'in Him, All Things Are Held Together'

TODAY’S MESSAGE IS A BIT DIFFERENT

· · It is not so much a lesson on Scripture

· · But on the concept of God’s love for us

I WILL SHOW YOU

· · Irrefutable scientific details

· · That has only been revealed in recent years,

· · And they show what God has done for us

LET’S START WITH GLUE

· · There are many kinds

· · Some glues are stronger than others,

· · But all fail at some point of stress

IS THERE ANY KIND OF GLUE

· · That holds together no matter what ?

· · No man-made glue holds that good

BUT THERE IS ONE KIND

· · That holds no matter what

· · But it isn’t made by man

· · It is made by God

TURN TO COLOSSIANS 1

· · We will come back to that momentarily.

A WOMAN IN WEST VIRGINIA

· · Had some personal experience with glue.

· · She had a blister on the heel of her foot

· · So she put some super-glue on the blister

AND THEN, SHE SAT DOWN AT HER KITCHEN TABLE

· · To have a cup of coffee with a neighbor.

· · While she sat there, the glue ran down her foot

· And stuck her foot to the floor.

SHE ENDED UP HAVING TO CALL 9-1-1

· The glue was strong, but it wasn’t strong enough.

· They had it dissolved in less than an hour.

IT SEEMS EVEN THE STRONGEST OF GLUES

· Don’t work that well

· Under certain conditions.

COLOSSIANS 1:15-17

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

‘He is before all things, and in Him – all things hold together.’

THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT PASSAGE

· I want to go over it

· a little slower

· and in more detail

PAUL SAYS JESUS

· Is the image of the invisible God

· Some people think that means

· Jesus & God look like twins

I THINK IT MEANS

· Jesus is the perfect reflection

· Of the “essence” of God

PAUL SAYS JESUS

· Is before all things

· And that He created everything

· That means Jesus always was

GOING BACK TO GENESIS 1:1

· It says that ‘God created the world’.

· The word ‘God’ as it appears in the original text,

· Is the word “Elohim’, which is the word used

· for a plurality of Gods -

· Or more than one God

SO WHO WERE THE GODS

· The original referred to in this verse?

· They were God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit

WE CANNOT COMPREHEND FOREVERNESS

· As humans, we need

· A starting point & a stopping point

NOW THERE IS SOMETHING

· nearly everyone misses

· It is found in the last part of verse 17:

· ‘… and in Him, all things hold together.’

AND THAT IS WHAT

· I want to talk to you about today

· How Jesus literally

· Holds all things together

JESUS DID NOT CREATE THE WORLD

· and then just go away.

· He made it and it is only He

· That sustains the world, even today.

JESUS MADE YOU

· He put you together

· And He continues to hold you together.

· You owe your very life to Him.

HE KNOWS EVERYTHING ABOUT US

· And He STILL loves us!

· he even gave us a promise ----

· If we will trust in Him

· He will stick with us – forever

GOD SHOWS IS HIS POWER IN

PSALM 33:9-10

‘For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm. The Lord foils the plans of the nations; He thwarts the purposes of the peoples.’

And after He shows His power, He turns very personal in;

PSALM 33:13-15.

‘From heaven, the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; from His dwelling place, He watches all who live on the earth –He who forms the hearts of all, who knows everything they do.’

AND THEN HE GOES ONE STEP FURTHER

· He gives us a promise

PSALM 33:18-19.

‘But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear Him, on those whose hope is in His unfailing love, He promises to deliver them from death.’

JESUS IS ALL POWERFUL

· yet with all that power

· He is sensitive to our needs

· He says ….

IF WE PUT OUR HOPE IN HIM,

· He will deliver us

· From eternal spiritual death