THE PRE-EMINENCE OF THE LORD JESUS

J. A. Brown

Colossians 1: 17, 18; 3: 1, 11 (from “but Christ is”)—13 (to “forgiving one another”)

We had an impression as we gathered to break bread on Lord’s day morning as to the preeminence of the Lord Jesus. The brother who was giving thanks for the emblems was speaking of the Lord Jesus, and he said that we have everything in Him and nothing outside of Him. That has a very blessed spiritual meaning, but it also came as a great test to me—Is that true of me? I thought of this scripture in Colossians, and of the way in which Paul, in writing this letter, brings something of that thought before those to whom he is writing. Verses 17 and 18 of chapter 1 have a very exalted meaning, “And he is before all, and all things subsist together by him”. That is the glory of the Lord Jesus. He is before all. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. And then verse 18, “he is the head of the body, the assembly; who is the beginning, firstborn from among the dead”. What glory is His! Dear brethren, our hearts would no doubt respond worshipfully as we think of that, and a whole spiritual line opens up.

But what I have been tested by is “that he might have the first place in all things”. That can be applied spiritually, and in a day to come He will have the first place in all things. But I think, too, there is a moral application. Does He have the first place in everything that I have to do with? He has the first place in God’s realm. The Lord Jesus has been given that position of pre-eminence by God the Father. He will occupy it eternally, and we shall respond to that and worship eternally. I am sure that as we are engaged with these things in the morning meeting, we can have His glory before us and respond as the Holy Spirit would prompt us. But there is a test, I feel for myself anyway, in the working out of this, from Monday to Saturday, “that he might have the first place in all things”. That means that as someone who has accepted the Lord Jesus as my Saviour, and who has some appreciation by the Spirit of His pre-eminence, and of the way that God has given Him that position of glory, He not only deserves to have the first place in my life, but He should have it. Indeed, He must have it. The key to it is that our affections are engaged with the Lord Jesus.

I have been pondering the way in which Paul writes this letter. The epistle to the Colossians is not a piece of doctrine, it is not an article exactly of ministry that Paul wrote, it is a letter to real people, to a locality in Colosse. As he develops his thoughts, he begins in this chapter to emphasise the glory and the pre-eminence of the Lord Jesus. That is something that every one in this room who knows Jesus can relate to. Maybe not as much as Paul, but every one of us here who loves the Lord Jesus would no doubt say, ‘Yes, He deserves that place of pre-eminence’. But then in the second chapter Paul brings in the truth of baptism.

There are links between the parts of this letter, and as Paul begins a new thought he says, “Therefore”, so one leads to the other. He writes in verse 12 of chapter 2, “buried with him in baptism, in which ye have been also raised with him through faith of the working of God”. What has been before me is that if Christ is to have the first place there is no room for me there. I have to go out of sight, because if I give pre-eminence to my thoughts or what I want to do, whatever it might be, at work or in the home or even in the meeting, then Christ cannot have the first place. But He is to have it, and we come to that through the truth of baptism, that we go out of sight and He gets the first place.

So Paul writes in chapter 3, “If therefore ye have been raised”. The truth of baptism comes into chapter 2 and now he says, “If therefore ye have been raised with the Christ, seek the things which are above”, and, “Put to death therefore your members which are upon the earth” (Colossians 3: 5). And then, “Christ is everything, and in all”, which is the phrase that drew me to this epistle. Now that is true from God’s side, and it will be true. But the test for me is, Is it true for me that “Christ is everything, and in all”? Every one of us here who loves Him, and who has the Holy Spirit to help us would no doubt say, ‘Yes, He deserves that first place’, and the Holy Spirit would help us to give Him it. So every situation that I am in, every decision I take, I can simply ask myself, ‘What would the Lord Jesus want me to do?’ If I am going to give Him the first place in any decision, what does that mean for my actions or my thoughts or whatever it might be? These are simple thoughts, dear brethren. I have just felt tested by it, by the need to make much of Christ, give Him the first place, really give Him everything. Christ is everything and in all! How much He deserves it.

As we make much of Christ, I think we will make much of His people. So there is another “therefore”. “Put on therefore”. If we give the Lord Jesus the place of pre-eminence that He does deserve, then we will give His people a pre-eminence in our lives. We will put other believers before ourselves. You cannot put these things in verse 12 on without reference to other believers, because they are all in relation to other people, “bowels of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, long-suffering”. These are all features that are seen in our relationships with one another. I was struck by something I read in Mr. Taylor’s ministry on ‘Wells and Springs’ where he says, ‘If you make much of Christ you are sure to make much of the saints. If I do not make much of them, I cannot claim to love Christ, the Bridegroom, because the saints are His bride’ (JT Vol. 52, p.6). That came home to me; it is very practical. So these things in verses 12 and 13 come into our links with one another. As we make much of this blessed One who has died to secure us, it would not be difficult to make much, not only of Christ, although He has the pre-eminent place, but also of those whom He has secured. These are wonderful aspects of our relationships together, “bowels of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, long-suffering; forbearing one another, and forgiving one another”.

It is a wonderful thing to see how the most exalted truth can be applied in every aspect of our daily lives, while it is not disassociated from the worship of the Lord Jesus at the morning meeting. In thinking about what came before me, it struck me that it came out of something that was said in worship to the Lord Jesus as we broke bread together. May we all see that what we enjoy on a Lord’s day and what we enjoy in the service of God, we do not put in a box on Lord’s day evening and take it out again the next Lord’s day morning. It is all one thing and the Holy Spirit would help us to give Christ the pre-eminence every day of the week, every hour of the day. When we get up in the morning we think of Him. Before we go to bed, we think of Him. We speak to God about Him, and then as we give Him this place, we will want to give place to those whom He has called us to walk with in relationship. It is wonderful, this blessed system of which the Lord Jesus is Head and Centre. May we be stimulated in these things, for His name’s sake.

Word in meeting for ministry, Grangemouth
16 August 2011