Jesus is the Beginning of the Creation of God.

And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. [i]

What does it mean, “the beginning of the creation of God?” There is a dual meaning.

First, Jesus is the Creator, so it is by Him and from Him that all life originates. As written in John, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men.”[ii]

Secondly, Jesus is the “firstborn among many brethren” and the “first begotten of the dead.” He is the first Son of God and the first to overcome death. In Christ, we are promised resurrection from the dead and adoption as joint heirs and sons of the Kingdom of God.

These ideas fit together, and this is a remarkably beautiful truth. The Creator, who is Jesus Christ, became man, died for man, rose again, and through faith in Him man is given eternal life. He will return to establish His Kingdom, and He will raise those who belong to Him at His coming.

All things pertaining to life come from Jesus—He who experienced death on our behalf, so that we who were dead in sin can live. It is He who orchestrates all things that pertain to our salvation. Faith is given to us by God as an act of grace and mercy. Through faith, the sacrifice of Jesus cleanses us of all sin.

We also receive faith in the truthfulness of what Jesus teaches and the importance of aiming our lives accordingly. We receive faith in His promise to send the Holy Spirit who makes the truth known to us, gifts us in the things of the Spirit, and writes the new nature of Christ into our hearts. We receive faith that despite our failings, God does not see us as sinners, but as saints because His work is as good as accomplished. Therefore, we can be honest about our sins, approach God for mercy, and seek the Spirit in faith to help us overcome sin in the flesh as we learn to walk better in the Spirit.

Through faith, we know that despite how the world hates those who are of the Spirit of God, and though they might accuse, slander, harm, or kill us, Jesus is on our side. He will defend us if we need to be defended, He will raise us from the dead, and He will avenge us. With this faith, we can work towards walking blamelessly in this corrupt world, not repaying evil for evil, but speaking the truth in the right spirit.

This high calling is impossible with man, but with God, all things are possible. We do not want to bring shame to Jesus, and this often means enduring much shame without avenging ourselves. We do not need to worry about how we appear, and we do not need to set the record of ourselves straight, because the record that matters is the Book of Life wherein we are named by He who is Life. It is He who we defend, not ourselves, as we get to know Him and make Jesus known to others.

All of this is accomplished by Jesus—the Creator who creates in us a new nature that can live with Him forever—a new nature that we do not fully see. Yet, we know that “it does not yet appear what we will be, but when He appears we will be as He is.” [iii] There is always more change of nature to seek, and it is good that we should, because as we see that nature formed, we also see Jesus. Who is more worth knowing? In knowing Jesus in the truest sense as we become as He is, we are made free from a corruptible nature and made into the divine nature—into sons of God.

Below are additional scriptures pertaining to Jesus as both the Creator and the firstborn among the brethren in Christ:

For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren (Romans 8:29).
And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood (Revelation 1:5).
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.The same was in the beginning with God.All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made (John 1:1-3).
That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God (John 1:9-13).
But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him (1 Corinthians 8:6).
Hebrews 1
Hebrews 12

[i] Colossians 1:15-18

[ii] John 1:1-4

[iii] 1 John 3:2

This is a section of a chapter that I’m working on within, “These Things Saith He.” This chapter considers the letter to the Church of the Laodiceans in Revelation 3. So far, we’ve been looking at the opening of the letter, which identifies core attributes of Christ that are necessary for the church being addressed to consider. With Jesus as the focus, all else falls into place as it should be–in understanding of scripture, in Christian doctrine, in Christian living, and in the world at large. Let’s not be lukewarm in this endeavor.

Previous section of this chapter: Jesus is the Faithful and True Witness.

Previous completed chapter: Unto the Angel of the Church in Philadelphia