Colossians 1:15-23
There was an article in the Washington Post a few years ago that featured a congregation that wanted to radically reach people who felt alienated from the church. Using market research and focus groups, they designed their weekly services to deliberately de-emphasize Jesus Christ. One of the leaders in this congregation said, “The sad fact is the name of Jesus Christ has become for many people exclusionary.” And so, in accordance with their market research, they decided to use some Hindu and Zen, intermingled with a few verses from the Bible and recorded music by Willie Nelson. The leader of this group was quoted in the article as saying, “We’re enabling people to discover God themselves, maybe through Jesus, maybe through Buddha, maybe through any number of ways.”
Paul left no ambiguity about how to find God and made it clear that it was only through the person of Jesus Christ. In the opening verses of Colossians, Paul gave honor to this so-called “exclusionary” Christ through four exalted titles.
What are these titles?
1. Jesus is the “image of the invisible God.” (1:15a)
2. Jesus is “the firstborn over creation.” (1:15b)
(These are discussed in the previous message.)
3. Jesus is the Creator God. (1:16-17)
The reason this title for Christ is so important is that the erroneous heretics in Colosse taught that because matter was evil, God could not have directly created all things. He had to do this through “emanations” so as to keep a holy God from coming into contact with evil matter. But, Paul shows that Jesus, Whom he declares to be God (cf. 1:15, 19), is directly responsible for all creation.
Today the attack on the Creator God comes from Darwinian evolutionists who want to make “time and chance” the responsible cause for our world. However, Paul leaves no ambiguity about how “all things” (used four times-vs.16-17) got here and that it was by the Hands of an Almighty Creator...Jesus Christ.
Actually, all three persons of the Trinity were involved in the creation of the world: (1) God the Father is said to have created in Genesis 1:1, (2) God the Holy Spirit “was moving over the surface of the waters” (Genesis 1:2 NET), and (3) Jesus was declared to be the Creator by Paul (1:16-17), John (John 1:1, 3) and others (e.g. Hebrews 1:2-3), by divine inspiration in scripture.
All of creation screams that there is a Creator!
1 The skies display his craftsmanship. 2 Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. 3 There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. 4 Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world. God has made a home in the heavens for the sun. 5 It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding. It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race. 6 The sun rises at one end of the heavens and follows its course to the other end. Nothing can hide from its heat. (Psalm 119:1-6 NLT)
20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse… (Romans 1:20)
Jesus Himself taught the OT to be historical and factual, which included Adam and Eve as the first married couple (Matthew 19:3–6; Mark 10:3–9), Abel as the first person that was killed (Luke 11:50–51), Noah and the Flood (Matthew 24:38–39), Moses and the serpent in the wilderness (John 3:14), Moses and the manna from heaven to feed the Israelites in the wilderness (John 6:32–33, 49), the experiences of Lot and his wife (Luke 17:28–32), the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah (Matthew 10:15), the miracles of Elijah (Luke 4:25–27), and Jonah and the great fish (Matthew 12:40– 41).
Actually, while answering a question about divorce, Jesus declared the factual nature of creation, 5 ...Because of the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. 6 But from the beginning of the creation, God “made them male and female.” (Mark 10:5-6)
Without question, Jesus believed in creation and knew that He was the Creator. That’s what Paul declares in this passage, too.
There are five central statements in verses 16-17 that declare Jesus’ role in creation.
- It is “by Him.” (16a) The plans and power to create were in Him...He is the Master Architect!
- It is “through Him.” (16b) He was the agent of creation and without Him nothing was created...He is the Master Builder!
- It is “for Him.” (16c) He is the goal of all creation...for His purposes.
- “He is before all things.” (17a) This declares His uncreated preexistence.
- “...in Him all things consist.” (17b) This declares His preservation of all creation.
The Greek word translated “consist” means “to bring together or hold together something in its proper or appropriate place or relationship...” (Louw Nida 63.6)
In other words, what is brought into existence by Christ is “held together” in Christ. This is the same thing the writer of Hebrews declares.
2...through whom [Christ] also He made the worlds; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power… (Hebrews 1:2b-3a)
Dr. J.B. Lightfoot says, “He is the principle of cohesion in the universe. He impresses on creation that unity and solidarity which make it a cosmos instead of a chaos.” (Lightfoot, J.B., Colossians and Philemon, p. 76)
This is an important truth in light of much of the extreme environmentalism practiced in our nation/world. It should be the desire of all believers/unbelievers to be good stewards of the creation of God, but ultimately it is God that determines its continued existence...not mankind! When God is done with what He created, He will destroy it and make a “new Heaven and new earth” (Revelation 21:1). Listen to the prophecy of Peter…
7 But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men...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. 11 Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? 13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. (2 Peter 3:7, 10-13)
Paul wanted the Colossians and all of us to know that the Christ Who is our Savior is also the Creator God. That thought alone is comforting when you consider that nothing is outside of His control. Isaiah said about this One that Paul declares to be the Creator…
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,
Measured heaven with a span
And calculated the dust of the earth in a measure?
Weighed the mountains in scales
And the hills in a balance? (Isaiah 40:12)
There was a powerful moment when the disciples understood that Jesus was the Creator God (Mark 4:35-41). It is a deeply moving story about faith and how we should trust the One that made and controls it all.
35 On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.” 36 Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. 38 But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” 39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. 40 But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” 41 And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!” (Mark 4:35-41; cf. Matthew 8:23-27)
4. Jesus is “the head of the body, the church.” (1:18)
Paul used the analogy of the body elsewhere in his epistles (1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Romans 12:4-8), but he had not spoken of Christ as the “head of the body” until here. In the other texts, the head was one of many members of the body (1 Corinthians 12:21). Here Paul is specifically pointing out two things about Christ when he describes Him as the “head of the body.”
- First, it points out that Christ supplies and sustains the church. This is clearly stated in Colossians 2:19, when Paul says that as the “head,” Jesus is the One by which “the body...grows with the increase that is from God.”
- Secondly, he points out that as “the head,” He has sovereign authority over the body...His church. This idea is supported by Paul’s words in Colossians 2:10 when he states that Christ is “the head of all principalities and powers.”
- Both of these ideas should be emphasized as Christ’s roles in His church. He not only has authority over the “old” creation, but He also has authority over His new creation...the church (made up of all the redeemed). It’s been said that, “He is sovereign over creation because He is God. He is sovereign over the church because He is the God-man.” Because of His incarnation, death, resurrection and ascension, He rightfully deserves this place of dominion and preeminence in the church, which is His body.
This illustration of the head and body reminds us of how we function in our physical bodies. It is the head that gives the “direction” to the rest of the body. Apart from the head functioning over the body, the body cannot live. And, our entire motivation and movement is to be directed by the head.
Dr. S. Lewis Johnson, Jr. states, “These concepts have great practical importance for the life of the local church. In everything it does — its ministry of the Word, its service, in fact, its life in toto—He is to have sovereign control. Elders serve under Him; deacons serve under Him. The Word is preached in Him, under Him, and before Him (cf. 2 Cor. 2:17). The church gathers and worships with Him as the real Leader of its thankful praise.” (S. Lewis Johnson, Bibliotheca Sacra, Studies in the Epistle to the Colossians: From Enmity to Amity, (January-March 1962): p. 139-149)
Conclusion:
Having considered these titles for the incomparable Christ (the image of the invisible God, firstborn over creation, creator God & head of the church)...it leaves all of us believers in amazement that Jesus would take upon Himself human flesh and die on the cross for our sins (Philippians 2:5-11).
As a result of His coming for us in “the body of His flesh” (1:22) there are two things Paul wanted the Colossians to know He accomplished.
1) He redeemed us. (1:14a) The word literally means “to buy out.” It was used in reference to the purchase of a slave’s freedom. Our condition prior to knowing Jesus was one of slavery to sin and the Law (Galatians 3:13; 4:5). However, Christ purchased us in order to set us free from our enslavement to these things.
Notice...
- The price that He paid: “His blood” (1:14b)
- The pardon we receive: “the forgiveness of sins” (1:14c)
- The promise we await: “the inheritance of the saints” (1:12; cf. Romans 8:17)
- The place we enter: ”the kingdom of the Son of His love” (1:13)
2) He reconciled us to God. (1:20, 21)
The Bible never speaks of reconciliation with God as if there is a need for mutual reconciliation between mutually hostile parties. Reconciliation is always manward in the direction of God.
God has never stopped loving man or pursuing him, as is pictured so beautifully in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15--sometimes called “The parable of the Father’s heart”). God doesn’t need to be reconciled to man, it’s man that needs to be reconciled to God! Jesus didn’t come so that God could love us. He came BECAUSE God loves us.
- Our problem: (1:21)
- “Alienated” means to be a stranger or foreigner.
- “Enemies” means to me hostile toward or in opposition to God.
- “Wicked works” are thoughts and deeds that reflect our alienation and hostility toward God.
- The solution: (1:22)
God deals with our sin through the death of Christ on the cross so that we might be reconciled to Him through our believing response in the saving/forgiving efficacy of His shed blood on our behalf.
Dr. S. Lewis Johnson writes, “Reconciliation...is a finished work of God by which man is brought from an attitude and position of enmity with God to an attitude and position of amity and peace with God by means of the removal of the enmity through the cross.” (S. Lewis Johnson, Bibliotheca Sacra, Studies in the Epistle to the Colossians: From Enmity to Amity, (January-March 1962): p. 139-149)
One problem that sometimes arises when addressing this passage (specifically 1:23) deals with whether our reconciliation with God is permanent or temporary. Some people believe that Colossians 1:23 teaches that our reconciliation (with God) is conditioned upon our continued faith and righteous practices.
Another group of people believe that this particular Greek construction (1:23 -- “if (or since) indeed you continue”) teaches that “perseverance” in the faith is evidence that you are genuinely saved and that departure from the faith shows you never were truly a child of God.
It’s clear that the Bible repeatedly teaches the security of the believer and that once you have experienced His saving grace, you can never be eternally lost (ex. John 3:16; 5:24; 6:47; 10:27-30; Romans 8:29-39; Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30). Therefore, this passage cannot teach that salvation is dependent upon your continued faith and righteous practices. What you cannot earn by works you cannot keep by works.
The second view (mentioned above) assumes that the Colossian believers would continue in the faith and not be moved away from it, thus, proving they were genuine believers. The problem is that this type of conditional Greek construction supposedly affirming “certainty of perseverance” is sometimes disputed because of its flexible uses in some other passages. (cf. w/Daniel Wallace, Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics: An Exegetical Syntax of the New Testament, Grand Rapids:Zondervan, 1996; p. 690) In other words, because this Greek construction is not an inviolable rule of certainty in EVERY passage, then it is possible that certainty is not intended here in this passage. This explanation is simply not the best way to explain the meaning of this passage.
What is beyond dispute is that Paul understood the Colossian believers to be genuine children of God. He never questioned their position in Christ! He called them “saints and faithful brethren in Christ” (1:2), and said that they had a reputation for faith and love (1:4). He further said that their faith was bearing fruit (1:6), that they heard and understood the gospel of grace (1:6), they loved “in the Spirit” (1:8), were delivered from the power of Satan into the kingdom of Christ (1:13), and were redeemed, forgiven (1:14), and reconciled (1:21-22). Paul also affirms that they had “received Christ Jesus the Lord” (2:6), were “rooted and built up” in Him (2:7), “complete in Him” (2:10), “buried with Him in baptism, in which you were raised with Him” (2:12), had been made alive and forgiven of all their transgressions (2:12-14), were “hidden with Christ in God” (3:3), a “new man” (3:10) and the “elect of God” (3:12).
In light of this undeniable evidence that the Colossians were believers, I think it is best to understand this conditional statement (1:23) not as looking back to the time of their reconciliation (making their reconciliation conditional, not eternal), but forward to the time when they would be presented (1:22) to the Lord...at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Though they had been reconciled to God through faith in Jesus Christ, Paul was concerned that they could be presented before the Lord (at the Bema Seat) as people whose spiritual condition (“holy, blameless, and above reproach” - 1:22) matched their spiritual position. This view is affirmed later in the chapter (1:28) when Paul states that he wants to “present every man perfect (complete or mature) in Christ Jesus.” In other words, “he’s not dealing with forensic justification or final glorification in the conditional clause, but with progressive sanctification.” (Charles Bing, Bibliotheca Sacra, The Warning in Colossians 1:21-23, (January-March 2007): p. 74-88) If the believer is moved away from his “hope” (1:23) and follows the heresies of the false teachers, then he should not expect to be presented at the Judgment Seat of Christ as worthy of receiving rewards. Entrance into Heaven is a free gift, but rewards are earned.
Dr. Joseph Dillow writes, “At issue here is not arrival in heaven but whether or not we will arrive there holy, blameless, and beyond reproach. This is the goal toward which Paul labors. This is a goal of sanctification, not salvation. Throughout the New Testament we are told of a time in which believers will be presented before their King. At that time some will be revealed as faithful and others as unfaithful servants (Lk. 19:16-19).
“Probably the major reason for understanding this passage as referring to salvation is that the words “holy,” “blameless,” and “without reproach” are taken absolutely. Yet elsewhere in the New Testament the terms are used to describe imperfectly holy and imperfectly blameless Christians. Elders of the church, for example, are to be “beyond reproach” (Ti. 1:6). When the 144,000 stand before the throne, they are declared blameless, not because of their justification but because of their experience. There was no deceit in their mouth (Rev. 14:5). A believer is elsewhere exhorted to be holy in both body and spirit (1 Cor. 7:34). This obviously refers to an imperfect experiential holiness, not absolute justification.” (Joseph Dillow, The Reign of the Servant Kings: A Study of Eternal Security and the Final Destiny of Man, p. 426)
The only thing in question with the Colossian believers was whether they would be presented in Heaven as people who were practically “holy, blameless, and above reproach” so that they might be rewarded at the Judgment Seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 4:14; 11:2; Ephesians 5:27; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Jude 24; Romans 14:10). It is certain that all believers will stand before the Lord and be given entrance into the heavenly city. Our desire as Christ-followers is that we would have a “favorable presentation” when we stand before Him. (Romans 14:10; 1 Corinthians 3:13-15; 4:5; 1 John 2:28).
Let’s stop and thank the exalted Christ for making salvation available solely on the basis of grace. Apart from that none of us could ever experience salvation, let alone have the experience of His daily work of sanctification.
There’s a story of a youth minister in training that left work early to study on the day of his final exam in one of his classes. He said that when the teacher entered the room that evening to administer the test that he reviewed some of the things that would be on the test. This young man indicated that most of the reviewed material came directly from his study guide. But, there were some things the teacher reviewed that he had never heard before. When the professor was questioned about the additional material, he said that all of it came from the book he had given them at the beginning of the semester. Finally, it was time to take the test. The professor passed out the exams with these instructions: "Leave them face down on the desk until I tell you to start." When he gave the order, everyone turned over their tests and every answer on the test was already completed! At the bottom of the last page there was a handwritten note that said: "This is the end of the Final Exam. All the answers on your test are correct. You will receive an ’A’ on the final exam. The reason you passed this test is because the creator of the test took it for you. All the work you did in preparation to pass this test did not help you get the A. You have just experienced...grace."
That’s what Jesus (the Image, Firstborn, Creator, Head) did for us. If only people were willing to accept His answer for their need. If you’ll do that today...you will be redeemed and reconciled to God...on the spot!
