The Pre-eminence of Christ

There are many relevant aspects of the kingdom of God as it is revealed in His body. Here are a few which come to mind. Each of these is important and must be carefully considered in the life of the ecclesia, BUT, there is one that must be positioned far and above all the others for any of them to be applicable.

Scripture 
Doctrine 
Fellowship 
Spiritual Gifts 
Ministry / Service 
Oversight / Submission 
The "Gospel" 
The Tabernacle 
The Feasts Prophecy, etc. 

Let's consider an example from the list. Some Christians believe that the scriptures are God as He is revealed to the world, and that no further revelation is required. That if you study the scriptures you will find eternal life. That is what the Pharisees believed and yet Jesus corrected them (Jn. 5:39). Remember Luke 32:24 and following? The road to Emmaus? It took Jesus to reveal the scriptures. "And they said to one another, Were not our hearts greatly moved and burning within us while He was talking with us on the road and as He opened and explained to us [the sense of] the Scriptures?" My point here is not to deny the importance of scripture. It is to say that Jesus is pre-eminent over scripture, over doctrine, over everything. He is the one who brings all of these things into context. Everything must be interpreted through Him or we miss the point and live in hopeless bondage to the Law of sin and death. And if you think Old Testament law is tough to swallow, try New Testament law without understanding that Jesus Christ is pre-eminent and that ALL the scriptures testify of HIM. 

Paul said that he preached only Christ and Him crucified. We know that he brought some correction and encouragement on a practical level as well, but his priority was always Christ. The gospel of the kingdom was totally about "the King." When Paul preached to Gentiles, he seldom used scripture because most of them didn't even know what it was. Paul told them about Jesus. About meeting him on the road to Antioch, about the time spent with Him in the wilderness of Arabia, about those who had seen Him before and after the resurrection. Paul knew Jesus and he shared that experience with others. THEN the Old Testament scriptures became relevant and life-giving. Paul presented Jesus first and foremost, then he could relate to some of the secondary elements of Christianity. Remember that there was no New Testament at that time. 

Understand that ALL things were created and exist through Him, in Him and for Him. That He existed before all things and in Him all things are held together (Col. 1:16ff) Everything in this universe is created through, in and for Him alone. This is the entire purpose of all creation. Jesus Christ is not confined to space or time. He is OVER
space and time. He was over all things before creation and we are living in the time of the climax of the ages when ALL things are being consummated or summed up in Him. Things in the heavens and things on the earth (Eph. 1:10.) Every knee is about to bow and every tongue confess that HE is LORD! The heavens are declaring the glory of God (Ps. 19) and the residents of the earth are about to do the same. Because Jesus is above all! He is pre-eminent over everything! 

If you have ANYTHING in this life that is more important than HIM, get rid of it. If your philosophy, theology, gifts, ministry, doctrine, security, prosperity, etc. is more important to you than HIM, get rid of it. If you have anything that occupies your time more than HIM, repent and get rid of it. You can't have all these things and the fullness of Christ. He must be pre-eminent in ALL THINGS. He will settle for nothing less. This is the time of consummation. JESUS CHRIST IS LORD AND KING!