Happy Sabbath!

Last week we ended our letter by asking two questions: "Were all things made "through" or "for" Christ?" and the second is "Does it (the discussion whether Christ was created) make a difference?". In this final part in the series, we will answer these questions.

Let's start with Hebrews 1:2, Colossians 1:16 and John 1:3. All three of these verses state that that all things were made "through" or "by" Christ. One argument that comes up is that the Greek word translated through or by can also mean "for." Some claim that these verses are not showing Christ as the agent of creation, but that the Father created in order to give to His Son, Christ. This is problematic on several levels. First, the grammar used in these verses dictates that either by or through be used, signifying that the action taking place was done by an agent. While the Greek words in all three verses are prepositions, the translation of those prepositions is dependent on the case of the object within the prepositional phrase. In the example of these verses, the case of each object of the prepositional phrase dictate that Christ is the agent or marker of action taking place. The second issue with this stance is that it fails to consider the emphatic nature of what is expressed. Not only are these verses rightly translated by or through, to reiterate this point, in both John and Colossians, additional language is used to signify the role of Christ. In John 1:2 it says "...without Him nothing was made that was made." Colossians adds that "...all things were created through Him and for Him" (Colossians 1:15). As mentioned earlier, this definitiveness leaves no wiggle room to lower the position of Christ with regard to the creation.

In addressing this topic, some may argue that this is just a complex theological argument which has no impact to our lives and only serves to cause issues (i.e. what difference does it make). However, the nature of God is very important, and misconceptions can impact many other doctrinal areas. One example is a basic tenet of the Christian religion--the ability for the blood of Christ to cleanse us of our sins. This understanding would not be possible if Christ was a created being. We know from scripture that all have sinned, and that the wages of sin are death (Romans 3:23; 6:23). If a man or woman, as created beings, could somehow live completely perfect lives, they would only serve to save their own selves (Psalm 49:7; Ezekiel 14:14, 20). Yet Christ, dying without sin, can take upon Himself the sins of all who have ever lived (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). How can these facts exist together? For Christ to purchase the lives of every individual with the life of one Being (that is Himself), the value of His one life must have been greater than the sum of all the other lives combined. To achieve this value, Christ could be nothing less than God in the flesh (Isaiah 40:15-17). Christ, divesting Himself of His eternity and glory (John 17:5; Philippians 2:6), and coming in the likeness of man (Philippians 2:7-8), living a sinless life (Hebrews 4:15), and dying despite His perfection, is the only thing that can take away the death penalty for each person. The weight of scripture and logic reveal that Christ was not created in any way. To say otherwise would not only go contrary to scripture, but also to fundamental beliefs of Christianity. Indeed, this topic is vital to understand correctly.

I pray that this has been an edifying study, and that this Sabbath be uplifting to you all!

Devin Schulz