Paul Declares Christ to Be God the Creator of All
Things Part 1
Colossians
1:15-16 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth,
visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or
principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him: KJV Having completed his declaration of these Colossians (and our) transfer from one kingdom (darkness) to the other Kingdom (light in Jesus Christ) through Christ payment for their/our sins by His precious, perfect, and powerful Blood, Paul now declares to them/us exactly who this Man Jesus Christ truly is and always has been in eternity with these words, “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:” (Colossians 1:15) (KJV). Paul uses the English phrase ‘the image’ which is translated by one Greek word eikon which means likeness or representation or carbon copy of the original. In other words, the Man Jesus Christ was and is God manifested in a human body and this truth has caused many people to stumble over since He was born in Bethlehem and subsequently denying themselves any chance of being eternally forgiven and translated from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of Christ. It began so with most of the Jews refusing to believe that He was YAHWEH standing right before them in the flesh as our Lord Jesus declared to them with these words, “And He said to them, ‘You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. Therefore, I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.’” (John 8:23-24) (NKJV).
The very man the Jewish Patriarch Abraham saw YAHWEH appear to him in the flesh and received Him as God and not as just Man as it is written here, “Then the LORD appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So, he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground, and said, ‘My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant.’” (Genesis 18:1-3) (NKJV). The Jehovah’s Witness and the Mormon’s are two modern day examples of those who like the Jews are blind to the fact that the One True God is Jesus Christ who manifested Himself as a Man as the Apostle Paul clearly writes this truth with these words he wrote to the believers in Corinth, “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling {and} restoring the world to favor with Himself, not counting up {and} holding against [men] their trespasses [but cancelling them], and committing to us the message of reconciliation (of the restoration to favor).” (2 Corinthians 5:19) (Amplified Bible).
Moses wanted to see YAHWEH face to face, but was told these words, “But He said, ‘You cannot see My face; for no man, shall see Me, and live.’ And the LORD said, ‘Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So, it shall be, while My Glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.’” (Exodus 33:20-23) (NKJV). The Glory of God is not some quaint nice saying, but is an actual part of His Eternal Supernatural Being or Himself. The Sun in our solar system is a faint example of the Glory of God, although God’s Glory is infinite times more powerful than the Sun, yet there are numerous Atomic explosions going off within the Sun every second, can you imagine what would happen to a human body approaching the Sun, for we are 93 million miles away from the Sun here on the earth and we cannot even look into its rays with our eyes for a couple of seconds before we are blinded and have to turn away.
Therefore, for man to see God, God had to veil, obscure, cover, conceal, or hide His Glory in the Body of our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ as therefore our Lord Jesus said these words to Philip, “Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, Show us the Father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.’” (John 14:9-11) (NKJV). Paul’s use of the English word firstborn is translated by the Greek word prototokos which is from the Greek word protos and it means foremost (in time, place, order or importance): - before, beginning, best, chief (-est), first (of all). In other words, the God-Man Jesus Christ is not a created being as the Jehovah’s Witness and the Mormon’s sadly mistakenly believe to their eternal detriment and destruction, (we just read the proof of this fact above from Paul and our Lord Jesus Himself in the Word of God).
But what it does mean is that Christ (the God-Man) just as the word image/eikon declares God’s revelation to humanity in Christ, likewise firstborn declares Christ eternal preexistence before creation as Paul will affirm in the very next verse and even as he affirmed in his letter to the Hebrews with these words, “In many separate revelations [each of which set forth a portion of the Truth] and in different ways God spoke of old to [our] forefathers in {and} by the prophets, [But] in the last of these days He has spoken to us in [the person of a] Son, Whom He appointed Heir {and} lawful Owner of all things, also by {and} through Whom He created the worlds {and} the reaches of space {and} the ages of time [He made, produced, built, operated, and arranged them in order]. He is the sole expression of the Glory of God [the Light-being, the out-raying or radiance of the Divine], and He is the perfect imprint {and} very image of [God’s] nature, upholding {and} maintaining {and} guiding {and} propelling the Universe by His Mighty Word of Power. When He had {by offering Himself} accomplished {our} cleansing of sins {and} riddance of guilt, He sat down at the right hand of the Divine Majesty on High, [Taking a place and rank by which] He Himself became as much superior to angels as the glorious Name (title) which He has inherited is different from {and} more excellent than theirs. For to which of the angels did [God] ever say, You are My Son, today I have begotten You [established You in an official Sonship relation, with kingly dignity]? And again, I will be to Him a Father, and He will be to Me a Son? Moreover, when He brings the firstborn Son again into the habitable world, He says, Let all the angels of God worship Him.” (Hebrews 1:1-6) (Amplified Bible).
Paul now leaves no doubt in the minds of these Colossian believers and we believers today who the Man Jesus Christ truly was then and is now and always has been and always will be when he says, “For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him:” (Colossians 1:16) (KJV). First off Paul declares that the Man known to all to be a reality in human History was and is the Eternal God (YAHWEH) as known by the Jewish Nation Israel the One who created everything that is in Heaven and on the earth. This destroys any argument that our Lord Jesus Christ was created by God because no created being can create anything, therefore, He is God period (no one can be saved eternally and deny this in their heart) as it is also clearly declared at the very beginning of the Apostle John’s Gospel with these words, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” (John 1:1-3) (NKJV).
Jesus Christ is the Creator of all of the invisible world i.e., the angels, seraphim, cherubim, demons, gravity, electricity, and every other invisible entity, therefore, it is absolutely absurd for any human being to believe that He (Christ) is OK with people worshipping angelic beings over Him, therefore, such worship is surely wrong as an angel warned the Apostle John when he was caught up in the moment, “Then [the angel] said to me, Write this down: Blessed (happy, to be envied) are those who are summoned (invited, called) to the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he said to me [further], These are the true words (the genuine and exact declarations) of God. Then I fell prostrate at his feet to worship (to pay divine honors) to him, but he [restrained me] and said, Refrain! [You must not do that!] I am [only] another servant with you and your brethren who have [accepted and hold] the testimony borne by Jesus. Worship God! For the substance (essence) of the truth revealed by Jesus is the spirit of all prophecy [the vital breath, the inspiration of all inspired preaching and interpretation of the divine will and purpose, including both mine and yours].” (Revelation 19:9-10) (Amplified Bible).
“Question: Why would the winds and the waves in the sea (non-living things) obey the words of a mere man or even an angelic being (Matthew 8:26), unless He (Christ) was not just a Man, but the One True Creator God in human flesh. The disciples asked a question that has but one answer when they said, “But the men marveled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!” (Matthew 8:27) (KJV). He is not just a Man, but the One and Only God-Man!” Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...
Sincerely in Christ,
Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…
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