MORNING MANNA 6-16-21
THE ALLNESS OF CHRIST
“For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.”– Col. 1:16-17“……Christ is all, and in all.”- Col. 3:11
This title is borrowed from an article by Vance Havner, and it’s one of those phrases I can’t get out of my mind. When I first saw the word “allness” I wasn’t sure it was a real word or something Havner cobbled together to make his point. So I went to the dictionary and discovered that it actually is a word and has been since about 1645. It means, “the quality or state of universality or totality”.
Several months ago I preached a message entitled “Christ is all” from Col. 3:11 and Havner’s phrase is a great way to explain it. Anyone who has ever read Ephesians and Colossians can easily see how “allness” applies to Christ and that’s exactly how we need to think of Him. This could be one of the most important phrases ever.
Whether you are speaking of creation, control, conversion, circumstances, or coronation Christ is all. He is not just involved, playing a part, He is in control and the centerpiece of them all. The sad thing is that many see Him as less than He actually is. Havner spoke about it as the “tendency to belittle our Lord”, which is what most people do. Even professing Christians often fail to focus on His fullness. Not only do we need to think about Him more, we need to think more about Him. We exist for the purpose of glorifying God by exalting Christ, and it is impossible to be a failure if you succeed at that! You might be poor, uneducated, crippled, blind, and unknown beyond your family and friends, but you are a success if you spend your life glorifying God and glorying in Christ.
It’s when we fail to keep “Looking unto Jesus” ( Heb. 12:2) that we fail. If we are to think more highly of Him, see Him as all and in all, we must “consider him” (Heb. 12:3). Seeing Him in all and above all makes a world of difference in how we face the challenges of life. It does so because He who causes all things to consist has a firm grip on His people and their problems- and He won’t let go! We fear and fret when we feel things are out of control and going to end poorly, but when we see Christ in control of all and causing all to work together for good we can be at peace. – HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
