What Colossians Says About Christ: Part 1

Today we're back to Colossians. But before I begin part one of this series, I want to give you a few particulars about this book.

• Author: Paul, the apostle
• Date: Around A.D. 62
• Recipients: The church at Colossae
• Occasion: "Paul wrote to warn against ... false teaching and to encourage the believers in their growth towards Christian maturity." - ESV Student Study Bible

So now, without further ado, let's get started! I decided to begin with the most important theme in Colossians - Christ. So much in Colossians speaks of Christ. I think the best place to start is the magnificent hymn in chapter one, verses 15-20:

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For everything was created by Him, in heaven and on the earth, the visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities, all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things and by Him all things hold together. He is also the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead so that He might come to have first place in everything. For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him and through Him to reconcile everything to Himself by making peace through the blood of His cross, whether things on earth or things in heaven." 

Through this passage, we discover seven important things about Christ.

1. He is God. Colossians 1:15 tells us that "He is the image of ... God." Colossians 1:19 tells us that "God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him." The entire being of God dwells in Jesus Christ the man. He is fully man, yet totally and fully God. The entire deity is just as much a part of Him as humanity is. Yet it was this being God that allowed Him to remain totally perfect, for we know that God cannot sin, thus Jesus Christ, being God, could not sin. Later, in Colossians 2:9 we read that "the entire fullness of God's nature dwells bodily in Christ." This is just another point emphasizing Jesus' divinity.
2. He created everything. Colossians 1:16 says, "Everything was created by Him." He was there Day #1, creating the heavens and the earth, the ocean and the sky, the animals and humans. He and God the Father and God the Spirit were all working intricately together to create everything.
3. Everything was created for Him. Not only did He create everything, it was created with the purpose to glorify Him. All creation is for Him, for His glory, for His name. That was always the purpose of creation, the original idea back when it took place.
4. He is the firstborn. Colossians 1:17 tells us that, "He is before all things." Also, back in Colossians 1:15, we read that He is "the firstborn over all creation." He was before all human kind. He was there before Adam and Eve, before creation, before the angels, before everything and anything. What a mind-blowing thought! Colossians 1:18 adds that "He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead."  He is. He was. He always has been. He had no beginning. Yes, He was born on earth sometime between A.D. 6-4, but that was not when He came into existence. He was always in existence.
5. He is the sustainer of all things. The end of Colossians 1:17 says, "By Him all things hold together." He holds the invisible thread that suspends our earth in the universe. He holds our lives in His hand. Life and death are all dictated by Him. He sustains all living things and keeps everything working exactly the way He likes it.
6. He is the head of the church. Colossians 1:18 tells us this - "He is also the head of the body, the church." No matter what some pastors may tell you, Jesus Christ is the Shepherd of His flock, not any man. In our church bulletin, it reads, "Our Shepherd: Jesus Christ. Our Under-Shepherd: Sean Crowe." I like that. It reinforces the fact that Jesus is the head of our church, not my dad.
7. He made peace with God for us through the cross. Colossians 1:19-20 finish off this beautiful section with, "For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him and through Him to reconcile everything to Himself by making peace through the blood of His cross, whether things on earth or things in heaven." His death paid the price for peace with God that we could never pay. It was a fee we could never even come close to paying! That's why the cross is so essential. Through the cross and through the blood He spilled, Christ reconciled us to God. How amazing is that! How blessed we are to have been saved from the wrath of God and to have been blessed with the ability to now have peace with God! 

I better stop now, but there's still so much more Colossians says about Christ. So stay tuned as we further delve into the theme of Christ in Colossians!