Colossians 1:15-18 — FIRSTBORN

Christ: The True Firstborn

Colossians 1:15-18

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation… He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.” — Colossians 1:15-18

A Tale of Two Firstborns

The story of Scripture often turns on a simple truth: not all firstborns are created equal. Some are chosen, others rejected. Some walk in the humility of dependence, others grasp for power. At the center of it all stands Christ — the Firstborn over all creation and the Firstborn from the dead. But before Christ’s glory came and dwelt among man, a long line of grasping, self-exalting firstborns stumbled through history — earthly shadows of a deeper rebellion that reaches back to the first fall in heaven. Every Cain, Esau, and Rehoboam echoes the same ancient cry: “I will exalt myself.” Into this world, God sent a different Firstborn — not one who would grasp, but one who would give.

The Pattern: God’s Consistent Choice

From the beginning, God overlooked the firstborn time and time again for His redemptive purposes — bypassing the expected heirs to elevate the least, the overlooked, the younger sons whose only boast was God’s grace. Cain was passed over for Abel (Genesis 4); Ishmael for Isaac (Genesis 17); Esau for Jacob (Genesis 25); Reuben for Judah (Genesis 49); even David, the youngest of Jesse’s sons, was anointed king over his older brothers (1 Samuel 16).

At first glance, it’s puzzling. But when we step back, a pattern emerges — a divine rehearsal for the arrival of the Firstborn who would fulfill what no earthly son could. These younger sons — weak in stature but strong in God’s favor — were shadows of the true Son, the One who would inherit the nations not by birth order, but by divine decree.

Christ: The True Firstborn Over Creation

When Paul calls Jesus the firstborn of all creation (Colossians 1:15), he isn’t talking about birth order. The Greek word Paul uses, πρωτότοκος (prototokos), refers not to the first created being, but to preeminent status — the supreme heir. It’s the language of royal inheritance, not sequence.

All creation exists for Him, because all creation was made through Him. He is not part of creation. He is the goal of creation — its source, its meaning, its end. This is cosmic preeminence. The stars burn for Him. The oceans roar for Him. Every atom moves at His command. There is no corner of creation untouched by His hand or exempt from His reign.

This is why no watered-down view of Jesus can stand. Reduce Him to moral teacher, spiritual guide, or historical figure, and you have lost everything. He is not just within creation — He reigns over it. The inheritance already belongs to Him, and the only sane response is worship.

Christ: The Firstborn From the Dead

But Paul doesn’t stop with creation. Christ is also the firstborn from the dead (Colossians 1:18). This is resurrection language. The same preeminent Son who stood at creation’s dawn now stands at the dawn of new creation — the forerunner of a resurrected humanity, the head of a redeemed body.

The first creation came through His Word. The new creation comes through His blood. Where rebellious firstborns grasped and fell, Christ laid down His life and was raised in glory. He does not seize His inheritance; He secures it through obedience. This is the gospel’s great reversal: life through death, glory through humility, preeminence through the cross.

As the True Firstborn, Christ fulfills not only the creation mandate but the Davidic promise (Psalm 89:27). He is the royal heir over the nations, the Son whose throne is forever. And as the Last Adam, His resurrection is not an isolated victory — it’s a representative one. In Him, the whole redeemed family rises.

The Firstborn of Rebellion

The contrast couldn’t be sharper. While Christ embodies humble preeminence, Scripture introduces us to another firstborn — the firstborn of rebellion. Long before Cain grasped for power, Satan grasped for God’s throne. Isaiah 14 gives us a window into his heart:

“I will ascend… I will make myself like the Most High.”

This is the satanic spirit — a creature grasping at Creator glory, a servant demanding the Master’s seat. From Satan’s fall onward, his spirit echoed through the firstborn sons of earth. Cain, Esau, Pharaoh’s son, Amnon, Rehoboam — each carried the same spiritual DNA. Born into privilege, yet squandered it through pride, lust, or rebellion. Their stories are not isolated tragedies. They are shadows of Satan’s ancient fall — and warnings to every human heart.

Two Kingdoms, One Choice

Colossians 1 does not leave this in the abstract. Paul places every person under one of two banners — either under the authority of darkness or transferred into the kingdom of the beloved Son (Colossians 1:13).

At its core, the human heart has two options: 1) Follow the path of the rebellious firstborn — grasping for control, exalting self, resisting God; 2) Follow the path of the True Firstborn — surrendering, trusting, receiving from God’s hand. It’s a tale as old as Cain and Abel, but the stakes couldn’t be higher. To cling to self-exaltation is to align with a kingdom doomed to fall. To bow to the True Firstborn is to share in a kingdom that will never end.

For those in Christ, there is rest — rest from striving, rest from proving, rest from the need to make a name for ourselves. In union with Christ, the inheritance is already ours. We are co-heirs with the Firstborn (Romans 8:16-17). His victory is our victory. His inheritance is our inheritance. His standing before the Father is ours. There is no ladder to climb, no status to earn. In the kingdom of the True Firstborn, grace outruns ambition every time.

Walking Like the Firstborn

If this is true, then our lives must take the shape of the One we follow.

• We do not grasp for significance — we rest in the Father’s love.
• We do not lord over others — we serve, even at cost to ourselves.
• We do not chase status — we receive grace, knowing all we have is gift.

This is also the call upon the church, the visible body of the Firstborn. We are a community shaped by His life, not the world’s grasping spirit. In the kingdom of the True Firstborn, the first are gladly last, and the greatest joyfully serve.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, 

You are the True and Preeminent Firstborn.

You, who stood before creation and now stand over new creation,

I bow before You — not to grasp, but to receive; not to climb, but to rest.

Expose the Cain in me — the grasping, the self-exalting, the fear of losing control.

Teach me to trust, to serve, to walk the road You walked.

Anchor my restless heart in the inheritance You secured.

May my life, and our life as Your people, reflect Your grace and glory.

To You, Firstborn over all creation and Firstborn from the dead,

be all honor, all praise, all glory — now and forever.

Amen.