Colossians 1:15-20 “God With Us”

Christ Proclaimed

Colossians 1:15-20 "God With Us"

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“God With Us” is a sermon preached from Colossians 1:15-20, by Michael Beatty, pastor of Covenant Baptist Church in New Berlin, Wisconsin – a confessional Reformed Baptist church subscribing to the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith.

The Presence of Christ with His People

Please open your Bibles with me to the book of Colossians.

This morning, we’re going to consider verses 15 to 20 through the Word of the Lord:

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”
—Colossians 1:15–20

Thus far the reading of God’s Word.

Please join me as we ask His blessing on it.

Prayer
Father, we ask that You would once again cause us to hear the voice of Christ. For ultimately, we know that Your words recorded in the Scriptures speak of Him, and that You have told us it is by Your Spirit that we hear His voice. So we ask that You would again cause this work to be done in us, that we might give glory to Your name. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.

Is Christ Present with His People Today?

So this morning, what I want to look at is the question: Is Christ present with His people? And if so, how?

We sang the song O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. We often think about that in a historical way—we celebrate Christmas, so certainly Christ was with us. There was a historical time. There’s a whole season devoted to it: special music, things we do every year to consider it.

But that doesn’t really answer the question: Is Christ with us now? Is He still with us?

After all, His very name, Emmanuel, means “God with us.”

If you remember when Joseph was considering setting aside Mary, there was this interaction between him and the messenger of the Lord in Matthew 1:20–23, where the angel said:

“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
“Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel,” which translated means God with us.

Christ is literally Emmanuel. He is God with us. He is named Jesus because He saves His people from their sins. This is why we care so much about the question of Christ’s continuing presence—because it’s bound up in His name and in His promises.

Not Merely a Historical or Physical Presence

We might say, “Well, certainly Christ is physically absent from us this morning.” He’s not here physically. He didn’t walk in and sit with us in the pew. He’s not physically present. So it’s not a historical answer, and it’s not a physical answer. But how is He present?

Well, we know that He has told us, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

If you recall at the end of Matthew’s Gospel, in Matthew 28:18–20—the Great Commission—we hear this:

“Teaching them to observe all that I commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

So Christ is present with us. In our activity as a church, the presence of Christ is what drives our life together. Everything we are doing—we do because Jesus is here.

The Presence of Christ in the Life of the Church

He is present with us. But how?

That’s what we’re going to think about more this morning. He is present with us, and we have great need to hear from Him. If we’re going to make disciples, baptize, and teach people to observe all that He has commanded, it’s grounded in the reality that Christ is here.

It’s a serious thing to invoke the name of the Lord at the beginning of the service with the call to worship and to say, “God is with us”—and to actually believe He’s here.

We would act differently if we believed that.

Certainly, we believe God is present everywhere. But in a particular sense—not in a vague generality—we believe He has a specific care and concern and presence with His church when we gather to worship.

Review of Colossians Leading Up to Verses 15–20

Let’s think about this in light of Colossians 1:15–20.

We’ve already seen that Christ is made known or present through the proclamation of His Word. By way of review:

In Colossians 1:1–8, we saw that the gospel is advancing in the world as Christ preaches His Word to His people. The result is maturity in Christ because He is present among us by His Word.
In verses 9–14, we saw that God has blessed the Colossians to walk in a manner worthy of their calling because of what Christ has done, and that we’ve been transferred into His kingdom.
In verses 21–23, which we’ll look at next week, we see the reconciliation Christ has accomplished.

Verses 15–20, however, might seem at first glance a bit jarring in that sequence. Paul suddenly shifts to talk about Christ before creation, about His cosmic supremacy.

Why the shift?

The Purpose of Paul’s “Interruption”: Reorienting Us to Christ

I think Paul wants us to rest in the person and work of Christ.

All these things—our walk, our growth, our calling—they’re grounded in who Christ is. Paul is pausing to remind us of Christ’s activity in a broader sense. He is reorienting us to live in light of Christ’s imminent return and His presence among us.

It’s easy to lose sight of that, because we live material lives. We have to get dressed, eat, work, pay bills. We’re caught up in the stuff of earth—family, health, responsibilities. And the pressing concerns of the day can cause us to lose focus.

But Paul is calling us, through this passage, to give up our present lives for the sake of Christ—to live as if Christ is actually with us and actually returning soon.

He wants us to be motivated to surrender what the world pursues—because Christ is present.

Christ’s Supremacy in Creation (Colossians 1:15–17)

In verses 15 to 17, we see a picture of creation and what Christ has done. Paul emphasizes that Christ is supreme in all things—He is the one we must look to.

But why emphasize Christ’s supremacy in creation? The Colossians weren’t necessarily struggling with that issue. So why bring it up?

Because a Savior must be able to rescue His people from both spiritual and physical problems.

We have spiritual problems: sin, separation from God.
And we have physical problems: death, suffering, frailty.

So we need a Savior who is powerful enough to handle both. That’s why Paul turns our eyes to Christ as Creator and Sustainer.

The Problem: We Are Fallen Creatures

Since the fall of Adam (Genesis 3), his children—us—have inherited both his sin and our own. We are born under the power of darkness. We need salvation of body and soul.

In other words, our problem is spiritual, with very real physical consequences.

We need someone who is willing and able to save us from both. Paul shows us that Christ is uniquely qualified.

Christ, the Image of the Invisible God

Verse 15 says:

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.”

Christ is the image of the invisible God. Just as we might say a child is the “spitting image” of a parent—meaning the child makes the parent known—so too Christ makes known the Father to us. He is very God of very God.

He is also the firstborn of all creation. That term doesn’t mean He was created. Instead, Paul is using “firstborn” to mean that Christ is preeminent—that He holds the place of highest honor and represents all creation.

Let’s briefly look at Psalm 89:27–29:

“I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. My steadfast love I will keep for him forever, and my covenant will stand firm for him. I will establish his offspring forever and his throne as the days of the heavens.”

This points forward to Christ—the one whose throne endures forever. He is the firstborn, not in time, but in rank. He represents humanity like Adam once did—but unlike Adam, He rules over creation rightly.

Psalm 89:26 says, “He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.’” Christ has that unique relationship with the Father. So when Paul calls Him the “firstborn of all creation,” he’s saying Christ stands over creation as its Lord and representative.

Christ, Creator and Sustainer

Verse 16:

“For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.”

Everything was made by Christ, through Christ, and for Christ:

Heaven and earth.
Visible and invisible.
Thrones, dominions, rulers, authorities—physical and spiritual powers.

All things exist for His glory.

Verse 17:

“And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”

He isn’t like someone who spins a top and walks away. He upholds creation at every moment. Every breath, every heartbeat—everything is held together by His sustaining power.

Illustration: Christ’s Authority Over Creation

Think of a child molding something from Play-Doh. The child has the right to reshape it, smash it, store it, or remake it.

Christ is not simply someone with creative ability—He owns His creation. He has total authority over it. Nothing created can contend with Him.

And what’s more—everything was made for Him. Creation isn’t just His project; it’s His inheritance.

So when we say Christ is present with us, we are saying that the Lord of creation is with us.

Why This Matters

Why does this matter for us today?

Do you need relief from death? Look to Christ. He has power over life and death.
Do you need protection from harm? Look to Christ. He is King over all.
Are you anxious about your life? Look to Christ. He holds all things together.

Christ’s supremacy over creation means that nothing He has made can resist His will. He is able and willing to save.

Nothing Can Separate Us from Christ

Let’s turn briefly to Romans 8:31–39, where Paul lists things in creation that cannot separate us from Christ:

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?…
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come… nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Nothing in creation—not death, not angels, not demons, not rulers—can separate us from Christ.

Why? Because He made all of it. And He rules over all of it.

Christ Doesn’t Just Sympathize—He Saves

One time someone told me this illustration:

Imagine you’re in a burning building, trapped in an elevator. The fire department arrives. A firefighter opens the doors, jumps in, holds you close, and says, “I’m here now. It’ll be okay.” But he doesn’t take you out. You both burn up.

That’s not the firefighter you want.

You want the one who can actually save you—who pulls you out and brings you to safety.

Christ is not only empathetic. He is supreme. He cares for us and can save us.

Because He is supreme over creation, nothing can separate us from His love.

The Comfort of Christ’s Supremacy

So whatever we are facing:

The slow decline of our bodies,
The fear of suffering,
The worries of life—

We can take comfort that Christ rules over it all. He is not powerless. He is not indifferent. He is supreme—and He is present.

Christ’s Supremacy in Redemption (Colossians 1:18–20)

In addition to being supreme in creation, Christ is also supreme in redemption. Paul shifts in verse 18 to show that Christ is not only the Lord of the world, but also the Lord of the church, the redeemer of His people.

Christ Rules Supremely in His Church

Verse 18:

“And he is the head of the body, the church.”

Christ rules over His church—not in a shared way, not in consultation with others—but supremely and exclusively.

The church is the only institution on earth that endures into eternity. Governments will pass away. Marriage, in its earthly form, will end. But the church will continue into the age to come.

That’s why we say the church has one foot in this present age and one foot in the age to come:

In this age, we meet in buildings, drink coffee, and struggle with sin.
But we also believe our citizenship is in heaven. We live by the laws of Christ.

It’s as if we hold a passport from the kingdom of heaven—and that identity shapes everything we do.

So when Paul says Christ is “head of the body, the church,” he’s saying that Christ rules now, in the present, through His people. And when the church gathers by the Word of God, Christ is uniquely present.

The Church as the Place of Christ’s Rule

What does that mean practically?

It means that Christ is with His church:

When we gather,
When we hear the Word,
When we baptize,
When we celebrate the Lord’s Supper,
When we practice discipline,
When we pray together.

It means our relationships in the church are not temporary, but eternal. These are the people we’ll live with in the age to come.

It also means that Christ rules the church through ordinary means:

Through officers He has appointed, who give an account to Him.
Through members, who have duties and privileges in His body.
Through the exercise of church discipline, in which Christ testifies to who belongs to Him and who does not.

Examples: Membership and Discipline

Think about church membership:

When we receive someone into membership, we are saying, “We believe this person is a Christian. We will walk with them in the faith.”
That’s no small thing. That’s not just paperwork. That’s a solemn testimony to eternal realities.

On the other hand, when someone is removed from membership (excommunication), we are saying, “We no longer have credible evidence that this person belongs to Christ. We call them to repentance.”

Again, that’s not just administrative—it is an expression of Christ’s headship.

So our lives should match our theology:

If someone joins, we treat them as a brother or sister.
If someone is excommunicated, we don’t carry on as if nothing happened. We plead with them to return to Christ.

All of this flows from the belief that Christ is present with us, ruling in His church.

Christ Makes Himself Known by His Word

How does Christ rule? By His Word.

He brings people to conformity to His image by the Word.
He saves the lost by the Word.
He corrects and teaches His people by the Word.

So we pay close attention to it.

Christ Is Present in the Sacraments

Christ also meets with us in the sacraments:

In baptism, we are united to Him and His church.
In the Lord’s Supper, we meet with Christ Himself.

As we prepare to come to the table next week, we must believe that Christ is actually there. He meets with us. The Supper is not a symbol only—it is a means of grace, a communion with the body and blood of Christ.

Christ Is Present in Prayer

After the service, we will pray together—and Christ is with us there, too.

He never leaves us or forsakes us. These ordinary things—Word, sacrament, prayer, discipline—are the means through which Christ is present.

Christ Is Uniquely Fitted to Redeem

Paul continues in verse 18:

“He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.”

Christ is the beginning. He is prior to all things, not just in creation, but in the new creation.

He is the firstborn from the dead—the first to rise never to die again.

This means that His supremacy continues not only in the created order, but in the redemptive order. He is Lord of the old creation and Lord of the new.

Verse 19:

“For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell…”

Christ is not lacking anything. He is fully God.

Verse 20:

“…and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”

Through the cross, Christ has reconciled all things—not just in the abstract, but specifically:

He has brought peace between God and man.
He has restored what was broken in creation.
He has redeemed His people through His blood.

Christ Will Bring Us to Be with Him

Because Christ is supreme in creation and in redemption, we can trust Him to bring us to where He is.

As Jesus said:

“I go to prepare a place for you… I would not have told you if it were not so.”

He speaks the truth. He is with us. And He will come again.

Conformed to the Image of the Redeemer

Let’s turn to 1 Corinthians 15:45–49, where Paul draws the comparison between Adam and Christ:

“Thus it is written, ‘The first man Adam became a living being’; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual.
The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven.
As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven.
Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.”

That’s an astonishing truth.

Just as we now bear the image of fallen Adam—marked by weakness, sin, and death—we will one day bear the image of the risen Christ, the man of heaven.

We won’t become God, but we will be conformed to His likeness. We will be glorified. We will become imperishable.

Just as people can say of family members, “You look just like your father,” the day will come when others will look at us and say, “This one belongs to Christ.”

That’s what Paul is driving home: If you are in Christ, you are no longer conformed to Adam but are now being conformed to Christ.

The Foundation of the Christian Life

So returning to Colossians 1:15–20, what may have seemed like a theological tangent is actually a foundational truth: The supremacy of Christ is the basis of Christian living.

It’s not just Paul going off-topic. It’s Paul grounding everything he’s said—and everything he’s about to say—in who Christ is and what Christ has done.

Christ is supreme in creation—nothing can resist His will.
Christ is supreme in redemption—nothing can separate us from His love.

And if we believe these things, then we are ready to fully enter into the exhortations of Christian life that Paul will unfold in the following verses.

Giving Up the Present Life for the Life to Come

In verses 24 to 29 (which you’ll cover next week), Paul speaks of his labors and struggles on behalf of the saints. That kind of life—one that suffers and sacrifices—is only possible if we believe Christ is supreme and present.

Otherwise, it’s a foolish waste. But if Christ is present, reigning, and returning—then it makes perfect sense.

Paul wants us to give up the present life—not abandon responsibilities, but to order our lives according to the age to come, where Christ is.

That allows us to endure loss, suffer hardship, and deny ourselves in ways that seem foolish to the world, because we’re looking to Him, the author and perfecter of our faith.

Christ Is with Us in Tangible Ways

In conclusion, let us pay close attention to what Jesus has said:

“Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

He expresses His presence through very tangible means:

His Word—He speaks to us.
The Lord’s Supper—He feeds and communes with us.
Prayer—He hears and responds.
Fellowship—He binds us together in love.
Discipline—He purifies and protects His church.

These are not just symbolic. They are objective means of Christ’s presence and blessing.

And that’s crucial, especially when we’re discouraged:

When we’re weighed down by sin,
When others have failed us,
When circumstances are dark—

Christ’s blessing is not dependent on how we feel. It’s based on what He has done.

We come, even in weakness, trusting that He meets us here—not because we feel it, but because He promised it.

And so, as Paul says in Romans, when we do not know how to pray, the Spirit intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

Final Prayer

Let’s close in prayer:

Lord, we thank You for Your Word and for the way in which You show us Christ in the Scriptures.
We ask that You would help us to believe that these things are true—and not just true generally, but true for each and every person who is found in Your Son.
By Your Spirit, help us more and more to order our lives in a way that demonstrates we are looking to the city not made with hands.
And in doing so, may we freely love one another—even those who persecute us—because we have been loved by Christ, who has called us to do what pleases Him.
We ask for wisdom in these things, because we so frequently lack it. But we know that You give wisdom freely, and that there is no end to the grace You give to Your people.
In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.