353-1 A FRIEND ON THE BENCHMay 15, 1977
Pastor Henry F. Kulp
Colossians 1: 16 - 19 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;
In this portion of Scripture Paul is showing that Christ is Lord of Creation. He has no rival in the creative order. Notice, HE IS PRE-EMINENT IN THE UNIVERSE. Notice the last part of verse 16. The ALL THINGS were created by Him and for Him. And that should read, The all things stand created, not by Him, but through Him.
SO IT IS Dee-a-plus the genitive, and it should be through Him. Then instead of being for Him, ICE-plus the accusative and this should be, for the use of Him, or for the purpose of Him. You can see His pre-eminence in the universe. Everywhere you go, you can stamp “Created by Jesus Christ, and for the use of Christ, for the purpose of Christ.”
1/ It is important how you use the world; the things that are in this world, and if you use them to glorify the Lord, yourself or man, or anyone else.
2/ Verse 17 And He is before all things. Actually, in the Greek that should be, AND HE KEEPS ON BEING BEFORE ALL. All what? All creatures. He is before all creatures. This has a reference to the eternity of Jesus Christ. He is before all. He is eternal.
3/ Then we read, and by Him all things consist. The word, consist, SOON-AS-STAME- ME—it means to hold together. To continue in the status quo. It stands in contrast to Kuh-Teed-Zoe. The verb for to create. Here it doesn’t mean to create, but it refers to preservation, rather than creation. So He Who creates, preserves. So it means that Jesus Christ holds all things in the universe together in perfect harmony. It is He that keeps the heavenly bodies going and holds them in their places and traveling on their courses. CONSIST means to continue to exist.
4/ We must remember that Jesus Christ is the member of the Godhead Who preserves and sustains the universe. Remember when He was the Babe in the cradle, He was also God, and holding the universe together. We must also keep in mind, while He was on the Cross, He was also God and holding the universe together. He is the preserver and sustainer of it all. People may take His Name in vain, deny Him His deity, but all the time their very existence depends on Him.
5/ The so-called scientific laws are really not scientific laws at all. They are divine laws, rather than scientific laws. Science has no way of enforcing them. Science cannot guarantee that they will always continue as they are today. There is no guarantee even for tomorrow.
Hebrews 1: 3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:
Hebrews tells us, BY THE WORD OF HIS POWER, JESUS CHRIST HOLDS THE UNIVERSE TOGETHER. So Jesus Christ guarantees these laws. That is, for the time being. It is by His faithfulness that they operate for now. That is why, when we look at the word, faith, we see subjective faith.
II Timothy 2: 12 If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:
Jesus Christ is faithful.
Romans 3: 3 For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?
What if some did not believe? Did their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? Of course, not. The fact that the sun will come up tomorrow morning and the world will continue as it is right now, proves that the unsaved have not changed the faithfulness of God in this point.
Also look at II Timothy 2: 13 If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.
6/ But even though science may say, we think those laws are fixed laws and they are going to continue down through the years, they are wrong. Because a change is going to take place.
7/ II Peter 3: 10 - 12 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
It might be well for me to say, were it not for the faithfulness of Jesus Christ in holding all things together, keeping them existing together, this whole universe would blow up.
Even if it were only for a split second, he must be faithful constantly and continually. If it were not for Jesus Christ and His faithfulness, our space program would be a failure. Were it not for Jesus Christ and his faithfulness in this universe, we would have never put a man on the face of the moon. For scientists have used God’s fixed divine laws, and used them to get a man there. We would never have been able to send a probe toward Mars or Venus, where it not for Jesus Christ and His faithfulness in this ministry to divine laws.
8/ In other words we could say, and we do it in reverence. Jesus Christ is the glue that holds the universe together.
9/ A day is literally coming when the universe will stop being in existence. Jesus Christ will no longer hold things together.
II Peter 3: 10, 11 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
In the 11th verse He says, Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved. The word, dissolved, in the Greek is an interesting word. It is used in Luke 3: 16 John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire:
Here where John Baptist said, One mightier than I cometh, whose lachet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose—to untie. So he uses the word here, to unloose or untie a shoe as he speaks of the universe becoming untied or unloosed. So the earth will become untied.
10/ We know now what happens when elements are broken from their state of consistency. In this present day we are more prepared to understand this chapter and Colossians 1, than in any age before us.
We call this the Space Age, and we know when we dissolve or split the atom, we have an atom bomb that gives us a terrible explosion, and what took place at Hirshimo, and Negasaki is but a minor picture of what is going to happen in II Peter 3: 10, 11 When God unties this universe.
Then we can look at Revelations 21: 1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
Atom Bomb Isaiah 66: 22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain.
11/ Don’t worry about anyone pushing a panic button. Moscow, or Washington will not destroy the world. It will not be destroyed but by Jesus Christ. No one is going to start an atomic war before the world is evangelized.
Verse 17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
Head—One body—First raised from the dead. He is the head of the Body, the Church—no earthly head—the head is in Heaven.
Acts 7: 38 This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:
Hebrews 2: 12 Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.
Psalm 22: 22 I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.
I Timothy 3: 15, 16 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
Jeremiah 32: 37, 38 Behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely: And they shall be my people, and I will be their God:
Hebrews 10: 7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.
AMEN
Ref: 05/15/1977 / 353-1 A FRIEND ON THE BENCH / 09/18/2021
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