Prayer Turned into Praise

Introduction

Recap

first two weeks we looked at the introduction of the letter to the Colossians

Why Paul was thanking God the them

their faith, hope and love

How was Paul praying for them

they would grow in the knowledge of God, living out his will in the strength of God

Today - Prayer turned into praise

people will argue if this is technically a hymn or not

I read a couple people that were on each side of the issue and I am trying to figure out why it matters

what we see, is Paul has gone from praying for the Colossians to praising God

giving us the most beautiful portion of scripture describing Jesus

Colossians 1:15–23 CSB

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For everything was created by him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities— all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and by him all things hold together. 18 He is also the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile everything to himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. 21 Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds as expressed in your evil actions. 22 But now he has reconciled you by his physical body through his death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before him— 23 if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become a servant of it.

PRAY!

The Jesus who saved us is the God that created all things, is the head of all things. We should joyfully submit to him in all things.

He is the Creator

If you can believe that God created the world than anything else in the Bible is believable

Can he…

part the waters… he created water

deliver mana from heaven… he created the mana, heaven and the ground that it fell to

heal people… He created the very DNA that is unique inside each and every one of us

Could he raise from dead…

Colossians 1:15–17 CSB

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For everything was created by him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities— all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and by him all things hold together.

Paul wants people to know who Jesus is

he wanted them to grow in the knowledge of who God is and his will

who is this man that they worship that raised from the dead

Image of the invisible God

God is spirit… yet when we look at Jesus, we see the father

John 14:8–10 CSB

8 “Lord,” said Philip, “show us the Father, and that’s enough for us.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been among you all this time and you do not know me, Philip? The one who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who lives in me does his works.

when we see Jesus, when we see his works, we see God!

this is not an idolatrous kind of way

that would violate the 2nd commandment

instead, God who was not able to be seen, clothed himself as a man

letting us know this is not a god

not one of the greek gods, and not a son in the way that the greeks would talk about their gods

Over all creation

not first born as created

we will see in the very next verse that he created everything!

how can one created be the creator

but in authority

the firstborn son of the king has authority and will sit in the throne

He created everything

Jesus did not come onto the scene halfway through the bible story

he is the creator all the way back in Genesis 1

backed up by John 1:1-3

John 1:1–3 CSB

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created.

John 1:14 CSB

14 The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

He created everything and just incase we do not understand the word everything

in heaven and on earth

visible… invisible

thrones, dominions, powers

this is very important… throw into context with what Paul has written so far

the dominions that he has rescued us from, he is over those as well

they have no power of them, when he said to release you from their grip, they had no choice but to obey

He did not create it for you to run around in… but for himself

He is continually involved with creation by sustaining it

he did not create and then let it spiral out of control…

though it feels like it sometimes

the same power that he created all things, he keeps all things going

it is funny, we look at the world and ask where are you

in reality, if he was not right here holding it all together, none of it would exist

Paul wants us to know that the one who created and sustains all things is Jesus!

He has rescued you from the darkness and brought you into the light, he has adopted you and given you an inheritance… who, Jesus!

He is Preeminent

Preeminent = surpassing all others; very distinguished in some way: 

it is a word that we use every so often

the world's preeminent expert on…

we use it to show that somebody is smarter, better than the rest

Christ is not just smarter on a subject

we do not go to Jesus with a question because he has the answer for that topic that we are struggling with in our lives

he is the answer for what we are struggling with in our lives

I could argue that most of our problems stem from where Jesus is in our lives

we fear more than we trust the one who created all things

we love things of this world more than the one who created them

Colossians 1:18–20 CSB

18 He is also the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile everything to himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

Why do we say he is preeminent?

he is the head… he is the beginning… the firstborn of the dead

he is the cornerstone that the builders rejected, the head of the church

there is no other that the this is built upon

no apostle, no pastor, no pope, or bishop or saint

all pale in comparison and all needed the same grace to be saved as you and I

He was in the beginning, Genesis 1:1, in the beginning, God…

he is the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end

he was not just in the beginning, he is the beginning

it all starts and stops with him

vv19-20… point back to 16-18

For - because…

because God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell within him he is the creator, he is preeminent

or he is above all and the creator of all because the fullness of God dwelled within him

God was also pleased to have everything reconciled to himself through him

He reconciled all things to himself

he made it possible of peace!

that does not mean everyone is saved

this is the looking forward to when all things will be made new, Revelation 21:3-5, when we are with God, there is no more sin and darkness

all things will be made new

this is only possible because of the work that Christ has done

the lamb is the only one who is worthy on heaven and on earth to open the scroll

it means that all debts will be or are reconciled, that there will be peace

those that have faith, will be in glory with him

those who do not, will be in punishment with the angelic beings that sided with satan and will be forever punished.

He is the Redeemer

Reminder… God was pleased to redeem you

even with all your sin

big or small… did not say he was pleased to redeem those who had most things put together

pleased = think well of, well pleased, with content, chosen gladly

meaning, when he thinks of the decision to redeem you he is glad that he made this decision

Paul, to cause us to praise him, reminds of two things

it pleased him to do it

and we did nothing to deserve it

Colossians 1:21–23 CSB

21 Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds as expressed in your evil actions. 22 But now he has reconciled you by his physical body through his death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before him—

ESV says blameless and above reproach

Colossians 1:21–23 CSB

23 if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become a servant of it.

It should blow our minds that the creator would come to this earth and redeem us

we were hostile in our minds

expressed these evil thoughts in our mind by our actions

caused us to be alienated from God

even those who have always been good people, those who came to Christ as a kid

even your sin, as minor as it may seem, is a hostile act to a holy God

Now you are holy… blameless

Paul is intentionally using similar language to how the sacrificial lamb was described in the OT

ESV says above reproach

above reproach means that even if somebody were to make an accusation that it would not be believed

because it is out of character it is unbelievable

meaning there is not an accusation that can stand against you

the devil is always making accusations against God’s people

but those accusations have no standing because the penalty for that sin has already been paid

The conditional phrase of v23… IF

I believe that you cannot lose your salvation, and I do not believe that Paul is saying that you can

I have been notorious for losing keys… I once was locked out of a house and two cars at the same time

one car was locked in the garage, it had the house key in it, and another car outside had the keys locked in it

If we could lose our salvation, we would have lost it a long time ago

Our salvation does not depend on us, but on the one in whom our faith is in!

Grounded and steadfast = Firm on the foundation

many who call themselves Christians, their foundation is their good deeds,

this is the pushback against cultural christianity that we see so much in our culture

if you are grounded and steadfast

for many it is a fad, a phase, a thing said to be believed as long as things are going ok

but when the storms of life come, when persecution hits, we walk away

the truth is you were never grounded and firm

plant yourself firmly on the rock of Christ, the creator and sustainer of the world! The one who gladly redeemed you from darkness and brought you into his glorious light.

Memory Verse

Colossians 1:19–20 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile everything to himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

Discussion Questions

What does it mean that Jesus is the 'image of the invisible God'?

How do you interpret the phrase 'all things hold together by him' in the context of daily life?

In what ways does recognizing Jesus as the Creator influence your faith?

Can you explain Jesus being the 'head of the church' in relation to our roles within the church?

What are the implications of Jesus reconciling all things to himself through his death?

How can we keep our faith grounded and steadfast in a world that challenges our beliefs?

In what practical ways can we submit to Jesus in all aspects of our lives?

What does it mean to you personally that Jesus calls us 'holy, faultless, and blameless'?

How can remembering that we were once alienated from God help us interact with God now?

What steps can you take to ensure you remain 'grounded and steadfast' in your faith?

How does understanding your identity in Christ as 'blameless' impact your self-esteem?

How can the knowledge that all things were created for Jesus influence your daily decisions?

How can you support someone who is struggling to understand their salvation or identity in Christ?