Colossians 1:15–20
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.n all their affliction he was afflicted. – Colossians 1:15
Click to read passage
As we come to the final day of the year, we naturally look in two directions—backward with reflection and forward with hope. Last Sunday, we reflected on the mystery of the Word made flesh: that the eternal Son of God humbly entered our broken world, our broken lives, sharing our suffering, leading us home. Today’s passage from Colossians lifts our gaze higher still, helping us see not only who Christ came as, but who He is—the One at the centre of all things.
Paul presents Christ in a majestic hymn. He is the image of the invisible God. The God we cannot see has made Himself known in a living Person. This Word who became flesh is also the One through whom all things were created, heaven and earth, the visible and the unseen. Every authority and power that shapes our world exists under His lordship.
As we reflect on the year gone by, this truth brings us comfort. Some moments may have felt joyful; others, uncertain or fragile. Yet Scripture reminds us that beneath all the shifting events of our lives, “in Him all things hold together.” Our lives, our church, and our world are not sustained by human control but by Christ Himself.
Paul’s words challenged a world where the ancient Roman emperors claimed divine authority and promised peace through power. Paul offers a different vision: Christ alone is supreme. He is before all things, and through His resurrection, He now holds first place in everything. This is not a rule of domination, but of faithful love.
At the heart of this hymn stands the cross. While empires claim peace through force, Christ makes peace through the blood of His cross. Here, the Word made flesh reveals the fullness of God, not by taking life through force, but by laying down His own. Through the cross, God reconciles all things to Himself, a redemption as wide as creation itself.
As we stand at the threshold of a new year, another hymn, Be Thou My Vision came to my mind. May we respond in unison: “Be Thou my vision, O Lord of my heart.” To confess Christ as supreme is to ask that He would shape how we see, what we desire, trust, and hope for in the year ahead.
So as this year draws to a close, we are invited not merely to review the past, but to renew our allegiance. We entrust the coming year, its plans and uncertainties, to the One who holds all things together. May He truly be our vision in the days ahead.
Reflection：
1. Where have you seen Christ holding things together in your life this past year? 2. What would it look like for Christ to shape your vision in the year ahead?
Prayer：
Lord Jesus Christ, Image of the invisible God and Word made flesh, as we end this year, we place our lives into Your hands. Shape our vision, anchor our hope, and guide our steps. Be our peace and our light in the year ahead, until the day all things are fully reconciled in You. We pray this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Click to read passage
As we come to the final day of the year, we naturally look in two directions—backward with reflection and forward with hope. Last Sunday, we reflected on the mystery of the Word made flesh: that the eternal Son of God humbly entered our broken world, our broken lives, sharing our suffering, leading us home. Today’s passage from Colossians lifts our gaze higher still, helping us see not only who Christ came as, but who He is—the One at the centre of all things.
Paul presents Christ in a majestic hymn. He is the image of the invisible God. The God we cannot see has made Himself known in a living Person. This Word who became flesh is also the One through whom all things were created, heaven and earth, the visible and the unseen. Every authority and power that shapes our world exists under His lordship.
As we reflect on the year gone by, this truth brings us comfort. Some moments may have felt joyful; others, uncertain or fragile. Yet Scripture reminds us that beneath all the shifting events of our lives, “in Him all things hold together.” Our lives, our church, and our world are not sustained by human control but by Christ Himself.
Paul’s words challenged a world where the ancient Roman emperors claimed divine authority and promised peace through power. Paul offers a different vision: Christ alone is supreme. He is before all things, and through His resurrection, He now holds first place in everything. This is not a rule of domination, but of faithful love.
At the heart of this hymn stands the cross. While empires claim peace through force, Christ makes peace through the blood of His cross. Here, the Word made flesh reveals the fullness of God, not by taking life through force, but by laying down His own. Through the cross, God reconciles all things to Himself, a redemption as wide as creation itself.
So as this year draws to a close, we are invited not merely to review the past, but to renew our allegiance. We entrust the coming year, its plans and uncertainties, to the One who holds all things together. May He truly be our vision in the days ahead.
Reflection：
1. Where have you seen Christ holding things together in your life this past year? 2. What would it look like for Christ to shape your vision in the year ahead?
Prayer：
Lord Jesus Christ, Image of the invisible God and Word made flesh, as we end this year, we place our lives into Your hands. Shape our vision, anchor our hope, and guide our steps. Be our peace and our light in the year ahead, until the day all things are fully reconciled in You. We pray this in Jesus’ name, Amen.