same source. We are filled with animalistic traits of selfishness, envy, misplaced lust, greed, etc. So through one man tells us that we all are vulnerable to the self.

Now death through sin has nothing to do with literal death. Death through sin is spiritual death. Heaven and Hell is a similar concept. Distancing ones self from God is Hell, nearness to God is Heaven. This is the death that Jesus spoke of when He said, "let the dead bury the dead". Nothing to do literally with Adam or his descendants.

Now, clothe yourselves with a new personality, is the same as the concept of being reborn. It has nothing to do with becoming God's image or likeness and all to do with becoming human. The final proof here is that is says, created according to God's will. It is God's will that we become humans rich in good virtues and morals. As the nature of God is completely beyond human comprehension, nobody can ever, even slightly reflect the nature of God, because we have no idea what that is.

The only conclusion that can possibly be drawn is that we are Created in the likeness of God, (Created means at conception), that being we have an immortal aspect which is of the same essence as God.

I know this is probably too challenging for you, but surely it's a better concept than believing you can become God-like, or Created in God's image by being good, especially when the image of God you aspire to is all made up, it's all pretend?