Daily Bible Reading 8th June 2025 // Colossians 1:15-19
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 pre-eminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,
The next thing to notice is Paul's affirmation of the supremacy of Christ in the Church and in resurrection (v 18), i.e. the supremacy of the risen Christ over the new creation. 'The Body' is Paul's graphic and dynamic image for the new humanity/the new creation which is the Church of God. The apostle emphasises the fact of Christ's supreme control over His people/His body and the total dependence of every member of the body on Christ, its head. If we tease the analogy out a little, it is obvious that without vital connection to the head there will be no life in the body. It is only the abiding presence of the risen Christ in our midst as Lord and head, that bestows life and vitality. Without our head we cannot hope to survive. The gruesome picture of decapitation highlights the stark reality of separation from our head! (Paul uses precisely this picture in 2:19). Christ's resurrection is another mark of his supremacy (not something that needs to be explained away!), and for this reason. It was the signal that Satan and all his evil minions had been defeated. It was the trumpet blast of liberation for mankind bound in sin and death. it was the proof and guarantee that Christ's sacrifice for sin was accepted by God. The risen Christ is the first of a brand new redeemed humanity. He is the first man to be raised to life with a new sin-free, death-free humanity, and as such He has become the 'Author of Life' for us (Acts 3:15) and the promise and guarantee that we will also rise (1 Corinthians 15:20-23). With Jesus' resurrection, the age to come: the resurrection age has burst forth and as the first to rise from the dead, never more to die, Jesus is the first-fruit who guarantees the future resurrection of all believers. This is why Christ is supreme. He is the risen and exalted Lord, He is the One who was dead but now lives to die no more. He is the supreme head of the Body, the Church. He is the unsurpassed Lord of all Creation, both visible and invisible. What a Saviour! What a Lord! We do well to fall at his feet in humble obeisance and offer him the worship and the adoration of our hearts.