Jesus Is Greater Than Anything Series

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We live in a celebrity-obsessed culture.

Shows about their houses.

Shows about their mobile homes (Will Smith – 2.5 million motor home.

News about them is huge business:

When Michael Jackson died, there were 456 tweets per second. When Steve Jobs died, there were almost 10,000 per second.

Raising someone up too high, almost inevitably destroys them.

Miley Cyrus.

But not Jesus. It is impossible to raise Him too high. It is impossible to speak His name too much, sing his praise too loud, live too focused on His greatness.

Just 30 years before this – this guy he’s talking about died on a Roman Cross. The most humiliating, horrible death available at the time…

What a scandal that Paul would lift Him high!

This bloody wreck is the GREATEST!

HE is what you need!

A murdered man is the king of everything!

He is your only hope!

WHAT??!!

1. Jesus is great enough to claim the title “God.”

Colossians 1:12 [Joyfully] giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.

13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,

14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.

17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.

As such he’s greater than the angels. ANGEL BOOK ILLUS?

He’s greater than time.

He’s greater than creation.

He’s greater than death. He’s been to the other side and come back… just like we will someday.

“Firstborn” – Jewish expression that means “preeminent” “First in rank”

2. Jesus is great enough to save.

19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,

20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior.

22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation--

23 if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.

3. Jesus is great enough to make suffering worth it.

24 Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church.

Paul isn’t saying “Jesus’ suffering wasn’t enough to save you” he’s saying “my suffering is like the leftovers of Jesus’ suffering”…

He’s saying “isn’t it only fitting that my suffering should correspond to Jesus’?”

Look at what he says, “I REJOICE!”

The greatest testimony of Christ in your life may be through not your prosperity, but through your suffering!

25 I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness--

26 the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints.

The word “mystery” in the New Testament means “something that used to be hidden but is now revealed.”

So what is this mystery?

27 To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

For thousands of years, people wondered “What is God up to?”

And God said, “Watch this” and at the right moment, brought out Jesus.

People said, “How can God let this happen?”

And God gave us Jesus.

People said, “Why can’t God just come close?”

And God brought out Jesus.

People said, “I wish I knew what God was really like.”

And God sent Jesus.

God didn’t send Jesus to just show you the way. That wouldn’t have been enough.