Tuesday November 4, 2014

Read: Colossians 1:17-18, Hebrews 1:1-3

The fact that Jesus Christ is both 100% God and 100% Man is one of the most shocking truths of the Christian faith. If we have a high enough view of who God is then it is almost incomprehensible that God the Son would willingly become a man. If we have an accurate view of what mankind is like then it is unbelievable that someone who is just as human as the rest of us could also be God. But, shockingly, the Bible teaches clearly that Jesus is both totally and entirely God and totally and entirely human.

We run into a lot of trouble when we emphasize one of Jesus natures over the other. For example, we are in trouble when we make so much of Jesus’ divinity that we deny His humanity or, vice versa, when we make so much of Jesus’ humanity that we deny His divinity. It seems that this was one of the things that was getting murky in the church in Colossae. They were confused about exactly who Jesus is and His nature. In these verses we see one of the most powerful statements in the New Testament that Jesus is God.

Paul says that Jesus is” before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” Jesus is before all created things, He has always, eternally existed. The only being who can truly say this is God Himself. Only God is not a created being. Not only that but all things hold together and are sustained by Jesus. The author of Hebrews says the same thing in Hebrews 1:3: “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word.”

The idea is that Jesus, God the Son Himself sustains and keeps the universe going. Without Jesus everything would cease to exist and everything would fall apart. Without Him atoms fall apart, planets drop out of orbit, gravity ceases to work, the laws of maths and physics fall apart. Everything ceases to exist. Only by God’s continued grace and mercy does the universe continue to exist. Only God could do that.

Jesus is God the Son Himself, come as a human being to live, suffer, die and rise again so that we could be restored to relationship with God. Paul states this most clearly in verse 19: “For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him.” All of God’s fullness, all of God’s Divinity is found in the person of Jesus. He is 100% God as well as 100% Man.

What does all this mean for us? Paul shows us one massive implication in verse 18. Because Jesus is God He is the head of the church and is supreme over all things. Jesus is the one who leads the church, all of us submit to Him and are to obey Him as the ultimate authority. Are we living to bring glory and supremacy to Jesus? Are we submitting to His authority or are we living sinfully and rebelliously, seeking to glorify ourselves, viewing ourselves as the only ultimate authority? Our lives will show what we really believe about Jesus. What does your life show?

Prayer:

Use the Bible passage from today and the reading notes to write down your prayer points before you pray.

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Adoration:

Confession:

Thanks:

Supplication:

¥ Pray for the teaching of the truth in your church and in your city. Pray that God would guard Christians against false teaching and murkiness about who God is and that the gospel would be clearly taught.

¥ Pray for the small groups that are gathering throughout the week in your church. Pray that they would encourage each other as they meet together and that God would give them wisdom and insight into His word. Pray that God would help you to encourage others as you meet with them this week.

 Worship Moment:

Because Jesus is 100% God He is 100% worthy of our worship, praise and honour. In fact, this is the ultimate purpose of all of creation. Take a moment to think about how you can praise and worship Jesus today.

 Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. What would happen to our salvation if Jesus was 100% God and 0% Man?

2. What would happen to our salvation if Jesus was 0% God and 100% Man?

 Discipleship Moment For Girls

Intro: Everyone has a boss they need to obey. For kids it’s Mum and Dad. For Mum and Dad it might be their boss at work. But everyone needs to obey God as the big boss.

Share:  Who do you think is the boss of the church? Why do you think that they are the boss? What should the boss do for the church?
Read: Colossians 1:18 According to Paul who is the boss of the church? Why does He get to be the boss? What should you do when someone is your boss? What does it mean for Jesus to have the supremacy?
Pray Together: Pray that God would help us to obey Jesus as our boss and that we would love Him more.

 Discipleship Moment For Boys

Intro: Everyone has a boss they need to obey. For kids it’s Mum and Dad. For Mum and Dad it might be their boss at work. But everyone needs to obey God as the big boss.

Share:  Who do you think is the boss of the church? Why do you think that they are the boss? What should the boss do for the church?
Read: Colossians 1:18 According to Paul who is the boss of the church? Why does He get to be the boss? What should you do when someone is your boss? What does it mean for Jesus to have the supremacy?
Pray Together: Pray that God would help us to obey Jesus as our boss and that we would love Him more.