Colossians 1:15-29
Dearly beloved,
We gather this night in the midst of a busy week in order to
pray and muse on the Word of God that makes up Colossians 1. The lection
for this evening is thought to be an ancient Christian hymn of the church in
St. Paul’s day. It has the sound and message of a creed. It sounds similar
to the Apostles and Nicene Creed. St. Paul’s words to the church in
Colossae are a reminder to that church that Jesus is everything.
In St. Paul’s words are images of all the sides of Jesus. This
is what we are to ponder this evening, this first week in Advent. Let there
be no mistake about it. Jesus is as the creed describes, “begotten of the
Father before all worlds….” Jesus is fully God. We see in Paul’s words
that Jesus is the everlasting God. Paul says that Jesus is “the image of
the invisible God.” This is one side of Jesus. He is “God of God, light of
light.” In other words, as much as the Father is God, the Son is equal in
Godhead. So, the first vantage point that we see in the description of
Jesus is that He is the eternal God.
The other vantage point that St. Paul gives to the church at
Colossae is that of Christ’s earthly sojourn. Just as the Apostles and
Nicene Creed do, St. Paul’s words focus on the flesh side of Jesus and also
the life of the Church. Verse 19 reminds us of the Christmas text, “For it
pleased the Father that in Him [Jesus] all the fullness should dwell…” It
makes us think of the baby in the manger, while all the heavenly host gather
around in reverence and awe of God having come in the flesh, in a baby, in a
stable.
St. Paul’s words do speak of high and deep Christological
doctrine. In these words we find a running commentary on the two natures
of Jesus Christ—God and Man. When the church thinks on these words of Paul,
a few things should be considered. First, we confess the creed each week. We
talk about the eternal God. We confess the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Ghost. We confess the two natures of Christ. But what does this mean to
the world?
If we were to sit down with an unbeliever and read
Colossians 1 to them, what would they think? Maybe sometimes in your
weakness, you wonder why this is important for you. It is a fair question
to ask. Young Christians no doubt wonder why we confess the creed every
Lord’s day. What is contained in Colossians 1:15-29 are the core statements
about what the church believes. It is a creed, or, in Greek it is called a
“symbol.” A symbol is a definitive statement about something. The
important thing that comes up for us today is the fact that the three creeds
of the church, the Apostles, Nicene, and Athanasian all derived from an
earlier creed, much like we have in Colossians 1.
Such a creed is important for the church because it keeps
the church on track. It is a “plumb line” or a “straight line” that does
not veer off. We need the creed ringing in our ears, because it keeps us on
the narrow path to salvation that Jesus speaks of. Jesus says in the Sermon
on the Mount to “enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is
the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.” One
can think of the narrow gate as the creedal formula such as St. Paul has put
down for the church of all ages. What is the correct faith to confess? How
does one get to heaven?
The creedal statements in Colossians 1 set forth for us the
path of life. So, we confess the creeds in order to know the way to
everlasting life. We confess the creeds so we do not forget. And in
Colossians 1 is everything you need to know about Jesus in a nutshell. Jesus
is God. He is the firstborn over all creation. Jesus is the head of the
church, which is His body. Jesus is the firstborn from the dead, which is
to say that He defeated death by His death and resurrection. Paul is also
quick to point out that Jesus made peace through the blood of His cross.
The interesting aspect of this text for us this Advent is
how the latter part of Colossians 1 actually deals with the suffering and
death of Jesus on the cross. Jesus had to come in the flesh through the
womb of a virgin. Paul speaks of us all when he says, “And you, who once
were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has
reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and
blameless, and above reproach in His sight.” If there is no incarnation and
birth, then there can be no reconciling the world to the heavenly Father.
This is what the Christian faith is all about. The
Christian faith and the life we live in the church has to be centered on
Jesus and His incarnation, birth, death, and resurrection. If our eyes do
not behold the eternal God Who has come in the flesh, then we heading away
from the creed, from the Eucharist, and away from the narrow gate of
salvation. Each of you, therefore, has the responsibility as baptized
children of God to live the life of faith in humble repentance. But you
fail. You do not live as you ought. You do not confess and pray as you
ought.
The sinful flesh would rather turn the church into something
else. Your heart is lead away from Jesus and onto other things. Which is
precisely why you need to hear over and over the love of God as it is
revealed in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In a few weeks we will behold the
mystery of the birth of Christ as told by St. Luke. Not only shall the
creed continue to ring in your ears, but the preaching of the gospel shall
continue to ring in your midst as well, filling the air that you breathe.
It is this preaching that St. Paul comes back to at the end
of Colossians 1. Paul tells the Colossians, “To them God willed to make
known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles:
which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we preach, warning every man
and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we my present every man perfect
in Christ Jesus.” What beautiful words are written for us. Paul speaks of
the Advent of Christ. Jesus comes in our midst and it is a great mystery.
Jesus comes in your midst in a mysterious way giving you His
forgiveness for all of your sins. It is this creed which is preached among
you for the lighting up of your very lives, giving you the hope and the
promise of everlasting salvation. You are, as Paul says, “partakers of the
mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has
been revealed to His saints.” It is precisely in the Eucharist that
Christ’s Advent is real, as the saints partake of this heavenly mystery.
It is the birth, life, death and resurrection of the enfleshed God that all
need to hear and confess over and over. It is this truth which sets you
free and deems you holy! Unbelievers need to hear it, and God’s saints need
to remember it. Jesus, the God of heaven, has made peace through the blood
of His cross. This peace comes to you. It is yours. You are forgiven and
holy. So, we prepare our hearts this Advent to behold God in the flesh in a
manger Who, for the purpose of reconciling you to the Heavenly Father,
thereby has made you His holy and beloved saints. Amen.
--
Rev. Chad Kendall
www.frchadius.blogspot.com
Trinity Lutheran Church
Lowell, Indiana
www.trinitylowell.org
