I have been preparing a sermon for this Sunday based on Col 1:15-20.  This is one of the best descriptions and summaries of Jesus to be found in the New Testament.  Some think that Paul borrowed an early Christian hymn to express these wonderful words about Jesus.  This text is difficult to preach on because they are so packed with meaning and significance.  So I have decided to use power point to introduce each phrase of this hymn, make a brief remark, and then ask the congregation to just sit and reflect on each of these phrases.  I am going to encourage them to let the Word of God speak to them in the context of their everyday life.

In this post I would like to make two observations that I have been thinking about as I meditate on this wonderful text.  The first is the beauty of Jesus.  Thinking about the beauty of God and more specifically the beauty of Jesus is not an easy concept for me.  I have never been encouraged or challenged to look at the beauty of God.  But as I have worked with this text, I have come to a small measure of appreciation for the beauty of Jesus.  Beauty observes Eugene Peterson, “is evident and witness to the inherent wholeness and goodness of who God is and the way God works…The distinctive thing about beauty is that it reveals…the depth of what is just beneath the surface, and connects the remote with the present” 

Simply meditating on these words, without have to understand or figure out all of what is implied, only stretches my imagination and helps me to see how awesome is the Lordship of Jesus.  You can’t put it into words.  You have to just take it in and let the reality of the revelation do the work in your heart.  Men, if you have not considered the beauty of Jesus, I encourage you to use this text and just let these words sink into your soul.  I assure you that you will be caught up in the greatness and majesty of our God. You will in some measure be able, “to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.” (Ps 27:4)

The second point from this text that I have been impressed with are the words of verse 17.  “Jesus holds all things together.  The message says, “He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”  I guess for me I need this word, for myself personally and as I contemplate the condition of our culture.  I need Jesus to hold it together for me.  This means a daily humbling of myself, recognizing my total dependance on him.  When I have no idea of how it is going to work out, He will hold it together for me.  Culturally I place my hope in the kingdom of God, knowing the Lord Jesus Christ will hold it all together.  Our culture may collapse, but what is lasting will endure and hold together, because Christ is at the center.  So men, put your trust in the one who hold it together for you.