Christ First (Part 1)
Colossians 1:15–28 NKJV
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.
And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight—if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.
I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God, the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.
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In America today, there is a movement called “America First.” There is another movement called “Israel First.” There are other nations and organizations which like to be called first such as “First Families of Virginia.” They become a source of pride to their members and a source of contention to those who are not. Wars and disputes then result. Let us compare this to what we read in Exodus 20:3 ““You shall have no other gods before Me.” It is God who is to be put first. Everything else is idolatry. There are claims in America that we are “One Nation under God” in which we properly state that this nation, like all nations, exist by the will of God. I can remember Prince Edward of England talking about Handel’s coronation anthem which is sung at the coronation of the monarch in Great Britain was to reinforce the idea that it was Zadok the Priest and Nathan the Prophet who anointed Solomon King and that this idea that it is God through the Church and the people who grant the right for the monarch to rule. Even the coins of the realm say that the monarch rules by the grace of God.
All too often, what is said rightly on the lips is denied by the actions people, nations, and other organizations actually do. We see this even in the order of the flags. In the US, protocol demands that the flag of the US have the preeminence over all over flags, including the Christian flag. We say “One Nation under God” but our flag says “One God under Nation.” Christian monarchs have been guilty of many atrocious acts which deny that they are “Christian Monarchs” at all. And before we get to prideful, we must remember that we haven’t been all that consistent either.
It is God alone who is to be put first. God shares His glory with no one. All earthly potentates are subordinate to His rule, whether they recognize this fact or not. God is first, not among equals, for there is no equal. so, now, let us take a look at how this “Firstness” of God is demonstrated in the Bible. We will look this morning at the Epistle to the Colossians, the first chapter, and verses 15-28.
The Lectionary makes an odd break in assigning the passages for the readings from Colossians. We especially need to connect tis back to the previous verse:
Colossians 1:14 NKJV
in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
We are referring to Jesus Christ here as the one who redeems us and forgives our sins. the statements we read about Christ this morning flows form these truths. It explains just who this redeemer is. It is not enough to know that Jesus is our redeemer who forgives our sin. What we heard from this passage presents a very complex doctrine. It is placed in Scripture precisely because God thinks it important that we know these things. We love simplicity as it doesn’t make us think. We are lazy. We stop at verse 14 where it states that Jesus is our redeemer who forgives our sin. However, many errors result from stopping at verse, such as the one mixing Church and State and making our belief and lifestyles to be defined by our Government and culture first and compartmentalizing our faith to a Sunday part of our life. This is idolatry, one borne of ignorance, even willful ignorance which is the worst kind of ignorance. Over 100 years ago, A Dutch theologian and Prime Minister as well, Abraham Kuyper” lamented in a work “Pro-Rege” (“For the King”) that Europe had taken away Christ’s rule and kingship from their lives and reduced Him to just being our “Savior.” We wanted to be our own Gods, the very thing Stan promised Adam and Eve. We can only see the disaster which ensued and ensues every time God is removed from His throne. We have a modern form of this heresy which comes, from all places, the Dallas Theological Seminary which say we only need to confess Christ as Savior. In this heresy, whereas it is desirable to confess Him as Lord as well, but this confession is not necessary for salvation. Since Christ is Lord whether we acknowledge Him or not, the question I ask is what happens when we do not confess Him as Lord (King)? If He is not Lord in your life, who is? What good could possibly result from making anything else god of your life?
God is not made God by anyone. We don’t make Jesus King like the Jews did in John 6:15. The Bible does not prove the existence of God. It declares that God is (I AM). This declaration is a summons to believe and obey.
Again, I state that we need to now who this God is, and how He established His Firstness over the universe.
We read in John 1:1 about the pre-existent Word. The words “in the beginning is a reflection of the Greek translation of Genesis 1:1. The word for “beginning” is “archy” which can be translated either “beginning” or “rule” such as in “monarchy”. John goes on to say that this Word was in the beginning with God and was God. It is this Word who created every single thing. It says that this Word became flesh and dwelt among us. This Word which always existed even before time is the one we know as Jesus Christ who is our Lord, Savior, and Redeemer. What is said about Jesus in the prologue of the Gospel of John agrees strongly with what is recorded here in Colossians,
“Who is the image of the invisible God. The text we read begins with these words. It asserts the invisibility of God, which is asserted throughout Scripture. No one has seen God at any time is what John says. Yet we have this second truth, that Jesus is the visible image of this invisible God. The Greek word here for “image” is the word we know as “icon.” When we think of the word “icon” today, we think of a picture on a computer screen which when selected opens up a document or some program. In other words, it points to something beyond itself. The icon is only a visible sign of another reality. This can lead to a misunderstanding on our part if we try to separate Jesus Christ from the Godhead as though Jesus is only one who points us to God. Paul corrects this possible misconception a few verse down where it says that “in Him, the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily.” If this wasn’t the case, worshiping Jesus Christ would be idolatry as the Jehovah’s Witnesses claim. An “idol” which comes from the Greek “eidolon” also has its roots in the Greek word for a visible representation. But Paul uses “icon” (image) to tell us that Christ is the very image of God who points to Himself as well as the Father and the Holy Spirit. This is why Jesus Christ can receive glory and worship, for He is God the Son, whom we believe is of one substance with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
“The Firstborn of all creation,” This statement by itself can be heretically understood like the similar term “only-begotten.” some understand this as stating that the Son was born of the Father at some time before the creation. In other words, there was a time when Christ was not as Arius’ followers claimed, a heresy which exists in groups like the aforementioned Jehovah’s Witnesses today. We must be careful to look at the entire argument here and not cherry-pick verses to support and opinion. The Greek word here for “firstborn” is “prototokos.” This is made up of “protos” which is “first” and “tokos” the word for “born.” we could take “first” in the sense of time, the first to be born. But “first” can also indicate social rank as well as in “privileged.” For example Esau was the firstborn, but it was Jacob who achieved the privilege of birthright. In this sense “Jacob” was the firstborn.
We will see as we go further into the passage that the only time the Son was born in the sense of human birth was when he was born in the flesh by the virgin Mary. He certainly was not the first born as in time as millions were born before Him. In His divine nature, He is eternal, so he could not be called “born” in any sense of the word we can understand. But if we think of “first” in the sense of rank and privilege, then certainly the birth of Jesus, as humble as it appears on earthly terms, was the most privileged birth. We think of the part of the Christmas Carol “Silent Night” where the refrain says: “Jesus, Lord at thy birth.”
Let us now look further at the word John uses translated by many versions as “only-begotten.” The actual Greek word is “monogenes.” this consists of “monos” which is “only” and “genos” which is strictly “race.” The word “begotten” is actually misleading and is a mistranslation because the word from which begotten comes from is “gennao” which has two “n’s” and not one like “genos.” So Jesus is God’s unique Son. His birth was a result of the Holy Spirit overshadowing the Virgin Mary. He was the only human birth which happened under these circumstances. So this makes the birth of Jesus special and privileged above all other human births. I suppose we could understand only-begotten in a sense, but this has led to doctrinal confusion such as Arianism or having to come up with the concept of eternal generation of the Son as the Church Fathers concluded. So, it seems to me that “unique” is the better sense of the word. The Scripture says that Adam and Eve were created in the image (eikon) of God. But Adam was made from the dust of the earth. He is called the “son of God” in Luke’s genealogy. We don’t know fully what “image of God” is when Adam was created, although there is much speculation. But Adam was NOT God. Adam and Eve fell which proves that they were man and woman. There was a greater likeness at one point, but not divine like Jesus, who is called the second Adam. In this Jesus is greater than Adam and all humanity.
“For by Him all things were created.” Here is an explicit statement relating the Son to creation itself. The Greek actually says “in him” rather than “by him.” This is a fine distinction, but it is one the book of Hebrews makes in the prologue where it says that in the latter times God has spoken to us “in (the) Son.” When we say “by” we are saying that Christ acted as the agent of creation as one is given a task to do from someone else. But if we say “in Him” then the fullness of the Godhead participated in Christ in the creation. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were equally involved in Creation itself. In Hebrews it means that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit equally spoke in the Son. This compares to what John says in his prologue “through Him all things were created.” The first creation was entirely done in and through Christ, and the second creation or restoration of mankind is also in Christ, But the entire Trinity is at work in both creations. In the first, the Father willed, the Son spoke, and the Spirit provided the breath by which the Word of Creation happened. In salvation, the Father willed, the Son died and rose again to redeem us who believe, and the Holy Spirit regenerates us. This is a lot of deep thought, but let the fact that all things were created in Christ which makes Him the author of both the first creation and our redemption.
“Everything in heaven and earth, everything visible or invisible, whether thrones, dominions, principalities, or powers” — First of all, everything not on earth is in heaven. In other words, the entire creation was made in Him without exception. This agrees with what John who says: “apart from Him was not a single thing made.” Everything that is not visible is invisible. This reinforces that christ is Lord over all without exception. This includes thrones, whether earthly or heavenly, visible or invisible to us. This includes all dominions (kingdoms, nations, and such), whether heavenly or earthly, visible or invisible. The same is true of principalities. a principality is ruled over by a prince or in today’s terms, an authoritative leader over whatever that principality might be. We can think of the principal of a school who manages all the affairs of the institution as an example. In an orchestra, the first of the first violin players is called the “principal”. At the beginning of the concert, he or she will play the notes which the entire orchestra tunes their instruments too. This has application here as Paul calls Jesus the head of the Church as well as the head of everything in the universe. Everything in the creation and in the Church is to tune in to His lead so that like a well-tuned orchestra plays in perfect harmony, even though they might be playing different notes. They play as one symphony which sounds pleasant to the ear.
“All things were created through Him and for Him.” Paul reinforces the idea that the Godhead which was in its fullness in Christ created everything “through” Him. Then the words “and for Him” are added. We, indeed benefit from God’s creation for which we should be always grateful. But the universe was created for the benefit of Jesus Christ and not us. By grace we are allowed to participate in this creation but only that the purposes that God had for creation might be fulfilled. Its not about “me”. It isn’t even about us. It is all about Him and for His pleasure. But if we are in Christ we share in the benefits of the creation. This also means that whatever we do in word or deed is supposed to promote His Lordship and give Him the glory.
“He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.” Again, the pre-existence of Christ is proclaimed. The very repetition of this theme is for us to grasp the seriousness of this truth. sometimes we can’t be reminded enough. The one who was in the beginning and through whom all things in heaven and earth were created also is the one who holds the entire universe together in Christ. The creation itself would fall apart without this act of providence. I might add that the entire church is held together by this same Christ who is head of the church. The entire church would fall apart without Jesus Christ. We remember in Revelation 3 about the Church of Laodicea who thought they were rich and had it all together. They needed nothing else, not even Jesus. So they thought. But Jesus calls them poor. miserable, blind and naked. He stood outside the door knocking. We often preach this in evangelistic appeals in the attempt to get the sinner to accept Christ. Whereas I would agree with the sentiment that Jesus wants the sinner to receive Him as Lord and Savior, this is not what is being said here. Christ was not in that church. He was outside the Church, knocking. The call was for the Church at Laodicea to repent and let Christ back into the Church because without Him it would not be a church at all.
“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.” This is indeed a rich statement about Jesus. We have already mentioned that Jesus is the head of the church. The head, particularly the brain, is the first organ of the body. Everything else consists and works by the will of the brain to make the body function. An organism might live without a hand or a foot, but not without a brain. It is Christ as Lord who runs the church. That position is not up for bid. The Pope is not the first person in the Church, the Primate, as they put is. It is Christ first and Christ only.
We come across the word “firstborn” again. The One who was in the beginning called the “Firstborn” is also the Firstborn from the dead. In 1 Corinthians 15 Jesus is called the “firstfruits” of them that sleep. Jesus rose on the day that the Feast of the Firstfruits was held which celebrated the beginning of the barley harvest. This is similar to the idea of “Firstborn.” Note the word “FIRST.” The use of firstborn creates a parallel between the birth of the universe in creation and the creation of the Church at the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
We should emphasize here that “firstborn” here is a title of honor and not necessarily first in chronological order. Others were raised from the dead before by Jesus and others. But it was their mortal bodies that were raised. We know that Moses appeared with Elijah and Jesus at the Transfiguration. Jesus refers to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as though they are alive as the words “I AM the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” using the present tense. This presents a mystery to us as we understand the bodily resurrection to be at the end of the age. But we can state that the bodily resurrection of Jesus is unique in that even in our resurrected bodies we will not be Divine. We shall be like Him but not identical. And apart from the bodily resurrection of Christ Jesus there could be no resurrection at all. It is in Jesus we have redemption though His blood and the remission of sins.
At the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, he becomes the head of the Church. As is said in “The Church’s One Foundation” that the Church is His “new creation by water and the word.” As the Church is put in parallel with the creation of the Universe by the same word, we see how great God’s plan for the Church is. In fact, it could be argued that this second creation is even greater than the first in some sense. Adam and Eve were placed in the Garden outside the palace of the King. The Garden was where the king would resort in the cool of the day to rest and reflect. Adam and Eve tended this garden and communed with Him in the cool of the day. But when the Lord returns, we will be in His City, in the palace of the true great King all the time. We will not commune in part but the whole. Adam and Eve were naked, but we shall appear in resplendent dress. Adam and Eve could and did sin. Adam and Eve died. But death shall no more be known there. We think of the words of Paul where he says in Romans 5 “Where sin abounded, grace did all the more abound.” The death of Jesus did more than erase the slate. Instead, we should see this as a great leap forward. Creation did not end on the sixth day as a static creation. God had a higher purpose for us who believe than simply being in a garden. Adam and Eve could grow in their relationship with each other and God. The fall was a gigantic roadblock, but it worked to achieve God’s purpose. The purpose for all of creation is to subject all things in heaven and earth to the rule of His Son. In the Church, this is true. He is to have the preeminence. It is in Him that the church consists.
As I have already been pretty long in my treatment of these verses, I am going to stop here and pick up next week. lest I be accused of being more wordy than Abraham Kuyper. Again, let me emphasize that Paul who commends the Colossian’s faith also will have to deal with issues in the epistle, one of which is to warn them against the false and empty philosophies. As we mentioned earlier, the cure to heresies in the church is to come to a full understanding of who Jesus is, what His purposes for the Church are, what He did for us and why. This should be an incentive for us to emulate.
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?We will continue this message tonight.
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