Focus: Jesus Supreme

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,[e] 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.  (NLT)

Have you ever felt used in a friendship? Have you ever had someone who only wanted to be your friend or give you a call when it was convenient for them? That stinks, and it isn't true friendship. The sad thing is that this is exactly how many of us try to treat jesus. We act as if he's a buddy that we can call on in a pnch but ignore the rest of the time. The problem with this perspective is that jesus isn't some cast-off friend to be used when it's convenient. He's the Lord over all creation.

Paul made it clear in this passage that Jesus existed before anything else did. This means that He's fully God. We're told that he holds everything together, meaning he's sustaining our life at this very moment. Paul said that he's the head of the church, which means that if we call ourselves Christ-followers, we're under His authority. Lastly, we're told that he's to be supreme in all areas of our lives. If we try to just use him when it's convenient, we aren't really grasping who Jesus is. He's fully God! And this means we're to follow him and obey Him with everything we've got at all times--convenient and inconvenient.

• Take some time to get things right in your relationship with Jesus. Pray to Him and allow Him to work in your heart to put things in the right perspective in your relationship.