The Preeminence of Jesus sermon 07/2013
There’s something about that name ….some even name their child Jesus…but, when they do it just doesn’t seem right ….
David said in Psalm 8 O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.
Jesus is called many names in the Bible…Good Shepherd….mighty councilor…High Priest…
Lion of the tribe of Judea….King of Kings……Lord of Lords…Alfa and Omega…beginning and the end..
He is our mediator… The Holy one of Israel…
Isaiah said He saw Him high and lifted up and His train filled the temple….John saw Him with hair as wool and eyes of fire….
Paul said …. that in all things he might have the preeminence…but still its hard to describe the majesty of our Lord.
That’s what I want us to look at ….the power and glory of the name Jesus.
Colossians 1:12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;
20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:
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In a speech made in 1863, Abraham Lincoln said, "We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever grown.
But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own.
Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us."
What would Mr Lincoln say about America today?
America…. the world really… as a whole has lost the true authority of Jesus….most of the world sees Him as some kind of story book character….a myth….
********But, God says in Philippians 2:9 that Jesus is the name above all names ….Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Every tongue (should confess)…..but, not every tongue will confess the majesty of our Lord.
Colossians was written by Apostle Paul while in prison in Rome to straighten out the false teaching about Jesus in the early church not being in the very fullness of God.
In the early years of Christianity most were still hanging on to the old law of Judaism and other religions.
Their belief was a blend of some Christian truth, Jewish legalism, Greek philosophy.
A Gnostics belief….which means a variety of religions.
Man’s greatest problem is sin—a problem that can never be fixed by a philosopher or a religious teacher. Sinners need a Saviour.
Another one of man’s worst down falls is some think they have more spiritual knowledge then most…..more theology ….theology is good ..but theology is only man’s thoughts of how God works and how one individual sees the spiritual world that God lives…..Bible college, books that we have now is a great learning tool but, you can’t depend totally from a head full of since…while the Holy Spirit sets on the sidelines waiting on our prayer …ready to give us the answer….again…school is great but, there is only one that gives us the absolute truth. (Bible)
But, the people of Colosse.. they just couldn’t come to reason that Jesus was the only way, truth and life….and that God could not come in man form…..it seemed they had all the answers and super knowledge of spiritual things.
They couldn’t come to reason that Jesus was preeminence…meaning …Jesus was sovereign…superior …that Jesus was the very fullness of God Himself. All God and all man.
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I started in verse 12 of Colossians because Paul was thanking God for a list of many things and of course we should always be thankful for these very things.
Paul is thankful that God by His grace has given us an inheritance….a house that is not built by man but, by God Himself…thank God we don’t have to be born again in flesh ever again!
***********Don’t know about you but, I’m more thankful for that every time my birthday comes around….every time I have a different pain or sickness.
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Paul is thankful that we have been delivered from the kingdom of Satan and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son he says.
Interesting he says translated….means to turn from one language into another …or from a foreign language into our own:
Paul says in verse 21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
We couldn’t even speak the same language as God before we were saved….the only thing God hears from a lost soul I believe is the cry of repentance…..forgive me Lord…I know I’m a sinner!
Come into my life and save me from the kingdom of Satan.
Verse 21 again… And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
A lost soul is reconciled…..reconciled…means to: To reestablish a close relationship.
Reestablish….that relationship that God intended for mankind to have with Him.
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Verse 20 of chapter 1 of Colossians..And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all thngs unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
Through His cross…not yours…not mine but, His cross….Jesus tells us to take up our cross and follow Him….there is only one cross that accomplished forgiveness of sins….reconciled and mended the relationship with mankind …..only His cross and only His blood that was more than enough to pay the price of redemption and rescue us from Satan’s kingdom.
********There is power in the cross. It's undeniable. You ever noticed that even unbelievers seem to squirm when considering or even look upon the cross?
The American Atheist, the group founded by the late Madalyn Murray O'Hair.
The one who single handily got prayer taken out of our public schools.
You remember when the World Trade Center collapsed, the force of the fall, or supernatural force caused two steel beams to form into a 20-foot-high cross, which was kept on the edge of the site.
The atheists wanted the cross removed, of course, but their work to get that done, they actually was revealing their faith in the power of the cross….If it didn't have power, why get so upset?" ****There is power in the cross. It's undeniable.
*****The potential of the cross--it's potential to reconcile all things to Christ who "made peace through the blood of His cross." Says verse 20 of (Colossians:1).
A mended relationship because of the redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:…..redemption…a payment has been applied to our account by Jesus death on the cross.
But, if we never ask for that forgiveness than….it was still applied to our personal account….like someone depositing money in our bank account and we never use it.
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Who is this man who can do all these things?….listen to how Apostal Paul explains our Lord
Verse 18 of chapter 1 of Colossian ..And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence
Now lets talk about preeminence a minute….pre..em..i..nence….again means sovereign…superior…. Authority…supreme..
Those words still don’t come close to describing our Lord Jesus and His charterer.
***I heard it said …. “unless we give Him the place of preeminence he deserves, we will be frustrated, empty people.”
I believe when we accept Jesus as our Saviour…God implants the authority of our Lord in our hearts.
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How could such a being have such authority? ….listen to Paul again as he explains who Jesus is again….What if we had been there with Paul in that Roman prison and we ask him the question……………Bro Paul…just who is Jesus?
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Jesus?..Paul might say....verse 14…we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: He Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature… For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
Brother:…And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
Paul could have said…Now if I had a word better than preeminence I would have used it…..if I had a word that was more powerful than supreme authority….first and last…Alfa…omega…I would have used it!!!....if you had been with me when I was taken to the 3rd heaven and didn’t even know if I was in the body or the spirit and I saw things unspeakable…..you would have seen for yourself there is no words on earth that can describe His majesty…power and His grace
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Verse 17…By Him all things consist….that means He holds everything together….our Lord is the super glue of the universe….He is the super glue of our salvation…that glue is made of Grace that He didn’t have to supply because He is all powerful….supreme authority.
Jesus ..there is something great about that name
Jesus is called a lot of things and looked upon as many but, I’m glad I call Him my Saviour…
How about you?.......do you call Him your Saviour?....if not you can this morning….ask Jesus into your life today.
My names Ronnie Miller….may God bless you and yours….
www.themillersbiblestudy.com
