Christ the Firstborn
Keep Christ Preeminent • Sermon • Submitted
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· 11 viewsSince we call ourselves Christians, we need to actually follow Christ. This requires keeping Christ preeminent in all things, but especially the church.
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Introduction
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Transition
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Illumination
He is the firstborn
He is the firstborn
First in Place, not First in Time
firstborn translated from Gr. protokos
can mean first in time
can mean first in place
context determines meaning
first in place clear from vs. 18 “that in all things he may have the preeminence.”
First in Time was a gnostic idea that has persisted into the 21st century but is still wrong
He is the firstborn over creation, 15-18
He is the firstborn over creation, 15-18
(He is preeminent over creation)
The Visible God, 15
The Creator God, 16
He created the visible world (or physical realm)
He created the invisible world (or spiritual realm)
The Sustainer God, 17-18
He stands in place above the visible world and sustains it
He stands in place above the invisible world and sustains it
He stands in place above the church and sustains it
He is the firstborn over death, 19-23
He is the firstborn over death, 19-23
(He is preeminent over death)
Again, this is first in place, not first in time. There were people who came back from the dead before Jesus.
He Suffices, 19
“fullness” indicates He is able to overcome any shortcoming or imperfection
the idea loosely resembles a patch over a torn garment where the patch is added to make the garment whole again
He Reconciles, 20-23
All things in general - humanity’s sin bent, and continues to bend, creation away from its creator
Believers in particular
He declares peace in the midst of our war against God
He declares perfection in the midst of our failing before God
He declares permanence in the midst of our instability toward God
Note: “if we continue” (verse 23) can be misunderstood
We can understand it to mean our continuance is a requirement of our reconciliation
We can understand it to mean our continuance is an evidence of our reconciliation
It sounds small but the former makes continuance the cause, and the latter makes continuance the effect, so they are quite different
The context of this passage, along with the context of all Scripture, indicates that our continuance is the effect or our reconciliation. We continue because we have been reconciled.
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Application
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