FBC Daily Devotions

Last Sunday, Craig spoke on the greatness of God in Christ – His preeminence, supremacy, lordship. Was there anything that stood out to you in particular? How has it impacted your perspective so far this week?

One thing that keeps coming back to me is the idea that as Creator of everything — visible and invisible — God through Christ can do anything with His creation. Just as a painter can do whatever he/she wants with his/her painting – a stroke of one color here, another there; just as a musician can do whatever he/she wants with his/her song – a melody rise, a chord change; just as a chef can do whatever he/she wants with a specific main ingredient – fry it, grill it, bake it — so God can do whatever He pleases with His creation. It is His to do whatever He wants with it, and who are we to question His actions? As Paul says in Romans 9:20, “The thing molded will not say to the molder, ‘Why did you make me like this,’ will it?”

God is certainly under no obligation to give us good things. He is under no obligation to care for us or love us. And yet we see in this passage that God chose to do something incredible with His creation. He chose to fix it. Yes, this thing that man broke of his own will and bad judgment, God chose to fix. And He is still fixing it one person at a time. That’s what is so amazing to me, that God could have just left us to rust in the junkpile of sin, but instead, He chose to reconcile us to Himself.

Yesterday I took down an old light fixture and replaced it with a new one. The old one just didn’t match the style of our home, and it just looked a little dated. I look at it now and wonder why on earth I bought it in the first place. Where will that old light fixture go? Probably to the dump. I bought it a long time ago, and that’s just my decision to get rid of it. But thank God that He doesn’t treat us that way! Praise God we don’t get old and out of style in His eyes. Praise God He doesn’t look at us and regret saving us. Praise God we don’t eventually end up on a trash heap.

If you’ve ever doubted God’s great love for you, remember that of all the things He could have done with a damaged and broken and rebellious creation, He chose to redeem it. He chose to redeem you, and He never gets tired of looking upon your life with great care and concern for every matter in your life. He has no regrets because He made you, and He bought you for a very high price. You are and always will be precious in His sight. The Supreme Being of the universe has an undivided interest in your life. Why not take some time right now and thank God for the wonderful privilege of being loved by Him and reconciled to Him for all of eternity.

“And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.”

How important is the Church? It seems the redemption of creation is wrapped up in this thing called the Church, Christ’s body. It is an unexpected connection between the Church and the supremacy of Christ over everything, but there it is in v. 18.

He is the beginning, and by that the Greek seems to indicate He is the beginning of the Church (i.e. He is its beginning.)  – something new, something significant, something incredible – a new creation through Christ in His body, the church. He is the firstborn from among the dead. His resurrection brought victory over death, but it meant so much more. His death and resurrection set into motion God’s cosmic plan to redeem His creation. The mysterious thing to me is that this reconciliation of God’s creation is bound up in the Church. Indeed, as one commentator has noted, “the new creation has erupted in the midst of a fallen creation, and the promised blessings of the new age are now being realized within the history of the church.”[1]

I picture a charcoal drawing on a piece of heavy, white paper. Black and white. But then a watercolor brush with color-filled paint touches the paper, and it begins to spread through the paper breathing color into the drawing. As the color of Christ touches the world through His body, the Church, there is a certain redemption, a certain supremacy of Christ that is taking place. It is not a fully realized redemption or reconciliation, but there is the presence of the supreme, risen and reigning Christ in everything He touches through the Church. Now I’ll be the first to admit that not everything I touch, not everything the Church touches brings forth the supreme presence of Christ. We’re not perfect by any stretch. But it is true that Christ began something revolutionary in His Church, and that His supremacy over all things is her ultimate mission. John Piper has written somewhere (I pulled it from one of Sara Waite’s blogs):  

“God is pursuing with omnipotent passion a worldwide purpose of gathering joyful worshipers for Himself from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. He has an inexhaustible enthusiasm for the supremacy of His name among the nations. Therefore, let us bring our affections into line with His, and, for the sake of His name, let us renounce the quest for worldly comforts and join His global purpose.” — John Piper   

I like that a lot. God has an inexhaustible enthusiasm for the supremacy of His name among the nations. Wow, to be a part of God’s plan to make His name supreme over all, well that is an awesome calling and privilege. Consider how you might color someone’s world today with the supremacy of Christ in some way, because when you do, you are taking part in God’s ultimate purpose for your life and for His Church.

¹⁷He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

The ocean… it is filled with an incredible variety of life. From the smallest of cell life to the largest of whales, and everything in-between, the ocean is a world in itself. The one thing that holds all of the ocean’s life together is the ocean itself – the water. Without the water, life in the seas would cease to exist. (Oh, I suppose there might be a plant or two that might survive, but you get my point.) The water doesn’t just hold life together like glue in a joint; it also contains life. Life is bound together in the water, not just by the water. The same is true of the created universe and Christ. The created universe is held together in Him, not just by Him.

It is common to think of the principles that govern the physical universe (e.g. the laws of physics, chemistry, biology, etc.) as just that – laws that determine the inner workings of our world. But we must remember that these are merely laws that describe the inner workings of our world. They do not determine the workings. While they sufficiently predict our environment, it is Christ who is behind the laws of nature. He is the One who holds together our otherwise chaotic world. He does not exist beyond the laws of the universe, but rather those laws exist within Him. As one commentator has noted, “he is its rationale, its rhyme and reason. He is the System of the systems.”[1] If He wanted to change the way the universe worked, He could do it at any time (and He will in time). He could at any time make it so whenever we jumped, we’d fall slowly and softly. He could make a cold sun for cold days and hot nights. He could make it so whenever we eat…well, I think you get my drift. Our entire universe, seen and unseen, is held together in Christ like water in an ocean. Without Christ, the universe would cease to exist.

Are we dependent on Christ? Absolutely, whether we believe it or not. Does He govern the way life works? Yes, absolutely. Life only works one way – His way. The only way we can ever make sense of life and find our own way in it is to recognize that Christ is the converging point of the transcendent God’s activity in the arena of human history. He is the interpretive key for understanding the meaning of creation, the purpose of life, and its goal.[2] It is to our benefit, then, to live all of life in light of the supremacy and preeminence of Christ. The Creator and Sustainer of the universe has provided a way for us to live. Is He not big enough, intelligent enough, powerful enough to provide us the best way to live?

[1] Walter Wink, Naming the Powers, p. 115.

[2] David Garland, The NIV Application Commentary of Colossians, p. 106.

This is one my favorite passages of the Bible because it says so much about the supremacy, preeminence, and every other multi-syllabled word that means “big” to describe Christ. He is indescribably greater than our small minds can imagine, and yet, Paul does a pretty good job of getting our minds going in the right direction.

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were made by Him and for Him. (1:15-16)

I’m just going to let that soak in for a few minutes…

Jesus Christ:

Image of the Invisible God – God was made visible to us in a way that we can relate to, in a way that we can handle without being overwhelmed by His glory and holiness. God came to us. That is an incredible thought. People can get all excited about the thought of an extraterrestrial being coming to earth, but how much more exciting it is that God visited us. And of course, He continues to be with us in the invisible form of the Holy Spirit. The thought that God came to us in the person of Jesus Christ is just a profound and mind-boggling thought this morning for some reason.

The firstborn over all creation – Immediately one might ask, “Jesus was created? Wouldn’t that make Him less than God?” Let it be clear that Jesus was not created. He existed before anything was created (how else could everything have been created? He couldn’t, after all, create Himself!). No, the term “firstborn” is a biblical, metaphorical term that denotes first in importance or first in time (see Ps. 89:27 as an example). The term “firstborn” here “distinguishes Christ from all created things as before them in time and as supreme. He outranks all things in creation. Paul asserts Christ’s primacy over creation and not just within creation.” (1)

By Him all things were created – everything we can see and can’t see; every “human” and heavenly power was created by Him. Now that doesn’t mean these authorities or powers will always do what is pleasing in the eyes of Christ, but it does mean that regardless of their rebellion, Christ is still Lord over them all. There is much that could be said about this thought alone. He is Lord of everything. Everything.

They were made by Him and for Him – what is most remarkable about this truth is the fact that Jesus doesn’t treat His creation as a child would a toy or a spoiled adult would his possessions. While everything was created for Him, He treats His possessions as precious. Sometimes that brings discipline, but most often that brings gentle care, peace, and joy. We were made for Him, and I can think of no better person to be under the care of.

There is so much more to be gleaned from these two short verses. Why not take some time right now and ponder in amazement the significance of Christ, Who is above all, over all, for all, and with all?

(1) Garland, The NIV Application Commentary of Colossians

¹¹being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully ¹²giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. ¹³For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, ¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Carrying further the thought from yesterday’s passage, Paul shares a few other reasons for praying for the knowledge of God’s will (and by that a knowledge and understanding of the heart of God in all matters). In v. 11: to give them strength to endure, for patience, and for thanksgiving. Wow, could we all use more of those things in our live!   

How do we endure the hardships of life? It really comes by getting to understand God more and more. Here’s the thing: we may not understand our situation or even the outcome, but if we get to know God “through all spiritual wisdom and understanding” (v. 9), we will begin to “see” an invisible dimension or quality to our situations that are in the hands of an Almighty God. The more we understand the heart of God, the easier it will be to endure harships. He is a good God, and He has our best in my mind. That is His will for us.

The same is true of patience. (Could write a chapter on patience alone!) Why do we get so impatient? Outside of the fact that we may want something right away, sometimes we need patience when the road is long. Endurance and patience go hand in hand in these cases. I wonder if Paul is preparing the readers for a long journey ahead? Think about life’s difficult situations. They begin with a need for patience – the little annoyances, the inconveniences, the frustration of waiting, waiting, waiting… As time goes on, the need for endurance or perseverance becomes inceasingly obvious. Getting angry doesn’t help. Worrying doesn’t help. Ah, but dwelling on the wisdom and the heart of God does. Maybe that’s why Paul prays for this because he knows that’s where the strength comes from.

You know what happens when we turn our hearts toward knowing the God of all understanding and wisdom? Our patience and endurance turn to joyful thanksgiving (v. 12). Why? Because understanding God’s will for us means having a deep understanding of God’s redemption from something far worse than our present situations. His will is filled with a love and desire for us that goes beyond the present. Indeed, He has “rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Understanding the will of God means understanding His eternal will for our lives. There is so much more to this life. So much more.

Pray that you will gain a greater understanding of God’s eternal will for your life. My prayer for you is that you will be strengthened with endurance, patience, and thankfulness.