Colossians 1:15-17
THE IMAGE OF THE INVISIBLE GOD
The Son is the imageG1504 of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in Him all things were created, things 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. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.G4921 Colossians 1:15-17 (BSB)
G1504 ĕikōn – a likeness, i.e. (lit.) statue, profile, or (fig.) representation, resemblance: – image.
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
G4921 sunistēmi – to set together, i.e. (by impl.) to introduce (favorably), or (fig.) to exhibit; intrans. to stand near, or (fig.) to constitute: – approve, commend, consist, make, stand (with).
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
“What does God look like?” I heard a child ask;
And I thought to myself what a wonderful task.
Let’s open the Bible, God’s own book.
Let’s read his word and take a look.
We can’t describe his face or hair,
But we’ll find a description of his character there.
Jesus was God that people could see,
And the Gospels describe him for you and me.
When I (Susie) moved up from teaching second graders to teaching fifth and sixth graders, I decided the zoo theme with stuffed animals would have to go. But what could I use to decorate our room that would have a meaningful theme? It was staring me right in the face – the paperclip! Our verse for the year was Colossians 1:17, and the paperclip became our reminder that Christ holds it all together.
The paperclip has a plain and simple appearance, and yet it is an extremely useful tool. The Bible tells us that Jesus “had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him” (Isaiah 53:2), but it also tells us he is “the Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being” (Hebrews 1:3). In other words, just like the lowly paperclip, there is much more to Christ than his outward appearance when he walked the earth. He is the creator and sustainer of the universe.
If Jesus keeps the entire universe on course, surely, we can trust him to hold us together as well. There are days we think we might fall apart (today being one of them), but we simply need to slow down, breathe deeply, and pray. We need to “cast all my anxiety on him because he cares for us” (I Peter 5:7) because when we do so, he promises that his peace will guard our hearts and minds (Philippians 4:7).
Father, we hand over our concerns to you. There are so many stresses in our lives right now, but we know you are able to keep all the pieces together even though we are not. Help us to slow down and allow your Spirit to guide us each day and minister to our hearts. We trust that our Creator is also our Sustainer. Thank you for the power you provide to live for you each day.