If there is any question or doubt about who Jesus is, Paul writes about it in Colossians 1:13-23 and gives us clear teaching on the supremacy of Christ.
God has brought us into His kingdom through the redemption of our sins through the sacrifice of Jesus, who, as Paul says is the exact image of the invisible God. Jesus looks exactly like God. Not only does Jesus look like God, He is in every way exactly like God. Jesus is not just another God separate from the Father, but the image of the invisible God. All things were created by Jesus and for Jesus, which means Jesus existed in the beginning, but came to earth at the specific time to carry out the plan of redemption for mankind. Everything is held together by Christ, who is said to be the head of the body, which is the church. He leads the church, and we make up the parts of the church body. No one but Jesus leads the church, and therefore no one is said to be the head of the body except for Jesus.
The passage says in verse 18 that Jesus was the first to be raised from the dead. This statement is confusing to many, because wasn't Lazarus was raised from the dead (John 11) as was a young boy at a funeral (Luke 7), and a young girl (Matthew 9)? Why does it say here that Jesus was the first to be raised from the dead if those others were said to be raised first? The others who were raised still died physically. They were brought back to life, but not to eternal living status. Jesus, when he was raised from the dead, is still living today, and through that resurrection we also have eternal life. Anyone can take punishment for someone else. What Jesus did was to take punishment for all mankind, and to make it legitimate, God raised Jesus to solidify that the punishment was enough. It is the proof that everyone’s sins were paid for through the punishment Jesus took on the cross. We could not have eternal life without the death and resurrection of Christ.
Paul also says that God made peace with us through the death and resurrection of Jesus. The only way we have peace in ourselves is through our peace with God, so Jesus came to live on earth and die to bring us into peace with God. We may look for peace in many things, but God is the only one who can give everlasting peace. “I give you peace, the kind of peace that only I can give. It isn’t like the peace this world can give. So don’t be worried or afraid.” -John 14:27(CEV).
Because of this peace through Jesus, God allows us to stand in His presence without blame and free from accusation of sin. Jesus paid the penalty that we deserve. For this love that God showed us, Paul tells us to remain firm in our faith. The gospel is still our best hope for an eternal connection to God.
Tough words to follow sometimes, but very true. If Jesus is who every follower of Christ says he is, we can point here in Colossians for the concrete description of who Jesus is and why we need him. Jesus is the mediator between us and God (1Timothy 2:5). Just like someone who mediates between two enemies and brings peace, Jesus mediates between us and God to bring us into God’s peace. Jesus also says, “I am the way, the truth and the life. Without me, no one can go to the Father.” (John 14:6) It's pretty clear that Jesus is the only way to connect with God, that by accepting Jesus' sacrifice for us, we can be connected to God and have God’s peace and forgiveness, which give us access to Him, and He therefore sends us the Holy Spirit to help us follow Him. God loves us, and came to us in the person of Jesus so that we could live in community with God again.
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