The Excellency of the Knowledge of Christ Jesus My Lord

  1. The Excellency of Christ in Creation
    1. The Beginning of the Creation of God - Col. 1:18; Rev. 3:14
      1. Christ is God's thought in creation
    2. The prototype nature of Christ to creation - Col. 1:15
      1. Image and dominion - Col. 1:12-15; Gen. 1:26-28
    3. The One who makes God visible and knowable - Col. 1:15a; John 1:18
    4. The Firstborn of all creation - Col. 1:15b
    5. The Firstborn out of the dead - Col. 1:18
    6. The Sphere of all creation - Col. 1:16a "in Him"
      1. All things in the universe have a relationship with Christ
      2. Christ is the unifying factor of the universe
    7. The Agent of creation ("through Him") - Col. 1:16b; John 1:3
    8. The Goal of creation ("unto Him") - Col. 1:16c
    9. The preexistence of Christ before creation - Col. 1:17a "He is before all things"
    10. The present power of Christ with creation - Col. 1:17b; Heb. 1:3
    11. The Heir of all things in the universe - Heb. 1:1-2
    12. The purpose in creation - Eph. 3:9-11
    13. His masterpiece created in Christ Jesus - Eph. 2:10
    14. The creation of the new man in Christ - Eph. 2:15
  2. Christ Having the First Place in All Things
    1. The first place because all the fullness was pleased to dwell in Him - Col. 1:18b-19
      1. He is to "become" the first place in all things - Col. 1:18
    2. The first place as the Head of His Body - Col. 1:18
    3. The first place in the Father's love - Col. 1:13
    4. The first place in the Father's plan for the universe - Col. 1:16
    5. The first place in the Father's good pleasure - Col. 1:19
    6. The first place in creation - Col. 1:16
    7. The first place in eternity past - Col. 1:17a
    8. The first place in the present existence of the universe - Col. 1:17b
    9. The first place in God's administration through the church - Col. 1:18a
      1. Christ, as the resurrected Head and Source gives existence to the church - Col. 1:18
    10. The first place as our source - the Beginning/ Source/ Origin - Col. 1:18
    11. The first place in the process of reconciling the universe - Col. 1:20
    12. Becoming first place to those who belonged to another - Col. 1:21-23 (Eph. 2:12; 4:18)
    13. The first place in relation to our sufferings, i.e. we participate in His death for the producing of His Body - Col. 1:24; 2 Cor. 4:1-12
    14. The first place in God's administration to produce the church - Col. 1:25-26
    15. The first place in all our fellowship with one another - Col. 1:27-29