Colossians 1:15-21 Knocking The Props Out From Under The False Teachers

"The false teachers in Colosse would not deny the importance of Christ.  They would simply dethrone Him, giving Him prominence but not preeminence ... Paul used four unanswerable arguments to prove the preeminence of Christ:

Christ is the Savior:  "And His four saving actions are delivering us, translating us (moving us into His kingdom of light), redeeming us, and forgiving us ... Christ has not only set us free and and transferred us to a new kingdom, but He has canceled every debt so that we cannot be enslaved again.  Satan cannot find anything in the files that will indict us."

Christ is the Creator:  "He existed before creation, He created all things, all things exist for Him, and He holds all things together ... ONLY GOD exists before all creation and only God can make creation cohere.  To make Jesus Christ less than God is to dethrone Him."

Christ is the Head of the Church:  "When a person trusts Christ, he is immediately baptized by the Holy Spirit into this body.  Each Christian is a member of this spiritual body and Jesus Christ is the Head (source, origin, leader, and ruler).  As the Head of the church, Jesus Christ supplies it with life through His Spirit."

Christ is the Beloved of the Father:  "Paul declared that all fullness DWELT in Jesus Christ -- the sum total of all the divine power and attributes ... The word dwell means much more than merely to reside ... the form means to be at home permanently ... The Father would not permanently give His fullness to some created being.  The fact that it pleased the Father to have His fullness in Christ is proof that Jesus Christ is God."

"Contrary to what the gnostics taught, Jesus Christ was a true human being with a real body.  He was God in human flesh.  When He died on the cross, He met the just demands of the law because He paid the penalty for man's sins.  Reconciliation was completed on the cross."

Father, thank You for showing Paul Your truths that allowed him to refute the false teachers.  Help me to remember than as I talk with others.

Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford