Christology For Dummies - Colossians 1:15-20

"Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross." In the series of short declarations in these verses, the Apostle Paul presents a concise yet comprehensive theology of Christ--a Christology--that you don't have to be a biblical scholar or theologian to understand or appreciate. These declarations present a clear conception about the divine nature of Jesus and Paul may have been quoting from the verses of an early Christian hymn. In these verses Paul presents Jesus as the supreme Creator and Redeemer. Through His incarnation, Christ became the visible image of God. Because of His divinity, He is supreme not only over the realm of humanity but over all existence in the spiritual realm. In fact, Christ is both the one through whom all things were created and the goal of all creation. He is the essential unity of all His redeemed people. God has chosen to reveal Himself fully in Jesus Christ. Therefore, seeing Jesus and understanding who He is means seeing and understanding God. In other words, Christ is sufficient for all our knowledge of God. And through Christ, God has reconciled everything to Himself, thus, establishing His authority and rule over all creation, both in the spiritual and the earthly realms. Now that's a theology of Christ that is plain enough for us dummies to understand and even make us want to bow down and worship Him!