Introduction
https://anchor.fm/s/560094ec/podcast/rssWho is Jesus Christ? The answer to the question is foundational to our faith. It is the Rock upon which the Church stands. It is therefore, necessary that the Church constantly teach the truth about who Christ is until He comes. In this article I am going to answer this question by addressing just the eternal attribute of Christ from 1 John 1:1 and Colossian 1:15-18. It is my prayer that the glory of God revealed in this truth about our Lord Jesus will transform our lives and shape our worship for His glory, Amen!
Who is Jesus? He is the eternal Son of God
“That which was from the beginning (verse 1).” John begins his letter by addressing the eternal existence of Christ because it is key to our faith that we know that Christ is eternal. Why is the eternal attribute of Jesus important to our salvation? It is important because there is no created thing that can offer anything eternal from within itself. Creature such as Angels even though are powerful than man cannot offer anything eternal from within themselves because they are not intrinsically eternal. Man also cannot offer anything eternal from within himself because he is not intrinsically eternal . The truth is that only God can offer eternal blessings to his creation from the abundance of his blessedness because He is intrinsically eternal. Our Lord promises eternal life to all those who believe in Him, and He explicitly claims to be that life: Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26, NIV).
Some people like the Jehovah witnesses teach that Christ is created in their twisting of many of the Bible verses. This heresy of a created Christ was formulated and propagated by Arius who was latter condemned by the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. Jehovah witnesses just like Arius hold that the word “firstborn” means first to be created. They say “He is called ‘firstborn over all creation,” for he was God’s first creation. Colossian 1:15”[1]. That teaching is contrary to what the Bible teaches about the word “firstborn” in referring to Jesus Christ.
The passage in which we see this term “firstborn” is Colossian 1:15-18 which says
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 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
Colossian 1:15-18, NIV
Now, the Apostle Paul explicitly explains what the word “firstborn” means in Colossian 1:15-20. The main teaching in this passage is about the supremacy of Jesus Christ. In this passage Paul gives four reasons to explain what firstborn means in referring to Christ:
1. “For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him.”
Christ has supremacy over creation because He himself is uncreated and creation is the work of His hands and it belongs to Him. He is from everlasting to everlasting. John says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made (John 1:1-3, KJV).” Isaiah also says concerning the Christ that He is the “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6, NIV).” Just as the God the Father is eternal so the Jesus Christ as the Son of God is eternal.
2. “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”
Jesus Christ has supremacy over all things because (a) “He is before all things, which means He has always been there before anything was created. God the Father speaks to Christ as God whose throne is eternal: “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.” (Hebrews 1:8-9, NIV). He is eternal as God the Father is eternal and the Holy Spirit is eternal. (b) Christ has supremacy over all things because “In Him all things hold together,” Only God has the power to hold all things within himself. The Bible says, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word (Hebrews 1:3, NIV).”
3. “And He is the head of the body, the church.”
Jesus Christ is the firstborn not because is the first to be created in the church BUT because He has supremacy over the Church. The Church is his possession. He owns it by his own blood. He gives the church eternal life. “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:27-30,NIV).
The church holds together in Him alone for He is the head of the Church. We don’t hold Christ but Christ holds us. All that the Church is before God is because of Christ: Her beauty, blamelessness, purity, holiness comes from Christ. The supremacy of Christ over His Church destroys the boasting of man over the church. With many denominations it may seem as if the true Church of God (consisting of every true believer in Christ) is not altogether held up but in Christ it is. If it is not it means Christ has failed, but the truth is that the Church hold together in Christ and the gate of hell will not prevail over it. The reality of the church does not depend on the circumstance but on who Christ is.
4. “He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.”
Christ is the firstborn because (a) “He is the beginning”. Everything that God purposed to create was created by Christ. For this reason John under the inspiration the Holy Spirit says, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made (John 1:3, NIV).” Because of this Christ has supremacy over everything that exists. His greatness over all things is incomparable. (b)Christ is “the firstborn from among the dead.” Christ is the firstborn from the dead because He is the first one to resurrect. He came back to life with a glorified body and never died again. Therefore He has supremacy over death. For He says to John, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades” (Revelation 1:17-18).
Apostle Paul finishes his case by saying “so that in everything he might have the supremacy.” This is to say that all that he said about Christ being the firstborn was to show the unsearchable and incomparable supremacy of Christ so that we may not conceive him in our mind as created being BUT the blessed God who is eternal forever, Amen.
In summary: Our Lord Jesus is not created BUT He is the Creator and He is the eternal God. One God with the Father and the Holy Spirit. There is no other truth that sets us free apart from the truth that the one who loves us and saved us from our sins by shading his blood on the cross is the eternal God our creator who became the God-man for our salvation.
God bless you.
Bibliography
- What does the Bible really teach? (South Africa: Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, 2014), 41
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