Is Jesus first in every area of your life, or are there places you've never quite handed over? Todays passage lifts our eyes to the supremacy of Christ, the One in whom all things were created and held together. Seeing how completely He holds first place makes surrendering each area feel less like a burden and more like coming home.
The Context
Colossians 1:15–20 reads like poetry and may well have been an early Christian hymn the church already knew. Paul lifts up this song of Christ's supremacy against false teachers who were pressing the Colossians to add more to the finished work of Christ. In this message, Pastor Tim Howe teaches through the passage by following its two anchors: Christ the firstborn over all creation, and Christ the firstborn from among the dead.
The Core Message
Christ is the image of the invisible God, the exact representation of His nature. If you want to know what the Father is truly like, you look to the Son. "Firstborn" here is a word of rank, not of origin; it names His preeminence, not a beginning, because the One through whom all things were made cannot Himself be a created thing. He made everything visible and invisible, fashioned a world that was good, and still holds every atom and every breath together. When evil entered, it came through rebellion, never through Him, and reading the whole of Scripture through Jesus shows us a God who has not changed from one Testament to the next.
He is also the firstborn from among the dead, the head of the body and the beginning of a whole new creation. All the fullness of God dwells in Him, and in Him you have been made complete, which means there is no need for Jesus plus anything else. Because He will never die again, the Head is never severed from the body, so His promise never to leave or forsake you is anchored in who He is. And the Head works through His body: as His hands and feet, believers carry His finished peace to a world He is reconciling to Himself.
The Application
- Look to Jesus: When you want to know what the Father is truly like, fix your eyes on the Son, who makes the invisible God visible.
- Read Through Christ: Let Jesus be the lens for the whole Bible, the Old Testament included; the God of both Testaments never changes.
- Surrender Each Area: Ask honestly whether He is first in your time, money, relationships, work, and what you watch and scroll, then bring whatever isn't under His Lordship into alignment.
- Trust the Unseen: The spiritual realm is real and active all around you; live with confidence that the unseen is more powerful than any visible threat.
- Rest in His Fullness: You are complete in Christ, so you can stop chasing "more" and rest in the One in whom all the fullness of God dwells.
- Carry the Message: As part of His body, you are His hands and feet; open your mouth and speak His finished peace to the people around you.
Conclusion
Christ already holds first place over all things; the invitation is simply to bring your life into alignment with Him. Listen in and be encouraged.
Here are some of the concepts we'll be touching on in today's message:
Supremacy of Christ, Colossians 1, Christ in You series, Living in alignment, Firstborn over all creation, Firstborn from the dead, Image of the invisible God, Lordship of Jesus, Christ the King, Preeminence of Christ, New creation, The unseen realm, Head of the body, Complete in Christ, Fullness of God, Ambassadors for Christ, Reconciliation, Hope of humanity, Surrender, Father's Day
Scripture References:
Genesis 1:1, 1:31–2:3, 3:1; 2 Kings 6:8–23; Isaiah 14:12–17; Malachi 3:6; Luke 24:27; John 1:1–3, 1:14–18, 3:16–17, 5:46, 10:9–10, 12:23–25, 14:9; Acts 17:26–27; Romans 1:18–20, 8:29, 10:9–13; 1 Corinthians 12:27, 15:3–6, 15:20–23, 15:45–49; 2 Corinthians 5:20–21; Ephesians 6:12; Colossians 1:13–14, 1:15–20, 1:27, 2:9–10; 1 Timothy 2:3–4; Hebrews 1:1–3, 13:8; 2 Peter 3:9; 1 John 3:1; Revelation 3:20, 12:7–9
