Ephesians 1:20-23 sees the role of Christ as basic to understanding, not only God, but also all creation. Christ cannot be relegated to being just a moral teacher or merely a good man. "For the right Faith is, that we believe and confess, that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man; God, of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and Man, of the substance of his Mother, born in the world; Perfect God and Perfect Man." (Athanasian Creed)

"That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which God exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age, but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way." (NIV)

"All this energy issues from Christ: God raised him from death and set him on a throne in deep heaven, in charge of running the universe, everything from galaxies to governments, no name and no power exempt from his rule. And not just for the time being, but forever. He is in charge of it all, has the final word on everything. At the center of all this, Christ rules the church. The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ's body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence." (The Message)

This is an audacious statement that, if true, is a threat to all other claims to power. It was seen to be a threat to the magical powers of false teachers and the worship of Artemis (Diana) of the Ephesians when Paul was teaching in Ephesus for two years. Paul argued persuasively about the kingdom of God and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. Everyone heard the word of the Lord. God did extraordinary miracles through Paul. Some false teachers tried to copy him but were discredited. The name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor by all. Those who had practiced clairvoyance, astrology and other forms of spiritualism confessed and burnt their magic books. In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power. But the silversmiths, who sold images of the goddess Artemis, found that their trade was affected. The temple of Artemis, one of the seven great wonders of the ancient world, was being discredited, and the worship of the goddess of fertility was being robbed of her divine majesty. A riot developed and the lives of Paul and his colleagues were endangered. They were rescued by the city clerk who re-established law and order. (Acts 19) This is just one example of the claims of Christ over all other powers. What are the implications for us today?

Our understanding of the nature of God and creation leads us to the supremacy of Christ over all spiritual and human power in the present and in the future. Paul is here referring to all sources of power: angelic or demonic, individual or corporate, wherever they are located, in people or institutions. There is nothing that is superior to Christ. There is no power in the spirit world that can rival Christ. There is no power in this earthly world that can rival Christ. To the contrary, all things are placed under him. Therefore, we should never fear any earthly or spiritual power. We should never be intimidated by those who have pretensions to power, who wield influence, and arrogantly dismiss faith in Christ, and sneer at those who stand up for their faith. They do not realize that they are being used by spiritual powers who oppose Christ, and that they are on the losing side. The silversmith Demetrius complained about Paul that "he says that man-made gods are no gods at all." There are so many man-made gods in our culture. We can worship our family, or our career, or success. People worship the latest fad, the latest cause célèbre, controversy, issue of public debate. So many of them are fronts for spiritual powers of darkness who want to use them to undermine the kingdom of God. Like ideologies and philosophies of the past, dictators, megalomaniacs, and demagogues, they will pass away. Christ has the final word on everything. Christ is not one among many. He is pre-eminent. His kingdom will never fail. At the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II an orb was placed in her hand by the Archbishop of Canterbury who says, "When you see this orb set under the cross, remember that the whole world is subject to the power and empire of Christ our Redeemer." That means for us that our world, all that we are and all that we have is under the power of Christ - all our possessions, all our relationships, all our aspirations, all our desires and goals, all our plans, should be consecrated to the service of Christ.

This applies also to the church. The church is not just a community of believers, gathered together for their own spiritual encouragement and inspiration. It is the body of Christ. He is the head of the church. Where he is head, he speaks and acts in the church to bring about his purposes. Where he is the head, he fills everything which the church does with his presence. The church should not be filled with our plans and programs and activities. They should be Christ's plans, and programs and activities. If he is the head of the church, and we are his body, then he should be the acknowledged head of every meeting, every committee, every service. Christ should be the center of every message, the heart of every devotional, the object of every prayer, and the theme of every hymn. As the head directs the body and interprets every decision, enabling every part to function properly, so Christ moves us to accomplish his will. We should always be asking: What would Christ have us to do as a church? Where does he want us to go? What is his plan and purpose for us as his body? Those should be our concerns. This is not 'our' church in the sense that we own it. It is Christ's church. We are under his headship. No man or woman should take upon themselves the headship of the church, or seek to control the church. "God has placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church." We are under, he is over. As John the Baptist prophesied, "He must increase and we must decrease. The thongs of his sandals we are not worthy to untie." There is no place for power-seeking in the church. There is only one power - the head of the church.

If this is so, then we can trust Christ to fill us with his presence. We can rely upon him to form us, direct us, guide us, and enable us to function. He sends his Spirit to take up residence in us. God the Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit comes to us and makes his home with us. Let us open our lives to this amazing God who is the key to the flourishing of our fullest potential as human beings. There is no greater aspiration possible in this world.

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