Greater Than Words · Resources

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Summary

A gorilla with no word for earthquake signed "darn floor, bad bite." Kent Keller says that is us in front of Colossians 1 — reaching for language that will not stretch far enough. Four movements through one of Scripture's loftiest passages: the glory, the reign, the lordship, and the sacrifice of Jesus.

Sermon Outline

1. 1

   "Darn Floor, Bad Bite" ▶ 0:00

   Coco the gorilla had no sign for earthquake, so she reached for the words she had. Kent opens with an animal straining past its vocabulary.

2. 2

   Reading: Colossians 1:15-23 ▶ 2:21

   One of the highest passages in Scripture on the supremacy of Christ — and even Paul, brilliant as he was, sounds like he is reaching for words.

3. 3

   An Ancient Hymn, Maybe a Creed ▶ 6:21

   Verses 15-20 look like borrowed words, the way we borrow the Lord's Prayer or the Apostles' Creed to say something otherwise beyond us.

4. 4

   The Gnostics and the "Deeper" Truths ▶ 8:07

   An elitist system that told young Christians in Colossae the gospel was too simple to be important, and sold them enlightenment for a fee. If anyone tells you that today, run.

5. 5

   The Manifestation of His Glory ▶ 11:20

   Verse 15. The Greek word behind "image" is icon — not a likeness of God but the living, breathing incarnation of him.

6. 6

   Genesis 1:1 and John 1:1 in One Phrase ▶ 13:10

   A Jewish believer hearing "image of the invisible God" thinks of the beginning; a Greek believer thinks of the logos. Paul packs both into a few words.

7. 7

   The Wrecked Prototype ▶ 15:39

   A perfect prototype is totaled on the way to the factory, and the line starts replicating the wreck. Then the designer sends the real one — and everyone resents it.

8. 8

   The Magnitude of His Reign ▶ 19:37

   Verse 16. Colossae was fascinated by angels. Paul does not say they are unreal; he says they are secondary, and they bow to Christ.

9. 9

   The Majesty of His Lordship ▶ 22:08

   Verse 17. In him all things hold together — universe means unity in diversity, and Kent asks where the unity could possibly come from.

10. 10

    The Dials on the Control Panel ▶ 25:00

    The angle of the earth, the distance of the sun, the position of the moon, the ratio of carbon to oxygen, the rate of expansion — a few of the evidences Kent finds compelling.

11. 11

    The Magnificence of His Sacrifice ▶ 30:36

    Verses 21-22. The hymn's loftiest words drop straight down to a crossbeam and what it cost to reconcile us.

12. 12

    Let That Reality Sink In ▶ 32:15

    The one who breathed the world into existence also breathed his last on a Roman cross. There are no words left; there is only worship.

Key Points

• Paul reaches for a borrowed hymn because ordinary language will not carry who Jesus is — and neither will ours.
• "Image of the invisible God" means icon: not a resemblance but the living incarnation of God in human form. People asked for centuries what God is like, and the answer is Jesus.
• "Firstborn of all creation" is not about time. It is about honor and glory. The Son was not created; all things were created through him.
• The Gnostic pitch was that the gospel is too simple to be the whole story. Anyone selling you something past Jesus is selling you something smaller.
• Angels and powers are real, and they are secondary. Paul does not scold the Colossians for their curiosity; he reorders it.
• The precision holding the universe together — the earth's angle, the moon's distance, the rate of expansion — reads to Kent as fingerprints, not accident.
• The Lord through whom all things were made took on flesh specifically to become the atoning sacrifice for your sin.

Quotable Moments