Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

“You put your right hand in.

You take your right hand out.

You put your right hand in, and you shake it all about.

You do the hokey pokey and you turn yourself around.

That’s what it’s all about.”

What if the hokey pokey was what it was all about?

Sometimes, it seems like our churches make it all about attendance, a program, an event, a leader.

We would do better in some cases to indeed make the hokey pokey to be what it’s all about!

But thanks be to God, that is not what He designed.

God designed his church to be all about Jesus.

Our continued study in the Book of Colossians brings us to one of the most pertinent passages in all the Bible.

It has been called one of the most important Christological passages in the Bible.

We see in this passage that Jesus is Sovereign, that Jesus is Supreme and yet He can be my Savior.

As a result, it really is all about Jesus!

Colossians 1:15-23

He is Sovereign

Verse 15 says “He is the image of the invisible God.”

We learn in the creation story in that God created mankind in His image, but that image became marred when sin entered in.

Jesus, however, is the image of God without sin marring that image and messing it up.

Jesus said in that “anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.”

To see the visible Jesus is to see the invisible God.

Jesus as the image of God is a very important concept.

explains it in a different way:

Being in the image of God, Jesus “is the exact radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being.”

That in itself is quite Sovereign.

That same verse in also says that Jesus is sustaining all things by His powerful word.

That is another example of His sovereignty.

We see that Jesus, again in His sovereignty, provided the purification of our sins.

Only one that is sovereign and is the image of God could do such a thing!

As firstborn over all creation, Jesus is one that is prior to call creation and the Agent of creation in both heaven and on earth.

tells us that by Him all things were created by Him and for Him.

Only One that is sovereign could do that!

Jesus is superior in every realm of life.

He has inheritance rights and supreme authority over all creation because He is God’s Son.

It is only Jesus Christ that the Invisible God is revealed perfectly!

He created all things.

No wonder the winds and the waves obeyed Him.

No wonder diseases and demons fled Him.

He is the Master over all!

All things exist for Him.

Everything exists in Him, for Him and through Him.

It really is all about Jesus!

Jesus is the sphere in which they all exist, the agent through which they came into being and the One for Whom they were made.

Paul uses a bit of Greek philosophy here.

It was popular among Greek educators to teach that everything needed a primary cause or plan, a instrumental cause or power, and a final cause or purpose.

Paul demonstrates that:

Jesus is the primary cause - He planned it!

Jesus is the instrumental cause - He produced it!

Jesus is the final cause - He did it for His own pleasure!

It really is all about Jesus!

Jesus is superior in every realm of life.

He has inheritance rights and supreme authority over all creation because He is God’s Son.

In , we see that Jesus is Supreme.

He is Supreme

We see in the next few verses, that Jesus is Supreme.

He holds all things together.

He is the head of the body, the church.

he is the beginning and the firstborn among the dead.

As a result, He is supreme.

Jesus is not a created being, He is Eternal God.

Verse 18 tells us that He is the head of the body, the church.

Head means source, origin, leader or ruler.

Notice how this works:

Jesus is the Source of the Church.

Jesus is the Origin of the Church.

Jesus is the Leader of the Church.

Jesus is the Ruler of the Church!

Forgive us Lord, when make anything else the source, origin, leader or ruler of the church other than your Son!

Jesus Christ is the Supreme Being!

As the Head of our church, Jesus supplies us with life through His Holy Spirit.

He gives us gifts and abilities to carry our His mission.

Through His Word, Jesus nourishes and cleanses the church.

No believer on earth is the head of the church.

That position is exclusively held by Jesus Christ.

Anyone that tells you different is full of hog wash!

Jesus Christ is the head of the church, the beginning of the church, and the firstborn of the dead, He is not the first person raised from the dead but He is the One that because of His resurrection, there can be a resurrection of others!

1 Corinthians

It is interesting that Paul uses the word born in connection with death.

It seems that these are the opposite.

But notice what happens, the tomb was a womb from which Christ gives you and me new life!

Death could not hold Him!

Every bit of God is in every bit of Jesus, Every bit of Jesus is every bit God!

Colossians 1:19

It really is about Jesus!

I am thrilled that He is sovereign.

I am blown away that He is supreme.

But dear church, if I could do a back flip for joy, I would do hundreds of them because He is also my Savior!

He is My Savior

Col

Colossians 1:20

The Bible says that peace was made through the shed blood of Jesus on the cross.

Why was that so?

You and I were designed to be in complete, whole fellowship with God.

When we have that fellowship, we have peace!

There is nothing more wonderful that discovering peace with God!

It is His great plan for us all.

You see, God loves you and wants you to experience peace and life - abundantly and eternally!

The Bible says...

That is God’s plan for us!