COLOSSIANS 1:15-182006 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Colossians 1:15-18

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2006.

Colossians chapter one. Now, last week we started the book of Colossians and we got to see the prayer of the Apostle Paul. And it was amazing as we've been talking about Rosie and and going forth and praying for the brethren there in Israel, how well that fits and how we could use Paul's prayer to pray for all those that seek his love.

sent out from here and all those that we've never met and the works that are going on all over the world that God is doing, we're able to pray like Paul did for these people, this church at Colossae. And he had never been there, never met them, but his prayer was so powerful. And so we do want to encourage you to continue in prayer for those that God has sent out. And

But now this week, as we continue on in chapter one, he's finished with the prayer and he goes straight into the doctrine of the book. He gets right down in the trenches and begins to work on all of the things that he was writing the letter for. Now, if you remember.

He was writing to the Colossians in response to some heresy, which is false teaching that was taking place. The Gnostics were there and they were teaching all kinds of crazy things about the Lord Jesus and and religion and how to walk with him and and this.

leading many people astray. And it was a problem that happened all throughout the Middle East as the gospel was spreading. They would come in and try to really poison the minds of the believers with this false teaching, even as the things like this go on, continue even today with all of the cults and the crazy winds of doctrines that pass through the church.

Well, these guys, they were there. Now, the Gnostics, they taught some different things about Jesus. First of all, the Gnostics believed that all matter, anything that's solid, any kind of physical material is evil. And so as a result of that, it broke them into two groups.

One group said, The other group of the Gnostics would say, Well,

since all matter is evil, my body is evil and I need to punish it. And so it was a self-inflicting type of group that they would, you know, continually be fasting and beating themselves and really being very legalistic about the way that they allowed themselves to live and enjoy the pleasures of life. And so there was the two extremes that would result of their teaching about all matter being evil.

But also as a result of their teaching that all matter was evil, they had to come to the conclusion then that Jesus was not actually physical, that he seemed physical. He had an appearance like he was physical, but in reality, he was just a spirit. You know, if you had walked across the sand, he wouldn't have left footprints because he didn't have a physical body because in their estimation, all matter is evil. And so it means,

led them to some very weird doctrines about Jesus and about God. They believed that Jesus was not the, well, that he was not God, but that he was a creation. And they believed that he wasn't even the first creation, that because all matter was evil, God had to make a creation that created something else, that created something else, that created something else, so that down the line, then Jesus was created, and then he could create the worlds without God having to create anything.

All matter, which is evil. So some very twisted and weird things that Paul was dealing with. And so Paul, as he's continuing on in the letter now, he gets right down to business and he doesn't try to, you know, correct all those things, but he just goes straight to who is Jesus Christ? What has he done for us?

And he corrects everything in this little passage we get to see as well as the rest of the book. But so much he teaches us about Jesus Christ here. We learn from this book and in this passage that it's all about Jesus. We'll see in verses 13 and 14 what God has done for us. And then in verses 15 through 18, we'll see who Jesus is.

Now, it's interesting to me, I was meditating on the contrast this week as I was looking over this portion of Scripture and how he elevates and tells us the rightful place of Jesus Christ. And I was thinking back to Philippians, where we just came from.

And how in that book, Paul was dealing and encouraging us really or speaking to us about the humility of Jesus and how he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death. And there's this great contrast, which is really a balance between

That Jesus Christ is supreme, he is Lord of all, he is King of kings, and yet he humbled himself, became obedient to death, even the death of the cross for you and I. And so understanding the balance of who Jesus is makes all the difference in our walk with him, our relationship with him, and our gratefulness to him for who he is and what he has done. So let's start off in verse 13, looking at what God has done for us. It says this,

He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the son of his love. What has God done? Well, first off, what we see, we'll see four things and what God has done for us. The first thing we see is that God has delivered us.

When it says he has delivered us, it's a reference to God the Father. Going back to verse 12 of chapter 1 where he says, Giving thanks to the Father who qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in his light. He, God the Father, has delivered us from the power of darkness. This word deliver, it means to rescue or to pull away with force or with violence. Sometimes I think...

That we forget, at least I myself, I know that I forget how much I needed to be delivered. You ever forget how much you needed to be delivered? You look back and from this perspective, you know, you forget how it was before. You know, we kind of give off the impression, well, you know, I was almost overcome with evil before I was delivered, before Christ came into my life. You know, I was really close to being in a lot of trouble.

You know, I was only slightly influenced by darkness, but, you know, it was it was creeping in there. And so there was a need for deliverance. The reality is and the picture that Paul is painting is that we were completely lost. There was no hope. We weren't, you know, almost overcome. We were completely overcome and helpless.

We weren't close to being in trouble. We were full of trouble. There was nothing we could do to get out of it. We weren't just slightly influenced by darkness, but instead we were under the power of darkness. Darkness had complete control of us. That word power means authority or jurisdiction.

Darkness had the authority of our lives and in our lives. Darkness ruled and reigned within us and kept us bound. We were in the clutches of the enemy. Satan had complete control of us because we were in his power.

First John chapter 519, John tells this to his listeners or readers. We know that we are of God and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. The whole world is under the sway of the wicked one, lies in the power of darkness. And that's where you and I were before Christ. Now, some of you, if you don't have a relationship with Christ, that's still where you are.

And you need to be delivered from the power of darkness. You cannot do it on your own. But the power of darkness consumed us and kept us bound. We were deceived and powerless. But God delivered us. He pulled us away with force. And I like that emphasis with force. It puts in my mind, you know, the classic scene.

In all the westerns and cartoons, you know, there's someone there and they're bound on the railroad tracks. You remember that scene and those scenes over and over again? And there's someone bound and they're crying out for help and here comes the train around the corner. You know, they hear the train whistle blowing and it's coming around and the ground starts to shake and they see it coming. And of course, they wait for the last second and then, boom, on the scene appears the hero.

And they come and they get them off of the train track just in time as the train rushes by. That's the idea of this word when he delivered us. Because the person doesn't go and daintily pick them up and just gently carry them away, right? I mean, it's like if they don't give it all they got and throw them off the track, they're gone. They're history. And that's what God did for us. He snatched us with force. He yanked us back immediately. Right?

Through what he did for us. From the power of darkness. From the authority that darkness had over us.

But you know, Jesus did not just rescue us and then leave us there beside the tracks to fend for ourselves and let it happen again. The second thing we see in this passage, he delivered us, but he also conveyed us. He transferred us or translated us to another place. He didn't just set us free from the authority of darkness, but he transferred our citizenship to his son's kingdom. Now we're under the jurisdiction, under the authority of

Of Jesus Christ in his kingdom as part of his rule and his reign.

Now that's great because it puts us in a position of favor with God. Because we're a part of his son's kingdom. The son whom he loves so much. We're a part of his kingdom. We're a part of his body. And it puts us in a place of favor with God. Now if you think about this, God loved us enough to deliver us when we were under the power of darkness. When we were enemies of God. And so how much more?

Now that he has conveyed us into the kingdom of the son of his love, how much more do we get to experience the love of God now that we're a part of his kingdom, the kingdom of his son whom he loves so much? Now, Romans chapter eight deals with this a little bit. Paul, in recognizing what God has done for us and our part in

By the spirit of God in his kingdom, he asks a few questions, which I'd like to meditate on for just a second. In Romans chapter eight, verses 31 through 39, I encourage you to spend some time on your own in that passage later. Romans 8, 31 through 39. But he asked the first question, if God is for us, who can be against us?

And it's a great question. You've been conveyed. And I like that word conveyed. It gives me the idea of a conveyor belt, right? What happens on a conveyor belt? Well, you set things on top and it goes from one place to another. And that's what God has done. He conveyed us. He moved us into his kingdom. And as a result, we can ask the question, hey, if God is for me, who can be against me? I'm part of his kingdom, the kingdom of the son of his love. Who can be against me?

Who will come against God on my behalf or for me? He asked the next question, shall he not freely give us all things or all things necessary? So since we're a part of God's kingdom, the kingdom of the son of his love, if he already provided a savior, that was the most difficult thing. That was the greatest need.

How much less will it be for him to give us everything else that we need? And so as part of the son's kingdom, we're protected. There's no one who can be against us. We're provided for. He gives us everything that we need. And he asked the next question, who shall bring a charge against God's elect? Who is there to bring charges anymore? No one. No one can bring a charge against the child of God because they're his child. They're his chosen one as part of his kingdom.

And finally, he asks, who shall separate us from the love of Christ? And of course, the answer is no one can. We're part of his kingdom. We're under his protection. He's providing for us all that we need. No one can bring a charge against us. No one can separate us from his love for us. So there's great benefits in being conveyed into the kingdom of God. Now, we didn't take ourselves there. These are things that he did for us. He delivered us.

And he conveyed us. It's his work in our hearts and in our lives. We're in a position of favor, of blessing and protection because of what he has done for us. And so in verse 37 of Romans 8, Paul sums it up by saying this, Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors.

Through him who loved us. We're more than conquerors. Through Jesus Christ. Through what he did for us. Because he protects us. Provides for us. Keeps those who would bring a charge against us away. And he keeps us in his love. Which no one can separate us from. So these wonderful things that God has done for us. In delivering us. In conveying us into his kingdom. Going on in verse 14.

He says in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins. Here we find the third thing that God has done for us, and that is that he has redeemed us. He's redeemed us. Not only did he deliver us from the power of darkness, but we also needed to be redeemed. To redeem it means a releasing by payment of ransom.

God released us by paying the ransom. Now, we're not talking about paying a ransom to the devil. No, that was taken care of when the power of darkness was dethroned by Christ and he delivered us from them. But there was still a ransom that needed to be paid to God. There was a debt that we owed to God because of our sin, because of our nature, because we have rebelled against God. We owe him life in prison, essentially.

Eternal death. We owe him death, judgment outside of Christ. It's what's right. It's part of God's justice and his righteousness. But through his blood, through the blood of Jesus Christ, he redeemed us. He paid the ransom for us. Not only were we under the power of darkness, but we were bound in our sin.

And he paid the ransom for us. He set us free from the bondage to sin and death. You know, it's not just that, you know, Satan is really powerful. And, you know, if it wasn't for Satan, we would have been fine. We wouldn't have had a problem or had any worries. Well, no, that's not the case. Even without the enemy, you and I would still be bound in sin. It's our nature. It's who we are.

Unless Christ redeems us and sets us free from that. The root problem is my sinful nature. I was bound in it. I was a slave to it. Now, this is all explained very thoroughly in Romans chapter 6.

Which is the chapter we'll be studying tonight at the Home Bible Studies. And so I want to encourage you to come and be a part this evening at 6 o'clock. There's information on the back table. You can find a home near you. And come and hear more about what it means to be set free from sin. To die to the sinful nature. To be dead to it. But he has redeemed us. Set us free. Not just from the clutches of the enemy. But from our bondage to sin and death. And then finally for he has forgiven us.

Forgiveness is the releasing of debt. It's closely related to being redeemed. But he has canceled the debt is essentially what's happening. Because of our faith in Jesus Christ, God no longer holds us responsible for the debt that we owed him. Jesus took the penalty that was due by us. He paid the price for us on our behalf. We received the benefits. He received the punishment in our place.

And so we have been released. The debt has been canceled by faith in Jesus Christ. These are the things that God has done for us, Paul says in verses 13 and 14. He wants to make it very clear. This is the gospel message. This is what God does. It's not that we work really hard and we jump out of the clutches of the enemy and then we run into the kingdom. No. No, God has done it on our behalf. He has delivered us. He has delivered

translated us or conveyed us into his kingdom. He has redeemed us. He has forgiven us. And how did he do all of this? Through his son, Jesus Christ. Jesus is the focus, the center of our faith. Everything within the Christian faith hinges on Jesus Christ. He is the foundation, the chief cornerstone. Everything is built upon that, the person of Jesus Christ.

That's why Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2, 2, he said, I resolve to know nothing among you except for Jesus Christ and him crucified. That's what I preached so that you would know Jesus. Everything else is on top of that. In addition to that, everything else hinges upon that fact. Jesus Christ crucified.

And that's why Paul will go on in the next few verses and even later as we'll continue to study next week. But verses 15 through 18, specifically this morning, he'll be dealing with who Jesus is. Because everything, God's deliverance, conveying us into his kingdom, his redemption, his forgiveness, everything.

depends on Jesus Christ. It was through Christ that he has done all of this for us. And we need to understand who Jesus is. He is the center of our relationship with God, the center of our faith. And so he will now go on in verses 15 through 18 and give us seven characteristics about Jesus. We'll go through them fairly quickly with much room for you to meditate on your own time.

But seven characteristics, seven things that you and I would know exactly who, specifically who Jesus is. In order to refute the Gnostic heresy and all the other false teachings that are around today, we simply look to the truth of who Jesus is. And that takes care of all of those things. And we need to cling on to these things of who Jesus is and what he has done for us.

So verse 15, we find the first thing he says, he is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. The first thing we learn about Jesus and who he is, is we learn that he is the image of God. Paul says he's the image of the invisible God.

Now, what does that mean that he is the image of God? We know from Genesis chapter 1 that man was made in the image of God. Remember that? God said, let us make man in our image. And so he made them male and female. He created them in the image of God. And the Bible makes reference to that several times, man being made in the image of God. But this statement about Jesus is much more than that.

It's more than just being made in the image of God. He tells us, Paul says, he is the image of the invisible God. He's not just in the image of God like we are, but he is the image of God. You see, man resembles God, but Jesus reveals God.

There's a difference. He's not an imperfect image like you and I are, but he is the perfect image of God, perfectly relating God to us, perfectly revealing God to us. In John 1, verse 18...

John says about Jesus, he says, no one has seen God at any time. The only begotten son who is in the bosom of the father, he has declared him. No one has seen God, but Jesus has declared him. Jesus has revealed him because he is the image of God. In John chapter 14, Jesus was talking to his disciples and he was sharing with them, I'm going away. I'm going to prepare a place for you. So take heart. The spirit's coming and

Philip speaks and he says, you know, I don't think we know what you're talking about, but just show us the Father and that's enough for us.

And Jesus says in John 14, 9, he who has seen me has seen the father. Nobody else can make that statement, but Jesus can because he is the image of the invisible God. If you've seen him, you've seen the father. He exactly and perfectly represents God. As Hebrews 1, 3 says, he is the exact representation of him or the express image of his glory.

Jesus is not saying that he is the father, but that he reveals the father. Now, this begins to take us into a different direction, which we won't really go into. But the triune nature of God, the father, the son and the Holy Spirit, they are all God nature.

It's one God, yet three distinct persons or personalities. Persons and personalities are great words, but they're the best we have to describe because we cannot understand. We can't fit God into our language.

He wouldn't be God if we could. And so there is and there has to be, there necessitates an element of not understanding, of being too great for us to comprehend. But we know the scripture teaches us the Father is God. Jesus Christ is God. The Holy Spirit is God. Jesus is not the Father himself.

The Father is not the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not Jesus. Note, they're three separate, distinct persons or personalities. Yet one God, triune in nature, united, everlasting, one God, but three personalities or persons. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. So Jesus Christ...

Is the representation of God to man. He's the revelation of God to man. He represents and reveals the father to us. He is not the father, but he is God and reveals to us who God is and what God is like.

Now, we cannot really understand this now and we could go in all kinds of circles, but that's okay. We have the rest of eternity to figure it out and be amazed and wondering how awesome and wonderful God is. But let's move on. The second thing we find. So number one, he is the image of God. Number two, he is the firstborn over all creation.

The firstborn over all creation. This is a fun one. Because the Jehovah's Witnesses jump on this and say, Aha! See, Jesus is the firstborn. That means that he was born first, which means that he was a created being, and therefore he cannot be God. Now, of course, this is a wrong conclusion. I do, however, understand that a person could read this and come to that conclusion, but it's a wrong conclusion.

We need to understand what this is talking about. Firstborn is a position, not a description. Firstborn is a position, not a description. And let me give you an example of what I mean by that. Looking at verse 18, it says this in verse 18, and he is the head of the body, the church.

Now, nobody takes that verse and says, aha, see, Jesus didn't have arms and legs. He didn't have a body. He was just a head that floated around everywhere. Nobody says that, right? Because we understand what he's saying. It's a figure of speech. He wasn't saying he was just a head. He's saying he is the head. He has the position of the head in the body of Christ.

And Paul is saying here he is the firstborn over all creation. It's a position, not a description. The position of the firstborn is the position of the heir. Jesus Christ is the heir of all creation. It all belongs to him. It was created for him. And so it's all his. Hebrews chapter 1 verse 2 says,

Talking about God, it says that God is in these last days spoken to us by his son, whom he has appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the world. He is the heir. He is the one who owns and has the right to all things that exist. Now, of course, there's much more that we could go into on the subject, but I don't think it's necessary necessarily.

As you look at the next verse, as you keep it in context, it explains it well. In verse 16, he says, for by him all things were created. Why is he the firstborn over all creation? Because by him all things were created. Jesus Christ is God. He is not a created being. He is the creator and he has always existed.

So number one, we see that he is the image of God. Number two, we see that he is the firstborn over all creation. Number three, we find that he is the creator in verse 16, which says this, for by him, all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers, all things were created through him and for him.

Notice how it's all about him. It's by him. It's through him. It's for him. It's all about Jesus Christ. From the beginning of creation to the end of time, it'll all be about Jesus Christ. Now, Paul is going to great lengths to make sure it's very clear for us. Jesus created everything. He says that are in heaven, all things that are in heaven and that are on earth. So that covers most things, right? I mean, everything that's in heaven, everything that's on earth.

It was all created by Jesus Christ, whether it's visible or invisible. So whether you can see it, touch it, feel it or you can't, maybe like the wind or gravity or angels. It was all created by Jesus Christ in heaven and earth, visible, invisible. Everything was created by him. Even thrones and dominions and principalities and powers, all authority. Everything was created by Jesus Christ. He is the creator of it all.

Paul's making sure it's very clear. There's nothing left out. There's no, you know, loophole to jump through. Well, he didn't know he is the creator of all things, visible, invisible, material, spiritual thrones, dominions, authorities, powers, everything. He is the creator of it. In John chapter one.

You're probably familiar with this portion as well. Verses 1 through 3. It tells us, John says, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. And verse 3 says, All things were made through him, and without him nothing was made that was made. John does a similar thing like the Apostle Paul. He makes sure there's no way that you can come up with something that was made...

Apart from Jesus Christ. He says all things were made through him. Everything. All things. But just to make sure that you understand what he means by all things. He says without him nothing was made that was made. So all things were made through him. Nothing was made apart from him. He created everything. It was his work. He created the world. The universe. He created you. And he loves you dearly.

The Bible does not leave room for speculation, nor does it leave room for your own opinion in this matter. Jesus Christ is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is creator of the universe. If you're going to believe the Bible, you will believe that Jesus is God and you will believe that he is the creator of the universe. Number four, we find in verse 17,

It says, and he is before all things, and in him all things consist. So fourthly, we find that he is before all things. This is a similar role to the role of the firstborn. He is before all things in that he existed before all things, but also that he is before all things in importance or in superiority. Jesus is first. He is the foremost.

In John chapter 17, verse 5, Jesus is praying to the Father and he says, And now, O Father, glorify me together with yourself, with the glory which I had with you before the world was.

We see those two things there. Jesus existed before the world existed, before anything else was created, before anything at all was created. Jesus existed. And he says, Father, glorify me with the glory that I had at that time. He is before all things because he was and existed before all things. But he's also before all things because he shares the glory with the Father. He is before all things in glory and time.

In superiority in every aspect, he is before all things. Number five, we also find here in verse 17, he says, and in him all things consist. So number five is that Jesus is the sustainer. He sustains all things. This word consist means to stay together or to keep together.

Jesus is the one who causes all things to stay together and keep together. He is the one that keeps the world from falling apart. You know, there's a song, he's got the whole world. You know the rest? All right. He really does. He keeps it all together. Not just the world, but the universe. That was very enthusiastic. Thank you, Rick. That was good.

Jesus is holding it all together, probably more literally than we can understand. You know, there's the age old question, what holds an atom together? Now, if you remember going back to high school physics or chemistry or whatever things you might have studied and encountered this.

The atom, it's essentially the building block for all material things, all matter. It's reduced to the size of the atom. The atoms make up the molecules and so on and so forth. Now, the atom has several parts to it, but specifically looking at the nucleus, we find interesting things compared to or looking at this verse, in him all things consist.

Because the nucleus consists of two types of things. It consists of protons as well as neutrons. Now, that probably doesn't mean a whole lot to us normally, but think about this. Protons are positively charged and neutrons are neutral. That's why they're called neutrons. So the positively charged protons and croutons and neutrons, I get all confused. They're together as the nucleus of the atom.

Now, if you remember back when you were young, perhaps, and you would have two magnets and you would put the positive sides together and you would chase the one around the coffee table all over the place because positives oppose. They push away from each other. They flee from each other in one sense. And so the same is true with protons. And yet these positively charged protons are positive.

held together in extremely close quarters within the nucleus of the atom along with the neutrons. What holds these things together that normally would push apart and flee away from each other? What holds them together? Well, they've come up... I was reading this one article...

I like the way he said it. He says, in a stroke of brilliant imagination, physicists have named the force the strong force. That's what keeps it together. The strong force. There's no explanation mathematically, scientifically. There's no explanation. They talk about the gluons that hold it together and they talk about the atomic glue that holds it together by this strong force. But there's no explanation. It's not magnetic. It's not

It's not gravity. It's just this strong force that holds each individual atom together. Now, that's quite a feat if you think about it. Jesus sustains everything. He holds it all together. Each atom is held together by Christ. Now, the average human being, your body, if you're average...

If not, you know, give and take. But has...

seven to the 27th power atoms. That's the average. So seven with 27 zeros after it, that's the number of atoms within your body. Now, anybody good at math in here, let's times that by the six billion people on the earth, not including all of the actual, you know, the rest of the matter, the trees and the birds and the actual physical earth and then the rest of the universe. I mean, that's quite a lot of

It's quite a lot of atoms, far greater than we can comprehend. And yet God holds everything together. The entire universe exists because He holds it in His hand and He keeps it together. And He wills for it to exist because He loves you. Man, that is just phenomenal. But you know what? One thing, one day, He is going to let it go. Now, you know what happens when an atom splits? It's called an atomic bomb.

Nuclear war. That's what splitting an atom does. Now, one day that will take place simply because he is holding all things together and he is going to let it go. 2 Peter 3, verse 10. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise and the elements will melt with fervent heat. Both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.

Why are they going to melt with fervent heat? Well, it's what happens in nuclear war. Not that Russia is going to attack or anything like that. No, when it says that it will melt with fervent heat, that word melt, it means literally unloosed. The elements will be unloosed with fervent heat.

He's holding it together, but it's going to be unloosed. Remember when Jesus sent his disciples to go get the donkey and he talks about how they go and they're unloosing the donkey and the people say, hey, what are you doing? Oh, master is in need of it. Okay, go ahead. That word unloosed, that's the same word that's used here, only translated melt. It's the same thing. The concept is God's going to let go. The atoms are going to fly apart and everything is just going to melt with a fervent heat.

And so he goes on to ask, well, what kind of lives should we live then? We should live holy lives in godly fear. Because all of this is just going to dissolve. It's going to be gone. The matter, the material things, the only thing that matters is what we do for God and how we live for him. Verse 18.

And he is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he may have the preeminence. So who Jesus is, we've seen he's the image of God, number one. Number two, that he's the firstborn over all creation. Number three, that he is the creator. Number four, that he is before all things. Number five, that he is the sustainer of all things. And now number six, he is the head of

Of the church. Jesus Christ is the head. Of the church. Now sometimes.

Pastors can think, I'm the head of the church. It's not true. I've come to realize I'm just the trough. You know, God just kind of puts the food for the flock that he wants there and then they eat and then they're left empty and then he fills it up again and then he just continues the cycle. I'm not the head. I'm the trough. And God uses us to feed the sheep and it's a blessed opportunity to be a part of his work. But you know, you and I were called the body of Christ and he is the head.

It's Jesus who leads and gives direction and tells us what to do. In Ephesians chapter 1 verse 22, it says, He, God, put all things under Jesus' feet and gave him to be the head of all things to the church. As pastors, we are simply under shepherds.

We just do what we're told to do, just like everybody else. It's his church, his body. And so it's his will and direction that we seek his plans for his purposes. It's all about Jesus Christ. But you know, what's interesting about the head, too, as we think about head, you know, we kind of at least I do. I picture an organizational chart, right? Christ is at the top. But

You know, typically in an organizational chart, if you look at your workplace and you ask for, you know, what's the chart of our organization? They'll give you the top and the president, the CEO and all this, and it goes down. And so if you want to get to the president, you can't just go, you know, there, especially like if you have a problem, you have to go to your supervisor. Then if that doesn't work, then you go to their supervisor, then you go to their supervisor, and they take it up and it goes up the ladder. But the difference is with you and I, with Jesus Christ as our head,

We have direct contact and communication with him. You don't have to have someone else tell you what God wants to do in your life and with you, your gifts and the way that he wants to use it. You have direct communication. Your head can send a message to any part of your body, directly communicating, telling what to do, when to do it, how to do it, to do it with force, without force, gently, softly, lovingly, romantically, whatever.

The head gives the instruction and direction to the rest of the body. And so you, as a believer in Jesus Christ, as part of the body of Christ, as often as your body stays connected to your head, you stay connected to Jesus Christ. Keep in communication with him. Let him speak to you. Stay in a place where he can send his messages to you.

Walk in the spirit that he would be able to lead you and guide you because you're part of his body. You know, you have major decisions and things coming up. Look to him. Look to the head and allow him to direct you and tell you what he wants you to do and how you want you to be involved in the things that lie before you. But Jesus Christ is the head of the church.

And then the final thing that we'll look at this morning, number seven, he is the firstborn from the dead. Here also in verse 18, he says the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he may have preeminence. Now, Jesus was not the first to rise from the dead. Many people did. In fact, in Jesus's ministry, he resurrected Lazarus and a few other people.

But they rose from the dead only to die again sometime later. And that would be kind of a bummer. You know, we all dread death our whole lives, but then they're resurrected. So they have to die twice. It's not as good deal as maybe we think. But Jesus Christ, when he resurrected, it was never to die again. It was to live eternal in his glorious body. And he was the first to do so.

He is the promise to us. Since he rose from the dead, you and I are guaranteed our resurrection by believing in him. Since he rose from the dead, we can count on that we will live eternally with him by believing in him. 1 Corinthians 15, verse 20 says, But now Christ is risen from the dead and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. There's many more who will be raised from the dead.

Many more who will live eternally with Christ, with the glorious body like Christ has. And that's promised to us as believers in him. He's the firstborn from the dead. Now, these seven things that we've looked at, and there's a couple more that we could have pulled out from here, and there'll be still plenty more that we'll see in the coming weeks. But they give us a good understanding, a solid grasp of who Jesus is.

And we need to know that because our entire faith rests upon this person, Jesus Christ. We need to know that he is the image of God, that he is the firstborn of all creation, that he is creator, that he is before all things, that he is the firstborn of all creation.

that he is the sustainer, the head of the church, the firstborn from the dead. There's many that will come and try to teach something else and sway you away from something else. And they'll try to teach another Jesus, Paul talks about in 2 Corinthians 10, a Jesus who is not these things. And those people will be led astray. Those people do not believe in Jesus. And salvation is only found in him. And that's why it's so important that we know who Jesus is, that we are not led astray.

but that we keep our faith in the one, God's Son, whom he sent for us. But there's a greater importance in all of this. It's great to understand. We understand all of these things doctrinally. But look at the end of verse 18. He says that in all things he may have preeminence. In all things he may have preeminence. Now in verses 15 through 18, that phrase all things is used five times.

Paul's making sure it's clear. He needs us to know all things are under Jesus Christ. He is above all things. He's before all things. Everything consists by him. It's all because of him that he may have preeminence, Paul says. Preeminence. It's a word that means the highest rank. Now, it's one thing to look at these things and understand them doctrinally, but it's an entirely different thing.

To look at them and apply them practically. We all, I think we would be able to agree that yes, Jesus Christ is Lord. We would be able to agree, yes, he is these things. But the question is not those things anymore. Now the question is, you believe in Jesus. The question for you is, are you living like it? Does he have preeminence? Now there's a difference between preeminence and prominence.

It's one thing for Jesus to have prominence in your life. He has a big part of your life, and that's good. But that's not the place that is required for him. Jesus doesn't just want to be a big part of your life. He must have, he needs to have preeminence in your life, the highest rank, first and foremost before anything else. To understand it doctrinally, I can believe that. He's the creator of everything. He's higher than everything. But in my life, in my heart,

Does he have preeminence? Does he have complete rule and reign within me? Does he have the highest rank in my heart? Do my emotions and feelings and hopes and dreams, do I subject them all to Jesus Christ? Am I in submission to him? That what he wants and what he desires is more important than anything else. In my mind, the things that I think about, if you would stack up all of the things that I think about through all the day, would Jesus have the biggest pile?

Would he have the highest rank in my thought life and the thoughts that I think about? Does he have complete authority?

The decisions that I make is he preeminent is his opinion and his word more important to me than whether I would benefit from it financially or Because everybody else is saying so is Jesus's word in his opinion more important than anyone else and anything else Does he have preeminence in my life? Is he the highest rank in my heart in my mind in my life in my family? in my job

Is Jesus Christ preeminent in me? Because we can understand that he is in the universe. But when it comes to ourself, it's a whole different thing. I was on the freeway the other day and I saw a bumper sticker as I was driving. And the guy had all kinds of political messages on his thing. And clearly he is not a fan of President Bush. And one of his stickers said, he is not my president. And he had the bold and underlined my and

He says, he might be president, but he's not my president. He's not going to have say of what I do, and I'm not going to... I can just imagine talking to him. That's why I'm going on like that. But that's offensive to me. You know, as Americans, just a quick side note. Whoever is the president is the president. And we honor and respect and we pray for them because God tells us to and because he's given that position. And we can fight with them and vote with them beforehand.

But once he's the president, he's the president. It's a place of honor and we should give the dear respect. But I use that to illustrate the point. He is the president, but this guy says, nope, not my president. What are you talking about? He's the president. No, he's not my president. And we can do the same thing with God. We can agree, yes, Jesus is Lord. Jesus is God. And then it comes to areas in our life, no, not there.

Not there. I'm not letting that go. I'm holding on to that. I know better than in this way. And we have areas many times in our lives where we dethrone him in our hearts, where he's not preeminent. We say, nope, he's not my God. And there's many who believe and reject him altogether. They will not be saved, even though they know the truth because they reject the preeminence of Jesus Christ. They will not let him in their hearts and in their life.

This morning I want to challenge you. Is Jesus Christ preeminent in you? In your thoughts? In your actions? In your decisions? In your feelings and emotions? In your hearts? Is Jesus Christ first and foremost? Does he have ultimate authority? Does he have all power? Does he have jurisdiction over everything within your life? It's the place that belongs to him. It's his rightful place. And in reality...

If you think about it, it doesn't make sense for us to not want Him to have that place. When you remember that it was His idea to save us, that He came and gave Himself, He died on the cross for us. He took the pain and the shame away.

the punishment, and He died for us in our place that we might live forever because He loves us so dearly and He wants what's best for us for eternity, it wouldn't make sense for us to not want Him to be a part of every part of our life because He wants what's best for us. He knows what's best for us. It's not a guess for Him. He knows exactly what we need. And so for Him to have the place of preeminence in our hearts is what's best for us.

And the benefits will last for the rest of eternity. This morning, Jesus Christ is Lord. He is preeminent. And God has given us all these things that we might understand that he has preeminence. But the question that you and I must ask, is he preeminent in me? Does he have highest rank? And wherever he doesn't, let's surrender it to him. He wants what's best. Maybe it's something we've held on to for a long time, but he wants what's best.

And we can trust him because he loves us so dearly. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, I pray for all of us, Lord, who believe in you, who have a relationship with you, Lord, that you've delivered us and conveyed us and redeemed us and forgiven us. But Lord, so many times there are those areas where we don't allow you to have preeminence. Lord God, I ask that you would help us, Lord, to give you the rightful place in our hearts.

Lord, that you would come and reign and have full authority within us, God, over every area. Lord, and if there is areas where we are not walking right with you, Lord, where you do not have complete authority, I pray, even now as we pray, that you would speak those things to our hearts, God. And that this coming week you would confirm those things and remind us of those things, Lord Jesus, that we would learn to put you first.

To give you the highest rank in our hearts and in our lives. In our minds, our thoughts, our actions. Lord, that everything would be out of obedience to you. Because you are wonderful, Lord. You are God. You are preeminent. May we give you that place in our lives. Lord, I pray for anyone listening to this who has never received you or has walked away from you, God. Lord, we know that there's salvation in no other place.

And Lord, it's so important that we know who Jesus is because, Lord, it's through Jesus that we are saved and have salvation, that we find deliverance, redemption, and forgiveness. And so, God, I pray for those listening to this, that they would give their hearts to you, that you would encourage them, strengthen them, open their eyes, and help them, Lord, to make a decision to walk with you and to receive the love and the forgiveness, the mercy and the grace that you offer.

Lord, you're so good and we're so unworthy. And so, Lord, we bow before you this morning and we give you preeminence. We lift you up. Have your way within us. It's in your precious name we pray. Amen. Amen. We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of his word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.