The Pre-Eminent Christ

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Who is Jesus Christ, whose birth we've just been celebrating? What is your vision of him?

The carol 'See Amid The Winter's Snow' answers, in part, like this, taking its cue from Colossians 1:16:"Lo, within a manger lies, He who built the starry skies." He's God the Son, the Creator and Lord of all, the only Saviour. And as we learn from Colossians he's the reason not just for the season but for everything. As 2013 draws to a close you might be asking: Why am I here? Not just why are you here in church but the big picture. Why, in the sense of what caused you to be? Why, in the sense of the purpose of your existence? Well Paul answers with one word Jesus. He's the reason why you're here on this earth and he brings purpose. Jesus is the 'beginning, v18, and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the pre-eminence'[or supremacy]. It's not about us, it's all about Jesus.

Yet while some today accept the importance of Jesus, far fewer acknowledge his pre-eminence. Recently in Sheffield two large illuminated signs were displayed. One said 'Merry Christmas' and the other 'Happy Eid'. Jesus' birthday was still important in Sheffield, it was even prominent but it was not pre-eminent. Others want to do away with him altogether. Here in Newcastle the Metro system will not allow Christianity Explored to be advertised. Girlguiding UK dropped God from the Guide promise but they didn't reckon on a certain Glynis Mackie standing up for Jesus. Perhaps we should ask Glynis to have a word with the Metro people. When Nelson Mandela died a BBC interviewer asked, "Can he be compared to Jesus?" Now we can thank God for what Mandela did for South Africa but he can't be compared to Jesus. Jesus has no rivals. He is pre-eminent. Nelson Mandela is dead. Jesus Christ is alive.

The false teachers at Colossae, like many of the false teachers of today such as the JW's and the Mormons, did not deny the importance of Jesus. But they dethroned Jesus, giving him prominence but not pre-eminence. In their philosophy, Jesus was but one of many emanations that proceeded from God and through which men could reach God. The Colossians heard, "Worship Jesus, but not exclusively. Jesus is just one spirit among many to be worshipped." It was this that Paul refuted here in Colossians 1.

And what about you - is Jesus pre-eminent in your life or just prominent or important? What's your vision of Jesus Christ? In Colossians 1 Paul makes it quite clear that there's a link between your maturity and effectiveness as a Christian and your vision of who Jesus is. John Stott used to say: "We are pigmy Christians because we have a pigmy Christ." Our maturity, the level of our maturity, depends on the clarity of our vision of Jesus Christ. So if we want to grow to maturity in Christ, we need a vision of the authentic Jesus, and not least of his unchallengeable pre-eminence as it's described in v15-20. Look at those verses. Paul indicates here that Christ has a double lordship - he's Lord of the creation, of the universe and he's also Lord of the church. Why? Because of who he is - the image and the fullness of God -and because of what he's done -as the agent of creation and of reconciliation. When you begin to glimpse this Jesus, the head of the universe and the head of the church, surely our place is on our faces prostrate in worship before him, trusting in him, willing to serve, obey and stand up for him whatever the cost.

So let's now look at the supremacy and sufficiency of Christ under two headings: Jesus is pre-eminent over creation and Jesus is pre-eminent over the new creation. First

1) Jesus is pre-eminent over creation
(v15-17)

"He is the image of the invisible God…"

Who is Jesus? "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of or over all creation." How do we know a God who cannot be seen? The claim here is that He's seen in Jesus. God becomes visible, revealed, in Jesus. And the word for "image" here means an exact representation. In other words, He's the perfect likeness of God. Jesus is God Himself. There is nothing of God that we cannot see in Jesus. We might say that someone is the spitting image of his father but God, v19, was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in Jesus. Do you really want to know what God's like, to know what His goals are for the world? Read the gospels. See Jesus. There you see God. Read Luke in preparation for Home Group this year.

"…the first born of all creation" Jesus is also the "firstborn of all creation." This doesn't mean that Jesus is 'first created'. The Jehovah's Witnesses are wrong when they use this text to argue that Jesus isn't God but a creature. So what does "firstborn" mean here? In the OT it referred to the firstborn in a family who had the place of honour, the person who enjoyed a special relationship with the father and assumed the right of inheritance. Ps 89:27: "I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth."

"…by him all things were created" After establishing who Jesus is as God, King of all, the revelation of God, Paul writes of what He does. Look first at v16&17 and look at the role of Jesus in the creation of the universe. "For by Him all things were created: things 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. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together." So what is this saying? First, Jesus is the cause of all that exists. "By Him all things were created." Note "all things". Absolutely everything was created by Jesus...the smallest parts that make up each atom, the genetic codes that make up who we are, the stunning mountain ranges, the awesome universe. It's all there by Jesus. He is the cause and he is over everything. Not only of what we can see, but also the unseen, the spiritual: "things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible". Every spiritual being, including the angels, Satan, "whether thrones or dominions or rules or authorities." You can see that the last words are aimed directly at the Colossians who were being drawn into angel worship. None of these beings has any power in comparison to Jesus. He's the one who determines whether things exist or not. He is Lord of all.

"… created for him" Jesus is also the goal of the creation. "all things were created through him and for him." So Jesus is not just the cause of the creation. He is its goal. He's the reason, the purpose for the creation. It all exists for His glory, to bring Him pleasure, to do his bidding. Jesus gives everything meaning. He gives it all a purpose. Without Jesus the universe is meaningless. In fact without Him there is no universe. We were made by Jesus for Jesus and so we should live for him daily.

"… in him all things hold together." Thirdly v17, "In him all things hold together". Jesus didn't just create the world and then leave it to its own devices. He's not the watchmaker who creates a wonderful precision instrument, winds it up and goes on holiday. Everything continues to exist, the earth spins on its axis and we get day after night, the earth spins around the sun and we get our seasons, because Jesus "holds all things together". Does that fact not bring you comfort - that "all things were created by" Jesus and that in Him "all things hold together"? Not just some things but all things. Jesus is Lord over history: he began it, he's in control of it now and he'll wind it up at the End. Jesus is Lord and in control of everything that comes our way. Nothing in our experience is out of his control. We can trust him and the best is yet to come.

Now this is all so relevant for us. We live in a time when so many people wonder about the meaning of life. They don't know who they are, why they exist, what the point is to everything. And hasn't so much of that come about because we've tried to explain the world in scientific terms alone? We've left God out of our thinking with the result that we've concluded there's no ultimate meaning or purpose to life. But Paul says that life is not all about a scientific theory. It's all about a person. It's all about Jesus. He's the centre of the universe and its reason for existence. The stress on Jesus being the cause and goal of creation also reminds us that while Christian thinking has stressed Jesus' Lordship over the church we can so easily neglect his Lordship over creation. So we can fall into the trap of creating a dualism in which we worship Jesus in church life, but not at work, university, hospital, school, family, home, sports and so on. Rather like the Colossians, we can be guilty of combining a faith in Jesus with a belief in human secularism because we make little attempt to claim education, medicine, business and politics for the Lordship of Jesus. But the reality is we'll only find meaning in all parts of life when we do all of them for Jesus and seek to work out in practice what it means for Jesus to be Lord of all in all areas of life. Secondly

2) Jesus is pre-eminent over the new creation
(v18-20)

"Jesus is the head of the body, the church". In verse 18 Paul shows how Jesus is also the head of the church. 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 pre-eminent. The wonderful creation has become terribly broken by sin. So Christ came to restore it. He brings new life to those who believe and trust in him. He died for the church. Together we are being built into his body, the church over which he is the head. The word "head" means headship as in having authority and control. So Jesus gave life to the church and He controls it. He's its Lord. Jesus is the head of JPC and he's in control. We're to fix our eyes on him and obey his word.

"…the first born from the dead". Paul goes on to draw out some of the implications of Jesus being the head of the church. He says: "…He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead." He's the "beginning". Without Jesus the church would not have come into existence. Without Jesus this creation would just keep struggling in all its brokenness and suffering. But because of Jesus, through His death and resurrection, a new chapter has begun.

Things are not the same anymore. He's the "firstborn from the dead." Paul's already stated that Christ is the "firstborn of or over all creation." (v15) Now he says Jesus has the same status over the new creation. The new humanity is the community of the resurrection. It's the community of those who share in Christ's victory over death, that dreadful ultimate in heartache and suffering and brokenness. Jesus is the first to have defeated death forever. Jesus, by the power of God, rose from the dead. He defeated death, clearing the way for all who believe. He's the first. As it happened for Jesus so it will happen for all of us who trust in Him. Jesus is the "firstborn from the dead" so that "in everything He might be pre-eminent". Note Paul's emphasis. "In everything" Jesus is supreme. There's absolutely nothing that's outside His control. Not even death. All evil, including Satan, everything is under His control.

…reconcile to himself all things". Now you'd think that at this high point it's all been said. But Paul says more. Sometimes when we climb in a mountain range we think we've reached the peak, only to find that over the crest, there's still more. Look at v19&20. "For in Him, all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through Him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross." Paul's talking about an entire new creation, a new heaven and a new earth, the complete restoration of the universe by Jesus. That's what it means when he speaks of "all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven." So it's this earth, with its animals and plants, the mountains and the seas, the stars and the galaxies that will be reconciled to God and restored. All the powers and thrones will become completely subject to Him.

Jesus will do it because of who He is: fully God and fully man. As someone has put it: "Jesus Christ is the ultimate. There is none before him, none beyond him, nothing without Him. Other than Jesus will not do; less than Jesus will not suit; more than Jesus is not possible. More than all in him we find. Everything of God is to be found in Him." It's through Jesus that God will "reconcile all things…" You see God's purpose was never only to save a few Christians for himself and let everything else go to hell. That sort of thinking is the result of dualism and individualism creeping into our theology. It's not just about me and my soul and my relationship with God. God has a concern for all the creatures He made, and this universe He placed them in. 'All things' that have been so terribly broken by sin are going to be reconciled to God. He's going to "make peace" with everything. It will be a creation where sin is gone, where all things, and all who believe, will find their true reason for being, where we will live and work and play in true righteousness, doing it God's way, always. And all this isn't just a pipe dream. It will happen "through [Jesus'] blood shed on the cross." On the cross, as Jesus hung there dying, cursed, suffering hell, God's justice was done. Our guilt was covered. In Jesus all is forgiven, and the way is opened for those who belong to Jesus to come home.

Now, of course, Paul isn't saying that everyone will be saved. No! Only those who by grace turn to Christ in repentance and faith. Who needs to turn to him this morning? To the only one who is able to 'reconcile us to God the Father (v22) and present us holy and blameless and above reproach before him?' If we've put our faith in Christ then God has rescued us through his Son (v12-14) and there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Ro 8:1). And verses 15-20 show why Jesus was fully qualified to rescue us fully and finally. As we've seen Jesus is Creator and Lord over every power and authority (including powers like Satan, sin and the judgement of death). Since Jesus is Lord over every power he can rescue us from those powers. And the rescue is complete, fully and finally achieved; nothing can be added to it or improved upon. Therefore (v23), continue to trust the rescue and ignore anyone who says we need something else besides Jesus.

A story is told about William Randolph Hearst, the newspaper owner who revolutionised journalism. His career was the model for the film Citizen Kane. His wealth enabled him to invest in collecting great works of art. One day he read about some valuable pieces which he must have for his collection. So he sent his agent off to find them. It was months before the agent returned. He'd found the works but it wouldn't be possible to buy them. The truth is they were already sitting in Hearst's own warehouse - he'd purchased them years before.

Many Christians are like Mr Hearst, desperately searching for and longing to possess what already belongs to them. Something has persuaded them that Jesus Christ isn't quite enough to meet all their spiritual needs. So they're looking for something more: more power, some kind of special experience, the higher life, the deeper life, signs, wonders, miracles, a second blessing, or even a third blessing.

The Colossians are in that category. Someone has got to them and influenced them into looking for something more of God than they already have in Jesus Christ. Paul is urging them and us not to fall for it. Why? Not because he doesn't want us to have more of God. He does. But he knows that Christ is the treasure house where God has hidden all his treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

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