The Supremacy of Christ
One of the things I’ve had to teach my 5 year old son is to play the cards you’ve been dealt. Whenever it’s his turn in a game of Uno, he’ll draw a card, look at it, and if he doesn’t like it, puts it back and takes another. On one level you have to admire the kind of carefree attitude and straightforward approach to problem solving. I see a card I don’t like, I’ll just get another one. It’s not complicated. To a 5 year old, that’s problem solved. But that’s not how you play the game and in fact, that’s not how life works. We have to play the cards we’ve been dealt whether we like them or not.
That’s the reality of life. And no, there ain’t no switching. There’s no uno reverse card in life. Even for a Christian.
In fact, I think being a Christian makes it worse because now we know who deals the cards. If God doesn’t exist, then everything is basically random. From the big bang to captain cook, from the place of our birth to where the cancer first appears. It’s random so just suck it up. But when Christians say we believe in God, we’re actually saying that someone is behind all of that. Life is not a game with cards we draw. It is to work with the cards we’re dealt. By God!
Here's the question then. What have you been dealt recently? Can you say that God has dealt graciously or harshly with you? And more importantly, how do we continue to believe when things are bad?
That’s what our passage will teach us today. There are two points I want to show you from the passage.
1. Jesus is God made flesh (v.15-20)
2. Jesus is flesh made right (v.21-23)
Jesus is God made flesh
Look with me at verse 15.
He is the image of the invisible God, firstborn of all creation.
Right from the start we see what makes Jesus absolutely unique. Because something that’s invisible by definition does not have an image. Imagine trying to draw a picture of an invisible rainbow. Not only that, there is no other religious figure who claims to do this. Not in Islam, not in Judaism, not in Buddhism or Hinduism. Their leader might claim to be a messenger of God or a prophet come from God. No one claimed to be God. The ones that do end up as cults. The reason I think is that we know instinctively that God by nature is invisible.
Christianity is the odd one out. Jesus alone claims to be God in the flesh. He is the image of the invisible God. That means Through Jesus we see who God is. Ask a muslim if Allah loves. And how do we know if he does? What has he done? But if we believe that Jesus is the image of the invisible God, we don’t need to guess. We can actually just look.
We know God is compassionate when Jesus heals the sick without expecting anything in return. We observe God’s power, when Jesus commands the wind and the waves. We understand God’s holiness, when Jesus confronts demons and they run away in fear. We recognise God’s justice, when Jesus fights for the poor and defends the weak. We experience God’s love for us, when he laid down his life for us. He is the image of the invisible God. Jesus is God made flesh. The firstborn of all creation.
Which doesn’t mean he was born first. It doesn’t mean that. The passage tells us what it means.
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.
Here Paul makes an incredible claim, that Jesus Christ, the carpenter from Nazareth who was publicly executed as a criminal, is the one who created the world. He spoke the universe into existence. Now that is more than just being first in line to the inheritance. Jesus has the right to it, not because he was the oldest, but because he made it all. And again, it’s not just physical things that we can see. It’s the intangible things too because it says thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. Whether that’s in the supernatural realm with demons and unclean spirits, or the secular natural realm with things like corporate greed or gender politics or corruption. Everything and everyone ultimately answers to Jesus alone. All things were created through Jesus and for Jesus. That’s what firstborn means. The word for it is supreme. The supremacy of Christ.
Look how it continues.
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.
Verse 18 and verse 15 form a parallel pair. The firstborn of all creation in verse 15 and the firstborn from the dead in verse 18. What Paul does is set the tone in verse 15-17. The image of God. The firstborn of all creation. Whether in heavens or the earth. What does that make you think of? Genesis – In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Paul’s drawing a straight line from Jesus to God in Genesis. Then in verse 18, he tells us of the new creation that starts with the church. Notice it says He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead. It’s an echo of Genesis 1. The firstborn over all creation, the firstborn from the dead, which I take it to mean the New Creation. What’s the point? Jesus rules over both creation and new creation. He has power over both life and death.
It’s so easy to miss the significance of this. And you can always tell. If I asked you, who saved you from sin and death. You’d say Jesus. But if I asked you who created you, and the world and everything in it, you’d say God. I don’t think for many or any of us that our first response is Jesus.
No! Look at the passage. How many times do you see the word ALL?
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,
Let me come at this from another angle. I want you to picture two things. On one side, Jesus at the cross. On the other, God at creation. Which one displays the power of God? Or when I say visualise the power of God over the universe. What are you picturing? Creation. But if you ask Paul? It’s Jesus on the cross. Think about it. At creation God created something out of nothing. That’s huge. But at the cross, Jesus created life out of death. Something good out of something bad. That’s why in verse 19 it says.
19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.
There’s a double emphasis. Paul doesn’t just say all of God. Or the fullness of God. He says All the fullness of God was pleased to dwell in Jesus. You know what that means? Either God is really really small, or Jesus is really really big. If all the fullness of God dwells in Jesus, God must be less than what we believe he is, or Jesus is more than who we think he is. It’s like trying to fit all the oceans in the world into a teacup. And yet, this is what it says.
“At creation God created something out of nothing. That’s huge. But at the cross, Jesus created life out of death. Something good out of something bad. ”
Which also means, there is no more of the person of God for us to discover and experience. In other words, God has no more left of Himself to give us outside of Christ. There is no deeper fellowship or communion with the Godhead than what we can have in Jesus. Because all the fullness is already here. It’s not in other religions or worldviews. Not even in any theology that does not have Christ through and through. Jesus is God made flesh.
Now what does it have to do with me? How does that help me? It starts in verse 20.
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.
Right now, everyone would have heard about the war in Ukraine. But did you know there are 27 violent conflicts going on currently? The latest of which is in Sudan that’s already killed 330 people. Not to mention the hundreds of thousands of people who have lost their homes and livelihood. It’s a terrible tragedy I’m sure you’ll agree. But who among us burst into tears when news came that a peace deal has been signed?
When it says God reconciles to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. Our brains understand that it includes us. But to actually know it in our hearts is different. Maybe it’s just me, but sometimes I feel a disconnect between what I know in my head (peace by the blood of his cross) and what I feel in my heart (which really depends on the kind of week I’ve had). We read about the gospel of peace and it feels as real to us as peace in Sudan. Where’s the good news?
Our second point. Jesus is flesh made right.
Jesus is flesh made right
21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,
Notice how it says that we once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds. The Bible doesn’t have three categories: those who love God, those who hate God, and those who are still on the fence. Because if you haven’t reconciled with God, you are an enemy of God. The opposite of peace is war. Only war. And a Christian is someone who knows what was done and the price that had to be paid for us to be reconciled to God. Jesus paid the cost in his body of flesh by his death. Jesus is God made flesh and Jesus is flesh made right.
“The Bible doesn’t have three categories: those who love God, those who hate God, and those who are still on the fence. ”
You know they say we won’t truly appreciate peace until we’ve experienced war. The same is true in our Christian life. If I look at my own Christian life, I see how easy it is to take things for granted. I think we as Christians have become too comfortable. We’ve forgotten the brutal reality of sin and death and also the urgency of making things right with God. There might even be persistent and recurring sin in our lives, but we make peace with it and we tell ourselves thank God we’re saved by grace alone.
And so I hope you see the contrast Paul is making here. What you once were and what Jesus has done. Think about this. On a scale of 1 – 10, if 1 is being hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, and 10 is presenting as holy and blameless and above reproach before him, what number would you give yourself? We are all saved by grace not by works that is true. And yet no one here is completely without sin. Who here will put up their hand and say I’m totally 100% blameless in everything. Because you know we’ll just talk to your wife.
Have you become too comfortable with the state of your life and godliness or Christianity in general? You know the truth. And so there’s a warning. Look how the passage ends.
if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation7 under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.
And if this isn’t enough, listen to Romans 8:13.
13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
Let’s not forget Paul is talking to Christians. He’s not saying to a non-Christian you’ll die if you reject Christ. He’s saying to Christians you’ll die if you live according to the flesh. There is a war going on and we are called to fight in it. By the Spirit to put to death the deeds of the body. Be killing sin, or it will be killing you.
I hope you can take this on board. I think we tolerate more sin in our life than we realise or than we care to admit. And then we tell ourselves we’re saved by grace alone and then turn on Netflix. Does that sound familiar to you? Or is it just me? Look at verse 23 again.
if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard,
How do we do that? You don’t need me to tell you don’t lie or steal. Don’t cheat on your wife. Don’t watch porn or do drugs. I’m sure you already know all that. Instead I want to give you something to think about.
Paul says continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel. If we had the time, we would stop at each word and talk about what it looks like. But taken as whole, it describes a certain posture.
Picture an oil rig. You ever wonder how it stays afloat or stays the right side up? And that’s even before the seas get rough. You don’t want to have an oil rig that only floats when the waters are calm but sinks when it gets rough. You have to be able to play whatever cards are in your hand. The good and the bad.
The key is in what we can’t see. We don’t see how far those columns extend down. There’s all that weight anchoring it down. In the same way, if we want to continue in the faith, to be stable and steadfast, we’ll need to have something deep and solid anchoring us. What we need is not a better school curriculum or more conservative politics or less exposure to worldly pleasures. All of that is ultimately circumstantial. We need to deepen our foundation in Christ. We have to go deeper within us. The problem is not what’s outside us, but what’s inside.
“So the question to ask is never really how do I change my circumstances, how do I change my work place or my school or my marriage. The question is how is God changing me.”
I’ll give you an example. How often do you get annoyed when someone does something, like a spouse, a colleague or a family member and you think to yourself they’re always doing this, or they never do that. And it just makes you angry. Anyone who’s been married for longer than 2 weeks will surely know what I’m talking about. Or anyone who has siblings. If there’s a problem at work, it’s those guys. If our marriage isn’t working, it’s him or her.
We’re always quicker to blame the other person aren’t we. In fact, it’s always easier to just pin everything on someone else than take responsibility for our own sinful tendencies. What we actually need to do is to deepen our own ballast tanks. When you have a big anchor, you won’t be worried about the storm.
Conclusion
I need to close. I realise by this point in the sermon if you’re still awake, is that everything I’ve said can feel a little laborious. You need to do this. We must do that. Sounds like a lot of work. Can I leave you with an encouragement? Look at verse 22.
22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,
In order to present you holy and blameless. Jesus is not interested in what we can do for him so much as he is committed to who we become in him. It is him who works in us. It’s him who presents us. Let’s remind ourselves that. Our job as Christian’s is not to straighten our lives and present ourselves before God holy and blameless. He’s the one who presents us. He is more invested in our holiness and godliness than we are interested in it ourselves. And so all we need to do is continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven.
Discussion Questions
How would understanding Jesus as creator change the way we read Genesis?
What difference does it make that Jesus is the creator?
“thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities” what do these four things have in common? Think of some examples.
How accurate is v.21 as a description of our non-christian friends and family?
Why did Jesus have to die in order to reconcile us? Would he still have to die if my only sin is lying?
What things in life can be described as being stable/unstable? Do the same principles apply to our Christian walk?
How can we tell when we’ve shifted from the hope? Notice it doesn’t say abandoned the hope but shifted from the hope.
Complete the sentence with a verb of your choice:
Jesus _____ me.
Jesus has _____ me.
Jesus will _____ me.