How Deep, How Broad, How High

Colossians 1:15-20  He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation; for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent. For in him all the fulness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.


In almost all churches in all major denominations the service includes reciting a creed that states in clear language a set of beliefs about the identity of God. Those creeds were usually agreed upon by long detailed discussions about each word by people centuries ago who had studied in great detail the scriptural accounts and the historical records of those who lived around Jesus. The passage from Colossians is an early creed in the form of a well known hymn of Paul's time.. It is a clearly known formulation of the widely held view in the extremely early church about the identity of Jesus. I could almost see us singing the words and phrases of that hymn.


I have at times with various creeds taken the time to meditate on each phrase to deepen my appreciation. In prayer saying, "He is the image of the invisible God" followed by some silence and repeat the phrase again, and then silence and the again. Praying to let the picture the words creates fill my heart. Each day moving forward through the creed or scripture hymn I meditate on the words and build the image. Asking God to show me what those words mean to me. What does it mean that, "He is the head of the body, the church" So much in so little space and yet he is infinitely more. So much said and yet just reading the words doesn't do justice to the reality it represents.