“And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.”
The fourth of seven distinctives of the sovereign Son of God is that he is “before all things.”
“And He is before all things”
The Son of God existed before the universe was created. He lived before the beginning of time, from all eternity (John 1:1). Jesus Christ came from eternity (Mic. 5:2; Isa. 9:6; John 1:1-3; 8:58; Eph. 1:4; Rev. 1:11).The word “before” can carry the idea of prior existence (cf. Jn 8:58) or in the sense of rank or importance (Jam. 5:12; 1 Pet 4:8) or both. Here it is both.
Jesus Christ antedated everything and everyone. Since he is prior in time to everything and everyone, he has the priority of place in the universe. Jesus existed before Abraham, “Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58). Jesus Christ existed before Abraham was born, even though Abraham lived 2000 years before Christ.
He predates Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” He is the unbegun beginning, “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). Our Lord did not become the Son of God at Bethlehem. He existed in pre-incarnate form forever.
Principle:
We worship an eternally living Christ.
Application:
Jesus Christ is no super-charged Mahatma Gandhi or eight-cylinder Buddha. He is no glorified man. He is a man, but he is more than a man. He is the eternal God. If he were less than God, then the Bible would be a fairy tale.
Do you have a high view of Jesus Christ? Do you worship him as such?
I love your way of putting it “he is the unbegun beginning” very profound!
Comment:I need a preamble notes on the topic Jesus christ is all and in all, according to colossians 1 :17. Or an interpretation of the theme,, thank you
Amos, I am not quite sure what you mean. Have you studied the verses leading up to verse 17 and also 1:17b and following?
The unbegun creation is a remarkable turn it puts everything in perspective that he wasn’t just a son but he was God. That puts everything in place about his rule over Thrones and principalities and Powers. A note progression would help me thank you.
Ronnie, I am not sure what you mean by a “note progression.” If you are asking to go to the next part of the verse, just hit the verse at the upper right.