Beef Roast with Horseradish sauce 😋 He is before all things...

Colossians 1:16-17

¹⁶ For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions 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.

Paul has just finished praying for the Colossians and then starting in verse 14, of chapter 1, he begins to list what is probably one of the most concentrated descriptions of the glories of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.

Here are all fifteen of them…

Starting with verse 14: In Him we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

    Verse 15: He is the image of the invisible God. He is the firstborn of all creation

    Verse 16: 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. All things were created for Him.

    Verse 17: He is before all things. In him all things hold together.

    Verse 18: He is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning. He is the firstborn from the dead. In everything He is preeminent.

    Verse 19: In Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.

    Verse 20: He reconciles all things to himself, whether on earth or in heaven. He makes peace by the blood of His cross.

We need to recognize that Jesus Christ created all that is.

Everything was created by Him, and, everything that came into being exists for Christ.

That is, it exists to display the greatness of Christ.

Nothing, nothing at all in the universe exists for its own sake.

Everything from the bottom of the ocean to the top of the mountains.

From the smallest particle to the largest star.

From the ugliest spider to the most beautiful flower.

From the greatest saint to the most wicked dictator.

Everything that exists… exists to make the greatness of Christ more fully known. Including you.

*One of the puzzles of modern physics is how the positive charged protons in an atomic nucleus can possibly stay together. Scientists have called this force the “strong nuclear force.” They know the force exists, they can measure it and they know it’s the strongest force in the universe.

But they have no idea as to how or why, it exists.

But this is no mystery to the Christian. The universe is held together from the atomic to the cosmic level by Christ. 

So why did I tell you this? To reinforce the truth that, we are secure in Christ, always and forever. 

For 2 reasons:

One, is to make a strong point that Christ is the only being worthy of worship and He deserves our worship.

In *Colossians there were people saying that “the worship of angels” was part of the way to God, No! These angels were created by Christ and for Christ. We are not to worship them. We are to worship the One who made them.

Two, because problems and calamities fill the news from coast to coast and our hearts grieve by what we see and hear but we cannot allow ourselves to become discouraged or despondent.

Paul wrote to the Colossians to warn them of the philosophies and seemingly plausible arguments from those that do not believe in the supremacy of Christ.  We can easily be swept away by man-centered trends and behaviors in society.  

I want you to remember: that all things were created by Him and through Him and for Him. ¹⁰ and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority; ^{Colossians 2:10}

Remember: In the end, everything and everyone serves to magnify the glory of our Savior and this will increase the gladness of his people in Christ. 
 God Bless!

*We are not to worship angles: Colossians 2:18

*On the “strong nuclear force” C. Barry McCarty; Parables & Miracles 1999; page 6