Colossians 1:15-20

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. 

 

The first half of Colossians 1:15 is worthy of deep meditation and reflection – Jesus is the image of the invisible God. Image in Greek, eikōn is described by Vines Expository Dictionary as:

“essentially and absolutely the perfect expression and representation of the Archetype, God the Father; in Colossians 1:15, "the image of the invisible God" gives the additional thought suggested by the word "invisible," that Christ is the visible representation and manifestation of God to created beings; "he that hath seen Me hath seen the Father," John 14:9."”

 

We who are made in His image are a “likeness”, a copy that appears to be the same but is not. But image when applied to Jesus means He is a perfect reflection of God and carries all the attributes of Him. What we read about Jesus - all that He taught, all that He did, all that He felt – is the manifestation of God on earth, “God with us” (Emmanuel translated). When we see Him, we see the Father; what incredible comfort that should give us. Jesus is not different; there are not two sets of what is right, what is good, what is holy. He was, is and evermore shall be – that’s Jesus and God and Holy Spirit.

 

The second half of Colossians 1:15 has caused much controversy. Some churches have misinterpreted “the firstborn of all creation” to mean that Jesus is the first created being therefore not part of the Godhead. GotQuestions.com says,

“While Jesus is held in high esteem by Muslims, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and others of various theological beliefs, those groups teach that Jesus was a created being….the answer to the question “who is Jesus Christ?” quickly separates those who adhere to biblical Christianity from those who do not.” 

 

This is not truth, and it is related to the understanding and usage of the Greek term “firstborn” which also applies to being most excellent, most distinguished or exalted. Its usage in 1:15 is not about the first being born outside of God.

 

Just as Jesus is the image of God, there is the same repeating image in scripture; scripture supports scripture. If it did not, it would not be reliable, and our faith would stand on shaky ground. Scripture supports Jesus being part of the Godhead, not a created being. This support begins in Genesis 1:26 which says, “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.””  There are the words, “us” and “our” which implies that God is more than one entity. Secondly, the word for God in the Hebrew is 'ĕlōhîm, the plural form of the word 'ĕlôha pointing to His pluralistic nature.

 

Just a few of the other supporting scriptures are listed here:

• John 1:1 - "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

• John 8:58 - "Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”"

• 1 Corinthians 8:6 NLT - “But for us, there is one God, the Father, by whom all things were created, and for whom we live. And there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things were created, and through whom we live."

• John 10:30 - "I and the Father are one.”

• Hebrews 1:3a – “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature”

• John 5:18b – “He was even calling God his own Father, making Himself equal with God.”

 

Colossians 1:16-17 support these passages and in Genesis by specifically stating that Jesus created both heavenly and earthly beings.  Thrones, dominions, rulers and authorities refer to these orders of power in heaven and on earth. It may appear that men have fought and created nations, but the truth is that it could not happen unless God created it.  Psalm 127:1a reminds us, “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” Our Triune God is sovereign and there is nothing that is created without His permission.

 

Questions to consider: Look up the meaning of “firstborn”. What impact does this understanding of firstborn have on your understanding of these verses? What impact does Jesus being the image of the invisible God have on your thinking?

 

Continuing with verses 17-18, it says: 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. 

 

Verse 17 also supports the other verses including Genesis 1:26, and it says something additionally significant – “in him all things hold together.” Not only does everything happen at His sovereign hand but it continues by His sovereign hand; He keeps it all going and working. We don’t even pause to question, “will the sun come up tomorrow?” Or “will the stars be in the sky tomorrow night?” We have complete confidence they will. Because in Jesus, the sun and the stars are held together, continuing to do what they’ve always done. Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” In Genesis 1, God said, “Let there be light” and many other commands, and He doesn’t change His mind and decide He’s done giving us light, and stars and everything else He has provided for in creation.

 

In verse 18, Paul connects Jesus’ creating and creation, to His earthly purpose. As He is sovereign over all things, He is the sovereign “head”, and the church is “the body”.  One cannot do without the other; there is no head without a body, and no body without a head. Paul uses this same example in Ephesians 5:22-33, and after describing the relationship of the wife toward her husband, the husband toward his wife, and quoting the verse from Genesis about the two becoming one flesh verse 32 says, “This mystery is profound and I am saying that it refers to Christ and His church.”  It is indeed a profound mystery – our Triune God had this plan since before the world existed, that Christ would dwell within us individually as the head and we as the body, “the church”; that all Christians together as the body are the church with Christ as our head. As the head of the church, Jesus has authority over the plan for our lives. The verses in New Testament scripture are not just optional guidance but are the commands Christ gives us on how to live holy and righteous lives reflecting His gift and identity in us, and our identity in Him. As sons and daughters of God, we live different lives than before we knew Him. We leave our past behind, and through Holy Spirit’s guidance, we embrace the new life, live out the command written on our hearts to love God with everything in us, and love others as ourselves.

 

Questions to Consider:  What do you think of the phrase, “in him all things hold together”? What are your thoughts on Jesus as our head, our authority and sovereign over all?

 

Verse 18 concludes with “He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.”  What is He the beginning of? He was the beginning for all creation. He is the beginning for the redemption of man. He was the first and only man born fully God and fully man, the beginning of God’s plan which required a man to be born without sin. He was the first man who God dwelled within, inhabited, not upon, not visited.  He was the only man who was without selfishness and pride, only doing what His Father asked him to do, even to the point of death on the cross.  He is the beginning to the Kingdom of God dwelling here on earth. He is the beginning of God’s covenant of Grace that only requires a person to put their faith in Jesus without adhering perfectly to the 613 laws.

 

He is the firstborn from the dead, the first to be raised from death to life. In this sentence, “firstborn” is the more common meaning of being the first. This verse finishes with, “that in everything he might be preeminent.” He is more than just first in all things, He is the most excellent, most distinguished, most exalted. Philippians 2:9 says, “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name.”

 

Continuing with Colossians verse 19:

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.

 

God was pleased to dwell inside Jesus because Jesus was holy and righteous in His Spirit and in His soul. God chose to use Jesus for reconciliation; to reconcile man and to reconcile all creation. That was the plan from the beginning when He cursed satan in Genesis 3:15, and promised that He would end satan’s reign, to pay the ransom for our sin.

 

As a man, Jesus still had the same choice, the same free will we have today. In John 10:17-18a, it says, “For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.” And He chose God’s will over His own in an act of obedience. Philippians 2:5-8 says, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

Many will read these scriptures and claim it was because Jesus was God that He could do this, but He was also fully man and knew the pain and suffering that He would experience. In Matthew 26:39, Jesus prayed, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

 

In the last 100 years, we have come into a misunderstanding of God’s purpose. Many have to come to believe that God is here only to serve us, to bless us, and our heart turned to His will, His purpose and His service has come to be optional. I believe it is rooted in our world culture which have the same mindset – that the world is here to serve us. After all, stores serve us, restaurants serve us, the medical profession serves us, even the decisions and choices made within our churches serve us. Christ indeed did us a great service; He died for us. The thing we don’t like to hear from our leaders is that we are called to follow in His footsteps; to be like Him. We want to bypass those scriptures that talk about following Him, suffering with Him and focus on scriptures like 2 Corinthians 1:20 which says, “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him.”  Using the premise discussed earlier that scripture supports scripture, how do we deal with the following scriptures?

• Matthew 16:24 says, “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.”

• John 13:14-15 says, “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. 15 For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you.”

• 1 Corinthians 11:1 says, “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.”

• Ephesians 5:1-2 says, “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.”

 

Colossians 1:20 concludes with, “making peace by the blood of his cross.”  How did it bring peace? The crushing debt of sin was growing and growing with no end in sight, beginning with Adam, quickly followed by Cain and the many men and women that followed in Genesis. God proposed the law as a means of showing the futility of trying to earn righteousness through works, but that did not return people back to God. Man being who he is, he manipulated the law to work for his own needs while stepping on the needs of others.

 

When Jesus came to earth, the world was a mess. The poor were getting poorer, the disadvantaged were tossed aside, the widows and orphans were ignored and silenced. What mattered most to man mattered the least to God. Jesus bore every sin that had been done since Adam and Eve sinned in the garden….to this very day, and all the future days. He paid for the sins done by man, past, present and future. When Jesus died and shed His blood on the cross, the once for all sacrifice was made; it was finished, and the debt was paid. From the day He began His ministry till the day when He returns to reign, He gives to those who receive Him and believe in His name, the right to become children of God (John 1:12). He calls us to be like Him, to shine in the world as a “Kingdom-based human”; to be uncommonly selfless, unusually forgiving, remarkably unoffendable, and the many attributes of the One who resides in us.

 

Questions to consider: What did you believe and understand about God’s purpose in reconciling us to Him? Does your study of this passage change your thinking?