DYNAMIS!
A publication of St. George Orthodox Christian Cathedral
Wichita, KS
Colossians 1:18-23 (10/28) Epistle for Wednesday of the
Twenty-first Week after Pentecost
The Head of the Church: Colossians 1:18-23. especially vs. 18: “And He [Christ Jesus]
is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from
the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.” The term head may be used to
describe one of a variety of leaders or rulers - a department
head, a head of operations, or even a head of state. Roman Catholics speak of the Pope as the
head of the Church. Although,
with some modesty, they rightly qualify his headship, identifying him the Vicar
of Christ - the Lord Jesus being the true “...head of the body, the
church...” (vs. 18). In this respect, every clergyman with
pastoral oversight of a parish or diocese may rightly called
the head of a church. But
here the Apostle says of Christ that “...He is the head of the body, the
church...” (vs. 18). Hence, all clergy serve as vicars of the
Lord Jesus, as those who represent Him Who has
“...the preeminence” (vs. 18).
What sort of head is Christ over the Church? Here in this passage, especially, heed
the words of the Apostle Paul where he calls Him the head: the Apostle
describes Christ Jesus as “...the beginning, the firstborn from the
dead...” (vs. 18), He in Whom “...all the
fullness should dwell...” (vs. 19), He by Whom God determined
“...to reconcile all things to Himself...” (vs. 20), and He Who
“...made peace through the blood of His Cross” (vs. 20).
To call Christ our God, “...the beginning...”
(vs. 18), points in two directions: toward His Person as God, and toward His
manhood by which He undertook our salvation. All creation, seen and unseen, has its
source in Him as God. He is the
beginning of all things. Hence,
Origen correctly said of Christ that “He is the beginning only insofar as
He is wisdom.” With respect
to creation, as the Apostle John says, “He was in the beginning with
God. All things were made through
Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made” (Jn. 1:2,3).
But concurrently, consider also the Lord Jesus in His
manhood, after the wording of the Troparion of the
Annunciation: He is “...the beginning of our salvation, and the
manifestation of the mystery from the ages, for the Son of God becometh the Son of the Virgin, and Gabriel proclaimeth grace.”
By the fact that the timeless Son of God had a beginning in
time, it became possible for the Apostle Paul to call Christ, “...the
firstborn from the dead...” (Col. 1:18). Here is occasion for joy, for many, at
the end of the age, will follow the Head of the Church in Resurrection. Thus, we may readily agree with Theodore
of Mopsuestia that “...when Paul says
‘firstborn from the dead,’ it is clear that he is referring to the
assumed humanity of Christ.”
Thus, we need to keep both the Lord Jesus’ Divinity
and His humanity in mind in this passage, for certainly He is One of Whom we
may say “...that in Him all the fullness should dwell...” (vs. 19),
that is the fullness of God, exactly as
God the Son Himself became Incarnate “...to reconcile
all things to Himself, by Him [i.e., by Jesus Christ], whether things on earth
or things in heaven...” (vs. 20). The Head of the Church is therefore the
Ultimate Reconciler - being Divine Reconciliation in the flesh. By dying ignominiously He “...made
peace through the blood of His Cross” (vs. 20). Whereas we “...once were alienated
and enemies...” of God (vs. 21), the Lord Christ Himself came as a
Peacemaker that He might “...present [us] holy, and blameless, and above
reproach in His sight...” (vs. 22).
Thy Cross do we adore, O Christ, and Thy holy Resurrection
we praise and glorify: for Thou art our God, and we know none other beside
Thee; we call upon Thy Name.
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