His Holiness Pope Shenouda III speaks about how a person can restore the divine image in which they were created, which was distorted by sin. The full restoration will take place in eternity, but a person can begin to regain it partially in this life through the sacraments of the Church.
The first sacrament is Baptism, where the old man is crucified and a new man is born in the image of God, as the Bible says: “You have put on Christ,” meaning you have put on the righteousness and holiness that are in Christ.
However, human freedom remains, and a person may still sin after baptism. Therefore, they need the Sacrament of Repentance, which restores communion with God and renews the divine image within.
His Holiness also refers to the Sacrament of the Eucharist, in which the believer abides in Christ and Christ in them, leading to a life of true holiness.
God wants us to be in His image again: “Be holy, for I am holy,” and “Be perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect,” for perfection and holiness are characteristics of the divine image.
Christ described the relationship between Himself and believers as that of the vine and the branches, and as the head and the body—sharing one life and one spiritual nature.
His Holiness reassures that this is not difficult, for Scripture says, “All things are possible for the one who believes,” and “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Finally, one of the fruits of restoring the divine image is that others may see the image of God in the Christian—through their gentleness, kindness, forgiveness, and patience—and glorify God, saying, “Truly, this is a child of God or His image.”

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