The True Christ
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· 8 viewsIn Colossians 1:15-20, Paul teaches us a title that only Christ can claim: King of Creation.
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Matt Allen Robinson / Keiser
Colossians /
In , Paul teaches us a title that only Christ can claim: King of Creation.
INTRODUCTION
• How exactly did the world begin? How did all of the plants, animals, humans, stars, moons, planets, & galaxies come into existence? The answer to these questions has a serious impact on the course of our lives.
• If you were a public school kid, like me, then you were probably taught two viable options to choose from: there was Creationism, which was outdated and only believed by the religious folk, and the Big Bang Theory, which had never actually proven, but pretty much understood by everyone to be true. So, as a young kid, I went with the crowd, chose the latter, and accepted that the entire universe just became something out of nothing.
• And, that seems pretty harmless, right? What’s the big deal about how the universe began anyway? Well, the reality is that the answer to these questions has a serious moral impact on the course of our lives.
• Think about it. If the universe literally just exploded into existence on its own accord, then what’s the purpose of life? Seriously. Why even live? You live your life, then you die, and your body gets eaten by worms. How inspiring. What’s the point of being a “good person”? Why even bother helping other people? If we follow this line of thought, the only logical thing to do with our lives is to do whatever we want, whenever we feel like, as much as possible! Because, in the wise words of Drake, “You Only Live Once”.
• I want to modify that a little bit. According to the Word of God, “You All Live Twice.” Or if you’re from the south, “Y’all Live Twice.” We know this because Jesus Christ is the Son of Man, but more importantly, He is the Son of God.
• The apostles knew Him well, but how well do we know Him? Of course, most of us are familiar with the gospel story, and some of the parables, and most of the miracles, and a lot of His words. But how well do we actually know Him? How well do we understand that He is not just the Son of God, but that He is equal with God? And, how does that understanding affect our lives?
• So tonight, I want to explore , where Paul teaches us a title that only Christ can claim: King of Creation.
WHO / WHEN / WHERE
• We know that the apostle Paul sent this letter from house arrest in Rome to the city of Colossae, by way of Tychicus and Onesimus, sometime between 60-62 AD. We also know that Paul’s heir apparent, Timothy, is in Rome with him as well.
WHAT / WHY
• Paul wrote Colossians to teach these believers 3 things: the wisdom of the gospel, the folly of any fake gospel, and the fruit of the true gospel. Just like us today, these people were getting told a lot of different things about who Jesus really is. Paul’s main point in , though, is simply this: This is who Jesus really is.
• So, with all that in mind, let’s take a look at our passage. Follow along as I read, starting in verse 15.
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13 For He rescued 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.
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and 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 in Him all things hold together.
18 He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.
19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him,
20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.
Christ, King of Creation ()
Christ, King of Creation ()
INTERPRETATION
• Why the title King of Creation? Simply because Christ is not only the Author of Creation, but the Ruler of it as well. Paul makes that abundantly clear in the passage we’re looking at now.
• Throughout church history, there’s been a lot of debate on whether or not this section is from a hymn sung in the early church, or a poem, or a different existing source. Regardless, the structure of it is important for us to look at so we can actually understand what in the world Paul is communicating here.
• In these first five verses, there are two thoughts that run parallel to each other: Verse 15 starts the first thought: “Who is the image of the invisible God”, and 18b starts the second: “who is the beginning.”
• Verse 17 is the capstone of the entire section. In 12 words, Paul sums up why Christ alone is King of Creation: “He is before all things and in Him all things hold together.”
• The remaining verses, i.e. 16, 19, and 20, all serve to further develop this concept of Christ’s preeminence, His eternality, His dominion, over all things.
EXPLANATION
• In addition to getting refreshed by this exposition of Christ, the Colossians would’ve picked up exactly what Paul was putting down here. Paul wanted to highlight Christ’s preeminence because the false teacher was preaching Christ’s eminence. The false teacher wasn’t denying Christ’s authority… he simply said that Christ is an authority, among others.
• And that sounds similar to some false religions today, doesn’t it? Mormons say Christ is the Son of God, but is not God. Jews say that Jesus was a prophet of God, but is not God. Muslims say that Jesus was a messenger of God, but is not God. But here’s the thing: Christ is the One who created every single human that denies Him and He is the One who sustains every single breath that they take. Verse 17: “He is before all things and in Him all things hold together.”
• God’s infinite power, infinite wisdom, infinite judgement, and infinite mercy are on full display here. How could we not marvel at the mercy of God? Consider this again, that Christ is the One who created every single human that denies Him and He is the One who sustains every single breath that they take. Verse 17: “He is before all things and in Him all things hold together.” That’s utterly profound.
• With these truths, Paul makes it abundantly clear that there is only One who is in charge, One who creates, One who created: and that is Christ, the Son of God. He alone is deserving of the title “King of Creation”, and most importantly, He is worthy of it.
• And here in verses 15-20 of , Paul proves why Christ is worthy of that title with two proofs: He is the firstborn of creation and the firstborn from the dead.
Firstborn of all creation ()
Firstborn of all creation ()
INTERPRETATION
• The first proof is that Christ is the firstborn of creation… the firstborn of creation.
• Look at verse 15 with me.
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15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
• This word “image” here can be understood as a visual representation of something, in all of its fullness.
• So essentially, Paul is saying that Jesus Himself is the literal visual representation of God.
17 Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
2 The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.
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3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,
6 For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
4 in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.
• The apostle John sums this up well in the first chapter of his gospel.
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18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.
• There is only one way to know God, and that is through knowing Christ. If you don’t know Christ, then guess what? You don’t know God.
• Look at verse 15 again: “the invisible God.” God is Spirit, says, and we worship Him in spirit and truth. We can’t see Him! He is beyond our comprehension. All that we know about Him, we learn from His Word. Who is the Word? Christ is the Word! Truly, if you don’t know Christ, then you don’t know God.
• Now look back at verse 15. Christ is not only “the image of the invisible God”, but He is “the firstborn of all creation.”
• I don’t want to belabor this too long, but we have to clarify what exactly Paul means by “firstborn”.
• There’s two ways to read this phrase, and one way makes you faithful, and the other way makes you a heretic. So, it’s kind of a big deal.
• The heretic way would take this to mean that Christ is the first created being of all creation. That would imply that He has an origin, therefore making Him incapable of being God. This is what the false teacher in Colossae had been hinting at. So throw that interpretation out the window.
• The faithful way would take this to mean that Christ is preceding all others in time or space or degree, receiving all of the rights and privileges that come with being the “firstborn”. How do we know “firstborn” is used this way here? Because in the ancient world, “firstborn” referred to whoever was given the full inheritance, regardless of birth date! Listen to .
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27 “I also shall make him My firstborn,
The highest of the kings of the earth.
27 “I also shall make him My firstborn,
The highest of the kings of the earth.
• This is a prophecy about the coming Messiah! Who was that coming Messiah? Christ Himself.
• Or how about ? Listen to verses 15-18.
15 Then the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven,
16 and said, “By Myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son,
17 indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies.
18 “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
15 Then the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven,
16 and said, “By Myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son,
17 indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies.
18 “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
• And it all beautifully culminates in .
7 Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.
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7 Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.
• Do you see? Christ is coming back to reign as the King of Kings. All the nations of the earth are blessed by Him in the gospel. And if we are saved by faith through this gospel, then we are co-heirs of the inheritance that is due Him. Why is he due that inheritance? Look at verse 16, back in now.
16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.
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16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.
• That “by” there can be better understood as “in”. Whenever you see this preposition, it typically means “in the realm of”, or “in the sphere of”. What Paul is saying is that in the sphere of Christ, all creation was created.
• There’s a lot to discuss there, and we’re going to revisit that, but for now look at the next two phrases: “in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible”.
• What does “all things” mean in the original Greek? All things! All things just in heaven?
Nope. All things just on earth? Wrong again. All things in heaven and on earth? Bingo!
• The truths here are incredibly lofty, but bear with me. Not only were all things created in the realm of Christ, both in heaven and on earth, but also understand that this includes the things we can see and the things we can’t see. What can’t we see? Everything in the heavens. It’s a spiritual realm that we don’t have any access to, because we’re humans on earth!
• We also have enemies in this spiritual realm. makes that very clear. These angelic majesties are nothing to play around with, and have immense power that somehow was able to harm us on earth. But we can take comfort in the rest of the verse: “whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities - all things have been created through Him and for Him.”
• Which leads us to Paul’s capstone, which we’ve already looked at. Verse 17:
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17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
• By the power of His might, Christ keeps the universe in order. All things work in heaven and on earth because He keeps it together. Think about that! Every single droplet in a cup of water holds its form because Christ is actively holding it together. Our God is a mighty God.
• And not only is Christ the Author & Sustainer of creation, He is head of the church, which is His body. Look at the first part of verse 18: “He is also head of the body, the church...”
• This term “head” here can be understood of as the authority, or a person who is in charge.
• Essentially, Christ is in charge of His church, which is His body.
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3 But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ.
3 But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ.
EXPLANATION
• Now, the Colossians may have needed their head pastor to read these 3 verses back to them a few times, just so that they could digest everything they just heard.
• With these words, Paul is debunking any theory that offers another solution outside of Christ. If the Colossians had any notion of doubt about the character of Christ before, then that doubt was evaporated.
• Earlier, we asked why Christ is due the inheritance He is due. The answer? - Because “all creation has been created for Him.” All things in heaven and on earth were made for Him.
• Think about this. No matter what you think, say, or believe, Christ is King of Creation. No matter what you think, say, or believe, you were made for Him. He is King whether you like it or not. He made you and He sustains you. These are facts. says that “every tongue will confess” this reality, whether in this life or the life to come. Eternity is real, both heaven and hell. So what are you going to do about it?
Firstborn from the dead ()
Firstborn from the dead ()
INTERPRETATION
• We’ve seen that the first title belonging to Christ alone is King of Creation. The first proof of why He deserves that title was because He is firstborn of all creation. The second proof is that He is firstborn from the dead… firstborn from the dead.
• Look now at the rest of verse 18. “He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He may become first in everything...”
• Christ is “the beginning”. Basically, He is the agent of creation, but was created by no one because He is God.
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8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
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14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this:
14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this:
• Don’t miss the play on words in verse 18. Christ is the “beginning” in the sense that He has always existed and that all things exist in Him, but He is also the “beginning” because He is the first to return from the dead.
• You’re probably thinking I just contradicted myself. Didn’t Lazarus come back from the dead? Didn’t Jesus raise a few kids from the dead? All correct. But they all rose just to die again. Jesus rose from the dead and lives. He hasn’t tasted death again because He has conquered death.
• So Paul says here that Jesus is the beginning and is the firstborn from the dead. For what purpose? “So that He may become first in everything...”
• There is not one aspect of anything that Christ is not first in. He is first in all things, hence why He alone can receive the title “King of Creation”! But don’t miss verse 19. Look there with me.
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19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him,
19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him,
• “Good pleasure” is actually a verb. It reads better like this: “because it was well-pleasing...” We can understand this verb “well-pleasing” as to take a high degree of pleasure or mental satisfaction in something. Essentially, God the Father took a high degree of pleasure in having all the fullness dwelling in Christ.
11 and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”
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11 and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”
• But in order to fully understand this, we need to know what exactly “all the fullness” means. Basically, “fullness” here means the state of having every necessary part or component or step. Completeness. So, God the Father took a high degree of pleasure in having all the completeness dwelling in Christ.
16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.
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16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.
• However, if you look at verse 20, Paul includes a thought that runs parallel to verse 19. Not only did God the Father take a high degree of pleasure in having all the completeness dwell in Christ, but He took a high degree of pleasure in having Christ reconcile all of creation to Himself. Look at verse 20 now.
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20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.
20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.
• This is completely profound language here. Paul sums up the gospel in one verse! Understand “reconcile” here as to restore a relationship back to the harmony it experienced before its fall. So, God got great pleasure from restoring His relationship with creation through God the Son.
• The action here is reconciliation. What is the means of reconciliation? “The blood of His cross.” When Christ died on the cross, He didn’t just reconcile His people. Look at the rest of the verse: “all things… whether things on earth or things in heaven.”
• And, what was the result of this reconciliation? Peace! “having made peace through the blood of His cross...” This idea is intrinsically linked to reconciliation. Reconciliation always results in peace. We know this from disputes with friends, family, you name it. But those are all temporal. The reconciliation that truly matters is God’s creation to God.
EXPLANATION
• When they came across this passage, the Colossians would’ve been reminded of all they’ve been taught by Epaphras from the early days of the church. Why does Paul bother to rehash truths to them that they already know to be true? So that they can spot false teaching from a mile away.
• How could any true believer hear these truths without responding in awe to how mighty, how glorious, how wonderful, and how transcendent our God truly is. Did God create the universe? Yes. Was all creation made in the realm of Christ? Yes. Was all creation made for Christ? Yes. So, will all rise from the dead because He rose? Yes.
• So if Christ is firstborn from the dead, what does that mean for our lives? Simply this: Whether you die as a Christian or an unbeliever, you will rise again. Here’s the kicker though: Christians will be raised to eternal life, and unbelievers will be raised to eternal death. Let that sit for a moment. Now, let me ask this question: “Which way are you headed?”
EXHORTATION
• Our time is gone. So far, we’ve seen that the first title belonging to Christ alone is King of Creation. We also looked at two proofs Paul provided for why Christ is worthy of that name. The first proof was that Christ is the firstborn of all creation. The second proof was that Christ is the firstborn from the dead. Next time, we’re going to look at the second title belonging to Christ alone, which is Lord of Salvation.
• So, what can we take from this lofty portrait of Jesus, the Son of God? Here are a few insights that stood out to me from my studies in the passage.
CHRIST IS THE KING OF EARTH.
• This reality really leaps out at us from Paul’s words in this passage. Christ is not just the King, but He is our King. It doesn’t really get more simpler than that. Verse 16 made it clear: “all things were created through Him and for Him”. So will we accept this reality and repent of our disobedience to the King of the Universe, or will we continue on in blatant rebellion against Him?
CHRIST IS THE KING OF HEAVEN.
• Simply put, there are no other gods. There are no other superior beings. There is no one else to worship. There is nothing else to worship! There is God alone, through Christ alone. He is the ruler over all things supernatural. There isn’t an angel or demon or power or ruler that is above Him. He has conquered all. So why would we ever doubt His power? Why would we ever doubt His ability to care for us? Why would we doubt His able to protect and provide for us? gives us all the comfort we could ever need.
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38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
CHRIST IS THE KING OF EVERYTHING.
• The result of all things is Christ. There is no other reason for our existence. We were only created because of Christ. Why? So that His glory would be put on full display before all of His creation, in heaven and on earth and below the earth.
• Understand this reality: heavenly beings were created to display the power of God. The body of believers in the church were created to display the grace of God. Unbelievers were created to display the wrath and justice of God.
• These are all facts. God spoke it in His Word and His Word is truth, says. Jesus Christ is the Word Incarnate, says. To deny this words is to deny Jesus Himself. These truths are undeniable.
• The question is this: Ultimately, how will you respond?
• Really, that’s a rhetorical question. There’s only one response to make: submit to Christ, the Sovereign King of Creation. You can submit to Him as King and Savior, or submit to Him as King and Judge. The choice is yours. Pray with me.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 9:38 AM April 4, 2019.
