"The second Man is the Lord from heaven."
Text: 1 Corinthians 15:47
THE IMAGE OF GOD
God made Man to bear His image. But sadly, sin entered and marred that original image. The only way for man to be restored was for the Lord Jesus to come and bring about full salvation.
“However, the spiritual is not first,
but the natural, and afterward the spiritual.
The first man was of the earth, made of dust;
the second Man is the Lord from heaven.”
1 Corinthians 15:46-47
1. The creation of Man
a) This was clearly stated in Genesis 2:7.
b) Man is made up of two parts.
i) The flesh (“God formed man of the dust of the ground.”)
ii) The soul (“And breathed from His nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.”)
c) Paul called this “the natural man”.
2. The work of salvation
a) We are born again (John 3:3,6).
b) We are regenerated (Titus 3:5).
c) The new person is described as “the spiritual man”.
3. A significant comparison
a) “The first man was of the earth, made of dust”
i) Paul was pointing out Adam’s origin.
ii) He came from the earth.
b) “The second Man is the Lord from heaven”
i) The origin of the Lord Jesus was not from the earth.
ii) He came from heaven.
iii) He is none other than the Lord from heaven.
c) The Gospel of John is in full agreement to Paul’s teaching
i) Jesus is presented as the Word of God (John 1:1).
ii) He was the One through whom God created the world (John 1:3).
iii) He was then made flesh and dwelt among men (John 1:14).
iv) He was in the bosom of the Father (John 1:18).
v) He came as the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world (John 1:29-30).