TABLE OF CONTENTS:
I. Christ’s Preeminence as God’s Exact Manifestation (Col. 1:15a)
II. Christ’s Preeminence over All Creation and New Creation (Col. 1:15b)
III. Christ’s Preeminence as the Creator and Sustainer (Col. 1:16-17)
Introduction:
In the church of Colosse, a heresy called the early or primitive Gnosticism, a cult consisting of a combination of mysticism, Jewish legalism, and Greek philosophy was trying to marginalize Christ on the new converts of this young church. Full grown Gnosticism only came into being at the end of first century. The heresy taught that Christ could not be God. This belief was based on Greek philosophy which taught that the spirit was good and the body was evil, and therefore God could not have become a human because God cannot mix good with evil.
It also taught Jesus was
an angel and that receiving him was not enough for salvation. One needed a new
revelation to be saved. That is where the name “Gnostic” cult comes from. The
Greek word “gnosis” means “knowing” or “knowledgeable.” To be saved, one needed secret knowledge that
only the Gnostics had experienced.
To counterattack the Gnostic cult in the church of Colossae, Paul admonished the church the necessity to grow “in the knowledge of God” (Col. 1:10). “Knowledge” in Greek is “epignosis G1922”, it means “precise and correct knowledge” (by Thayer).[1] Here, “epignosis” refers to an accurate, deep understanding of God, emphasizing spiritual insight that leads to godly living.
“And so, from the day we
heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with
the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.” (Col.
1:9)
“So as to walk in a
manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good
work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” (Col. 1:10)
“That their hearts may be
encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full
assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is
Christ.” (Col. 2:2)
“And have put on the new
self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”
(Col. 3:10)
The message for this article is based on Colossians 1:15-17. Let’s do exegesis to identify the common denominators to
formulate the big idea for this morning message:
Outlines:
I.
Christ’s
Preeminence as God’s Exact Manifestation (Col. 1:15a)
II.
Christ’s
Preeminence over All Creation (Col. 1:15b)
III.
Christ’s
Preeminence as the Creator and Sustainer (Col. 1:16-17)
I. Christ’s Preeminence as God’s Exact Manifestation (Col. 1:15a)
“¹⁵ᵃThe Son
is the image of the invisible God…” (Col. 1:15a)
A. God Related to Man by Manifestation in History
In Genesis 18:2, God manifested in human form (theophany) as three visitors to relate to Abraham on announcing the birth of Isaac. Among the three visitors, one was Jehovah God, the other two were angels. Some have suggested that all three of these "men" were angelic beings who appeared to Abraham in the form of men. However, Genesis 18:1 says that it was "the LORD" (Yahweh) who appeared to Abraham. It is the Lord who speaks in verse 13, 20, 26 and 33. Abraham stands "before the LORD" in verse 22. So, one of the three "men" must have been God Almighty taking on the appearance of a man. [2]
In exodus, God spoke to Moses through
the burning bush; and he led the Israelites through pillars of fire and cloud.
In the era of the prophets, God spoke to his people through the major and minor prophets, “In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways.” (Hebrews 1:1) Those major and minor prophets did not speak by their own accord, the Holy Spirit moved them, and they spoke forth revelation from the Lord: “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:20-21)
B.
Messiah
as God’s Heartbeat as His Exact Manifestation
As early as Genesis 3:15 after the fall of man, God pronounced the offspring of Eve who would bring a blow to Satan: “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head and you strike his heel.” (Gen. 3:15)
Various prophets
prophesizing the coming of the Messiah as early as the era of Moses: “The Lord
your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your
fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.
For this is what you asked of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of
the assembly when you said, ‘Let us not hear the voice of the Lord our God nor
see this great fire anymore, or we will die.’” (Deut. 14:15-16)
Prophet Isaiah prophesied
a virgin birth of the Messiah, and prophet Micah fine-tuned the place of birth
as Bethlehem:
“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and will call him Immanuel.” (Is. 7:14)
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one
who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient
times.” (Micah 5:2)
The prophecies of the
coming Messiah were fulfilled on Christmas day two thousand years ago.
C.
Christ
as the Exact Manifestation of the Invisible God
Colossians 1:15a declares
the Son is the image of the invisible God. The
word “image” in Greek is “eikon – G1504”. Pastor David Guzik in his commentary
Enduring Word defines the word “eikon” as (1) likeness, as in the image on a
coin or reflection in a mirror. (2) Manifestation, with the sense that God is
fully revealed in Jesus.[3]
An English word “icon” is derived from this Greek word.[4]
In the internet world, I believe every one of us who is using smart phone will
have no problem understanding the meaning of icon. Look at the examples:
Christ is the icon to
represent God as the perfect and exact representation of God as declared by
Hebrews 1:2-3, “But in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he
appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The
Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being,
sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification
for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” (Hebrews
1:2-3)
Christ is “the exact representation
of his being” means that Christ manifests the essence and attribute of God
through his works and ministries. His life on earth reveals God’s holiness,
love, mercy and justice. In his ministries, he demonstrates God’s omnipotent
over storm, over demons, and the healing of incurable diseases. The lists are
non-exhaustive. Thus, Christ is the perfect man, and perfect God. He is the
only person in history who is able to reveal God’s nature: “No one has ever
seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him
known.” (John 1:18)
Colossians 1:19 and 2:9
speak about Christ’s as the perfect manifestation of God, and He is preeminent
as God’s exact representation:
“For God was pleased to
have all his fullness dwell in him.” (Col. 1:19)
“For in Christ all the
fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.” (Col. 2:9)
In application, before the redemptive work of Christ on the cross, God and man was seperated. However, His supreme manifestation in the incarnation as fully God
and fully human successfully bridges the gap between man and God, and that is
why He is called the only mediator between man and God (1 Tim. 2:5). He is
called the Son of man and the Son of God.
In summary, Christ as the icon of an invisible God means that Jesus reveals to humanity the nature of God, making the invisible God knowable and relatable to us.
“…¹⁵ᵇ the firstborn over
all creation.” (Col. 1:15b)
Firstborn is an ordinary
word. However, wrong understanding could stumble people. “The firstborn of all
creation.” (Col. 1:15a NASB) sounds like Jesus is part of the creation. In
fact, a cult from USA capitalizes the word firstborn to justify their claim
that Jesus was firstborn of God’s creation, and he is not the uncreated eternal
Son of God, but he is the first created creator. We will walk through the New
Testament to prove to you that the usage of firstborn in relation to Christ
means Christ’s preeminence and supremacy.
“Firstborn” in Greek is prototokos G4416. Vine Dictionary defines firstborn as: “Firstborn (from protos, first, and tikto, to beget) is used of Christ as born of the Virgin Mary, Luke 2:7. Further, in His relationship to the Father, expressing His priority to, and preeminent over, creation, not in the sense of being first to be born.” [5]
The first usage is priority in time, and secondly it
is used as supremacy and preeminence in rank. We will walk through the New
Testament to prove to you that the usage of firstborn in relation to Christ
means Christ’s preeminence and supremacy. There are five occurrences of
firstborn relating to Christ: Hebrews 1:6; Romans 8:29; Col. 1:18, Rev. 1:5;
Col. 1:15b.
A. Hebrews 1:6
When Christ was born into the world, angels were
commanded to worship Him: “And
again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, ‘Let all God’s
angels worship him.’” (Heb. 1:6) It implies that Christ is God, only God can
receive worship from other beings. Thus, the meaning of firstborn in Heb. 1:6
is supremacy in rank. If Christ is not God, God will not instruct angels to
worship him. In the book of Revelation, apostle John wanted to worship an
angel, the angel responded swiftly to stop him saying: “Don’t do that! I am a
fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the
words of this scroll. Worship God!” (Rev. 22:9)
B. Col. 1:8, Rev. 1:5
In Colossians 1:18, Paul wrote about Christ as “…He is the beginning and the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.” (Col. 1:18) Firstborn is to describe his preeminent in position over all future glorified resurrection. In his salutation to the seven churches in Revelation, he called himself as firstborn from the dead, he speaks of his rank of preeminence over all future resurrection: “And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.” (Rev. 1:5)
C. Romans 8:29
In Romans 8:29, Paul addresses Christ as the firstborn among many brothers and sisters: “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” (Rom. 8:29) Who are those brothers and sisters? There are those who put their faith in Christ, the church of Jesus Christ, the new creation. The phrase “firstborn among many brothers and sisters” signifies rank and honor rather than chronological birth order (Berean Study Bible).[6] It emphasizes Christ’s supremacy and His role as the head of the new creation: “He is the head of the body, the church.” (Col. 1:18)
D. Colossians 1:15b
NIV bible translates Col. 1:15b the genitive case as “over” than “of” (Col. 1:15b NASB): “…the firstborn over all creation.” This will imply Christ the firstborn is preeminent over all creation. Why is Christ preeminent over all creation? He is preeminent over all creation as he is supreme in rank over all creation. He is defined as God, for angels were commanded to worship him in Hebrews 1:6. The succeeding conjunction in Col. 1:16 using “for” defines Christ as the creator: “The Son is the image of the invisible God…for (because) in Him all things were created…” (Col. 1:15-16a)
Christ as the firstborn over all creation speaks about
Christ’s preeminent over all creation. He is preeminent and supreme in rank as
he is God, and he is the creator and Col. 1:16-17 will provide solid proof that
Christ is the creator.
III. Christ’s Preeminence as the Creator and Sustainer (Col. 1:16-17)
" ¹⁶For in him all things were created: things in heaven
and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or
authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. ¹⁷He
is before all things, and in him all things hold together." (Colossians
1:16-17, NIV)
"For by him all things were created"
Jesus is the author of all creation. He Himself is not a created
being. All things are the produce of his creation: “Through him all things were
made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” (John 1:3)
“In heaven and on earth, visible and invisible”
Christ’s creation extends to all segments, spiritual and physical
world. He created all spiritual beings, and he created all physical world.
“Whether thrones or dominions or rulers or
authorities”
In the realm of the spirit world, hierarchy is significant in good
angels and bad angels, but all are subjected to Christ, He is preeminent over
good and bad angels. In the realm of good angels, there are having two levels:
ordinary angels, and the arch angels. As for the bad ones, Ephesians identifies
four levels: rulers, authorities, powers of this dark world and the spiritual
forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Eph. 6:12)
“All things were created through him and for him”
Christ is the medium of all creation. Without Christ as the medium of
creation, nothing will be created. “Through him” speaks to Christ as the
instrument of creation, he is the means through which all things came into
being.
“For him” stresses that the ultimate purpose of creation is Christ.
The universe, all of creation, was made for His glory and for the fulfilment of
His divine will. Everything exists not for itself, but for Christ, and is
ultimately oriented towards Him. Creation finds its meaning and fulfilment in
Christ.
“And he is before all things”
This speaks to Christ’s eternal pre-existence. He is not a created
being but the eternal, pre-existent Son of God, existing before all things.
This reinforces the idea of Christ’s supremacy over time, as well as the fact
that He is not bound by time or created order. He stands outside of creation
and has always existed, independent of it.
“And in him all things hold together”
All things in universe are sustained by the sustainer, and Christ is
the sustainer. Without the sustaining work of the Word, the universe will be
chaotic and will collapse: “The son is…sustaining all things by his powerful
word.” (Heb. 1:3)
In conclusion of this section, I wish to quote a comment from Clark
Commentary from Studylight.org:
“As all creation necessarily exists in time, and had a commencement,
and there was an infinite duration in which it did not exist, whatever was
before or prior to that must be no part of creation; and the Being who existed
prior to creation, and before all things-all existence of every kind, must be
the unoriginated and eternal God: but Paul says, Jesus Christ was before all
things; ergo, the apostle conceived Jesus Christ to be truly, and essentially
God.”
Let us remind of the study of this section: Christ is before all
things; he is the creator and the sustainer!
Conclusion
Cults will discredit Christ’s preeminence and supremacy. How do we
able to stand firm in our faith without being disturbed by the cults especially
Jehovah witness? The immunity to cultic influence is the possession of the full
knowledge pertaining to Christ’s preeminence is three areas: Christ’s
preeminent as the exact representation of the invisible God, He is preeminent
in rank over all creation, and finally Christ is before all things, He is
preeminent as the creator and sustainer of all things. Let us worship Him and
invite friends to come for this coming Christmas celebration to celebrate the
eternal Word existing in the beginning before time began, and He came to earth
and born of a virgin, and He is called the Immanuel, God is with us.
[1] https://www.studylight.org/lexicons/eng/greek/1922.html,
accessed on 10.12.2024 2.06pm.
[2] https://www.gotquestions.org/three-men-Genesis-18.html,
accessed 14.12.2024, 8.27am.
[3] https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/colossians-1/,
accessed on 14.12.2024, 8.37am.
[4] https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/icon,
accessed on 14.12.2024, 8.43am.
[5] W,
E, Vine, Vine’s Expository Dictionary -Volume 2: E-Li (USA: Fleming H.
Revell Company), 104.
[6] https://biblehub.com/romans/8-29.html,
accessed on 10.12.2024 10.39am.
