One's own acceptance of the accuracy of the above statement is all-important in understanding the ultimate purpose of God in His creating of mankind. If one's reasoning is that God and His Son Michael did create Adam in their "image and likeness", how could Adam have contradicted this by sinning? And besides, the first man Adam is only one person. "And God went on to say: "Let us make man in our image""    not a man, meaning one, for they are creating many. One may ask, 'So when will man be created in their "image and likeness"? An understanding of the answer can be found in Galatians 6:15 which says: "For neither is circumcision anything nor is uncircumcision, but a new creation is something" (a newly created one). What does this mean? That the creating of man by God is only complete when He adopts them as sons (Rom 8:14,15), for their "rule of conduct" is to obey His spirit law. (Gal 6:16). Adam failed to become "something" from the standpoint of God by his lack of obedience to the Lawgiver, even though he had no sufferings to bear if he had obeyed. Adam failed in this first required "rule of conduct" to become "something" because of listening to satan through his wife's voice.

As the first humans proved to be unlike God and His Son in "likeness", the "image and likeness" described in Genesis 1:26 can only mean a personal Father to Son "image", the likeness of their spirit relationship and proven love for each other. Consequently, because of the futility of an existence without the spirit creative process, God has employed His Son in the final creating work of Christ's anointed brothers gathered from among mankind, until they each become a "new creation", and as sons of God, the likeness of relationship that exists between our Heavenly Father and Michael (the heavenly name of Jesus Christ) His Firstborn Son. Neither the first Adam nor his disobedient offspring reflect the image of our Heavenly Father and our Lord Michael who share in the work of making man in their spiritual "image".

ADOPT: Take person into a relationship he did not previously occupy.
IMAGE: Portray; reflect, mirror; picture (thing to oneself) etc. (Oxford Dictionary).

CHRIST'S LATER SHARE IN CREATING "MAN" IN THEIR IMAGE.
After Christ Jesus had made known to the heavenly first fruits of the 144,000 "new creations" the way to God, he continued these administrations of the spirit for the remaining ones on earth of the "body" of Christ toward the perfection of their spirits also. (Eph 3:10,11). Even now, and certainly since the gathering of some of them at Pentecost in 33CE, (2 Cor 3:8. Eph 3:9-12), it can be said: "For the eager expectation of the creation is waiting for the revealing of the sons of God." (Rom 8:19). When all of these anointed sons of God have been gathered by resurrection to their heavenly governmental places, they will be ready to administer this same righteous spirit to help save members of the "other sheep" not of this fold. (John 10:16). By their in-depth knowledge of these "other sheep" written in the scroll of life, they will be able to guide them toward everlasting life with God also. (Rom 6:4,5). Having knowledge of fleshly weaknesses through their own experiences of life on earth, these priestly slaves of God will be judicious in the administration of the spirit for mankind, towards the creation of them in the "image and likeness" of our Heavenly Father and the Firstborn Son of God.

In his inspired letter of 1 Corinthians 15:45-49 (NWT) The apostle Paul said: "We shall bear also the image of the heavenly one". Although knowing and obedient to the spiritual laws of God, Paul spoke in the future tense. In 1 Corinthians 15:53 of the Moffatt Translation it reads: "For this perishing body must be invested with the imperishable, and this mortal body invested with immortality". While in the flesh, one cannot achieve immortality, nor can flesh inherit incorruption. For both immortality (not being subject to death) and incorruption (incapable of being corrupted) means to have life of a kind and of a quality that cannot decay, in which one has knowledge of the effects of what constitutes losing life from the Lifegiver. For those in this sinless state spiritual laws will no longer be necessary, for the power for sin is the law    for those of flesh.

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