Issue 1336 – Preeminent – January 5, 2024
This morning, I want to key in one word: preeminent.
Colossians 1:15-20 says:
He [that is Jesus … so Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
Jesus the Christ… Emmanuel, God with us… God incarnate in human flesh. Equal partners with the Father and the Spirit, part of the wondrous triune godhead … three persons in one God… He is the head of the church.
Jesus is the exact image of God. That does not mean He is a copy. The term used here means of the same essence; they are one and the same.
Now, you and I are created to some degree in the image of God. That means that we have some level of some of the characteristics that make up God. We are relational, we can think, we can make choices, we are creative, we love and so on, but we are very dim image bearers, having, at best, some weak reflection of God. Yet, no one would ever consider even the best of us to be on an equal footing with God, let alone being the same substance or the fullness of God’s image.
People have made such claims, most of whom are institutionalized.
The text says Jesus was the firstborn of all creation. That has been misunderstood and misused. Some false teachers and cult leaders have taken that statement and used it to develop the heretical viewpoint that Jesus was a created being. Not so! Never! That’s heresy, bad theology, wrong thinking.
Jesus has always been. He is not a created being. He has always been God, along with the Father and the Spirit. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. The Bible clearly proclaims that Christ was with the Father in the beginning.
In the ancient Middle East, the term firstborn could refer to birth order, perhaps most typically so, but it could apply equally to the order of power or inheritance. There would sometimes be reasons that the biologically firstborn son would not inherit the family fortune, in which case another took his place and was considered the firstborn. Christ is the firstborn in the sense of being the one with the inheritance … His inheritance is the church, a gift to Him from the Father, purchased with His own blood.
Adam was the first created man, given dominion over the earth, but he lost His inheritance when sin entered the world. Even so, Christ was preexistent and preeminent. His inheritance would rank higher than that of Adam in every way.
Jesus is the firstborn in terms of being the most important, the preeminent one.
There is no doubt that Christ is the preeminent one, the best, the most important, the firstborn if you will. No one else comes even close.
Our King, our Lord, our Saviour is number one. May we give Him the glory and honour due His name.
Be blessed
Hallelu Yah / Praise God
Kevin
Gleanings From The Word
Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life.
Soli Deo Gloria (For the Glory of God alone)
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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is from the English Standard Version (ESV).
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