God predestined us to be conformed to the image of his Son Jesus Christ. For those of us who are followers of Jesus Christ, the list of the names (titles) with which we refer to him seem to grow each day. These names and/or titles always arise from our understanding of the role he plays in our lives. From St. Paul, we have come to refer to Jesus as the ‘Second Adam’ (cf. Corinthians 15:45). It is a designation that recognizes the archetypal role that Jesus has both played and continues to play in the creative process. As the Savior of the world, Jesus, as it were, is the foundation upon which the re-creation of the universe takes place. It is about this re-creative role of Jesus that St. Paul reminds us in today’s Second Reading. 
Whereas it should be carefully noted that St. Paul is not pegging Jesus’ re-creative role solely upon the fall of Adam and Eve, it is also a fact that after the fall, Jesus’ role in the creative process became “re-defined.” It is true that from the very beginning God had planned that creation attains its fullness by being conformed to the second person of the God-head. But it is also true that after the fall, that pre-planned conformation took the shape of creation being adopted by the Father in the Son. In the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, creation has been given a new life. For us who have come to believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are aware that there is a manner of life that is expected of us if we re to be fully conformed to him by whose name we are called. 
Being conformed to the image of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ changes not only what we do but who we are. This is because in Jesus Christ, we have been presented with an example of who we should be as well as how we should lead lives that are oriented to a life with God. When God made the “public unveiling” of Jesus as God’s beloved during the event of the transfiguration (cf. Matthew 17:1-8), God urged/commanded us to ‘listen’ to Jesus. It was a command that was to be carried out for our own good, for the words of Jesus are spirit and life (cf. John 6:63). Consequently, those of us who are living after the great event of the Incarnation and who owe their lives to Jesus Christ have no excuse but to attain our full potential as sons and daughters of God. This can only happen if we become conformed to Jesus Christ. 
By referring to Jesus Christ as the ‘second Adam,’ St. Paul means that Jesus Christ was able to achieve what the first Adam had failed to do. Or to put it in another way, it is in Jesus Christ that we, descendants of Adam, become fully alive. Adam, as our first parent, had been given the responsibility of leading us to the source of life. Instead, Adam led his descendants away from that life without end which God had planned for them. It was a life of living perpetually in the presence of the Lord, a life of gazing upon the loveliness of the Lord for eternity (cf. Psalm 27:4). 
The image of Jesus Christ after which we are to be conformed is the image and likeness of God which we lost due to Adam’s sin. It is an image characterized by obedience to the Word of God as well as the willingness to carry out God’s commands. Jesus retained the image of the Father because he remained united to him. It is this conformation that made it easy for him to recognize God in those to whom he ministered. We can say we have been conformed to the image of Jesus when we too begin to live as Jesus did. Only then will we be on our way towards realizing God’s purposes for us: the salvation of our souls.