Day 337 or December the 3rd. Jesus is totally
unique. Our thoughts today come from Colossians
chapter 1 verse 16. 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. And now the big picture
surrounding this verse. Colossae was a town rather
past its best, and about a hundred miles to the
east of Ephesus, not far from Laodicea. Paul
suggests this letter be sent to the church in
Laodicea, so that they could read it too. He
says that he has written to the Laodiceans too,
but we have no such surviving letter, so it could
well have been lost. Nevertheless, this one survives,
and has much to teach us. It addresses the current
questions and doubts of the first century and
the twenty-first century, about who Jesus really
was, and if he truly was the Son of God. These
doubts arose immediately after his resurrection.
Such a fantastic account of someone coming back
from the dead does stretch our mind, and it was
equally incredible then. However, Paul lays his
case out very clearly, and then, as he usually
does, he relates how these amazing facts can
impact the lives of everyday, ordinary people.
And now today's action step. If our verse today
is untrue, then it bowls the mind how many otherwise
sane and sensible people over the centuries have
believed it and been willing to die for their
beliefs. Surely they couldn't all have been wrong.
Surely the millions who serve him today can't
all be deluded. It takes more faith to believe
that than to believe what some atheists are saying
today. Jesus is totally unique and the only person
to have risen from the dead. Paul makes amazing
statements to encourage and stimulate the believers
in Colossae. This same Jesus has not changed,
and despite doubters and scoffers throughout
the intervening centuries, he is still the only
one who can save us and put us right in God's
sight. He is truly unique and worthy of praise.