Jesus' Role in Creation

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Question
How does Paul view Jesus’ role in creation in Colossians 1:16-17?
Answer
In Colossians chapter 1 verse 15 and following we encounter a part of the letter that scholars like to refer to as the Christ hymn of Colossians. And what we get is an extraordinary picture of the supremacy of Christ over all creation, that he is above all things; everything is under his authority, that he is at the center of all things, and more than that, that God has created all things through him and Jesus sustains all things. And so the picture here and in other places like in Ephesians chapter 1, for example, gives us a picture of a cosmic Christ whose significance for the world goes far beyond simply his birth, death and resurrection, as important as those events are, but that he is the agent of God in creation, he is the sustainer of creation, and he is the Lord over all creation, so that all things find their end, their goal, their fulfillment in him.

Answer by Dr. Constantine R. Campbell

Dr. Constantine R. Campbell is Associate Professor of New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School