Colossians 1:18
18 He is also the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything.
Something seems genuinely odd about this verse. Paul’s been taking us higher and higher. Jesus is King. He is the invisible God made visible. He is the creator and sustainer of all things. Every black hole in the Universe and every hair on your head. And then a word about the church.
One of the things I’m most convinced of regarding the American church is our unfortunate ignorance of ecclesiology. Ecclesiology is the theology of the church. In other words, it’s the study of the church according to God’s word.
And this is why for many of us, when we really think about and ponder the passage that has led us to this verse, probably find this verse a bit odd. How can Paul go from talking about Jesus as the creator and sustainer of all things to Him as the head of the church? Like big deal, right?
Are we honestly going to compare Jesus as the creator of the Universe with Jesus as the head of the church? Paul says you bet we are!
We can’t miss the rhythm of Paul’s theology. Like a song telling a story, he is connecting dots and igniting emotion to the surface.
Jesus is the image of the invisible God (v. 15) and He did create all things (v. 16). Now, watch this.
Jesus is before all things and sustains all things (v. 17) and He is the head of the church, the prototype of a new creation (v. 18).
Do you see the connection between verses 15 and 17? Do you see the connection between verses 16 and 18?
Verse 17 takes what verse 15 says and adds more depth to it. Verse 18 takes what verse 16 says and raises it by infinity.
When we see the truth of verse 18, it blows verse 16 out of the water. Because not only has Jesus created all things (thanks, Jesus), but He has taken what was broken and He has made something new. And we call that something the church.
Jesus was the firstborn of the new creation He came to create. What do I mean? He is the first of many who will experience resurrection after death and will go to be in the presence of God in the New Heavens and New Earth. That’s right. He is making all things new. And these new things are incomparably BETTER than the old things.
So… Ecclesiology. Is it important? Is the church important? Absolutely.
It’s a new family.
It’s a new kingdom under the reign and rule of King Jesus.
It’s a royal priesthood.
It’s a holy nation.
It’s the bride of Jesus.
The church is a big deal. And this goes for every local church too.
Too often, people church hop, church shop, or they leave their church at the first sign of difficulty.
What if we saw the church as important as Jesus sees it?
Read Ephesians 5 slowly today from the lens of what Paul says we should read it through: “This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church” (Ephesians 5:32). Yes, Paul is speaking about marriage. But that’s not the only thing he’s speaking about. In fact, that seems to be the secondary topic he’s speaking about.
What if Jesus being the head of the church is a bigger deal to Him than every other thing He is and has done?
Onward, saints.
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