Colossians
1:15-20, “He is the image of the invisible God, the
firstborn of all creation. 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. And he is before
all things, and in him all things hold together. 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. For in him all the fullness of God was
pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether
on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”
I was drawn to this passage after viewing this sermon put to video on youtube by John Piper. The supremacy of Christ and all of its
implications are often neglected in this day of weak and watered-down
Christianity. We must see and savor the supremacy of Christ. For believers it
is to realize the glory and grace of God to be reconciled to Him in spite of
our sin. This same supremacy is what will bring God’s unbridled wrath upon His
enemies and supply vengeance for the martyred and persecuted Bride of Christ
(The Church).
In the following video John Piper
proclaims this message of Christ's supremacy in a way that will draw you to
praise Christ for His mercy, love and grace. It is a bit lengthy, but
definitely worth the time to watch.
“God hates sin and His wrath is infinite
against sin. We are all stamped and defined by sin.” God demands complete
perfection and because of our sin we have this wrath of God abiding on us in
our unbelief (John 3:36). “The Gospel is your only hope. Christ came into the
world and bore the wrath of God…and He performed a righteousness for us that
only He could perform, which is now, by faith alone imputed to you. So, you may
now, be united to this perfect Christ. Him bearing all the curse, Him providing
all the perfection and know that paradise is open. I can know him. I can begin
to grow in knowing Him. I can actually begin to enjoy knowing Him. He’s not
against me anymore, in fact the wrath of God has so totally absorbed by Jesus
and the perfection that I must produce, has been so totally produced and
provided by Jesus. That now only one thing governs God’s attitude toward me and
that is MERCY!...The best gift of the gospel is seeing and savoring the
supremacy of Jesus Christ and we had no access to that joy until he took our
place.” – John Piper
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