Gospels Part 049
In yesterday’s lesson we saw that our universe is unimaginably huge, with multiple trillions of galaxies and unconceivable numbers of stars and planets. Now let us see what the Bible reveals about Who the actual Creator was!
The Bible reveals a fascinating truth that most people overlook—that the One who was born in the flesh as Jesus Christ previously existed with God the Father. And while we normally think of God the Father as the Creator of all, it was actually the One who became Jesus Christ who did the literal work of creating. Let’s look at some Bible passages that show us this truth.
“God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds” (Hebrews 1:1-2).
Here we clearly see that “God”—God the Father—made or created the worlds (plural “worlds,” not just our one planet earth), through His Son, Jesus Christ. This tells us it was a joint effort. God the Father did it, but He did it through Jesus Christ, who did the actual work of creation.
A helpful metaphor would be the work of architects, contractors and builders. An architect designs the structure. A contractor is tasked with overseeing and completing the building. Often the contractor oversees a number of specialized builders and tradesmen who do the actual work of constructing the building. All have a critical role in the effort, but those roles are different and each is necessary. With our limited human understanding, we do not know what that looked like on a spiritual level with God the Father and Jesus the Son, but this is what Scripture reveals to us—God created everything through Jesus Christ.
This creation was not limited to the physical universe we inhabit. The apostle Paul tells us more:
“For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence” (Colossians 1:16-18).
“For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth . . .” “Heaven” here does not mean the traditional idea of heaven, but rather it is referring to the sky extending out all through the universe—the night sky we see filled with planets and stars and galaxies, and not just the physical planet earth that we live on.
Paul goes on to say that the Being who became Jesus Christ created all things that are “visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.” This is saying that Jesus created not just the visible, physical universe of the earth and sky, clouds, planets, sun, moon, stars and galaxies, but He also created what we might call “the invisible universe” as well. This is what we would call the spirit world, a kind of parallel dimension to our physical world. The terms that Paul uses here, “dominions or principalities or powers,” he also uses in the book of Galatians to refer to different powers or kinds/categories of beings in the angelic world. He’s referring to the archangels, the cherubim, the seraphim and other types of spirit beings.
Continuing here in Colossians 1:16, Paul says: “All things were created through Him and for Him.” Again, Jesus Christ is the one who created everything—all things in the physical universe and the spirit universe.
Verse 17 says, “And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.” In other words, He existed before everything else began. Because He created all of these things, He obviously had to exist before these things were created. The next verse continues, “And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.”
We see again that this is clearly talking about Jesus Christ. He is the Head of the body that is His Church, and the firstborn from the dead through His resurrection from the dead three days and three nights after His death by crucifixion.
It’s important to read these scriptures and get a clear understanding before we dive into the Gospels, which chronologically begins with John 1:1. Many people see Jesus as a wise man and teacher who happened to found what became a great religion, but we know there’s much more to the story than that. This incredible truth lies at the heart of the true Christian faith. If we understand that and read the Gospels with this realization in mind, it explains everything He did and said.
As we go through the Gospels, we will discuss who and what Jesus Christ truly was. This involves the understanding that Jesus was not simply an extraordinary rabbi and a great human being who founded a new religion. It involves understanding who and what Jesus of Nazareth really was. This sets the stage for what we will read as we go through the Gospels.
© 2026 Scott Ashley. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
UYA Team | uya@ucg.org
United Young Adults (UYA) primarily serves the 18–32-year age group for the United Church of God. There are three main areas of contribution to the lives of the young adults: Promoting Spiritual Growth, Developing Meaningful Relationships and Making the Most of Your Talents. The Know Your Sword series is a daily expository message introducing God’s Word from a trusted perspective.
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Scott Ashley
Scott Ashley was managing editor of Beyond Today magazine, United Church of God booklets and its printed Bible Study Course until his retirement in 2023. He also pastored three congregations in Colorado for 10 years from 2011-2021. He and his wife, Connie, live near Denver, Colorado.
Mr. Ashley attended Ambassador College in Big Sandy, Texas, graduating in 1976 with a theology major and minors in journalism and speech. It was there that he first became interested in publishing, an industry in which he worked for 50 years.
During his career, he has worked for several publishing companies in various capacities. He was employed by the United Church of God from 1995-2023, overseeing the planning, writing, editing, reviewing and production of Beyond Today magazine, several dozen booklets/study guides and a Bible study course covering major biblical teachings. His special interests are the Bible, archaeology, biblical culture, history and the Middle East.
