Tuesday, May 21 | Colossians 1:15-23 | Amy Jackson
Have you ever participated in a “get to know you” game where you had to pick a few words or titles to describe yourself? In those situations, I always go back and forth on which descriptors to use. How do I accurately convey my identity with a few nouns or adjectives?
In today’s passage, Paul gives us two titles to help us understand the identity of Jesus. First, in Colossians 1:15-17, Paul describes Jesus as Creator. It’s a hard concept for us to understand, but as Christians we proclaim faith in a God who reveals Himself through the Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We believe that Jesus has always existed in relationship with the Father and Holy Spirit. Long before entering the world as a baby in Bethlehem, Jesus was present with the Father as He spoke creation into being, as the Holy Spirit hovered over the waters (Genesis 1:1). Everything was created through and by Jesus – from the angels and galaxies to the cells in our bodies! And Jesus continues to sustain creation: “He is before all things and in Him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:17).
Second, read Colossians 1:18-20, where Paul describes Jesus as Reconciler. This Creator, in whom “all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell” (Colossians 1:19), took on flesh so that we might know God. He came to reconcile humanity to the Father “making peace by the blood of the cross” (Colossians 1:20). Jesus, fully God and fully man, turns God’s enemies into His friends through His work on the cross.
Finally, read Colossians 1:21-23. Maybe you’ve been agonizing over what titles you might choose to describe yourself – but take heart! Here, Paul reminds us that “reconciled” is the most important word we can ever use to describe ourselves. We were once God’s enemies – alienated, evil, and hostile to the things of God. But if you have trusted in Christ for salvation, you have been made right with God. The fact that you have been reconciled to God through Christ is the most important thing about you: it defines you more than your marital status, income, occupation, race, or personality quirks. Spend some time today reflecting on the reminder that you are reconciled to God – presented “holy and blameless and above reproach before Him” (Colossians 1:22) because Jesus is Creator and Reconciler, and that, since He holds all things together, you also continue to be sustained by Him.
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