If you missed the Schimmel HF tonight here are my teaching notes, more or less raw, so, please suspend judgment!

Colossians 1:15-20

The Preeminence of Christ

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 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. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 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. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

The cross of Christ is the pivotal point of salvation history. This is not only true because Christ satisfied the penalty of sin through his blood, but that he decisively defeated all evil powers. What are the evil powers? Satan and demons, death…

Christ and his church are frequently depicted as being in conflict with these evil powers, but never are these opposing forces free and independent of God’s absolute sovereignty.
Why is God sovereign? Because he is the creator.

Ephesians 3:14-15, “14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named” - identity and authority comes from Him. Even the hierarchy and groupings of angels, good and bad, receive life and being from the father. He is the source of all life.

His sovereignty as creator is nowhere more clearly described than in our passage tonight. All of the creator’s functions are attributed to Christ, upon whom “God was pleased to have all of his fullness dwell.”
A note on translation: God/Father is not in the text, it says rather “he/it (context decides) was pleased…” However, because God is a person and the implication’s of the indwelling are so overwhelmingly stupendous (v.20), no other option remains for what Paul could have meant. 2:9 is similar…basic argument that the superlatives describing Jesus here and throughout the New Testament are so stupendous nothing other than deity could be in mind, no other person or thing would fit the bill. Along with 2:9, there are many powerfully convincing arguments of Jesus’ deity.

v. 15 “…Image…” -Greek “eikon” - Modern word for “icon.” Exact representation, Jesus is not some blurry, impressionistic view of God. How do you see an image of something invisible? In regards to the substance of deity, Jesus and the Father are the same.

v.17
“In Him all things hold together”
Ancient Colossae was located in the Lycus Valley, about one hundred miles inland from Ephesus. This was an area that was the center of repeated earthquakes (it was not unlike living in California). We know that a major, devastating earthquake hit this area sometime in a.d. 60 or 61. Much of the city was destroyed and numerous lives were lost.

Most scholars believe Paul wrote this letter during his Roman imprisonment in around 60 a.d. Therefore, either just before or very soon after they received this letter, the entire city of Colossae and its inhabitants were seriously shaken!

Knowing this makes Paul’s statement in v. 17 all the more significant. Paul’s words may have been comforting. Of Jesus Christ he write, “And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (v. 17). Some translations render this, “in him all things cohere” or “in him all things subsist.” The point being, whatever coherence or unity the universe displays, it is due to the continual exertion of divine power from the Son of God. The risen Christ sustains and upholds all things.

-gives predictability to material properties. Science, laws of nature.

Other verses:

Hebrews 1:3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.

2 Pt. 3:7 But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly

ACts 17:28 …in Him we live and move and have our being…

There is a distinction between creator and creation. Otherwise we have paganism, or panentheism - drift toward this idea that we should love creation because it is god itself. Watch out for this in our culture, may come under guise of “stewarding” creation, which of course we should do, but because God made it good not because it is god.

?? Knowing that Jesus personally (as opposed to some vague spiritual force, machine, or chance) and actively controls the entire universe, how should verse 17 affect our prayer life?
-Great confidence that he is powerful and able to answer when we call on Him.

?? Are you aware of any superstitious practices or patterns in your life, such as not stepping on sidewalk cracks, or do you ever attribute events in your life to luck or chance? During the day does such a practice affect your trust and affection for God?

Would Jesus’ personal upholding of the universe by the word of His power help any present difficulty you may be going through right now?

v. 18
Schisms, denominations, moral failings of leaders in the church: It would be easy to get discouraged if it weren’t for the fact that Jesus is the Head of the Church. The “church” here is probably a reference to the universal body of Christ, that spiritual organism comprised of all believers in all of history. Chet spoke on this last Sunday from Ephesians. But if Jesus is the head of the universal church in general, he is also the head of every local church in particular. These many and varied local expressions of his body belong to him. If a local church dissolves or strays off course, the Church, the universal body perseveres. When Jesus first promised to “build” his Church (Mt. 16:18) he assured us that the gates of hell would not prevail against it.

Some professing Christians behave and “minister” as if Jesus is the head of the Church only in name or title, much in the way Elizabeth is the Queen of England. When it comes down to the daily operations and administration of that country, she has very little if any role. The title “Queen” is merely honorary and traditional.
But such is not the case with our Lord Jesus Christ. He exerts a functional authority over his body. He can be trusted to govern and direct and provide instruction and power for the life of his church if we will but look to him and draw from the resources he so generously supplies. The relationship between Jesus as Head and the church as Body is organic and living and vital. He exercises sovereign control over us and we are ever and always dependent on his abiding influence and presence. This is true no matter which brand of theology you subscribe to. It is very true that no one individual in the church should put him or herself in a place of superiority or prominence more so than Jesus himself.

Are there any places in your life where Jesus is not pre-eminent?

v.20 What does it mean to reconcile to himself all things? Romans 8:21 (in context) -
…that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.