Remember He Is First

Introduction

Good morning please open in your Bible’s to Colossians chapter 1 verse 15-23 that is Colossians 1:15-23. That is on page 983. Today, we begin a new series called Remember. It is our prayer that over the next few weeks that we would remember Jesus. As we prepare our hearts for Easter Sunday I want us to take the next month to focus on His life, death, and resurrection. I want us to grow in appreciation of Christ. I long that we as a church would be stirred to a great love for Jesus in the next weeks, and as that occurs I believe we grow in our love for others as well.

However, in order to grow in our love of Jesus we must know who he is. We must see him for all his greatness, and while I don’t know that I can accomplish that in one sermon due to my own weakness. I do believe that Colossians 1 15-23 paints a picture of Christ that is truly awe-inspiring. I don’t say that lightly. I could not be more serious about this. Jesus is first in everything, He is preeminent. If I could pull back the curtain on the throne of heaven and show you his glory we would all fall to faces out reverance to him. It would be the most wonderful and dreadful experience of our lives. It would be truly awesome.

However, I cannot do that for you. But what I can do is this: I can read Colossians 1:15-23, do my best to explain it, and pray that the Holy Spirit of God would pull back the curtain that veils our hearts. I pray we awe struck today by the glory of Christ as the Preeminent over creation and our redemption. Will you join me as I pray ask for God’s help?

Prayer- God, I know you glorious beyond compare. There is no one like you and none compare to you. Help me Lord to accurately describe your majesty this morning. I cannot do anything apart from you. I fear that I won’t be able to do your glory justice as I attempt to explain this text. In fact, I know that if you attempt to do this in my own power that I will fail. Please May I preach in faith, not my own strength. Lord, please open our hearts this morning to behold you glory that you might be preeminent in our lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Let’s Read Colossians 1:15-23 together.

Preeminent Over Creation v. 15-17

The word preeminent means to be first place to surpass all others. Now, I titled the sermon Remember He is First so we could remember what the sermon was about later this week because most of us probably don’t use the word preeminent very often. However, the infrequent use of the word may actually aid us as we attempt to really understand this passage this morning. There is just something about the word that draws a certain amount of magnitude on its own. If you win the Boston marathon you get first place. That’s impressive. But if you are declared the preeminent runner of the Boston Marathon it just sounds a bit more prestigious. And while there is just nothing in any human language that could ever capture the grandeur and extravagant majesty of Christ a word like preeminent probably does a better job than just saying he is first. He owed all the prestige, glory, accolades that we can muster. And in this text we are told that he is preeminent over everything!

The text begins by declaring that is the image of the invisible God the firstborn of all creation. What does it mean to be the image of something that is invisible. It at first glance appears to be an oxymoron, like Jumbo Shrimp or Bittersweet. It doesn’t seem like you can image something invisible. Yet, that is exactly what Jesus did. Hebrews 1:3 “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,” Jesus is the exact imprint of the nature of God, the radiance of his glory. How can you know what God is like? Can we see the invisible God? Only as much we see Christ. If you want to know what God is like, you must look at His Son. He has made the unknowable God, knowable. You can know God only because God has made himself known through His Son. He is the image of the invisible God.

He is also the firstborn of all creation. Now at first glance this almost sounds like Jesus is a created being, a being that is born. However, this language of firstborn is throughout the Bible and in ancient culture. It not only spoke of birth order, but also was used to describe the one who obtained the rights and privileges bestowed to the typical firstborn, even if those rights did not go to the literal firstborn. Psalm 89:27 “And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.” This verse is speaking of the future messiah, the chosen one of God. Another word for Messiah is Christ, Jesus was the chosen one that the Old Testament and Psalm 89 were talking about. He is the firstborn in the sense that he has bestowed on Him all of the rights and privileges of this world as the “firstborn” of all creation. Paul is probably quoting a portion of an early Christian hymn in these verses and like many our hymns do I believe the hymn in pulling from the Psalm. In verse 17 it says that Jesus is before all things which is a reference to Jesus pre-existence. John explains in John 1:1–3 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.” Jesus is God and has always existed even before he was born of a virgin. He is the firstborn of creation in that he ranks above everything created.

And just how much is everything, it that exaggeration? Does really mean all creation. Yes, and he is explicit about the magnitude of the scope of Jesus’ preeminence. He is first Colossians 1:16 “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.” All things were created by him, and maybe this would be translated “in” him. It is hard to conceptualize what it means to be “in” Christ. It’s not as if creation exists in his belly. But to be in Christ is to say everything is contained with his rule and authority. He did create it, remember John 1:3 “All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.” But as the creator his is also the ruler. He is the supreme ruler of all of creations from the things on earth to things in heaven. The things that are visible, that which you can see, touch, feel, hear, smell, taste, and things that you cannot perceive quiet as easily. Conceptual things like logic or love. He has created them all and governs them all. The reference to the thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities are referring to spiritual beings. In the next chapter of Colossians 2:15 we are told. “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” There is nothing in this universe on earth or in heaven, visible or invisible, even spiritual that does not belong to Jesus.

He is before all things and he holds all things together. He did not just create this world and walk away. He does not rule and reign passively. He holds all things together. In order to help you understand just how amazing the world God created is I want to tell you about dust. Yes, that is right and Blue whales.

Blue Whales eat 10 to 20 tons of food a day. Their diet is made up of incredibly small organisms like krill and plankton, and these whales are often found in the very deep ocean. Now krill and plankton eat even smaller organisms called phytoplankton. You cannot see phytoplankton with the naked eye, and they depend on photosynthesis in order to live. The deep ocean has everything for this process one thing, iron. Yet, the phytoplankton lived and did well enough to feed plankton that didn well enough to feed Blue whales. So, the iron had to be there, but were was in coming from? They were able to devise a way to test a ton of sea water at a time and then trace the iron found in it by tracking its isotopes. Here is what they found. That the ocean water in the North Atlantic where blue whales can be found is being supplied by dust blown all the way from the Saharan dessert. This dust is what fertilizing the Amazon rain forest. Take a moment and just ponder that. Dust necessary to supply the food chain for Blue Whales, the largest animal on the planet, and dust that fertilizes the Amazon rain forest comes from North Africa. Ecosystems are just dependent upon their local nutrients. The entire planet must cooperate in order to keep things going.

I don’t think Paul knew what Blue Whales or phytoplankton were, but he knew that Christ holds this world together. As a Christian you must recognize the audacity of the claim of the apostle here. His God, holds the world together from iron minerals found in dust blown by the wind, to phytoplankton, to plankton, to blue whales and the Amazon rain forest. Christ holds all of that together.

And if that’s not audacious enough… he makes and even more audacious claim because that Christ is also preeminent over your Redemption

Preeminent in Reconciliation v. 18-20

He is the head of the body, church. This referring the universal church. Everyone who belongs to Jesus and believes in Him is a part of the church. And he is the head of that body. He is the authority and the leader of the church, and the church are those who have been reconciled through his his death and resurrection. He is the beginning, that firstborn from the dead. The beginning of what? Now, we know he is the beginning of all things since he pre-existed, but why say it here after the comment about the church?

Paul is shifting from one thought to another. Jesus is preeminent over all of creation and he will be preeminent over all of new creation as well. The world is broken because of sin, and Jesus is going to set it all right. He is the beginning of the reconciliation work, or another way to think about it would be to say his is the founder of our salvation. He initiator of the redemption of the world. He is the firstborn from the dead. This is a direct reference to the literal resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. He is first, in rank, of the resurrection. If Christ is not raised, no one will be raised. In Revelation 1:18 Jesus says “… I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.” The keys are sign of authority, like the custodian of the building who has all of keys. Jesus is the one who holds the keys to death itself. He is the firstborn from the dead, the one in authority over death. And in being the ruler of creation and death itself, he is preeminent over everything.

For in him the fullness of God was pleased to dwell… The false teachers plaguing the church in Colossae were trying to claim that through their ways Christians could experience God in a more full way. We see this in chapter 2 as Paul writes Colossians 2:8–10 “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.” Paul is telling them the fullness of God is pleased to dwell in Christ and in Christ alone. Jesus is fully God and fully man, and because he is the only one who is fully God and fully man it is only through Him that you can experience the fullness of God. No earthly philosophy, human tradition, elemental spirit of this world can satisfy. The American dream of a 4 bedroom house, 2 cars, perfect kids won’t satisfy. Getting off grid and homesteading won’t satisfy, getting that dream job, getting married, or getting your spouse to be better at blank, making more money, it will not satisfy.

The fullness of God can only be found in the Christ. It is only in him the deity dwells bodily. Only in Jesus the God-man can man be made right with God. Because through him he reconciled to himself all the things whether on earth or in heaven making peace by the blood of his cross. Jesus rules all of creation and here is what he has decided to do with his power. He is going to reconcile the world to himself by dying. He the most powerful being to ever exist and he holds the world together, and he chose to reconcile all things in earth and in heaven through his own blood.

Romans 8:19–22 “For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.” Creation groans under the weight of sin and Jesus as the firstborn of creation and the firstborn of the dead is going to bring peace that only he can bring. Romans 8:23 “And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.”

Creation will be reconciled and so will you.

Preeminent in Our Reconciliation v. 21-23

Colossians 1:21–22 “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 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,” You were once alienated, from who? From God. We were alienated, foreign, estranged, far away from God. You did not belong in the family. None of us in our own right belong in God’s family. We weren’t just nice people in need of a little religion to help smooth the more rough things. No, you were hostile in mind, doing evil deeds.

But something scandalous happened. The ruler of the universe, the image of the invisible God, firstborn of creation, preeminent in everything reconciled (made peace) in his body of flesh by his death in order to present you (oh alien, you hostile one, you o evil one) you, holy, blameless, and above reproach. What!? How is that possible! Who would do that!?

The Christ, the one who is fully God and fully man. The one who holds all the authority, all the power, all the might he chose to make peace with hostile and evil people through his own blood by dying on the cross.

Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” You didn’t belong, but now you belong. You were far off but now you are brought near. and Ephesians 2:19 “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,” You were an alien a foreigner, but now you are citizen and a part of the family of God.

If you here today, and you know you are far from God I want to invite to turn from your sin and place your trust in Jesus. And for those of us who do belong to Jesus may we hear this warning. Colossians 1:23 “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.” If, maybe you are thinking but I thought all Christians would continue in the faith. And to this I would say Yes.

Don’t forget how we got to verse 23. Who did the reconciling, who will do the presenting? God, and what God does no man can undo. But this does not mean that we can live in sin. God ordains the ends through His ordained means. Our statement of faith reads, All those whom God has regenerated will never totally or finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere to the end. Though they may fall through neglect and temptation, into sin, where they grieve the Spirit, hinder communion with God, impair their comforts, bring reproach on the church, and temporal judgments on themselves, but they will be renewed again unto repentance, and be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation. So, why the warning in Colossians 1:23?

In fact, it is not the only place. Hebrews 3:12–13 “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” In this passage we see there can be no separation from our actions (sin) and our beliefs. Your actions display you true beliefs. And Paul is making it clear that if the anyone in the Colossian church abandons the faith for the false teachings of their opponents then those people were never reconciled to God. To turn away from God, is to manifest the truth of the condition of your soul. You are still alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds. God works in us to reconcile us to himself and he continues to work in us to sustain us. He holds the world together, he will surely hold those who are his. He will sustain your faith, and in so doing you will choose to remain stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope. But don’t ignore the means that God uses.

If you are struggling you must draw nearer to the church to be exhorted so that you might not fall away. You need Sunday morning, Community Group, and perhaps even a one on one meeting with another more mature Christian for a season. If you commit yourself to this, God will work in you to see you through to the end. Why? Because he is preeminent.

Conclusion

I pray that today the text has reminded you of the greatness of our Savior. I pray that as we set our minds to remember the work and person of Jesus Christ this month that we would begin by remembering his granduer and majesty. He is the one who reigns supreme over all creation from the smallest microbes to the largest of mountains. And what did he do with his power and might? He set his love of sinners who were far from him. He went on a rescue mission and become one of us. He subjected himself to temptation in every way and yet did not sin. And he willing went to a criminals cross to make peace with those hostile to him. He rose as the firstborn from the dead and completed the work we never could! And he will continue to sustain you as he holds this world together. Let us remember Him.