In our modern context, it can be difficult to understand what this phrase means. But in the ancient world, being made in the image of a god was a familiar concept. Most people in the ancient world lived under the rule of a king, and these kings proclaimed themselves to be a god's image on Earth, having the authority to carry out the will of the gods. These kings would also create idols—statues of wood, stone, or precious metal—that were also said to be the physical embodiment of gods on earth, or "images of god."

Thankfully, Jesus came to do what humanity could not do on our own. Jesus shows us what it truly looks like to live life as the image of God. Through his life, we see that living as an image-bearer means to serve and love others—no matter what they do to us. Jesus then confronts the evil and destruction that humans brought to God’s good creation, taking on the full force of the consequences of our sin when he sacrificed himself on the cross.

Through his life, death, and resurrection, Jesus showed us what it means to be created in God’s image, what it means to bear this royal calling. At the very end of the Bible, we see God’s ideal first introduced in the garden realized—a new creation where humans rule over creation and push the world forward as images of God with Jesus as their salvation and example.