A Word Study: Image of the Invisible God

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation." - Colossians 1:15

"For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him." - Colossians 1:19

So, I wanted to share a little word study from one of my favorite passages in all of scripture. The scripture states that Jesus is the image of the invisible God. Let's unpack that a bit.

First, He is supreme in that He is the image of the invisible God. To understand this concept, there are words we must briefly illuminate in order to apply. First – image – the Greek word here is icon but rid your mind of the idea of an American icon and also rid your mind of the idea of a mere representational image like a knockoff of a fine fashion or a bad print of a great painting. The word icon doesn’t mean representation. It means manifestation. Not simply a photo of, but the presence of. How do we know that? Second word

– God was pleased to have His fullness dwell in Him. In other words, when one beheld the person of Jesus, it was not a semi-sort of view of God. You were beholding a full manifestation of God. Third word – God was pleased in this – to take infinity and place it inside the skin of this man for what purpose? To image – it implies someone has to behold. Who is it? You, me, anyone who will behold Jesus. God was pleased to do this so that we would know Him. Wow!

This is why Jesus said in John 14:9, “He who has seen me has seen the Father.” This is why John the Apostle writes, “Jesus is the only begotten son who is in the bosom of the Father that has made him…..known.”

Let me make the idea of manifestation a little more clear.

When you go outside today, look up and look briefly at the sun. It is 93 million miles away. It is 109.3 times the diameter of this planet. Its surface is 12,000 times that of Earth, and in it Hydrogen and Helium are heated to 27 million degrees Fahrenheit, but who cares you say? You need to know that energy bursts from the sun, and it travels 93 million miles to us and hits the ground and you with this much power – 4 million horsepower per square mile. And when you put your hand in it, your body produces Vitamin D. And if you keep it there unshielded, it will burn you and if it weren’t there, you could see nothing and wou

ld die from exposure to cold temperature. Keep in mind that the sun doesn’t want to manifest itself to you. It has no feeling, but God who is billions infinitely greater than any of us, manifested, produces, lets you see by His Son. Now THAT is manifestation!

Thank God for His manifestation in Jesus Christ!

We love you Lord!

pcraig