The Supremacy of Christ

Who is Jesus? Colossians 1:13-23

Daniel 7:13-14

13 “I saw in the night visions,

and behold, with the clouds of heaven

there came one like a son of man,

and he came to the Ancient of Days

and was presented before him.

14 And to him was given dominion

and glory and a kingdom,

that all peoples, nations, and languages

should serve him;

his dominion is an everlasting dominion,

which shall not pass away,

and his kingdom one

that shall not be destroyed.

John 1:1-3, 18

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.

Hebrews 1:1-4

1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

Philippians 2:8-11

8 And (Jesus) being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Introduction

“Who is Jesus”

· Many answers out there

Statistics in America in 2020 from Ligonier Ministries and Lifeway research

· 52% of adults - Think He was a great teacher, but nothing more

· 30% of professed Christians - Believe He was a great Teacher, but nothing more

· 65% of same group – Believe Jesus was the first and greatest of God’s creations

“Who is Jesus” – In Matthew, Peter knew who Jesus was

Matthew 16:13-16

13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

· Standing on train track

· Ultimately everyone must answer this question

· No answer is an answer

· Answering this question is part of coming into a saving relationship with Jesus

· Because of how important this is, we may have to go into next week to finish

When answering the question “Who is Jesus”

· 3 views – incorrect, low, and high

· Text for high view

Colossians 1:13-23

13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Review

· Peter’s encouragement and prayers

· Thanking the Father for their faith in Jesus and love for all the saints

· He prayed for spiritual wisdom and understanding that comes only from God through Spirit

· Wisdom and understanding results in:

o Knowing will of God

o Increase in the knowledge of God

o Receive power for patience and endurance with joy in every circumstance

Exegesis

· Explain false teachers again

· This high view of Christ is to dispel the false teachings

· These versus show us the supremacy of Christ

· Both His supremacy in creation and in redemption

· We learn that Jesus is the:

o Creator

o Sustainer

o The Head of the church

o The Beginning

o The Firstborn

o Pre-eminent

· But what does this mean, what does this look like?

· Go verse by verse to find the answers

· As well as for us to have and understand this high view of Jesus

VS 15-17: Christ’s supremacy in creation

VS 15

15He is the image of the invisible God

Jesus is the exact likeness of God the Father

The exact representation of His being

· Not looks but has exact diety, exact character, exact power, exact purpose

· Disciples physically saw Him

· We too can see Him when Holy Spirit reveals Jesus to us

Jesus is the firstborn of all creation

· As seen in the statistics earlier, the misunderstanding is that Jesus was physically born/created by God

· Truth is that He was pre-existent

· Jesus is eternal and co-equal with God the Father and the Holy Spirit

· The Nicene Creed (A.D. 325) says “There never was a time when he was not”

· The picture of “Firstborn” here is of the firstborn son in an earthly family

· Particularly the family of a king

· When the father dies, the firstborn son inherits all the rights and privileges the father had

· Jesus was exalted by the Father and made Lord over all creation because of His life, death, and resurrection

· Jesus is sovereign, in control of all creation

VS 16

16 For by him all things were created

In the creation account in Genesis, we see the Trinity active in creation

· 26 Then God said, “Let US (not I will make) man in OUR (not in my image) image

· Jesus is the agent of creation

· Which means when God spoke creation into being, Jesus was whom fulfilled it

“ALL things” in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities

· In heaven and earth includes all of spiritual creation

· Both visible and invisible.

· Invisible: Angels both holy and evil

· Visible: Moon, stars, sun, etc.

· And all of physical creation here on earth

All things were created through him and for him

· Through Him: Refers to by Him all things were created

· For Him: All of creation gives Christ praise and glory because all creation belongs to Him

· IMPORTANT: Christ is also the purpose of all creation

· God’s overarching plan of redemption and salvation leading to eternal life upon Christ’s 2nd coming is all fulfilled by Jesus

VS 17

17 And he is before all things

· Before all things: Again, pre-exentent

· He is also before all things because He is Lord of all things

In him all things hold together

· Revelation: He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last

· Since Jesus is eternal, He is separate from all creation

· He existed before creation and will exist eternally after He returns

· This means Jesus, the Lord and Creator upholds and sustains all of creation from going to complete chaos until He returns

· And when He returns, He will consummate God’s plan to destroy this fallen world and create the NEW HEAVEN AND EARTH

VS 18-20: Christ’s supremacy in Redempion

VS 18

18 And he is the head of the body, the church.

· Example: Our head controls our bodies

· Christ’s death for sin provides redemption and reconciliation to the church

· Christ is head over the church

· Jesus has authority and rule over it by his Word (Scripture) and his Holy Spirit

· Jesus also nourishes and sanctifies (grows to maturity) the body of believers

He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead

· Different meaning of firstborn here

· Jesus was the 1st to raise from the dead in His resurrection

· And because of His resurrection, all those who have come to faith in Him will be raised from death to eternal life

· Paul emphasizes this point to strengthen his argument that nothing needs to be added to Jesus for redemption and salvation

· He is all sufficient

In everything he might be preeminent – Other versions say FIRST PLACE

· This refers to rank – 5 star general

· Jesus reigns as King over all creation

Application

· Must know Christ’s true identity to come into a saving relationship

· False sense of salvation

· Can’t evangelize

· Quote – Stephen Nichols

“As the culture around us increasingly abandons its moral compass, professing evangelicals are sadly drifting away from God’s absolute standard in Scripture. It is clear that the church does not have the luxury of idly standing by. This is a time for Christians to study Scripture diligently, engage confidently with people in our culture, and witness fearlessly to the identity and saving work of Jesus Christ in the Gospel.