The Forgotten Trinity (17 page)

It would be difficult to imagine how Paul could have been more thorough or more emphatic in what he says in this passage. He quite
literally exhausts the Greek language to make His point. Take a moment
to read again, slowly, in your own Bible, verses 16 and 17. Notice especially the prepositions Paul uses. By Him," through Him,16 for Him,
in Him. He is before all things. Then notice that Paul isn't satisfied to
simply say that "all things"" are created by Christ. He has to make sure
we understand that he means all things. All things in heaven. All things
in the earth (that's pretty much everything!). But he keeps going. All
things visible. All things invisible. Now, that is everything! But he's not
satisfied with just that. Things visible and invisible, whether they be
thrones, dominions, rulers, or authorities. What's his point here? Even
the heavenly realms and the spiritual authorities (concepts the Gnostics liked to talk about) exist simply because Jesus Christ made them!
Everything, anywhere, at any time, looks to the Son of God as "Creator."

Not only did He make all things, but Paul says that all things were
made for Him! Christians instinctively know that we exist for God's
glory, God's pleasure, and God's purpose. Our hearts automatically
agree with the sentiment, "You are the Potter, I am the clay." Yet here
the Bible says that all things were made "for" Jesus, and that He is
"before" all things! Can such language possibly be used of anyone but
the eternal Creator himself? Can we make sense at all of using such
terms of someone like Michael the Archangel"or any other created
being? Of course not.

Finally, we are told that all of creation "holds together" or "consists" in Christ.'9 Echoing John's assertions about the Logos that we
saw above, Paul places within the realm of Christ's power the very
maintenance and continuation of the entirety of the universe! He
makes everything "fit" and remain in its proper place. Is this not the
function of God himself? It assuredly is.

SOME OBJECTIONS ANSWERED

Before we leave this passage, however, we need to listen to other
objections that are raised. Indeed, this passage is translated in the New
World Translation, published by the Watchtower Bible and Tract So ciety, in such a way as to attempt to hide the truths we have just seen.
Rather than repeating the phrase "all things" over and over again, as
Paul did, the Watchtower translation inserts another word, "other,"
into the phrase, making it read, "all [other] things."20 The reason for
the translation is transparent: since Watchtower theology insists Jesus
is a creation, this passage must be rendered this way.

Apologists for the Watchtower Society have developed ingenious
ways of defending the errors of the NWT. In this instance, two arguments are often put forward. The NWT tries to defend the insertion
of the word "other" by referring the reader to passages where one
could logically insert the word "other" to make sense of the passage.''
However, there is no such need here, and the grammar of the passages
cited is quite different than what we are considering in Colossians. The
more complex argument goes like this: Jesus is the "firstborn of all
creation." It is insisted that the Greek grammar indicates that this
means Jesus is a part of the creation,22 thus, one must translate "all
things" as "all [other] things" to make sense of the passage.

Such an interpretation, however, is "excluded by the context,""
which makes a strong and undeniable distinction between the Son and
"all things." Nowhere does Paul make the Son one of the "things. 21
The most telling objection, however, comes from the context that we
established at the beginning of this chapter. Remember to read Paul in
light of his intention to refute the early forms of Gnosticism that were
coming into the Colossian church. The position taken by those who
deny the deity of Christ falls right into the trap of agreeing with the
Gnostics against Paul! In other words, if we interpret this passage as
saying Jesus is a part of the creation, and not the Creator himself, we
are left with a Jesus who looks very much like the Gnostic "aeon" that
Paul is arguing against! The argument presented by deniers of the deity
of Christ weakens Paul's entire argument against the Gnostics, leaving
him arguing in circles! But when we allow the text to stand and speak
for itself, Paul's point is devastatingly clear: the Gnostic cannot just
stick Jesus into his "system" somewhere. Jesus can't be one of the
"aeons" between the one true, good God and the evil demiurge who
ends up creating the world. No, Paul makes it impossible for the Gnostic to hold on to his false beliefs about the world and try to make
room for an edited "Jesus" by firmly asserting that everything that exists, including the physical universe, came into existence through the
creative activity of Jesus Christ. Keeping in mind the dualistic context
of early Gnosticism helps us to see clearly the intention and purpose
of Paul in this passage and, in so doing, helps us to avoid the misinterpretations rampant in non-Christian sects today. It might seem to
some that such considerations are too "complex" or "obscure" to be
important. Yet knowing these things, and being able to explain them
to others, may well be used of the Lord to help deliver someone from
deception and falsehood.

A SCENE IN HEAVEN

How fundamental is the eternality and creatorship of Jesus? Take
a moment to consider this tremendous scene in heaven itself, recorded
for us by the apostle John:

Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around
the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number
of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive
power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and
blessing." And every created thing which is in heaven and on the
earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them,
I heard saying, "To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb,
be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever."
And the four living creatures kept saying, "Amen." And the elders
fell down and worshiped. (Revelation 5:11-14)

Did you catch the key phrase? "And every created thing" joined in
this song of praise directed to the One sitting on the throne and to the
Lamb. Every created thing. If Jesus is a creation, a mere creature, then
is He not likewise joining into this song of praise? Yet the song is directed to Him and to the Father. Obviously, those in heaven itself know
that Jesus is not one of the created things. Creation knows its Master.

THROUGH WHOM HE MADE THE WORLD

The Father and the Son together are involved in the creation of all
things. The last passage we will look at under this topic is found in the
great first chapter of Hebrews, a chapter we will look at a number of
times before we finish our study. Here the writer to the Hebrews makes
reference to the roles of the Father and Son in creation:

God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in
many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to
us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through
whom also He made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory
and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things
by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins,
He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. (Hebrews
1:1-3)

God the Father has made the world through the Son. We have seen
already the importance of recognizing the truth that creation is not
only the work of the Father or only the work of the Son (or even of
the Spirit). Instead, creation is the work of Yahweh, and the New Testament reveals to us with glorious clarity the differing roles the Father,
Son, and Spirit play in that great exhibition of divine power. The Father decrees, the Son enacts, the Spirit conforms. Just as all three share
the one divine name, so they also share the one divine description as
"Creator," even while maintaining the distinction of roles that exists
between them. Surely the believer marvels at the consistency, balance,
and beauty of the Word's testimony to the relationship of the persons
and their role in creation itself.

The hymns sung by the church have always told of the faith
that is hers. While few today dwell on what our hymns really say, the
early church placed much more emphasis upon the content of her
hymns. Fragments of the earliest "hymnal" are found in the text of the
New Testament. We get a tantalizing glimpse at what the earliest Christians confessed in music. Probably the longest "song," and certainly
the most important, is provided by the apostle Paul in his letter to the
Philippians.

Philippians 2:5-11 has been identified as the Carmen Christi, the
"Hymn to Christ as God." Some modern translations, such as the NIV,
NRSV, TEV, and JB, set this passage apart in poetic form to indicate
the fact that most scholars see in this passage something other than
straight prose or teaching. Instead, what is found here may well be a
section, maybe a verse or two, of an ancient Christian hymn.

If, in fact, Paul is referring believers to a commonly known song, we can imagine the effect his words had. In our day, it is common for
a minister to incorporate a reference to a well-known and well-loved
hymn so as to make a strong point. Many close a sermon on the grace
of God, for example, by saying, "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,
that saved a wretch like me!" The minister doesn't need to tell us what
hymn number he is referring to. He doesn't need to give us the name.
Just a line or two is enough. "I once was blind, but now I see" is sufficient to bring to our minds the entire message contained in the song.

I believe that is exactly what Paul is doing in the second chapter of
his letter to the Philippians. Verses 5 through 11 provide us with the
"sermon illustration" Paul wishes to use. In these words he takes us to
the highest points of scriptural revelation, speaking of great eternal
truths. Yet he does so through the words of a familiar song.

A tremendous number of books and articles have been written concerning the meaning of Philippians 2:5-11. Yet many of them miss the
most fundamental point of solid interpretation: context. Often the
passage is separated from surrounding text and considered on its own.
As we will see, the context of the passage will help us determine the key
issue at stake here. And to that context we must first turn.

HUMILITY OF MIND

In this passage, Paul did not just break into a testimony to the
greatness of Christ without a reason. He was trying to encourage the
Philippians to live and act in a certain manner, and he gives as his
example the Lord Jesus. To what kind of behavior was Paul exhorting
his listeners? Let's read:

Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is
any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if
any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of
the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent
on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit,
but with humility of mind regard one another as more important
than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. (Philippians 2:1-4)