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Morton Church of Christ |
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Reproduction or Replica ( Col.1:9-18 What would be the difference between a reproduction and a replica? Would there be a difference in quality? Or in functionality? I was surprised to find the dictionary gave little difference between the two. Both are copies in exacting detail of an original something. Jesus is the firstborn, the first offspring produced by the Spirit of God, joined together with the fabric of humanity. It is interesting how God has devised His plan; First He creates mankind in his image, second thing He does is send His Son in the likeness of mankind, then third he makes Jesus more to His likeness than human kind was.
Paul tells us this Jesus is the image of the invisible
God. That which is not visible, that is God, can be clearly seen
in Jesus. (see 2Cor.4:4, and also Heb.1:3) Jesus himself
expressed this same message to Philip saying: JN
14:9 Jesus answered: "Don't you
know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long
time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you
say, `Show us the Father'?
There is some intrigue here. The image of God is being
refined into a better, more exacting likeness. It might be better
to say a more brilliant glory. All of humanity is in likeness to
God. GE 9:6 "Whoever sheds the blood of man,
by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God
has God made man. From this we can see that all of
humanity in a non Christian state still are fabricated in the
likeness of God.
It is in this likeness that Jesus was birthed by Marry.
But there is something more to Jesus that needs reckoned with;
what is it that enabled Jesus to say: “Anyone
who has seen me has seen the Father”.? Could Jesus have
said this earlier in His life? There is something deeper here
than I am able to grasp. Was Jesus’ baptism an event that
brought more into existence than His entrance into ministry?
Jesus was born into humanity, this is true. Jesus’ words
to Nicodemus may speak plainly even to Jesus who was born fleshly
like each of us were. "I
tell you the truth, no one can enter the
God knows. At any event Jesus was able to proclaim the
truth that in Him God was visible. The challenge is for us to
come to terms with our identity; we too have been refashioned
into a greater likeness of the Father than what the non-Christian
is. This concept is clearly communicated in 2Cor.3:18, Rom.8:29
and in Col.3:10.
Jesus showed us how a Son of God lives. Paul also speaks
of this saying we should follow his example as he follows the
example of Jesus. (1Cor.11:1) That is the great struggle, the war
within ourselves for mastery over our choices and lives. Paul’s
word to the churches
ring loud and clear: “And
we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord
and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good
work, growing in the knowledge of God,…”(Col.1:10; see
also 1Thes.2:12; Phil.1:27; and Eph.4:1)
This walking worthily does not just happen because you
were raised in a Christian home or because you are a moral person
or because you are basically good. If this was true then who
would need Jesus and His Blood? Col.1:20 |