Supremacy of Christ: Firstborn Over All Creation
Colossians 1 v 15
The firstborn over all creation
St Paul says Jesus is the firstborn above the whole of creation.
A firstborn doesn’t necessarily mean the first in the family who was born. It is a title showing who is the first inheritor of the family. The one who takes responsibility for leading after the father has died, become absent or incapacitated.
So when the final plague comes upon Egypt and the firstborn was killed. It wasn’t babies who died, but the inheritors and future leaders.
Another good example is Jacob and Easu. Easu sold his birthright to Jacob. So Jacob became the firstborn of the family, even though Esau was born first. He was the inheritor of God’s promise and the leader of the family after Isaac’s death.
Several groups over the centuries have adopted the belief that firstborn equates with the idea that Jesus was created by God and therefore a created being. This is a misreading of the text and consequently a heresy.
What is Creation?
When we think of Creation, we tend to think of the seas, mountains, trees, animals and humans. But Creation also includes the Heavens; the astronomical bodies, the spiritual realm and the Throne of God. And also Hell as well.
Firstborn Over All
So Jesus is the Inheritor of Creation. Not just the physical or the Seen realm, but the Unseen too. He is not just the Firstborn over humanity, but over every created thing.
He is the Inheritor of Creation. Creation is His birthright. He is the Heir of All Things.
The Second Adam and Second Esau
When Adam was created, he became the firstborn over humanity. He received this title because he was literally the firstborn human. So as the first born son, it was his birthright.
Then he was tempted by eating fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Rather than taking on the responsibility of the firstborn role, he disobeyed God’s command, rejected the birthright, and sin came into the World.
Esau responded in a similar way. He was the firstborn, even though his twin was born a few moments later.
One day Esau came back from hunting and he was starving. Jacob, the younger twin brother, was making a stew. Jacob asked him to give up his birthright for the meal. Esau was tempted and gave it to Jacob.
Likewise, Jesus was tempted to give up His firstborn status in the Wilderness. He was asked to turn stones into bread.
Matthew 4 v 1-4
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry. The tempter came to Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
In this passage, we see Jesus was tempted to give up His birthright for food, just like Adam and Esau.
Jesus is not only the Second Adam, but also the Second Esau. He resisted the tempter, where they did not. He kept His birthright and confirmed His status as the Firstborn of all Creation.