In the Image of God

Christ the King – November 23, 2025

Jeremiah 23:1-6 
Psalm 46
Colossians 1:11-20
Luke 23:33-43

We again find ourselves wishing that we knew the situation in Colossae. That knowledge would help us to better understand Paul’s letter. Instead we must ascertain what the problem was by Paul’s argument. We know that Paul never visited Colossae and that the Christians there heard and believed by the preaching of another missionary – Epaphras. How Paul learned of the Christians in Colossae and of their problems we do not know either. Although it does demonstrate that the missionaries of Paul’s time traveled much and seemed to return and visit the churches that they helped to found. So what prompted this letter to the Colossians? 

In our lesson from Colossians today we find a hint when Paul mentions thrones, dominions,  principalities, or authorities clearly stating that they were created through Jesus. It seems that the Colossians viewed those who occupied those positions as equal with Jesus. (We also find this heresy countered in Hebrews. But, there, it is angels that are mentioned.) This heresy is not surprising, I suppose, since the early Christians had first believed the Greek and Roman understanding that there were multiple gods. It could have been the remanent of that belief which brought the Christians in Colossae to view several other beings equal with Jesus. While this, at best, is speculation, we do know that Paul is clearly telling the Colossians that Jesus always existed and all other beings were created through him just like they had been created. More importantly, Paul is changing their view of God by telling them that Jesus is the image of God.

That image would have been a shock to many in Paul’s day. Jesus who died on the cross – the most humiliating punishment used at that time. Hanged there naked, scoffed at by all who passed by, as our gospel reminds us today, Jesus suffered for us. This is the reason many rejected Jesus as the savior of the world. A suffering God did not fit in with their understanding of the world. It is also one of the reasons that Jesus attracted those who did join. They were the ones who suffered in their society – the poor and enslaved. They also came together because Jesus made them a community – the Body of Christ – that cared for each other and shared what they had.

Paul tells us that we are the Body of Christ with Jesus as our head. Just as he was the image of God, we are called to be the image of Jesus in the world. That is, we are to follow Jesus as our example and guide showing God’s love in all that we do and say. What that task is will be different for each of us and can change in time. For some knowing their task is easy, for others it is difficult. If you do not know I suggest that you start with what God has given you in abundance. If it is possessions your can give of them to help others. If it is time you can pray for the church and those in need. Jesus has called you out of the darkness into his brilliant light so that you can shine with the love of God for all to see.