Verse 15 “‘Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation,'” (NLT) Paul, the author, reiterates that Christ was in the beginning and before anything else existed. He wasn’t an afterthought by God. Jesus was there in the beginning before we were ever created. He is above all, supreme over creations and in fact, holds it all together. It’s so important for our minds to wrap around this because it places Jesus in His rightful position in our thoughts. The way we think determines how we act and treat Jesus. If He is first… before all things… shouldn’t we think of Him first and treat Him first before all the things that come in our lives? So often we get caught up in the things we see. A lot of it is just out of habit. But Jesus is here, and He can be seen if we are willing to get on our knees and enter into His presence in prayer or open the Word and absorb His Living Truth. The following verses go into detail.

Verse 16-20 “‘for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.'” (NLT) Now the ESV version uses a little different wording and I like the way it references “beginning” and “firstborn”. “‘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.'” (ESV) I highlighted the references to Jesus being first, before anything, and in the beginning as a reminder that He is first, was always first, and should always be first in my life. We should seek Him first in the morning. We should seek Him first when we have a decision to make. We should think of Him first when we’re being treated poorly so that we might be reminded to love our enemies and see through their disgraceful actions to forgive as Jesus forgave us.

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for these reminders in your word. Thank you for speaking to my heart and showing me the truth, that you were always first, are always first, and will always be first. My life doesn’t work for good things when I place you last in everything I do. So help me keep You first in my life, first in the morning, first in all of my decisions, first in all of my thoughts, first in how I respond to my husband and my children. Help me choose You, Jesus, first before I choose my own wants or emotions. Help me not just remember You first, but really choose to live by Your Word first. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen!