Christ is #1 Supremacy, Pre-eminency, Superiority

Transcription

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2 Christ is #1

3 Christ is #1 Supremacy, Pre-eminency, Superiority

4 Gratitude and Prayer 1:1 1:14 Things to Know (Doctrine) Things to Do (Practice) 1:15 2:23 3:1 4:6 Final Words and Greetings 4:7 4:18

5 Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, 16 for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can t see such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. 17 He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. Colossians 1:15-17 (NLT)

6 Christ is Supreme... Over Creation

7 Christ is Supreme... Over Creation 1. Because Christ is Deity (15a)

8 Christ is Supreme... Over Creation 1. Because Christ is Deity (15a) He is the image of the invisible God. (NIV) (Now) He is the exact likeness of the unseen God - the visible representation of the invisible. (AMP) We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. (MSG) Colossians 1

9 Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name goes all the glory for your unfailing love and faithfulness. 2 Why let the nations say, Where is their God? 3 Our God is in the heavens, and he does as he wishes. 4 Their idols are merely things of silver and gold, shaped by human hands. 5 They have mouths but cannot speak, and eyes but cannot see. 6 They have ears but cannot hear, and noses but cannot smell. 7 They have hands but cannot feel, and feet but cannot walk, and throats but cannot make a sound. 8 And those who make idols are just like them, as are all who trust in them. Psalm 115:1-8 (NLT)

10 Christ is Supreme... Over Creation 2. Because Christ is Creator (15b-17) 1. Christ is firstborn over all creation (15b) Prior in time Superior in rank Colossians 1

11 Christ is Supreme... Over Creation 2. Because Christ is Creator (15b-17) 2. Christ is the unifying centerpiece/ sphere of all creation Colossians 1

12 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Colossians 1:16-17 (NIV)

13 In Creation, Christ is... the agent ( in, by, through all things created ) the focus ( for him ) the antecedent ( before all things ) the sustainer ( all things hold together ) Christ is Supreme Over Creation Colossians 1:16-17

14 Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heaven! 2 Praise him for his mighty works; praise his unequaled greatness! 3 Praise him with a blast of the ram s horn; praise him with the lyre and harp! 4 Praise him with the tambourine and dancing; praise him with strings and flutes! 5 Praise him with a clash of cymbals; praise him with loud clanging cymbals. 6 Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord! Praise the Lord! Psalm 150 (NLT)

15 Christ is Supreme... Over the Church 1. Because He is Head of the Body (18) And he (Christ) is the head of the body, the church. God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. 23 And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself. Ephesians 1:22-23 (NLT)

16 Christ is Supreme... Over the Church 2. Because he is the beginning and the firstborn among the dead (18) Jesus is the first-one raised from the dead. Because I live, you also will live. John 14:19 (NIV)

17 Christ is Supreme... Over the Church 3. Because He is the fullness of God (19) 4. Because He is the reconciler (20-23) And through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ s blood on the cross. Colossians 1:20 (NLT)

18 Reconciliation Defined: a change in relationship or attitude from enmity (hostility) to peace. People are reconciled to God. (God is not reconciled to people.) Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. Colossians 1:22 (NLT)

19 Takeaway Questions 1. As Supreme Lord over all creation, is Jesus Lord of my life (hopes, dreams, ambitions...)? 2. As Supreme Lord over the Church, is Jesus Lord of Fellowship?...Do we gather to honor Him?...Do we scatter to promote Him?...Do we arrange life to serve Him?