Greater Than (Colossians) – Week 1 – Christ in You

Message Big Idea: Jesus, Lord of heaven and earth, makes his home in us.Scripture: Colossians 1:15-27, John 14:16-24_________________

Introduction: Missing the Point (Series Graphic) Have you ever felt like you missed the point? Maybe you didn’t realize that article you were commenting on was from the Onion, or you added extra whipped cream, caramel, and mocha to your non-fat latte. Well, don’t fret – we all miss the point now and again.

For example, (picture) this dog. Um… that’s not how you’re supposed to use that.

Or how about the guy that classified this (picture) as “breaking news”?

Or whoever made this (picture) particular marketing decision:

Sometimes, we miss the mark. We can all miss the point with little things like dog kennels and toothpaste, but what happens if we miss the point of something that really matters…what then?

Series IntroductionToday we are beginning a 4-week series through the book of Colossians, which is found in the New Testament of the Bible. We’ll be looking at specific sections of the book during our time together on Sundays, but we also have a (Graphic) Turn the Page Bible Experience where we’ll go verse by verse through Colossians Monday through Friday. I hope you’ll join us for that! You can receive the written version through our COMMUNITY Bible Reading Plan or listen to the audio version through our app or on iTunes. You can find all the information on this Bible Experience at communitychristian.org/bible.

Colossians is actually a letter that the Apostle Paul wrote to a group of Christ-followers he never met. The church in Colosse was founded by one of Paul’s fellow-missionaries, a man named Epaphras. So why is Paul writing a group of strangers?

Well, word has reached him that some false teachers had infiltrated the ranks of this young church and were teaching things that were not in line with the good news of Jesus that Paul and the other apostles taught. Paul is concerned that these young Christ-followers are getting off-track in their spiritual journey and in danger of missing the point!

Though the circumstances are different, the same thing can happen to us, can’t it? Sometimes we, too, can get off-track in our journey as Christ-followers.

Sometimes we get derailed by Personal Pursuits. Our desire for success in the workplace or our quest to find the perfect relationship or our obsession with a hobby can consume our focus. As we pour our energy into these pursuits, our relationship with Jesus gets put on the back burner. Ever been there?

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Sometimes we get derailed by Relational Rifts. When we are hurt or offended by something someone said in our small group or by something that happened at church, we can draw back and separate ourselves from the community. The problem is following Jesus is not meant to be a Lone Ranger activity. Without the encouragement, support, correction, and challenge of Christian community, it’s easy for us to get off course.

And sometimes we get derailed by Superficial Spirituality. I will admit, this has happened to me at times. It’s when we go through the motions of attending services, reading our Bible, maybe even saying a prayer here and there, but there’s no real transformation happening in our lives. We are going through the motions, but not really growing. We’re missing the point.

It can be so easy to get off-track in our journey as Christ-followers, and the Colossians were in danger of that. So Paul writes to them to help them course-correct. And he begins by reminding them what… or rather who… is at the center of their faith. He’s bringing them back to the point...back to Jesus.

The Point: Colossians 1:15-20Every one of us has a picture of who Jesus is, don’t we? Some of these images are quite interesting. In fact, if you Google “image of Jesus,” you find some pretty unusual things.

(New Slide-Picture) Jesus, the huggable bracelet. (Add Picture) Or Jesus the Pez dispenser. (Add Picture) Or Jesus, a vision on toast.

Seriously, what is wrong with us?

Now, I don’t think Paul had any concept of a Jesus Pez dispenser, but he did know that the key to getting the Colossians back on track was to make sure they had a clear picture of Jesus. So he starts there. Let’s take a look at the picture Paul paints of Jesus:

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through 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.” -Colossians 1:15-18

This passage of Scripture is actually considered to be one of the earliest poems about Jesus, and it is packed with theological meaning. Let’s take a closer look at some of the phrases Paul uses to describe Jesus.

Paul says that Jesus is (highlight) “the image of the invisible God.” Jesus makes the invisible visible.

Even people who aren’t Christ-followers wonder what God is like. Maybe imagine it like this: Imagine you are sitting in a room with a room divider. You know that someone else is also present in the room, but he’s on the other side of the divider so you can’t see him. But now suppose someone comes and places a mirror on the wall. By looking at the mirror, you can now see the person on the other side…you can now see their image.

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Jesus is that mirror. He is the mirror image of the God who is present who we normally can’t see. The writer of Hebrews puts it this way:

“The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being…” -Hebrews 1:3

By looking at Jesus, we can see the invisible God.

Paul also declares that Jesus is (1:15-18 with highlight) “the firstborn over all creation.” Now, when Paul says that Jesus is “the firstborn,” this does not mean that Jesus, himself, is a created being. In Paul’s day, firstborn had a connotation meaning the rights associated with being the main inheritor of the family’s wealth. The point of this word picture is that Jesus is the inheritor of all creation. Everything in heaven and on earth belongs to him! And why? Because he made it all! Everything that exists was created through him and for him!

Theologian Abraham Kuyper declares:

“...there is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: ‘Mine!’” - Abraham Kuyper

Everything in heaven and on earth, including you and me, rightfully belongs to Jesus.

Paul also proclaims that (1:15-18 with highlight) “in him all things hold together.” Jesus doesn’t leave his creation to fend for itself, he is actively involved in sustaining it.

Think of it this way… I didn’t build my house, but because I purchased it, it now belongs to me. Well, it actually still belongs to the bank, but for the sake of this illustration, let’s pretend it belongs to me. Any of you who are homeowners know that there are lots of things that need to be done if you want your home to last. You have to clean it. You have to maintain the furnace and periodically paint the trim. When something breaks, you have to repair it. You have to be actively involved in sustaining your home.

Well, Jesus is actively involved in sustaining everything that belongs to him. Pastor Mark Meynell writes:

“God is actively involved in sustaining his creation moment by moment. Without him, everything would revert to the nothingness and chaos that existed before God got to work in Genesis 1. Jesus is at work all around us at every single moment.” -Mark Meynell, Colossians & Philemon for You

Without Jesus, everything would fall apart. He holds all things together.

I’ll point out one last thing that Paul says of Jesus: Jesus is (highlight) “the head of the body, the church.” You see the church, this community of Christ-followers that you and I are a part of, this belongs to Jesus too. He created this too. While we may receive benefits by being a part of this body, the church exists for Jesus. In everything, Paul declares, Jesus is to be supreme.

As Paul writes to this young church in Colosse, the most important thing he wants them to understand is that Jesus is the Point. If we don’t want to miss the point, Jesus has to be in the center. Jesus is greater than everyone and everything.

The Problem3

That’s why we’ve called this series “Greater Than.” When I hear that title, I can’t help but think back to when I (Lauren) was helping my son with his 3rd grade math. (Hold up the symbol) He was learning the about comparing numbers using the symbols (hold it this way) “greater than” and (flip it this way) “less than.” Let me refresh you on this a bit. If I were to put two numbers on the screen here:

200 350

You would have to figure out which way this symbol goes between them. Would it go like this? (hold it greater than) Or would it go like this? (hold it less than) Some of you are having E-learning flashbacks right now! But don’t stress, it’s not too difficult. Picture this symbol as a mouth, and the mouth is always trying to “eat” the bigger number (thank you to my 3rd grade teacher Miss Delio for that visual). So in this case we would put this symbol this way (less than) for this math equation. 200 is less than 350.

Did I lose you yet? OK good. How about this one?

55 10

How does the symbol fit here? Yes! It would be this way (greater than) because 55 is greater than 10.

Alright, let’s try one more…

Cubs Sox

Wow. I can almost hear you all shouting at me from your houses! Go ahead and type in the comment section which one is greater. This should be fun.

Now Paul tells us that Jesus is greater than everyone and everything in our lives, but all too often, whether we realize it or not, we put Jesus on the wrong side of the equation. We know Jesus is supreme, but we live as if we were. There are areas of our lives that we want full control; where we say “I’ve got this” instead of allowing Jesus to lead us. Let’s take a look at this math lesson again, but this time, let me replace these numbers here with something else.

Jesus Finances

When we look at this, what symbol would you use here? Is Jesus greater or less than our financial troubles, our financial goals, our financial future? Do we fully trust him with this area of our lives and live obedient to his commands? Or do we hold onto control of our finances? Do we insist on having our own way in this area of our lives? Ok how about this one:

Jesus Success

What symbol would you put here? So often we say that Jesus is our savior but what about when the health of a loved one or even ourselves is on the line? Do we truly believe that He will be able to see us through it? Alright here’s one more:

Jesus Relationships

This can be a hard one. I want to say that Jesus is greater than any other person in my life, but I’m not sure I always put him first. I know I would love to say that when someone hurts me, I can just give it up to God and it all goes away, but sometimes it feels like I just want to keep this one to myself, like I have the

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power to heal on my own. Maybe there is some shame here that keeps us from bringing to Him, and maybe in our heart we know that He is greater than any of the brokenness.

Why is it that we have such a hard time putting Jesus ahead of everyone and everything else in our lives? Again, pastor Mark Meynell offers this:

“Ever since Genesis 3, the root cause of all that is wrong in the world–from the grand scale of empires and nations right down to the personal level of playground bullies and marital conflict–is simple. It is sin. This is the human heart-attitude that consistently chooses to go it alone. It is a matter of creatures declaring independence from the Creator. We insist that we don’t need God or his ways in our lives. Everything needs to be done our way. That is treason of a cosmic order.” -Mark Meynell, Colossians and Philemon for You

The Promise: Colossians 1:20-22And it’s this rebellion, or as Meynell calls it, treason, that fractured our relationship with God and got us off track. But there is good news today, a promise Paul points us to back in Colossians. (Colossians 1:19-22) Paul reminds us that through Jesus’ work on the cross, we can now be reconciled to God…we can find our way back to him. This reconciliation overturns everything that has gone wrong. In God’s sight we are declared (highlight) “holy…without blemish and free from accusation.”

And it all starts with recognizing that Jesus is the point…Jesus is greater than. A Christ-follower declares, “I am no longer lord of my life, Jesus is Lord!”

When we do that, when we give Jesus his rightful place in the center, that’s how life gets back on track. COMMUNITY attender Michelle Wilkins found this to be true. Here is her story:

Video: Michelle Wilkins (FYWBTG Story)

Challenge: FYWBTGMichelle has such a powerful testimony. If she were standing on this stage, I suspect she would say to you: “If your life is off track, if personal pursuits or relational rifts or superficial spirituality or anything else has derailed your spiritual journey, come back to God.”

There’s an old hymn called “Come Thou Fount” that includes these poignant lyrics:

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel itProne to leave the God I loveHere's my heart, oh, take and seal itSeal it for Thy courts above

It’s so easy to get off track. It’s so easy to wander and leave the God we love. If you recognize that your life has gone off-track, would you come back to God today? Whether for the first time or for the hundredth time, would you give your heart to Jesus.

He is greater than anyone or anything else.He is the point.

Will you give him his rightful place at the center of your life? One important way to do that is through baptism. In baptism, we identify with Jesus in his death and burial when we go under the water, but when

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we come up, we step into resurrected life, declaring that he is greater than everything. This isn’t about having all your theological ducks in a row but rather, fully surrendering to Jesus, proclaiming that his is King and Lord of your life. This invitation is for all of us.

If you’ve never made a public declaration that Jesus is your Lord through baptism, I also want to invite you to make that decision right now. You can go to communitychristian.org/baptism to learn more about this important step in the journey of a Christ-follower and sign up for the Baptism Class or to be baptized. I encourage you to make that decision today.

Conclusion: Christ in You When we make the decision to follow Jesus, not only does he look at us and say, “MINE!” he also says, “HOME!”

What Paul shared with the Colossians includes a mystery that people for centuries could never have imagined. That mystery is:

“Christ in you, the hope of glory” -Colossians 1:27

The Creator of the universe, the Lord of heaven and earth, takes up residence in the life of every Christ-follower! Through his Spirit living inside of us, Jesus will lead us to live a life that is “on point.” That’s what we’ll be digging into during the rest of this series so make sure you join us in the weeks ahead as this series could be truly pivotal in our understanding of who Jesus is and what it means to live in him.

Jesus is the most recognized person in human history. He’s even got Pez dispensers made in his image! The most influential person in the history of the world wants us – he wants you and he wants me, to invite him in. So will you? Will you open up your heart to him and allow Him to be “greater than” everything else in your life?

He wants to give you hope.He wants to restore what is broken.He wants to get you back on track.

When we put Him at the center of our lives, Jesus can make us whole again.

Communion Idea Every week here at Community, we celebrate the life of Jesus and celebrate communion together. As we take communion this morning I ask that we reflect on who Jesus is to us and what he means to us. Sometimes it is easy to go through the motions with Communion, to miss the point of what it is He is asking us to do, but today as we receive the bread that represents His body broken for us, and the cup that represents His blood that was spilled for us, let’s take a moment and ask ourselves who Jesus is to us.

Is He truly “greater than” all our troubles? Is He at the center of our lives?

Jesus asks us to take Communion to remember Him and honor Him. As we receive the elements today, let’s remember who He is and what he did for us, but let’s also remember the promise he makes to us; the promise that if we put him in his rightful place, as supreme ruler over our lives, He will restore us and renew us.

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