I am like so many missing travelling at the moment. I love airports. Over recent years the technology has developed massively. So that as you know there are booths for facial recognition for a quick journey (sometimes!). The problem for me is that I have 2 facial images. I wear glasses so that’s one image. But it’s not my passport image and the facial scanner will always shout back at me ‘this isn’t you back off’ or something like that. I look a bit similar but it is not 100%.
That was the problem of the Colossian Church. Visitors had come to them and though the Colossians were to be commended for their love and welcome they needed correcting over falling under the spell of a new teaching which made Jesus less than who He is.
The Apostle counters. Jesus is the exact representation of God. See what he writes in our next verse, “The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” (Colossians 1 v 15)
Paul commences a poem actually. One that he writes himself and we will explore it over the next few days.
I believe what this generation needs to know during and coming out of this pandemic more than ever is not what the building plans of the Church are; primarily not how the Church has become digital; not even how delighted the Church are at being back in ‘fellowship’.
The world need to know who God is.
They need to know what He has done.
They need to know who they are as a result of that.
They need to know how to live.
For that to happen they need to know who Jesus is.
They need to know the centrality and supremacy of Christ in 2020.
They need to know that when you look at Jesus you look at God.
The Apostle’s poem uses different Hebrew meanings for ‘head’. Paul will use Supreme, Head, Beginning and in this verse he uses Firstborn over all creation.
The JW’s are not right. This does not mean a created being. It is a term of headship. The following verses that we will see over the next few days will demonstrate how he is as this verses says, ‘over all creation’ not ‘of creation’. This is a term of rank, pre-eminence and sovereignty over all that exists. It is used in the Old Testament where a son is referred to as the firstborn and yet the youngest of a family, as in the case of David.
Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.
Written by Walter Chalmers Smith, a pastor of the Free Church of Scotland, in the late 19th century. It is based on 1 Timothy 1:17, where Paul writes: “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.”
What the world needs today is to know the amazing truth that the invisible God has allowed himself to be seen and known in Jesus Christ.
“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”
I worship you this day immortal and invisible God. I have discovered you in Your Son, Jesus Christ. I continue to know you more as I wonder on Him who is the firstborn over all things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, powers, principalities, governments, Heads of state, Presidents, every title known by man and everything that has been created.
Supreme Christ.
Pre-eminent Christ.
Firstborn Christ.
No one is like You. No one is better than You. No one is over You.
The exact image of God because you are God.
You have made God known by becoming flesh and living here.
Because of You I can understand God. I don’t need to create my own image of God, I just look to you. I read about you. I meditate on You. Everything I need to know is found in You.
Amen.
Missions Paul 