WEBVTT 00:00:00.300 --> 00:00:10.439 All right, let us pray Well, we thank you that 00:00:10.439 --> 00:00:16.480 once again together in your name as a body Within 00:00:16.480 --> 00:00:21.600 the the sea of those who are gathered today across 00:00:21.600 --> 00:00:27.300 the world across our nation across our city Across 00:00:27.300 --> 00:00:34.119 our region And we'll be thanking you for all 00:00:34.119 --> 00:00:38.560 those places you like hearing me gather around 00:00:38.560 --> 00:00:42.719 your word. We ask that you prepare all of our 00:00:42.719 --> 00:00:46.780 hearts, including mine, to hear what your spirit 00:00:46.780 --> 00:00:50.539 has to say to us this moment. I pray in the Lord 00:00:50.539 --> 00:00:55.979 that you would touch this vessel of clay that 00:00:55.979 --> 00:00:58.679 I will be able to deliver this word as you would 00:00:58.679 --> 00:01:01.929 have it delivered. to your people. Lord, give 00:01:01.929 --> 00:01:06.629 us all understanding at the heart level. Lord, 00:01:06.730 --> 00:01:11.290 does anyone among us who does not know you, may 00:01:11.290 --> 00:01:14.569 this be the day that they hear your spirit calling 00:01:14.569 --> 00:01:20.349 them to you, that they may embrace this gracious 00:01:20.349 --> 00:01:25.269 reward and begin this journey that will last 00:01:25.269 --> 00:01:28.689 for eternity. These things we pray in Jesus' 00:01:28.950 --> 00:01:38.780 name. All right. We did hear our text read a 00:01:38.780 --> 00:01:41.959 couple minutes ago, but I'm going to reread it. 00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:46.319 It is indeed found in Colossians 1, verses 15 00:01:46.319 --> 00:01:52.379 through 19. Colossians 1, verses 15 through 19. 00:01:53.319 --> 00:01:57.040 It is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn 00:01:57.040 --> 00:02:00.950 of all creation. For by him all things are created, 00:02:01.469 --> 00:02:04.510 in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, 00:02:05.290 --> 00:02:08.650 whether thrones, dominions, rulers, authorities, 00:02:09.310 --> 00:02:12.650 all things are created through him and for him. 00:02:13.430 --> 00:02:16.889 And he is before all things, and in him all things 00:02:16.889 --> 00:02:20.610 hold together. And he is the head of the body, 00:02:20.990 --> 00:02:24.270 the church, he is the beginning, the first born 00:02:24.270 --> 00:02:28.000 from the dead. that in everything he might be 00:02:28.000 --> 00:02:33.860 preeminent. For in him all foods of God was pleased 00:02:33.860 --> 00:02:47.259 to dwell. This is the word of our God. One of 00:02:47.259 --> 00:02:49.860 the questions that crossed my mind, and I put 00:02:49.860 --> 00:02:54.439 in my notes, is Jesus Christ one among the founders 00:02:54.719 --> 00:02:58.740 of various religions? Or is it more than that? 00:02:59.340 --> 00:03:05.719 Even the only way to know it? Does religion have 00:03:05.719 --> 00:03:08.479 a voice in the matters of the origins and workings 00:03:08.479 --> 00:03:12.180 of the universe? Is the whole spiritual thing 00:03:12.180 --> 00:03:17.219 an aspect of each individual's private life that 00:03:17.219 --> 00:03:22.409 they must decide for themselves? Or Is each individual 00:03:22.409 --> 00:03:27.650 situated within the world made by God, the God 00:03:27.650 --> 00:03:32.349 of the Christian faith? Yes, I was talking to 00:03:32.349 --> 00:03:36.949 a pipeline worker who was digging around our 00:03:36.949 --> 00:03:40.490 street about, what do you think about God? And 00:03:40.490 --> 00:03:42.949 that's one of the things he said. I'm trying 00:03:42.949 --> 00:03:46.909 to figure it out. I'm doing research. Is that 00:03:46.909 --> 00:03:51.349 really how this works? So as we look today at 00:03:51.349 --> 00:03:54.550 the Colossian heresy that was going on in the 00:03:54.550 --> 00:03:57.469 church Colossae at that Colossae at that time 00:03:57.469 --> 00:04:02.629 and as we see Paul Addressing what we can discern 00:04:02.629 --> 00:04:07.810 of that heresy in the book We'll begin to see 00:04:07.810 --> 00:04:11.030 you know there's a lot of things that are still 00:04:11.030 --> 00:04:16.189 the same and This word that Paul preached to 00:04:16.189 --> 00:04:20.329 wrote to the church of Colossae applies to us 00:04:20.329 --> 00:04:26.509 as well today. Now, we want to see four major 00:04:26.509 --> 00:04:30.170 truths while communicating about Christ here. 00:04:31.949 --> 00:04:38.910 Christ is God, Christ is creator, Christ is sustainer, 00:04:39.389 --> 00:04:43.610 and Christ is the head of the church, the new 00:04:43.610 --> 00:04:47.009 humanity. Now, I know for some people in here 00:04:47.009 --> 00:04:50.629 that might be review, but it's always good to 00:04:50.629 --> 00:04:53.449 review those foundational truths of scripture, 00:04:53.949 --> 00:04:57.310 but we might not lose our grip on them and see 00:04:57.310 --> 00:05:01.470 how they once again apply to our lives. Now, 00:05:02.230 --> 00:05:04.910 a lot has been going on in Colossi, and it's 00:05:04.910 --> 00:05:09.829 been driven by this heresy, or maybe even heresies, 00:05:10.430 --> 00:05:14.019 so we can again only discern What it is what 00:05:14.019 --> 00:05:17.220 it was from material in book there is no extra 00:05:17.220 --> 00:05:20.800 biblical material Just dig around and find out 00:05:20.800 --> 00:05:24.420 what this thing is what we do seem to understand 00:05:24.420 --> 00:05:26.860 is that there were young converts under cultural 00:05:26.860 --> 00:05:30.699 pressure to conform to the beliefs and practices 00:05:30.699 --> 00:05:35.699 of their pagan and Jewish neighbors Paganism 00:05:35.699 --> 00:05:40.720 defined by one writer as the idea that the highest 00:05:40.720 --> 00:05:45.920 goal of human existence is a healthy, harmonious, 00:05:46.439 --> 00:05:51.339 and joyous life. In modern parlance, your best 00:05:51.339 --> 00:05:58.060 life now. They were being pushed toward mixing 00:05:58.060 --> 00:06:02.100 Christ with other spiritualities and other religions, 00:06:02.220 --> 00:06:05.420 that's called syncretism, based on the spirit 00:06:05.420 --> 00:06:09.060 of their age that would pollute the purity and 00:06:09.060 --> 00:06:13.509 limit the extent of their infaith. The person 00:06:13.509 --> 00:06:16.329 in work of Christ was only part of spirituality 00:06:16.329 --> 00:06:22.490 from that perspective. There was so much more, 00:06:23.050 --> 00:06:26.750 however. In other words, they're thinking that 00:06:26.750 --> 00:06:30.149 there's so much more than just Christ. In other 00:06:30.149 --> 00:06:34.129 words, Christ is either not enough or he's just 00:06:34.129 --> 00:06:40.339 not all that there is. There's more. As you sort 00:06:40.339 --> 00:06:42.259 through the various statements made in the letter, 00:06:42.259 --> 00:06:45.160 you can discern some of the ideas floating around, 00:06:45.399 --> 00:06:49.459 such as maintaining legalistic observances of 00:06:49.459 --> 00:06:53.860 certain forms of Judaism, or Greek spiritual 00:06:53.860 --> 00:06:58.279 speculation, or the place of angels as agents 00:06:58.279 --> 00:07:03.680 of creation, givers of God's wall and other misconceptions, 00:07:04.860 --> 00:07:09.649 or any focus on heavenly intermediaries. Ways 00:07:09.649 --> 00:07:14.069 to get to God. Or knowledge of the spiritual 00:07:14.069 --> 00:07:20.430 elite and their visionary experiences. And the 00:07:20.430 --> 00:07:24.430 wish of elemental beings. It's a whole big thing 00:07:24.430 --> 00:07:27.990 on that we don't need to get into. Or spiritual 00:07:27.990 --> 00:07:31.250 growth through rigorous physical asceticism. 00:07:32.790 --> 00:07:36.100 And the left. Just a lot, as you can see, a lot 00:07:36.100 --> 00:07:39.220 of stuff going on that Paul had to deal with. 00:07:39.779 --> 00:07:43.139 Paul realizes that one reason why they're bouncing 00:07:43.139 --> 00:07:45.519 all these things around is they don't really 00:07:45.519 --> 00:07:50.579 understand who Jesus is and the awesomeness of 00:07:50.579 --> 00:07:55.740 his word and his person. So Paul puts on display 00:07:55.740 --> 00:07:59.759 the preeminence of Christ over all this mess, 00:08:00.199 --> 00:08:04.259 showing that he is the very creator of and lord 00:08:04.259 --> 00:08:07.600 over all these spiritual beings and realities 00:08:07.600 --> 00:08:10.939 and entities that they are seeking through various 00:08:10.939 --> 00:08:15.259 practices. Despite the time difference between 00:08:15.259 --> 00:08:19.420 ancient Colossi and the modern West, you can 00:08:19.420 --> 00:08:22.300 tell that there's a certain familiarity, even 00:08:22.300 --> 00:08:24.019 though there's not a one -on -one correspondence. 00:08:24.240 --> 00:08:26.439 You can bet you have these people seeking things 00:08:26.439 --> 00:08:30.779 that are similar, even in our own day. Let me 00:08:30.779 --> 00:08:34.360 just make a theological side note. Verses 15 00:08:34.360 --> 00:08:38.360 through 20 have a poetic meter about them that 00:08:38.360 --> 00:08:41.279 suggests that this may have been an early hymn 00:08:41.279 --> 00:08:45.960 -like creed of the church, an early summary, 00:08:46.940 --> 00:08:48.919 which Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy 00:08:48.919 --> 00:08:52.740 Spirit, included in his letter. It might also 00:08:52.740 --> 00:08:57.220 have been a Jewish creed that Paul repurposed 00:08:57.220 --> 00:09:00.590 for the body of Christ. But in either way, it 00:09:00.590 --> 00:09:05.889 captures a summary of the person of Christ and 00:09:05.889 --> 00:09:08.330 subsequent verses, that is verses 20 through 00:09:08.330 --> 00:09:14.269 22, capture the work of Christ. So this brings 00:09:14.269 --> 00:09:21.309 us to point one. Christ, which means by the way, 00:09:21.629 --> 00:09:24.509 Messiah or the anointed one, Christ is not Jesus' 00:09:24.750 --> 00:09:34.289 last name. is God, verses 15a, 17, and 19. Now 00:09:34.289 --> 00:09:39.990 Christ is God here in three ways. He is the image 00:09:39.990 --> 00:09:44.370 of the Father, two, He preexisted before creation 00:09:44.370 --> 00:09:47.590 like the Father, and three, is fully divine, 00:09:48.330 --> 00:09:52.889 the fullness of God like the Father. So first 00:09:52.889 --> 00:09:55.730 of all, He is the image of the invisible God. 00:09:56.279 --> 00:10:00.980 verses 15a. Westminister confession chapter 2 00:10:00.980 --> 00:10:05.679 .1 tells us there is but one only living and 00:10:05.679 --> 00:10:09.840 true God who is infinite in being and perfection 00:10:09.840 --> 00:10:15.059 a most pure spirit invisible without body and 00:10:15.059 --> 00:10:18.580 then goes on displaying a host of other attributes 00:10:18.580 --> 00:10:24.879 like most holy most wise almighty Most loving, 00:10:25.379 --> 00:10:28.299 most merciful. Boy, I can see somebody doing 00:10:28.299 --> 00:10:30.960 a rap with that. Not somebody in here can put 00:10:30.960 --> 00:10:37.220 that together. Christ is the exact imprint, Hebrews 00:10:37.220 --> 00:10:42.080 1 -3 tells us, of this only living and true God 00:10:42.080 --> 00:10:47.000 in bodily form. You can hear your testimony over 00:10:47.000 --> 00:10:49.720 and over saying, I am God, and your reason to 00:10:49.720 --> 00:10:54.820 live. I am God, and your reason to live. He is 00:10:54.820 --> 00:11:00.480 more than just a snapshot. Christ fully reveals 00:11:00.480 --> 00:11:04.399 God who is this pure spirit, who is invisible 00:11:04.399 --> 00:11:09.899 to the naked eye. I can still hear my grand daughter 00:11:09.899 --> 00:11:14.659 around to say, but I can't sing. Yeah, that's 00:11:14.659 --> 00:11:18.179 the way he is. That's why Jesus came, so we can 00:11:18.179 --> 00:11:21.240 see, right? Picture in your mind the image of 00:11:21.240 --> 00:11:25.399 a signature on a stamp or an official Roman seal 00:11:25.399 --> 00:11:30.460 impressed on wax. And you get the idea of Paul 00:11:30.460 --> 00:11:34.200 is trying to get across how much Jesus is the 00:11:34.200 --> 00:11:37.600 imprint of the father. Today, it would be something 00:11:37.600 --> 00:11:43.139 like a Notre Republic's embossed seal stamped 00:11:43.139 --> 00:11:47.309 on paper. Now it's recorded in the gospel of 00:11:47.309 --> 00:11:50.549 John verses chapter verse chapter 14 verses 8 00:11:50.549 --> 00:11:55.450 through 10 Philip said to him Lord Show us a 00:11:55.450 --> 00:12:00.370 father and it is enough for us Jesus said damn 00:12:00.370 --> 00:12:04.990 Have I been with you so long and you still don't 00:12:04.990 --> 00:12:12.230 know me Philip Whoever has seen me has seen the 00:12:12.230 --> 00:12:17.820 father How can you say show us the Father? Do 00:12:17.820 --> 00:12:20.580 you not believe that I am in the Father and the 00:12:20.580 --> 00:12:26.700 Father is in me? See Jesus shows us the Father's 00:12:26.700 --> 00:12:31.759 nature, character, love, will and more for he 00:12:31.759 --> 00:12:39.720 is God come in the flesh. Secondly, like the 00:12:39.720 --> 00:12:44.759 Father he is before all things. Verse 17a he 00:12:44.759 --> 00:12:47.539 pre -existed with the Father before creation 00:12:47.539 --> 00:12:52.840 Hence he shares in the eternality of the Father's 00:12:52.840 --> 00:12:57.600 nature He has been around from the everlasting 00:12:57.600 --> 00:13:03.240 everlasting out of nowhere in John 8 15 57 59 00:13:03.240 --> 00:13:08.820 that you said to him You are not quite 50 years 00:13:08.820 --> 00:13:14.570 old and you have seen Abraham Really? And Jesus 00:13:14.570 --> 00:13:17.570 said to them, truly, truly, I say to you, before 00:13:17.570 --> 00:13:25.269 Abraham was, I am. It freaked everybody out. 00:13:25.629 --> 00:13:28.250 They start picking up rocks. They were going 00:13:28.250 --> 00:13:33.090 to kill his brother. But he slipped out. And 00:13:33.090 --> 00:13:35.509 now the temple that your mother picked this time 00:13:35.509 --> 00:13:39.519 was not yet. Because see, they understood. The 00:13:39.519 --> 00:13:42.259 significance of now is saying, yeah, I saw him 00:13:42.259 --> 00:13:47.539 back then. But saying, I am? Really? Yes. Again, 00:13:48.220 --> 00:13:51.639 underlining he indeed is God. And thirdly, God 00:13:51.639 --> 00:13:55.320 was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in 00:13:55.320 --> 00:13:58.120 him. One of the temptations of the early church 00:13:58.120 --> 00:14:01.460 was to see Jesus not as having or possessing 00:14:01.460 --> 00:14:05.100 the full measure of divine life, divine revelation, 00:14:05.639 --> 00:14:09.809 or have complete divinity. Christ was not some 00:14:09.809 --> 00:14:12.909 spiritual middleman between God and humanity, 00:14:13.470 --> 00:14:15.750 simply controlling access to Him. There's that 00:14:15.750 --> 00:14:19.690 intermediary business. God the Father was pleased 00:14:19.690 --> 00:14:23.889 to have His full divinity contained in the incarnate 00:14:23.889 --> 00:14:27.750 Christ, including all of His attributes and activities. 00:14:28.830 --> 00:14:32.909 God's Spirit, Word, Wisdom, Glory, all perfectly 00:14:32.909 --> 00:14:37.230 contained and disclosed in Christ. Although his 00:14:37.230 --> 00:14:41.250 glory was restrained, because if he had turned 00:14:41.250 --> 00:14:45.830 his glory loose, we'd have all been toast. Or 00:14:45.830 --> 00:14:47.730 actually, if we were alone, we wouldn't be here 00:14:47.730 --> 00:14:52.409 because the world had been toast. The early church 00:14:52.409 --> 00:14:55.909 father Athanasius, against the original Jehovah's 00:14:55.909 --> 00:14:58.990 Witnesses, the Arians, created a creed to underscore 00:14:58.990 --> 00:15:02.929 the fullness of God shared in all three persons 00:15:02.929 --> 00:15:06.350 of the Trinity. Which I found out you folks were 00:15:06.350 --> 00:15:09.990 sighted. We see it in fully. It's quite a feat 00:15:09.990 --> 00:15:15.049 Let me just quote part of it The divinity of 00:15:15.049 --> 00:15:19.789 the Father Son and Holy Spirit is one their glory 00:15:19.789 --> 00:15:24.690 even their majesty holy China What probably the 00:15:24.690 --> 00:15:28.230 father has the son has and the spirit has the 00:15:28.230 --> 00:15:31.250 father is uncreated The son is uncreated the 00:15:31.250 --> 00:15:34.570 Holy Spirit is uncreated The Father is immeasurable. 00:15:34.769 --> 00:15:38.330 The Son is immeasurable. The Holy Spirit is immeasurable. 00:15:38.870 --> 00:15:41.649 The Father is eternal. The Son is eternal. The 00:15:41.649 --> 00:15:45.929 Holy Spirit is eternal. I'm told. You get the 00:15:45.929 --> 00:15:52.009 idea. Jesus is fully divine as well as fully 00:15:52.009 --> 00:15:58.629 human. Brings us to point two. Christ is creator. 00:15:59.710 --> 00:16:03.639 Verses 15b and 16. Now it turns out that Christ 00:16:03.639 --> 00:16:05.960 was as much involved in the creation as the Father. 00:16:06.919 --> 00:16:09.720 And that would make sense, since the creation 00:16:09.720 --> 00:16:13.600 was a Trinitarian enterprise. The Trinity, of 00:16:13.600 --> 00:16:18.820 course, being one God, three persons. Paul wants 00:16:18.820 --> 00:16:22.500 to highlight that whatever spiritual entity that 00:16:22.500 --> 00:16:26.240 the culture is all excited about, Jesus is preeminent 00:16:26.240 --> 00:16:32.159 and the creator of them. Now he does that Four 00:16:32.159 --> 00:16:33.960 sub -points, I know this outline is really getting 00:16:33.960 --> 00:16:36.679 in there, but you know, it's there. This is a 00:16:36.679 --> 00:16:42.179 very rich text. Very rich. So Christ is preeminent 00:16:42.179 --> 00:16:45.580 over creation. Christ is the womb of creation. 00:16:46.179 --> 00:16:49.980 Christ is the agent of creation. And he is the 00:16:49.980 --> 00:16:54.779 purpose of creation. Now when it says the firstborn 00:16:54.779 --> 00:16:59.639 of all creation, this is firstborn metaphorically. 00:17:00.110 --> 00:17:07.329 He ranks as beloved firstborn son with the priority 00:17:07.329 --> 00:17:13.829 of rank over all creation He is not the eldest 00:17:13.829 --> 00:17:19.109 or oldest creation of all the created order Contra 00:17:19.109 --> 00:17:22.470 did you hold witnesses of today and the Aryans 00:17:22.470 --> 00:17:26.990 of the fourth century AD? Nor is he one among 00:17:26.990 --> 00:17:31.140 equals is one commentator put it He is both prior 00:17:31.140 --> 00:17:34.619 to and supreme over that creation, since he is 00:17:34.619 --> 00:17:39.839 its Lord. How can you be the eldest, the oldest 00:17:39.839 --> 00:17:44.079 of all the creation, when by him all things are 00:17:44.079 --> 00:17:49.099 created? The logic just doesn't work. Second 00:17:49.099 --> 00:17:52.960 is the point. By him all things were created. 00:17:53.039 --> 00:17:57.660 Now, by him, more literally is translated, in 00:17:57.660 --> 00:18:04.500 him. In, and this points to him as the womb of 00:18:04.500 --> 00:18:12.420 creation. As we were elected in Christ before 00:18:12.420 --> 00:18:16.759 the foundation of the world, so creation was 00:18:16.759 --> 00:18:21.460 in Christ first before it became manifested as 00:18:21.460 --> 00:18:28.369 it is today. Thirdly, through him. This makes 00:18:28.369 --> 00:18:31.509 him the agent of creation. He's the one for whom 00:18:31.509 --> 00:18:35.289 the creative process was carried out He was one 00:18:35.289 --> 00:18:39.250 two states through him the universe was made 00:18:39.250 --> 00:18:44.309 John 1 3 through him all things were made without 00:18:44.309 --> 00:18:49.569 him nothing was made that has been made Now I 00:18:49.569 --> 00:18:51.670 know about you, but I was growing up. I just 00:18:51.670 --> 00:18:55.410 never imagined Jesus being tied into creation 00:18:55.690 --> 00:18:58.170 That's when I got older, and I realized, oh wow, 00:18:58.349 --> 00:19:03.210 really? It wasn't just the daddy father creating 00:19:03.210 --> 00:19:06.410 the world. And then Jesus went in it later and 00:19:06.410 --> 00:19:13.109 saved it. He was there from the beginning. What 00:19:13.109 --> 00:19:17.009 I have found really interesting lately is that 00:19:17.009 --> 00:19:21.769 the creation is also for him. He has the purpose 00:19:21.769 --> 00:19:27.930 for creation. He is the ultimate reason, purpose, 00:19:28.130 --> 00:19:31.490 and goal for why creation was created in the 00:19:31.490 --> 00:19:34.589 first place. He is the heir of all things and 00:19:34.589 --> 00:19:39.150 will rule supreme one day over all of it. He 00:19:39.150 --> 00:19:43.569 is the Alpha and the Omega of creation through 00:19:43.569 --> 00:19:46.430 the praise of his glory. And all things will 00:19:46.430 --> 00:19:51.269 be at one point beneath his feet. Hard for us 00:19:51.269 --> 00:19:54.900 to grasp since we don't see that right yet. And 00:19:54.900 --> 00:19:57.980 Scripture talks about that. It's coming. Whether 00:19:57.980 --> 00:20:02.420 we can see it or not, it's coming. Now, this 00:20:02.420 --> 00:20:05.859 all means that there are specific purposes God 00:20:05.859 --> 00:20:11.700 has to embody in the creation itself. For instance, 00:20:12.200 --> 00:20:15.599 purpose is built into the objective biological 00:20:15.599 --> 00:20:20.920 creation of the male and female body. We don't 00:20:20.920 --> 00:20:24.000 have the right to declare or attempt to erase 00:20:24.190 --> 00:20:30.809 or deface our sex and thus set it aside the embedded 00:20:30.809 --> 00:20:34.650 creational purposes just because we feel a certain 00:20:34.650 --> 00:20:41.190 way subjectively there's purpose built in to 00:20:41.190 --> 00:20:44.109 the creation of the subject and we live in a 00:20:44.109 --> 00:20:46.109 culture ever since the baby boom when we're trying 00:20:46.109 --> 00:20:50.650 to find ourselves a wider ear and all of that 00:20:50.650 --> 00:20:55.130 some of that's already been built in And some 00:20:55.130 --> 00:20:57.650 of that, and if we pay attention to that, we 00:20:57.650 --> 00:21:00.369 can begin to understand something about why we're 00:21:00.369 --> 00:21:06.529 here. It's there. How do we get there? Now what 00:21:06.529 --> 00:21:10.509 all was created? Passage tells us the seen and 00:21:10.509 --> 00:21:12.769 the unseen, the earth and the heaven, but in 00:21:12.769 --> 00:21:15.630 other words, all of reality. The seen world, 00:21:15.769 --> 00:21:18.809 including the stars, planets, earth, all that 00:21:18.809 --> 00:21:22.329 is within it, including the rats and rogues. 00:21:23.180 --> 00:21:27.279 which, in my view, are part of the fall. The 00:21:27.279 --> 00:21:32.759 thorns in the thistle. The unseen world, the 00:21:32.759 --> 00:21:34.819 naming of these various classes of spiritual 00:21:34.819 --> 00:21:38.160 beings without identifying hierarchy or whether 00:21:38.160 --> 00:21:42.420 they're good or bad, is to bring home the point, 00:21:43.480 --> 00:21:46.660 again, contrary to the colossal heresy, that 00:21:46.660 --> 00:21:50.460 these supposed intermediaries, thrones, dominions, 00:21:50.740 --> 00:21:56.920 rulers, Authorities, angels or demons, excuse 00:21:56.920 --> 00:22:01.720 me, were actually created in, through and for 00:22:01.720 --> 00:22:07.160 Christ. Again, he's not one among all of this. 00:22:08.740 --> 00:22:13.319 This brings me now to point three. So, one, Christ 00:22:13.319 --> 00:22:18.700 is God. Two, Christ is creator. Three, Christ 00:22:18.700 --> 00:22:24.890 is sustainer. He holds in him all things pulled 00:22:24.890 --> 00:22:29.750 together. Conceptually, people at that time thought 00:22:29.750 --> 00:22:33.170 that there was, in fact, some overarching power 00:22:33.170 --> 00:22:35.769 that kept the world together. You know, it's 00:22:35.769 --> 00:22:37.529 only in our day that we decided to just sort 00:22:37.529 --> 00:22:41.130 of go there and just sort of hang together. But 00:22:41.130 --> 00:22:44.829 Paul identifies this power as the risen frost. 00:22:45.789 --> 00:22:49.150 Christ does so through the word of his power, 00:22:49.390 --> 00:22:53.710 even one thing. The perfect sense of the verb 00:22:53.710 --> 00:22:58.029 here in Colossians, translated, holds together 00:22:58.029 --> 00:23:01.769 intelligence that Christ actively and continually, 00:23:02.130 --> 00:23:05.549 moment by moment, keeps the universe from flying 00:23:05.549 --> 00:23:13.329 apart. I'm seeing a kid about four years old. 00:23:13.599 --> 00:23:16.039 Trying to show mommy and daddy how that happened. 00:23:16.440 --> 00:23:20.460 They got a Lego set. And then they flam! The 00:23:20.460 --> 00:23:25.019 whole thing falls apart, right? Christ keeps 00:23:25.019 --> 00:23:29.839 the Lego creation from falling apart. The universe 00:23:29.839 --> 00:23:33.039 itself from falling apart. Like that Lego set. 00:23:35.140 --> 00:23:37.500 Now Jesus did not create the world therefore. 00:23:38.420 --> 00:23:42.829 And stole some high -tech lithium battery. and 00:23:42.829 --> 00:23:46.470 then let it run on its own. That's the updated 00:23:46.470 --> 00:23:50.549 translation of the definition of deism. They 00:23:50.549 --> 00:23:52.470 used to say you wind up the clock, but who winds 00:23:52.470 --> 00:23:57.890 up the clock? Rather, he's actively present in 00:23:57.890 --> 00:24:04.529 the process of the universe holding again. Lesbianist 00:24:04.529 --> 00:24:07.450 Confession Chapter 5 .1 states, God, the great 00:24:07.450 --> 00:24:10.690 creator of all things, doth uphold the wrath. 00:24:10.859 --> 00:24:16.279 dispose and govern all creatures actions and 00:24:16.279 --> 00:24:22.500 things the greatest even to the least by his 00:24:22.500 --> 00:24:28.799 most wise and holy providence yeah think about 00:24:28.799 --> 00:24:32.380 that because our world says exactly that there 00:24:32.380 --> 00:24:36.819 is no providence and that the laws governing 00:24:36.819 --> 00:24:41.480 the universe is what keeps it going Do that or 00:24:41.480 --> 00:24:45.779 some other kinds of sources? Now, you know people 00:24:45.779 --> 00:24:47.500 say well the Bible's not a science book. No, 00:24:47.579 --> 00:24:49.900 the Bible does not tell us all the inner workings 00:24:49.900 --> 00:24:53.920 of our car work, so to speak. Praise this. But 00:24:53.920 --> 00:24:55.779 it gives us, and I'm getting ahead of myself, 00:24:55.880 --> 00:25:01.559 but I'm really ahead. It gives us the big, big 00:25:01.559 --> 00:25:07.480 picture of how all this got here. It does. Praise 00:25:07.480 --> 00:25:14.900 the Lord. That brings me to Point four. Christ 00:25:14.900 --> 00:25:19.180 is the head of his body and Lord of his church. 00:25:22.220 --> 00:25:23.900 And he is the head of the body of the church. 00:25:23.980 --> 00:25:26.480 He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, 00:25:26.859 --> 00:25:30.319 that in everything he might have remnants. So 00:25:30.319 --> 00:25:32.720 once again, there's a number of things he's covering 00:25:32.720 --> 00:25:36.259 here. So not only is he the beginning of the 00:25:36.259 --> 00:25:38.579 first creation, he's also the beginning of the 00:25:38.579 --> 00:25:43.690 new creation. the new humanity, the next reality. 00:25:45.069 --> 00:25:48.329 We are not merely new creatures, we are actually 00:25:48.329 --> 00:25:52.829 the new creation, which full manifestation will 00:25:52.829 --> 00:25:57.529 be brought into being when we ourselves have 00:25:57.529 --> 00:26:00.910 reached the full glory that has been promised 00:26:00.910 --> 00:26:06.569 for us. Jesus is said here, the firstborn from 00:26:06.569 --> 00:26:09.400 the dead. He's not just the first person to rise 00:26:09.400 --> 00:26:12.660 from the dead with a glorified body. He is the 00:26:12.660 --> 00:26:17.119 down payment on our own resurrection Because 00:26:17.119 --> 00:26:23.859 he rose We will rise again Yes, we've been rising 00:26:23.859 --> 00:26:25.960 to those of us that a little closer to the end 00:26:25.960 --> 00:26:32.380 and some of y 'all That sounds really good He 00:26:32.380 --> 00:26:37.309 is the first fruits of all those who sleep That 00:26:37.309 --> 00:26:40.710 is those who are dead in Christ first Corinthians 00:26:40.710 --> 00:26:45.329 15 to him He is the preeminent one the first 00:26:45.329 --> 00:26:50.230 in rank over all this new creation as he is the 00:26:50.230 --> 00:26:54.589 firstborn of the firstborn of the first creation 00:26:54.589 --> 00:26:59.650 that is he stands in the place of supremacy over 00:26:59.650 --> 00:27:03.670 the new humanity and the new world to come as 00:27:03.670 --> 00:27:08.849 he stands over the old So this also underscores 00:27:08.849 --> 00:27:12.769 the fact that he's the head. He is both the preeminent 00:27:12.769 --> 00:27:16.750 authority and the fundamental source of the body 00:27:16.750 --> 00:27:20.750 of Christ. One writer put it like this, the body 00:27:20.750 --> 00:27:24.970 of Christ is vitalized by his abiding presence 00:27:24.970 --> 00:27:30.069 and energized by his power and directed by his 00:27:30.069 --> 00:27:34.849 word and spirit. John 15, 5 says, without him, 00:27:35.549 --> 00:27:47.970 we. can do nothing. Christ is God. Christ is 00:27:47.970 --> 00:27:55.049 creator. Christ is sustainer. Christ is the head 00:27:55.049 --> 00:27:59.269 of the church. So what does this mean for us 00:27:59.269 --> 00:28:05.089 today? Well first we indeed see that Christ That 00:28:05.089 --> 00:28:09.190 Christ is the God -man, and not simply a man, 00:28:09.430 --> 00:28:13.069 that founded a religion. He is God coming to 00:28:13.069 --> 00:28:18.910 the flesh to save the world. But this helps us 00:28:18.910 --> 00:28:21.289 see Christ beyond just his work of redemption, 00:28:22.630 --> 00:28:25.069 being the creator, sustainer, and head of the 00:28:25.069 --> 00:28:28.930 church as well. So in discussing Christ as creator, 00:28:29.089 --> 00:28:31.569 Paul crosses over into what we would consider 00:28:31.569 --> 00:28:35.890 today the science of cosmology, the study of 00:28:35.890 --> 00:28:39.109 the origin, structure, and ultimate fate of the 00:28:39.109 --> 00:28:41.009 universe. I'm catching up with my notes here. 00:28:41.589 --> 00:28:44.150 Many would say that this is the domain of science 00:28:44.150 --> 00:28:48.549 and not religion and the superstitions, as some 00:28:48.549 --> 00:28:51.690 people would refer to us and what we believe. 00:28:52.230 --> 00:28:55.130 On the contrary, The origins, structure, and 00:28:55.130 --> 00:28:57.309 ultimate transformations of the universe can 00:28:57.309 --> 00:29:01.789 only be understood in its most fundamental level 00:29:01.789 --> 00:29:06.710 through revelation given from above and not from 00:29:06.710 --> 00:29:11.029 conclusions made from below. Again, you're talking 00:29:11.029 --> 00:29:15.569 about big critique here. Science can indeed give 00:29:15.569 --> 00:29:17.690 us insight into the workings of the universe 00:29:17.690 --> 00:29:21.670 and its structure, but it cannot conclude from 00:29:21.670 --> 00:29:26.799 its observations It's origin. Sorry about that. 00:29:27.220 --> 00:29:33.980 You can't. One thing that is true, as scientists 00:29:33.980 --> 00:29:38.180 continue to dig, they see indications that what 00:29:38.180 --> 00:29:41.299 Revelation says about the creations being created 00:29:41.299 --> 00:29:45.920 is probably true. That is happening. In fact, 00:29:46.440 --> 00:29:50.819 there's the wood in the back alley. Is there 00:29:50.819 --> 00:29:53.420 even questions about the whole Big Bang Theory 00:29:53.420 --> 00:29:56.359 being tossed around now? That never tossed around 00:29:56.359 --> 00:29:59.200 before, in terms of first cause being, again, 00:29:59.519 --> 00:30:03.920 something impersonal. The universe is not impersonal. 00:30:04.079 --> 00:30:07.859 The universe is personal. Somebody out there, 00:30:08.160 --> 00:30:11.619 Dr. Francis Siffman, would say that final reality, 00:30:11.880 --> 00:30:15.740 there is nothing in back of God. He is final 00:30:15.740 --> 00:30:26.039 reality. When fallen scientists attempt to conclude 00:30:26.039 --> 00:30:28.960 exactly what the origins are from the bottom 00:30:28.960 --> 00:30:33.259 up, they wind up suppressing the truth of God 00:30:33.259 --> 00:30:38.819 woven into the creation, Romans 1, 18 -20, contesting 00:30:38.819 --> 00:30:44.859 his ownership of it, denying his continual providential 00:30:44.859 --> 00:30:49.180 care over it, rejecting his purpose built into 00:30:49.180 --> 00:30:52.609 it. for violating his moral requirements that 00:30:52.609 --> 00:30:56.609 govern it and even deny his very existence altogether. 00:30:59.170 --> 00:31:02.910 After all, some would say, we cannot see this 00:31:02.910 --> 00:31:07.369 creator that you guys declare has done all these 00:31:07.369 --> 00:31:12.549 things. I submit to you that Paul complicates 00:31:12.549 --> 00:31:17.789 that logic. Because he declares that the Incarnate 00:31:17.789 --> 00:31:21.970 Christ who walked among us in history whom John 00:31:21.970 --> 00:31:25.210 states they saw heard and touched with their 00:31:25.210 --> 00:31:29.950 hands It by virtue of being the second member 00:31:29.950 --> 00:31:37.450 of the Trinity himself also created So now How 00:31:37.450 --> 00:31:39.670 scientists who have that would say that God doesn't 00:31:39.670 --> 00:31:42.450 exist because he's not seen it. Whatever it is, 00:31:42.730 --> 00:31:44.690 is not only suppressing the truth in their hearts, 00:31:44.890 --> 00:31:47.910 they must dismiss the testimonies of them who 00:31:47.910 --> 00:31:50.890 have seen, heard, and touched the living Christ. 00:31:54.450 --> 00:31:56.650 Who would you, or what would you rather believe? 00:31:59.589 --> 00:32:05.440 The concrete illusions of the modern world? where 00:32:05.440 --> 00:32:11.859 the concrete reality of religion trumps. I just 00:32:11.859 --> 00:32:15.180 ran across that phrase recently. Concrete illusion. 00:32:15.680 --> 00:32:19.599 Something that's concrete, and yet it is illusion. 00:32:20.240 --> 00:32:23.920 It comes from somebody that has a thingy in the 00:32:23.920 --> 00:32:29.200 bulletin in the past. Pierce Taylor's hips. Concrete 00:32:29.200 --> 00:32:34.519 reality. How can something be concrete? and yet 00:32:34.519 --> 00:32:38.259 an illusion. The answer to this is, the world 00:32:38.259 --> 00:32:44.039 is passing away and the lusts tear up. Yes, the 00:32:44.039 --> 00:32:46.799 world is concrete, but this coming day, well 00:32:46.799 --> 00:32:50.119 this is going to be gone. Because the 1st Corinthians, 00:32:50.839 --> 00:32:54.799 2nd Corinthians 4, 18 says, for what is seen 00:32:54.799 --> 00:33:03.019 is temporal, and what is unseen is eternal. So, 00:33:04.269 --> 00:33:08.450 You can either stand on concrete illusions or 00:33:08.450 --> 00:33:13.309 concrete realities and Jesus makes the invisible 00:33:13.309 --> 00:33:19.569 reality concrete because he came in the flesh 00:33:19.569 --> 00:33:26.029 on this earth in time and space and living among 00:33:26.029 --> 00:33:31.809 us. That's how significant the incarnation really 00:33:31.809 --> 00:33:37.450 is. That's an eight -man movie. Here's your dick. 00:33:41.650 --> 00:33:45.230 All right, I got ahead of myself. It was reported, 00:33:45.670 --> 00:33:51.910 oh, so, let me say this. Because he is who he 00:33:51.910 --> 00:33:58.150 is. Faith in him is not an option among others. 00:34:00.809 --> 00:34:03.849 He's not a choice left to our personal preference 00:34:03.849 --> 00:34:07.809 or our personal research Every knee will bow 00:34:07.809 --> 00:34:10.630 every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord 00:34:10.630 --> 00:34:13.630 on the last day no matter who you are or how 00:34:13.630 --> 00:34:19.010 smart you are We are part of the creation of 00:34:19.010 --> 00:34:24.130 God not God a part of the psychosocial creation 00:34:24.130 --> 00:34:31.019 of the human of the minds of human count He's 00:34:31.019 --> 00:34:33.960 living. We're in history. It's not human hours. 00:34:34.840 --> 00:34:39.440 So if you have not made your peace with God as 00:34:39.440 --> 00:34:42.679 we used to say, don't wait until the end of time. 00:34:42.920 --> 00:34:46.960 Settle matters with God now by faith in the risen 00:34:46.960 --> 00:34:52.760 Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Now 00:34:52.760 --> 00:35:00.199 is the day of sound peace. embraced it. As reported 00:35:00.199 --> 00:35:04.460 back in April 2008, Reverend Jeremiah Wright 00:35:04.460 --> 00:35:09.960 was asked, if Islam was a way of salvation, given 00:35:09.960 --> 00:35:12.599 Jesus' statement, no one comes to the Father 00:35:12.599 --> 00:35:18.199 but through me. His answer? Jesus also said, 00:35:18.460 --> 00:35:21.219 of his sheep have I who were not of this fold. 00:35:23.139 --> 00:35:25.659 That, ladies and gentlemen, is as close to scripture 00:35:25.659 --> 00:35:30.250 -twisting as satan did on the mountain of temptation 00:35:30.250 --> 00:35:35.730 to jesus no jesus is the way the truth and the 00:35:35.730 --> 00:35:42.269 life and there is no other and from the standpoint 00:35:42.269 --> 00:35:44.989 of the black community islam is not the religion 00:35:44.989 --> 00:35:49.510 of people of color jesus came for everybody that 00:35:49.510 --> 00:35:58.210 is white folk amen I have heard people describe 00:35:58.210 --> 00:36:01.869 Christianity as if it's a gentleman's religion. 00:36:02.090 --> 00:36:06.269 It actually happened to me in seminary. And when 00:36:06.269 --> 00:36:09.489 that person described Christianity the way he 00:36:09.489 --> 00:36:12.269 did, which I got to tell you later, what I just 00:36:12.269 --> 00:36:15.190 told Judy, I said, you know, thank God for the 00:36:15.190 --> 00:36:17.889 Pentecostals, because my grandmother, my grandmother, 00:36:18.070 --> 00:36:23.369 would have never got saved. But she did, because 00:36:23.369 --> 00:36:28.829 Christ came to everybody. Now I'm tempted you 00:36:28.829 --> 00:36:30.289 know, I'm not thinking I'm gonna do it I'm gonna 00:36:30.289 --> 00:36:36.110 go there so Somebody one time asked me indirectly 00:36:36.110 --> 00:36:40.670 How do you know? That the gospel was for everybody 00:36:40.670 --> 00:36:46.210 The answer is when Jesus when John in the revelation 00:36:46.210 --> 00:36:48.150 in the book of Revelation as he's writing his 00:36:48.150 --> 00:36:54.150 revelation Yeah was told by the angels look He 00:36:54.150 --> 00:36:59.150 saw from every tongue and every nation. How myriad 00:36:59.150 --> 00:37:02.510 of people, a number that could not be numbered, 00:37:03.210 --> 00:37:07.130 praising God and giving glory to the lamb. And 00:37:07.130 --> 00:37:10.010 he gave me like a ton of bricks. You know what? 00:37:10.429 --> 00:37:14.130 Everybody is going to still be who they are racially 00:37:14.130 --> 00:37:18.630 over there. Because John looked at his saws. 00:37:18.969 --> 00:37:22.030 Hispanic, Asian, black, white, the whole nine 00:37:22.030 --> 00:37:28.000 yards. He came for everyone. So this one is not 00:37:28.000 --> 00:37:36.139 I don't remember Right for us the church because 00:37:36.139 --> 00:37:38.760 Jesus Christ is also the head of the church He 00:37:38.760 --> 00:37:41.800 qualifies to be the center of our individual 00:37:41.800 --> 00:37:45.940 and collective lives Repeat that because he is 00:37:45.940 --> 00:37:48.519 the head of the church. He qualifies to be the 00:37:48.519 --> 00:37:51.480 center of our individual and collective lives 00:37:51.480 --> 00:37:58.000 Not our dreams or visions, for our lives. Not 00:37:58.000 --> 00:38:01.460 our talent, not our ambition, not our preferences 00:38:01.460 --> 00:38:04.820 or wants, not our thoughts, not our intuitions, 00:38:05.119 --> 00:38:11.579 not our comforts, not our authentic selves. He 00:38:11.579 --> 00:38:18.719 and he alone, his will and his word to us, that 00:38:18.719 --> 00:38:25.010 is the center. Period. It is possible to gain 00:38:25.010 --> 00:38:31.369 our whole world and lose our own soul. It's possible. 00:38:33.789 --> 00:38:38.309 We know Christ is the center, not ourselves. 00:38:42.469 --> 00:38:45.829 The good news is, because of this, with Him at 00:38:45.829 --> 00:38:49.369 the center, our lives will count for eternity. 00:38:49.920 --> 00:38:53.760 Even our sufferings prepare for us an internal 00:38:53.760 --> 00:38:57.599 weight of glory in the world to come that will 00:38:57.599 --> 00:39:01.380 have no end. Now what does that sound like to 00:39:01.380 --> 00:39:04.840 a friend of mine who was born, and I'm coming 00:39:04.840 --> 00:39:08.780 to a close, here she comes, who was born with 00:39:08.780 --> 00:39:13.880 pain in his eyes as an infant. He was in pain 00:39:13.880 --> 00:39:17.019 from the beginning. People talk about why did 00:39:17.019 --> 00:39:21.059 this baby fry so much? because he had pain going 00:39:21.059 --> 00:39:27.320 on in his eyes. And to this day, 70 years later, 00:39:27.719 --> 00:39:31.179 this guy is still struggling with psychic impairment. 00:39:34.440 --> 00:39:38.639 Well, if he found out this, he found out that 00:39:38.639 --> 00:39:42.239 his life matters. That all of the suffering that 00:39:42.239 --> 00:39:44.260 he went through through all the various stages 00:39:44.260 --> 00:39:50.630 of life has purpose. And he didn't find that 00:39:50.630 --> 00:39:55.150 out like 50 years later. But he did. And now 00:39:55.150 --> 00:39:59.250 he knows his life counts. In all of his suffering, 00:39:59.489 --> 00:40:04.309 in all the hindrances that went with it, has 00:40:04.309 --> 00:40:10.650 purpose. It eternal. And so will yours. Because 00:40:10.650 --> 00:40:17.130 Christ is the pre -Innovant One in it. That's 00:40:17.130 --> 00:40:30.639 what makes him count. Father in Jesus' name, 00:40:31.079 --> 00:40:40.559 may we ask what this description of Christ is. 00:40:41.500 --> 00:40:44.639 It's so short, it's so dense, you can read through 00:40:44.639 --> 00:40:52.949 it. But now, it is chock full of such significance 00:40:52.949 --> 00:41:01.309 that it can change our lives ever. There may 00:41:01.309 --> 00:41:03.449 be people in this room who are suffering like 00:41:03.449 --> 00:41:08.630 my friend and wonder why I've had to suffer like 00:41:08.630 --> 00:41:13.929 this so long. May they know that this Because 00:41:13.929 --> 00:41:16.989 you're doing it as unto and with the truth of 00:41:16.989 --> 00:41:22.829 the Lord, there is a weight of glory being devout 00:41:22.829 --> 00:41:28.090 for them. Through this, from the world to come, 00:41:29.409 --> 00:41:33.530 may those who may be tempted to pursue their 00:41:33.530 --> 00:41:39.050 own vision of life, to stop and get on their 00:41:39.050 --> 00:41:42.539 knees in all their ways acknowledge you. And 00:41:42.539 --> 00:41:47.619 if you regret your past, and you're like, maybe 00:41:47.619 --> 00:41:51.199 they might not be racial things, but that's okay, 00:41:52.199 --> 00:41:55.219 because they're lying. It has a significant significance. 00:41:55.380 --> 00:41:57.519 There may be young people in this room that are 00:41:57.519 --> 00:42:00.699 called to suffer inhibition feeding in a corner 00:42:00.699 --> 00:42:03.260 somewhere in the world that nobody will ever 00:42:03.260 --> 00:42:06.059 see but a few people in a village somewhere. 00:42:09.659 --> 00:42:13.280 But it's okay. If their lives don't have the 00:42:13.280 --> 00:42:16.119 significance they could have, because it's not 00:42:16.119 --> 00:42:20.800 about their contains. It's about your preeminence. 00:42:21.760 --> 00:42:28.739 Your preeminence is submitted to. Oh my God. 00:42:29.739 --> 00:42:34.099 Oh my God. What amazing things can happen for 00:42:34.099 --> 00:42:39.000 me to eat her. It can make me see this and embrace 00:42:39.000 --> 00:42:45.289 it. and revel in the glory of our Lord Jesus 00:42:45.289 --> 00:42:51.030 Christ. In the name of Jesus. And if there's 00:42:51.030 --> 00:42:55.230 anyone here or online who has not yet been racist, 00:42:55.710 --> 00:43:01.710 may they be encouraged to say yes to Jesus instead 00:43:01.710 --> 00:43:06.929 of yes to all this other stuff. And allow you 00:43:06.929 --> 00:43:16.059 to shave them Roman and Roman. Now, any country 00:43:16.059 --> 00:43:18.480 in Jesus. Amen.