Colossians Devotional | He Is Preeminent
Colossians: Christ Above and Before All
The Glory of God Revealed in Jesus
He Is Preeminent
“15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.” - (Colossians 1:15-20)
Preeminence. What is that?
Well, “eminence” means, essentially, “importance that makes one famous.” Go back to your school lessons on grammar and prefixes and what does that “pre-” do to the term? Pre-eminence...this is an importance, so famous and significant, that it surpasses all other important things, people, and ideas.
That’s the question in sports, arts, and sciences, right? The question in history? The greatest basketball player of all time? We start thinking of names like Jordan, James, Bryant, Bird, Johnson, Jabar, and Chamberlain. In golf, is it Tiger Woods? Jack Nicklaus? Arnold Palmer? Greatest military general...do we think of Alexander, Pompei, Napoleon, Washington, or Patton? Greatest human discovery--is it taming fire, the invention of the wheel, taming electricity, taking flight, or harnessing nuclear power?
Of these questions, can we land on who the most important--famously important--person is? Paul says, “yes.”
The most important person--more important than any general, actor, monarch, or artist...more important for us to know about than knowing anything interesting in science or mathematics or engineering--is Jesus.
Paul says that Jesus is preeminent in everything. It would be better for you to know and believe in and be saved by Jesus than to know all the mysteries of cosmological astrophysics. Better than knowing and being able to create the greatest musical symphonies in history. Better than knowing the location of all the gold hidden in the ground, all around the world.
Knowing him, being close to him, living according to his design and purpose ought to come before and be placed above every financial decision we make, every choice we make about what to do with our calendar...everything. For Jesus to be preeminent in our lives, we don’t just make a list of everything important and then stick Jesus at the top of the list. We put Jesus at the top, and then, out to the left of each item on the list, we write him down again.
“Jesus, as the most important person in the universe...what should I spend my money on? Where ought I to live? What do career do you want me to lay my hands to? How do you want me to speak to this person who’s insulting me?” Above and before each and everything, submit to Jesus in his proper, rightful place: preeminent. Surpassing everyone and everything in famous importance.
It’s time to do some reflecting and, possibly, some confession: what decisions are you making about your time, money, body, and relationships that you aren’t placing Jesus ahead of? Not caring what Jesus thinks? Not submitting these things to the course Jesus wants to lay out for you?
Is there someone or something on your mind, taking up more real estate--positively or negatively--than the Lord? Name that person or thing and then pray, asking Jesus to take over that position so the other thing can be in its rightful spot.