Hello, I'm Rod Butler. Welcome to Let God Speak. Many people believe the most preeminent position in the world today is the office of the President of the United States.
They believe this because that office controls the largest economy and diplomatic network and it has gained influence over international politics, economics, security and culture. The Bible, however, makes it very clear who has the unique and unsurpassed position and preeminence of our world. Stay with us as we discuss the preeminence of Christ.
On our panel today we have Gayl Fong and John Kosmeier. Welcome, Gayl and John. Thank you.
Before we have this important discussion, let's bow for prayer. Gracious Father, we're going to be discussing now the preeminence of Christ, Lord, a very important topic. We pray, Lord, as we have this discussion, would the Holy Spirit please guide us into all truth.
And I pray Lord too, may you bless the viewers who are watching the program too. We pray in Jesus name. Amen.
Well, Colossae was an inland city about 220 kilometres from the port city of Ephesus. Paul was based in Ephesus for three years, but he never visited there. Now about six years later, Paul was in prison in Rome.
He received wonderful news of the faith of the Colossians. Paul held himself responsible for the Colossians spiritual condition and he prayed for them. So, Gayle, first question to you.
What did Paul specifically pray for for the Colossians? Well, just turning to the book of Colossians, chapter one and verses nine through to 11, it's actually a beautiful prayer. It says for this reason we also, since the day we heard of it, do not cease to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, that you may walk worthy of the lor, fully pleasing him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God, strengthened with all might according to his glorious power, for all patience and long suffering with joy. So he's praying without ceasing.
He's praying for them daily, which I think is wonderful. I'd love someone to be doing that for myself and for all. It's a real rebuke to not be praying for others.
But Paul prays that they may know God and know his will and live a life that is pleasing to God. And he felt responsible for them. So he wanted to do that prayer.
It's beautiful, as you say. Well, look, let's keep reading. We're going to read the next verse, which is Colossians 1:12 and I've got a question for you, John.
It says, giving thanks unto the Father which hath made us qualified to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints of light. Now, to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints of light. What does that mean? How are we qualified? Fortunately, the next two verses explains exactly what you asked for here in Colossians, chapter 1, verses 13 and 14.
In the new King James version that I'm reading from, it says, he has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through his blood and the forgiveness of sins. And then again in the book of Ephesians, chapter 2 and verse 8, and this is the key verse that explains the whole book of ephesians. In verse 8 of chapter 2, it says, for by grace you are saved, and that is not of yourself.
It is the gift of God. And so we are qualified by God's grace through faith in Jesus. Wonderful gift.
That's an amazing gift, isn't it? Praise God. Well, Paul focused his message on the person and authority of Jesus. And we've just read down those verses.
If we go to the next verse, reading through verse 15, it says, and I've got a question for you on this scale. Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature? Speaking about Christ, who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature? What does it mean to be an image? Well, that word, the image in the Greek is spelled E I K O N, which we pronounce in the English icon, translates to that English word icon. So the meaning of image or representation or an important enduring symbol here.
So the image of the Roman emperor on the coin, for instance, on the coins was called an ikon, E I k O n or I kon. And so Christ is the representation of God the Father. And he whom we cannot see, he is that icon or that representative.
So he's an icon and image. How do we know, John, that Christ is the image of the invisible God, the Father? Jesus said. So it's as simple as that, isn't it? It is.
But when you turn to the Book of John, the Gospel of John, chapter 14 and verse 9, this is what Jesus said to Philip. Jesus said to him, have I been with you for so long and yet you have not known me? Philip, he who. And this is the key.
He who has seen me has seen the Father. So how can you say, show us the Father when he was already looking at he who was showing him what the father was like. And so here we have Christ demonstrating the true nature of God the father.
So what Jesus did, God did. And I guess us today, we see Jesus by what we read in the Gospels. So we can see what he did.
We can sort of see what he did represents the father. So it's important for us today from the Gospels. Yes.
Yeah, it's very powerful, mind you. That means that we can learn that way, too. That's right.
That's right. Gayl, does the word firstborn always refer to the first in the lineage of being born? Well, not always. The biblical concept of the firstborn represents preeminence of the special relationship a son has or bears to his father, regardless of the birth order.
And there's some examples in the Bible, like Isaac, he wasn't the firstborn to Abraham. Ishmael was. We've got Jacob.
Esau was the firstborn twin there. Then you've got Joseph. He was not the firstborn of his brothers.
And so God said the Levites were going to be the firstborn in Numbers 8, 18. And I'll just read that passage there. Numbers 8, 18 says, I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn of the children of Israel.
That's because they stood, they were faithful at the time of the golden calf. So God chose them to be his firstborn. And then if we turn, David was also God's firstborn.
If we turn to the book of psalms, Psalms chapter 89, verses 3 and 4, and reading verse 27 there as well, the Bible says, I have made a covenant with my chosen. I have sworn to my servant David your seed. I will establish forever and build up your throne to all generations.
And verse 27 Also, I will make him my firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. So here, David here, he's considered the firstborn son here in this instance, although he had eight brothers, but David was the firstborn from whom a line of royal descendants was to extend to the Messiah. So there was that connection.
And we also have that as a metaphor. For example, when God spoke to Moses about seeing Pharaoh, he said, tell Pharaoh that Israel is my firstborn. Yes.
So it doesn't necessarily always refer to the physical birth order. Okay, now, John, I've got a tricky one for you. It says, who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature.
Does this mean that Christ was a created being? That's what the Arians teach, but that's not what the Bible teaches. When you go to the book of Exodus, which is right at the beginning of the Bible. We find Jesus comes along in Exodus, chapter three.
And God said to Moses, I am that I am. And this is where when the term I am is used in the scripture, it has an eternal reference because it goes back as far as. And it goes forward as far as into the future as well.
And so Christ was always the I am. If anything else was in existence, Christ was already there, because he can truly say I am. You and I can't only if we've been somewhere.
But Christ here was the preeminent one. And when you go to the Book of John, once again, the Gospel of John, chapter 8 and verse 58, Jesus said to them, and here he is talking to the people around him. He said, most assuredly, I say to you before Abraham was I am.
And they knew exactly what he was saying and they want to kill him because of it. Because he claimed to be God. They thought that only God had eternity.
And they were right and didn't realize it. And they didn't realize that they were talking with the I am the Eternal One. Can I give you an example? How if you were to line up all the kings of history, who would you put first? And we can say that about Jesus, he is the preeminent one.
So he would be the first. Okay, well look, thank you for that. John, based on the whole body of scripture that says that Jesus was pre existent, he was immortal, eternal.
Gayle, how would you understand the meaning of this particular verse? Well, Christ is presented here as the creator and preceding creation because he's not a created being, he's the Creator. Jesus is being described as first in rank with all prerogatives and authority in heaven and earth. And the title Firstborn over all Creation, it portrays Jesus as the pre existent eternal ruler over creation, and hence his uniqueness and superiority.
He's the self existent one, always existed. He's God. It's very deep, isn't it? Let's keep reading because there's information in the next two verses.
I'm going to read verses 16 and 17. Colossians 1, verses 16 and 17. For by him were all things created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers, or all things were created by him and for him, and he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
So John, what reasons do these verses give as to why Christ is preeminent? John 1:3. All things were made through him, and without him nothing was made that was made. I mean, he was the greatest.
He was the first. He was the beginning of everything. And once again, can I make an illustration? Yes.
Here is a line. It has a beginning and an end, which is the only line that does not have the beginning and an end. It's a circle.
Wherever you are on that circle, that's beginning, but it's also the end. And this is where God was like a circle in existence. He was always there.
Okay. It's very hard for us to get out. It is.
It really stretches the comprehension, doesn't it? Yeah, but it's because he was the one who was the creator of all things, made everything, therefore. Hmm. Yep.
He's the preeminent one. Gayl, just on this, I want to focus on that word, all. How far do we extend the meaning of all? Well, Jesus, he created.
He really created everything. So all really means all everything. Everything we see and everything we don't see.
God created it all. And he existed before he anything was created. We can't stretch our minds around that, our finite minds.
But he was the agent of creation, of the physical and the invisible universe, including angels. And we find in the book of Ezekiel, Ezekiel, chapter 28, where we have the account of Lucifer. And right there, he's that beautiful covering cherub, the Bible tells us, and that he was created perfect, that but later corrupted himself and became Satan.
So the angels, Christ, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, they're infinite, but the angels are finite. They were created beings. And Lucifer was a created angel.
So Christ, yes, He is the creator of all things. And I guess when we think of all things, we've got to think, as you mentioned, you mentioned Lucifer, the covering cherub created all the things in heaven, the things that we can't see, which are out there, created. And it's interesting too.
You've got the. If Jesus created all things as he pre existent and eternal created all things, if you made the argument that he was created, did he create himself? I mean, you get some ridiculous sort of concepts here, but we're just thankful that he created all things. And he was, as you say, John, he was before all things.
Like the circle. He was always, always there. Now, John, I've got a question for you.
God or Jesus created all things, but was he like the absent landlord? Did he sort of create all things and sort of walk away and let things sort of just sort themselves out? I like the absentee landlord bit. No, Jesus didn't create everything and then leave. He created all things and then nehemiah in the old Testament, chapter 9 and verse 6 explained it as well as you can here.
It says, you alone are the Lord. You have made heaven, the heavens of heavens with all their hosts. And that is the place where God dwells in the heaven of heavens, the earth and everything on it, the seas and all that is in them.
And then here is the key. And you preserve them all. Every breath that we take is a gift from God.
I mean, you're only one breath away from no longer existing. And here it says, you preserve them all, and the host of heaven worships you. And this is where God's creation is not only our beginning, but it's also our reason for worship.
We worship the Creator God. What a blessing. Yes, it's interesting.
We think about Jesus, the creator. We forget, as you've just read there, he was also the sustainer. He keeps it all together.
I mean, the power that must be coming from God every day to keep all of creation going according to his laws. It's marvelous to think about. Thank you for that.
Let's keep reading. I'm going to read now verse 18. And verse 18 says, and he is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he might have preeminence.
So another pretty deep sort of text here. And Gael, a question for you. What does it mean to be the head of the body of the church? Well, if we turn to the book of Ephesians, Ephesians, chapter 5 and verse 23, the Bible says, for the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is the head of the church, and he is the savior of the body.
So here, as the husband has been assigned the role in a marriage as the leader, so Christ is the leader of his bride, the church. And Christ as the head, provides that leadership and guidance and nourishment for the church's unity and growth. And without the head, without Christ, the body definitely is dead and there is no church.
So it's in that spiritual context he tries to help us to understand by this union that he gave to man and woman in the very beginning. It's a very powerful metaphor, John. Where else in the Bible do we get this metaphor of Christ being the head? We go to Corinthians, 1st Corinthians 12.
And this is where he talks about the body. And our body has all different parts and they've got to work together. And what controls it all is the head is the head is the head.
And here in First Corinthians, 12, verse 27. Now you are the body of Christ and members individually. And so we all play an important part in the creation, the that God has made.
And what a privilege. What a privilege. It's a marvellous metaphor that because, you know, within the church people have vastly different gifts and God needs the person who can visit someone and he needs a person who can speak.
Everyone's important and without everyone working together, you don't have the body functioning properly. We all are a part of the function of the church. Yeah, yeah.
And God gives those gifts so he knows what's needed and what people can do naturally. And also with the Holy Spirit's power to make the thing work beautifully and efficiently. It's a very, very powerful analogy that.
Well, Gayl, in verse 18 it mentions again this term, the firstborn. Verse 15 it said firstborn of creation out saying the firstborn from the dead. What is the connection between these terms? Well, in Greek, the word for beginning arche a r c H e has a broad meaning here.
Beginning refers to Jesus as the source or initiator of the church, therefore its head, just as he is the beginning or initiator of creation. So John, how is Jesus the firstborn of the dead? He lived, died and then he raised himself, which nobody else can do. And as a result he's the firstborn of the dead because he raised himself and because of the life that he lived, he is able to raise the righteous and also able to raise the wicked as well.
Well, some people get a bit confused by that firstborn of the dead because in the Bible we have that. In fact we've got the account that Moses was raised from the dead and people say, oh, how can Christ be the firstborn dead when people were raised from dead before him. So Gayl, just for you, Moses was the first human to be raised long before Jesus resurrection.
Why? How do you explain that, why Jesus would be the firstborn? Well, Satan argued that Moses shouldn't be allowed to be raised from the dead because he was a sinner. But it was Moses faith in Christ, the promised Messiah, that allowed him to be raised. And it says in the book of John, John chapter 11 and verse 25 where Jesus said to Martha, he said to her, I am the resurrection and the life, and he who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live.
So Jesus was the resurrection and life. And this gives us great encouragement because God fulfills, He will fulfill his promises. And Christ also, he raised Jairus daughter from death and also the widow's son of Nain.
He was raised back to life. And that's all before Christ actually died himself, because he truly is the resurrection and the life. And as you read there, it says in John 11, all who believe in me will have life.
It's a very powerful thing. So, John, just sort of doing a bit of a quick summary here from these texts we've read in Colossians. How would you summarize in the preeminence of Christ? Just before I give you those four points, can we go back to all the kings? Yep.
And Jesus the first. Now, all the people who died and those who were raised, all the righteous of all the wicked, who would you put first? And that's a key to this concept of Jesus Christ being the first. And here there are four points.
One is that he is the perfect manifestation of the invisible God. Secondly, he is the agent by whom all things were created and initiator of creation and the recreation. So whatever is going to be created in the future, Christ is going to do that too.
Point three, he existed before all things and all things are brought together in him. Point four, he is the head of humanity and the head of the church, the body of the believers. That's what you were talking about, Garl.
And then point five, he conquered sin and death, earning the right to resurrect all who put their trust in him. Our only hope is in Jesus Christ, the firstborn. Amen.
Very powerful at last. A lot of the firstborns in the Bible stories mess things up. Christ is one who didn't mess anything up.
Yeah, thank you for that. He has the right to be the firstborn. Very good.
Well, let's. I want to read verse 19. Now Colossians 1, verse 19 says, for it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell.
And Gayle, what does this fullness mean? How would you describe that? Well, that Jesus is fully God. He's able to create, he's able to redeem. And Jesus demonstrates the Father's glory, full of grace and truth.
We see that in the book of John. John chapter 1, verse 14. The Bible says, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
We beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. So he's very unique. And here Jesus had self existence and power to create.
And Jesus had the fullness of wisdom and love, which conquering sin and death and the power to redeem humanity. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.
It's pretty amazing. I'll just close with reading verse 20 and having made peace through the blood of the cross by him to reconcile all things. There's that word all again unto Himself by Him I say, whether they be things in earth or things in heaven.
So praise God for our Redeemer, Jesus, preeminent, as you've summarized there, John, very, very powerful. Very powerful indeed. That's all we've got time for today.
Thank you, Gayl. Thank you, John. Well, Jesus is our Creator and Redeemer fully God.
He came into our lost world as a human. He voluntarily died on a cross to purchase us back to Himself. It is hard to comprehend the love of Jesus, our Creator, who came in the flesh to give his life as a ransom for us.
Through his death and resurrection, he conquered sin and and death. He attained preeminence over all things in heaven and on earth. It's amazing when we think about what Jesus has done and who Jesus is and what that means for us today.
Well, we're glad you joined us today on Let God Speak. Remember, all past programs plus teacher's notes are available on our website 3abinaustralia.org.eu. email us on LGS at 3airbnaustralia.org.au.
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