Chapter 2

THE CENTRALITY OF JESUS

Colossians 1:13-20

For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him,  and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

Revelation 5:11-14

Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing." And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, "To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever." And the four living creatures kept saying, "Amen." And the elders fell down and worshiped.

We gather in our church buildings and call ourselves “Christians”. We call ourselves “Christians” because we believe in what Christ did for us. We believe in who Jesus Christ is because we learn of Him in the Holy Bible. The unity in any Christian congregation is not found in their friendship or their fellowship with one another, as beneficial as that may be.

We are not a “Church” because we meet in a beautiful facility with pews, stained glass windows and Christian iconology all around us. We are not a “Church” because we meet in a  facility with chairs, a stage and a “praise team” singing contemporary styled music. We are not a “Christian Church” because we do works of charity like feeding the hungry and caring for the afflicted, which are very good “Christ-like things to participate in.

We are who we are because of Jesus Christ. It’s really all about Jesus Christ! In Colossians 1:13 we read, “He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” When we make a cognitive choice to believe that Jesus Christ really accomplished salvation for us on an individual basis, we become “Christians”. Then we as individual Christians (followers of Jesus Christ) come together to compose His Church.

The paradox is that Jesus Christ actually makes this transition of new life in us by giving His life up for us. Revelation 5:12 says that Jesus is the “Lamb that was slain”. He died mortally so that we might live forever with Him. That is why it is truly all about Jesus Christ.

Each year at Christmas we see a popular slogan mingled into the festive decorations and the cards which reads “Jesus is the reason for the season”. In reality Jesus is the reason for every season. If we read Colossians 1:16 & 17 we find that “by Him all things were created” and “in Him all things hold together”. Jesus is the reason. He is the reason for everything. So if we are really Christians, He should have a powerful reflective impact on our personal lives as Christians. It should be evident in what we do and in what we say each day of our lives.

Probably one of the most inspiring texts of Scripture is found in Revelation 5. It is there that we probably see the most awesome and vivid picture of heavenly praise and worship we can

find in all of Scripture. When we read it thoroughly we learn that Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God and that He alone is worthy of all of our worship and praise.

Revelation 5:6 introduces us to the scenario as John realizes what He is seeing. “And I saw between the throne with the four living creatures and the elders a Lamb standing, as if slain.” The word “Lamb” is a beautiful word in the original Greek manuscript copies. It speaks of a young tender innocent pure lamb. That is the spiritual portrait of Jesus Christ. He is in the center of this whole throne room scene, just as He should be in our lives. He is central to all of this heavenly worship because He is and was pure and perfect. This is exactly why He alone could pay the ultimate price for our sins, by sacrificially giving His life.  

Referencing Jesus Christ, we read in Hebrews 4:15 “For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.” Theologically this simply confirms who the “Lamb” of Revelation 5 is and why He, Jesus Christ is the valid sacrifice for our sins.

The beautiful aspect of this text is then revealed. The many components of all of God’s creation are included in this magnificent picture of worship and praise! It says, “many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands”. It doesn’t stop there. It gets specific to our planet when it says; “every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them”.(Revelation 5:11-14) They proclaim in an unending timeless cycle that this tender little innocent Lamb of God that was sacrificed for our sins is worthy to receive all praise and worship in all things. All of creation is worshipping Jesus Christ in heaven and even on this Earth.

That text in Revelation 5 goes on to tell us that the “four living creatures”, which when properly translated are the four Gospel accounts of our Biblical text are continually saying “Amen”. The use of this word “Amen” is somewhat different when it is used here than in the rest of the Scriptures. In this passage it is really saying that these four living creatures are telling us what you are reading and seeing is not only the absolute truth, but it is also completely trustworthy.  Jesus Christ is worthy of our worship and praise!

Jesus Christ is not only worthy of our worship and praise for what He has done but also what we can be assured of that He will do. Hebrews 9:28 tells us; “So Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.” He has promised that He will return. In the meantime we have His Holy Spirit living within us as Christians to guide us and empower us to live a life that reflects the Gospel message principals of Jesus Christ Himself.

There are two points to remember. It is all about Jesus Christ! If we are truly honest, we have no salvation or eternal hope without Him. That is why it is so important to believe in “what” He accomplished in His life, His death and His resurrection. It is really not just good enough to say we believe in God. We must believe in and place our complete trust in His only Son – Jesus Christ.  

Finally, we can’t go wrong when we focus your life on Jesus Christ! All of heaven and earth do, and so should we. Every book in the Old and New Testament is focused on Jesus Christ in some direct or indirect format of its communication.

When we trust Jesus Christ everyday in all ways, He will indeed guide us through His Holy Spirit on the correct pathway. May we truly worship Him and give him the praise He so

rightfully deserves. He is the truth and He is trustworthy! (John 14:6)