Discovering Your Treasure

Colossians 1:12

Our text speaks of inheritance.  And then, in chapter 2 and verse 3, it says, “In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge”

Let’s discover the treasure that you have in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Many years ago, the Spanish Armada was sailing off the coast of Florida. A hurricane struck, and those ships that were laden with millions of dollars in gold and silver ingots went to the bottom, in shallow water. People knew the treasure had been lost, but they didn't know where the ships had gone down. One ship went down near Vero Beach, in Fort Pierce. I’ve been in the water in that area—but I didn't come up with any millions. Fisherman, doubtless, fished over that spot sometimes. They would hang a hook, perhaps, on a lump of gold, and curse their luck, because they had hung a hook down beneath the water on something they could not see. Then one day, some explorers said, “The ship must be here.” They went out, and they made the surveys; they tested, and they went under. And, there it was, in shallow water—so shallow that any of us who could swim normally could have gone to the bottom. They brought up millions of dollars. There it was, but they didn't know it was there. I believe that many of us are yet to discover the full treasure we have in Jesus Christ.

Now, how can those treasures be yours? Well, there's a key verse, and I want you to see that key verse. It's chapter 1 and verse 18—look at it: “And he—that is, Jesus—is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead;— now here's the key phrase, watch it—that in all things he might have the preeminence” (Colossians 1:18). I want to talk to you tonight about recognizing God's eternal plan: that in all things Jesus may have the preeminence.

I. The Sovereign Determination of His Preeminence

Look, if you will, in verse 19: “For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell”.

We can unlock the key to the mystery of history, and to all eternity. God has one eternal plan—just one—and it is that his Son, the Lord Jesus, will have the preeminence. Why did God send the Holy Spirit? That Jesus might have the preeminence. Jesus said, “When he…is come…he [will] not speak of himself…he [will] glorify me.” (John 16:13–14). The ministry of the Holy Spirit is to glorify Christ. And, beware of any so-called Christian movement that has the Holy Spirit for a figurehead. Now, you can never know the fullness of God in your life until the one single aim of your life is that Christ, and Christ alone, will be exalted.

S. B. Gordon was a great preacher. He said, “In every heart there is the throne.” He said, “When self in on that throne, Christ is on the cross. But,” he said, “when self is on the cross, Christ is on the throne.” Now, I want to ask you a question. In your heart, right now, more than anything else, is Jesus Christ preeminent? Jesus Christ is not looking for a place in your life; He doesn't want a place in your life. Jesus Christ is not looking for prominence in your life. Jesus Christ deserves and demands preeminence in your life. Jesus Christ is not someone that you can tack onto your life. Jesus Christ doesn't want to be the spare tire, dear friend; He's the steering wheel.

II. The Sweeping Dimension of His Preeminence

What should He be preeminent in? In all things.

A. He is Preeminent in the Revelation of the Father

For example, see in verse 15. Jesus is “the image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15). He is preeminent in revelation. God is unseeable; God is unknowable; and, God is unapproachable, apart from the Lord Jesus Christ. You cannot know God through reason. You cannot know God through religion. You cannot know God through ritual. The only way that you can know God is through Jesus Christ. Christ has a monopoly on the revelation of God.

Matthew chapter 11 and verse 27— Jesus Christ said, “All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him” (Matthew 11:27).

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). He has cornered the market on revelation, dear friend.

B. He is Preeminent in the Regulation of the Universe

—verse 16: “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” (Colossians 1:16).

That little baby of Matthew chapter 1 is the mighty God of Genesis 1. There was not one blade of grass made, not one grain of sand created, without the Lord Jesus Christ. And, when Jesus Christ came into this world as a little baby on the breast of His mother, He was the One who had already created His mother. And, when He was born, He was older than His mother, and as old as His Father. Jesus Christ spoke, and it stood fast.

Theistic evolution permeates most churches today.  That’s a real problem.  If this book is not sufficient to tell me where I came from, it's not sufficient to tell me where I'm going. If it's wrong about the origin of the species, it's wrong about the destiny, also. And, I thank God for the Bible that tells me, “whence I came, and whither I go” (John 8:14). I'll tell you something else—if I don't understand that Jesus made it all, then not only am I going to have problem with the Scripture, but I'm going to have a problem with salvation. You see, if man just simply evolved, if there was no Garden of Eden, if there was no fall in the Garden of Eden, if we are not by nature sinners, if we're just evolving onward and upward, then we don't need to be saved; we don't need to be born again. But, the Bible says, “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22). And, if Genesis 3 is a myth, John 3 is a farce. We don't need to be born again.

Not only will you have a problem with the Scriptures, and with salvation, but you're going to have a problem with society. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. You teach people that they came from animals, and before long, they're going to be living like animals.

2. He is the Preserver of Creation

Not only is He the power of creation, but He is the preserver of creation. Look in verse 17: “And he is before all things, and by him all things consist” (Colossians 1:17). Jesus Christ holds it together. Jesus is the glue of the galaxies. Jesus Christ is the One who regulates the universe. Jesus Christ is the One who fuels the sun, so that it can burn. Jesus Christ is the One who veils the moon with beauty. Jesus Christ is the One who guides the stars and the planets in their mighty orbits. The scientist talks about natural law. There is no natural law; it is the law of God. Jesus is the One who regulates the universe. He is preeminent in the revelation of the Father. He is preeminent in the regulation of the universe.

3. He is the Purpose of Creation

“All things were created by him, and for him” (Colossians 1:16).

—and that word for is a preposition, and it means, “movement toward an object.” It means that this universe is coming to Him. It was made for Him, and it is coming to Him. People say, “What’s the world coming to?” I'll tell you, my dear friend: It is coming to Jesus. It is all for Him, and life would be meaningless, if you didn’t understand the purpose for creation. Jesus is preeminent.

C. He is Preeminent in the Reconciliation of the World

“And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; and, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven” (Colossians 1:18–20).

If you tell me there's some other way to get to Heaven apart from Jesus Christ, then I will tell you that you are a heretic. There is no way apart from the Lord Jesus Christ. As a matter of fact, if there is some other way other than Jesus Christ, then Jesus Christ is none of the ways at all. If there's some other way apart from Jesus Christ, then Jesus Christ is a fake, a fraud, a liar, and a deceiver. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). If there's another way other than Jesus, then the apostles are false witnesses. For the Bible says, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). If there's another way other than Jesus Christ, then I lose my respect for the One who is called God—and I'll tell you why. If God allowed His darling Son to die in agony and blood upon that cross, when there was some other way, then God should have taken it.

III. The Sacred Demands of His Preeminence

What does this mean to me? What does it mean to you? Well, it means that in my heart and in my life He must have the preeminence.

A. His Deity Demands It

“And he is the head of the body, the church” (Colossians 1:18). Now, Jesus Christ is God, and He is head. He is King, and, therefore, He has a right to demand of me His preeminence.

B. His Death Demands It

“And, having made peace through the blood of his cross” (Colossians 1:20).

Love so amazing, [and] so divine [He] demands my soul, my life, [and] my all. (Isaac Watts)

Paul was talking to the carnal Corinthians. They had forgotten the preeminence of Christ. And, Paul told them, in 1 Corinthians 6:19, “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?” (1 Corinthians 6:19).

He bought you; He bought me, and I have no right to my life. I must turn it over to Him completely.

1. Give Him the First Thought of the Day

Psalm 5:3 says, “My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up” (Psalm 5:3).

2. Give Him the First Day of the Week

It is the Lord's Day. It belongs to Him. Acts chapter 20 and verse 7: “And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them” (Acts 20:7). First Corinthians 16, verse 2, says, “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him” (1 Corinthians 16:2).

3. Give Him the First Fruits of Your Income

Proverbs chapter 3, verses 9 and 10, say, “Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine” (Proverbs 3:9–10). You don't pay all of the rest of your bills—the mortgage, and all of the rest of it— and then see what you have left for God.

Take it off the top.

“But then I won’t be able to pay my bills!”

Read the promise again.  That's the reason He said, in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33).

4. Give Him the First Consideration in Any Decision

Second Corinthians 8:5 says, “But first gave their own selves to the Lord”

I am not my wife’s first love.  God is.  How about you?  Don’t miss the treasure!

[with helps from Adrian Rogers]