Many people in our culture today identify themselves as Christians, yet their lives and beliefs do not line up with the clear teachings of Scripture. This is why the book of Colossians holds such a timely message for believers today.
When the Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Colossae from prison, he desired to accomplish two things. First, he wanted to encourage the believers to continue growing in their faith and honoring Jesus. But because of reports that false teachings were beginning to infiltrate the church, he also wanted to remind them of the pure message of the gospel—one rooted in understanding the identity of Jesus.
Understanding who Jesus is according to Scripture is still vital today as we seek to align our lives with His, which is why we are looking at a portion of Colossians called the “Christ Hymn.” Many believe this passage to be one of the earliest hymns the church sang and repeated in worship as part of the liturgy, and it helps answer the question, “Who is Jesus?”
Let’s read this passage and then discuss three things it specifically settles about our Savior.
Colossians 1:15-20
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For 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 and for him. 17 And 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, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
1 - Jesus is the Lord. (v. 15)
Notice His divinity and His supremacy. Jesus is the exact image and likeness of God. We as humans are made in the image of God, but our image is marred. Jesus is the perfect image of God. Even Jesus Himself said in John 14:9, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” Hebrews 1:3 also says of Him, “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”
Next, Paul says that Jesus is first, calling Him “the firstborn of all creation.” Scripture does not teach that Jesus is a created being, even if some might try to use this passage to defend that false belief. There are plenty of biblical examples where the firstborn is the person who was, in fact, born first. But more often in Scripture, being the firstborn refers to the one who holds the highest rank in a family, rather than to the one who is chronologically first.
Psalm 89:27 prophecies of Jesus, “And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.” God is saying through the psalmist, “When I send My Son, He will ultimately receive the full inheritance of my kingdom and outrank any other being.”
Jesus is Lord, and He reveals God because Jesus is God.
2 - Jesus is the life of His creation. (v. 16-17)
Paul tells us that everything alive today and everything that has ever been alive has life because of the second person of the Trinity, Christ. He is the power behind all of creation. It is by Christ, in Christ, through Christ, and for Christ that all things exist and find their purpose.
Paul goes on to state that Christ is before all things. There are two ways to understand this statement. One, He is before all things, as in He is superior, but He is also before in a timeline sense. He has always existed.
Christ also sustains and holds all things together. Every beat of our heart, every single rise and fall of our chest, every bird that flies over our heads, and every drop of moisture on every blade of grass beneath our feet is under the complete and total reign of Christ.
The One who has existed eternally gave us our existence and sustains our existence.
3 - Jesus is the leader of His church. (v.18-20)
Paul specifically compares Jesus' leadership to being the head of the body. Notice, the head of the church is not the pastor or the elders. It is not the deacons or a bishop. It is certainly not a pope in Rome. There is one body of Christ and one head, and that head is Jesus.
We find this metaphor of comparing the body of Christ to the human body in the New Testament. Paul states in 1 Corinthians 12:12-18 that just as the body has many different parts, so it is with the church. Each of us who knows Christ as Lord is a member of this body, but we are all dependent on Him as the head. You can cut off my hand, and I can survive. You can amputate a limb, and I can live. However, if you cut off my head, I will die. Nothing else will give me life. It is the same in the church. Jesus is not simply a part of the church, nor should He merely be the sentimental object of the church’s worship. Jesus is the leader of the church.
He also led the way in resurrection. We know Jesus was not the first person to be resurrected in the Bible. Just a few days before His death, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. And in Mark 5:41, He resurrected the daughter of the synagogue leader Jairus. The difference, though, is that these individuals eventually died. Every person resurrected in Scripture is dead but one—Jesus. When He walked out of the grave, He never tasted death again. So, He is the first to be resurrected, never to die again, and we know He won't be the last!
In 1 Corinthians 15:20-23, Paul refers to Jesus as the “firstfruits” of those who have died. This wording tells us that while God in heaven has already harvested His blessed Son from the grave, He is not done harvesting. Jesus is coming back for more! The One who defeated His grave has already defeated our grave, and upon His return, we will experience bodily resurrection, too.
We could spend our whole lives studying Jesus and never exhaust the greatness of who He is. Jesus is not someone we add to our lives. He is not our buddy or our co-pilot. He is our magnificent, risen, triumphant Lord. He is our creator, our sustainer, and He has accomplished all things necessary for our salvation—bridging the gap from our sinful brokenness to the holiness and purity of heaven where we will one day dwell with Him.
The question of who He is is settled in Scripture. But is it settled in your heart?
Truly, there is nothing in life sweeter than knowing and surrendering to Him. We need to see Him for who He is, praise Him for who He is, and put Him on the throne of our hearts. Don't let anything else remove your focus from Him. He is worthy!