Colossians 1:15-20

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;” vs. 15

During his life here on earth Jesus was known as the carpenter’s son from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. During the time of his ministry there were some who began to think that he might be the Christ, the long-awaited messiah. After his death and resurrection it didn’t take long for that idea to become well established and he was most often referred to as Jesus Christ. One way of describing what happened is to say that “the Jesus of history became the Christ of faith.” In the last couple of centuries many biblical scholars have attempted to reverse that process and get back to the authentic historical Jesus. Their work has been interesting and informative…and we’ve been drawn closer to Jesus of Nazareth. But it would be tragic if such efforts caused us to neglect the Christ of faith as described in the “Christ Hymn” of Colossians. Jesus wasn’t only the man from Galilee, he was the Word become flesh, the “image of the invisible God.” No one has ever seen God! By faith we affirm that in Jesus God was revealed. We study scripture, not just to discover an historical figure, but to encounter God. In fact, if it weren’t for the birth of the Christ of faith, we would never even have heard of Jesus of Nazareth.

Thought for the Day:  Who am I more drawn to, Jesus or the Christ?