Paul's Epistles – Colossians - Part 2:
The Supremacy of the Son of God
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith Church | www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
SERMON INTRODUCTION
Paul’s letter (Epistle) to the Colossians
was a letter to correct Heresy.
Heresy is having an opinion which is in
opposition to true doctrine. In other words, the Colossian church had, as many
other early churches, fallen prey to false doctrine.
THE COLOSSIAN CHURCH
We see a mixture of Judaism, Gnosticism,
Asceticism, Angel worship, etc.
Judaism would
be the adherence to Old Testament teachings while ignoring the completed works
of the cross.
Gnosticism is the
belief that “secret” knowledge existed, specifically that the world was created
by a lesser divinity, and ruled by an emissary of the remote Supreme Being.
This belief system, which was carried over to Christianity, placed God the
Father as the Supreme and Jesus as the lesser ruling divinity.
Asceticism is the
severe self-discipline and avoidance of all forms of indulgence, typically for
religious reasons. The
doctrine that a person can attain a high spiritual and moral state by
practicing self-denial, self-mortification (embarrassment
and shame – “mortified”) and the like. Rigorous self-denial; extreme
abstinence; in a severe nature.
It is obvious why this is false doctrine,
and has no place in a Christ following church.
The heresy, destroyed the Supreme lordship
and sovereignty of Jesus Christ, it dethroned Him, destroying the mediator-ship
of Christ, making Him only 1 of a multitude of mediators, (such as the Hindu belief in avatars, a manifestation of a
deity or released soul in bodily form on earth; an incarnate divine teacher.)
However, we know
Jesus is so much more than that, He was, is and always will be God.
TODAY’S SERMON
Paul will inform the readers of the
Supremacy of the Son of God
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE Colossians 1:15-23
The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 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. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold
together. 18 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. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether
things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
21 Once you were alienated from God and were
enemies in your minds because of[g] your evil behavior. 22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without
blemish and free from accusation— 23 if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from
the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel
that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have
become a servant.
The overall
message of this epistle to the church is;
“The Supreme Glory, Deity and Dignity of
Christ Jesus”.
I. THE IMAGE
OF THE INVISIBLE GOD
a. The Firstborn
over all creation
i. Jesus is the exact reproduction of God the Father, who is a Spirit
1. “The hour is coming, and
is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and
truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and
those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” – John 4:23-24
ii. Jesus is also the “Firstborn over all creation”
1. Firstborn is a TITLE
2. Jesus is NOT a created being, but has always
existed
a. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the
beginning. 3 Through him
all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.” – John 1:1-4
iii. Firstborn (the Title) OVER ALL Creation
1. Designates Jesus as the creator of all things, just
as many scriptures tell us.
2. Vs. 17 tells us, “He is before
all things”
a. What “all things”?
b. All things which were created
c. Remember Vs.
3 “…without him nothing was made that has been made.”
b. The Creator of
all things
i. Vs. 16 “…by
Him all things were created...”
1. This justifies the title given to Christ in the
previous verses
ii. “…That
are in Heaven, and that are on Earth, visible and invisible”
1. Things we can see, were created by Him
2. Things we cannot see (molecules, atoms, gravity,
x-rays, etc…) also created by Him
3. Both Holy and Fallen Angels as well
c. In everything
He has Supremacy
i. Preeminence, dominance, superiority
ii. He is ABOVE all
iii. “All
things were created through Him and for Him.”
iv. All things created depend on Him
v. Vs. 18 “He is
the Head of the Body, the church”
II.
GOD’S FULLNESS DWELLS WITHIN HIM
a. To reconcile to
Himself all things
i. This “fullness” means the sum total of divine powers and attributes of
God the Father
ii. Christ reconciled all things to Himself by paying
the debt incurred by sin on mankind, which had caused separation between God
and man
b. Both on earth
and in heaven
i. Claiming all authority and Supremacy in all things created
1. In the beginning, God created the Heaven and the
Earth
2. Heaven is a created “place”
3. And Jesus (the creator of all created things) is
ruler in Heaven and on Earth, by reconciling to Himself, all things
c. By making peace
through the cross
i. Christ’s blood at the cross satisfied the just demands of the broken
Law
ii. Now, faith through the cross and His action
reconciles us to God once more
III.
ONCE YOU WERE ALIENATED FROM GOD
a. You were once
enemies because of your evil behavior
i. “Enemies
in your minds”
ii. Thoughts, thinking, depravity of wicked
imaginations, your mind
iii. This is where “sin” actually takes place long
before we ever see the symptoms manifest in the flesh
iv. This is why when we come to the cross, Jesus places
His Spirit within us, so that we may be “new” creatures, a “new” creation, and
have a;
1. “… mind of Christ.” – 1 Corinthians 2:16
2. “Do not conform to the pattern of this
world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able
to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.” –
Romans 12:2
3. “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he” – Proverbs 23:7
v. How do we change then?
1. By filling our hearts with something NEW
a. “The mouth speaks from the overflow of his heart.” – Luke 6:45
2. Filling our hearts with God’s Word gives the Holy
Spirit something to work with, and He changes us from the inside out.
3. The Word of God is seed, watered by the Holy
Spirit, it grows and changes the way we think, giving us the Mind like Christ.
vi. How did Christ make this possible???
b. The cross
reconciled you
i. Vs. 21-22a “Once you were
alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. 22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death”
ii. With a condition…because God’s love is not
conditional, but Salvation is.
c. If you continue
in the Gospel
i. Vs. 22-23a “…he has
reconciled you by
Christ’s physical body through death
to present you holy in his
sight, without blemish and free from accusation— 23 if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel.”
1. In Salvation, you WILL be reconciled to God through
the cross and Jesus’ atoning death as payment required by sin.
2. In Salvation you WILL be Holy in His sight, without
blemish and free from accusation!
a. IF
i. You continue in your faith
ii. Established and firm
iii. And DO NOT MOVE from the
Hope of the Gospel
3. In other words, you will NOT keep your reconciliation
to God if you do not continue in your faith, or move from the hope of the
gospel.
ii. This condition of Salvation is not only fair and
true, but common sense!
1. Any contract that requires an action, and that
action is not completed, your contract is null and void.
2. We can have the full benefits and blessings of the
Kingdom of God, as long as we have the required actions of that contract.
iii. Acknowledge Jesus is Lord (He must be to make His
sacrifice the appropriate payment as the creator for the creation)
iv. Believe that He died on the Cross and rose 3 days
later (represents our rebirth, becoming a new creation as well as receiving our
NEW bodies after this sinful, un-redeemed flesh dies)
v. Confess your sin
vi. Repent (stop that sin) so there can be forgiveness
vii. And you will receive Salvation.
viii. To keep it, continue in your faith and do not move
from the Hope of the Gospel
CONCLUSION – this is the gospel proclaimed to every
creature
The Gospel you have heard, and of which I, Paul,
have become a servant
Paul is asking the Colossian church to examine
themselves, and their position with the Lord, and ask the question, am I
continuing in my faith, holding to the Hope brought by Christ and the cross?
Am I, like Paul, a servant to the Gospel of Jesus
Christ?
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