“And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.”

The sixth distinctive of Jesus Christ is that he is the head of the body, the church. Not only is Jesus Christ the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe, but he is also the Lord of the church. That is news to a significant segment of Christians!

“And He is the head of the body, the church”

The church here is the universal church. This is the church into which Christ places everyone who has come to trust Christ as their personal Savior (1 Cor. 12:13). This church began on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 1:5; 2:47; 11:15-16). When a person places their trust in the death of Christ to forgive their sins, Jesus puts them into the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13). The Holy Spirit of God fastens them to Christ eternally. Jesus Christ is the sovereign head of the universal church. Anyone who has ever come to trust the cross of Christ, whatever their local church may be, has Jesus Christ as their Lord and Master.

The Bible describes the church as “the body.” The body has action and function and produces results. As God designed the body to respond to the head, he arranged the body of Christ to respond to Jesus Christ, the head. The church can make an impact for Jesus Christ. This emphasis is the issue at Colosse — his supremacy over the church.

Scripture describes Jesus as the “head” of the body. The brain (“head”) produces motion, coordination, and function of the body in physical terms. Jesus Christ sets up the policy and power for the body to function. When the body functions healthfully, then God is glorified.

Principle:

Jesus Christ should hold the supreme rank in our lives because he is the head of the body, the church.

Application:

Because Jesus Christ fastened us to his body (the church) at salvation, we should glorify his eternal work for us. If we are not aware of our position in the body of Christ, we will have a low view of Christ and what he has done for us. We belong to Jesus Christ, and we are a part of him. We can live without our gall bladder, legs, and eyes, but we cannot live without our heads. Jesus Christ is the head (Eph. 1:22,23; 4:15) of the church. As the head, Jesus Christ calls the plays for our lives.