For by him, all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thones or dominions, powers or authorities – all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Colossians 1:16-17

A new school year is well underway. This means the slower pace of summer is in our rear-view mirror, and (as much as I try to pretend summer isn’t really over) pumpkin spice now occupies every grocery store shelf. The holidays loom ahead while the critical needs of today continue to pop up like those pesky weeds in my yard.  

Just hold it together, I tell myself. I bet you’ve also memorized the mantra.  

But soon, the schedule gets packed, I need to be in three places at once, someone sneezes on me, and things start to feel a lot less like holding and a whole lot more like grabbing, grasping, clenching, balancing, and juggling. We can easily start to believe that if we stop for even one moment, everything will fall apart. We may know God is sovereign and in control, but I know I can tend to live like everything depends on me. Everything hinges on my non-stop performance today and making sure everything goes off without a hitch.  

To a church that’s in danger of accepting false teaching about Jesus’ supremacy, Paul writes about a topic that can help us today: Jesus’s comprehensive authority. Jesus is the fullness of God, he is God, and all things were made through him and for him. He is not only the source of creation he is the sustainer of creation. In him, all things hold together. 

His original audience was tempted to believe a false gospel - that Jesus plus angelic powers plus secret knowledge were the collective source of their security. They were depending on angel worship and ascetic practices. But Paul makes it clear that “all things” (a phrase used 4 times in this short passage!) are under Christ’s authority. Nothing is independent from him. 

In him, creation is prevented from disintegrating into chaos. Nothing is beyond his control. Not the cosmos and not the smallest details of your life. 

When we believe we are actually the ones holding all of life together, aren’t we lessening Christ’s authority as well? We’re just as pone to letting a false gospel rule our lives - the gospel of self-sufficiency. The idea that we’re in charge of it all and we can hold it all together.  And like the false gospel the Colossians were tempted to believe, it’s not true. When we lessen this central truth of our faith, we live frantically, not faithfully.  

It’s important to note that Paul likely wrote this letter to the Colossians while imprisoned in Rome. Christ’s supremacy and sovereignty does not guarantee smooth sailing. He’s not our personal assistant who completes a few of our tasks while we take a quick nap or grab another coffee. It doesn’t mean our plans will never fall through. 

This truth goes deeper than that. It assures us that Christ is in control even when things seem to be out of control. That our security doesn’t hinge on what happens today. That we can trust him when things don’t make sense to us. Our job isn’t to hold it together. It’s to trust the one who’s holding us. 

The fact that Christ holds all things together should change how we live. It means we can stop carrying the weight of ensuring outcomes are exactly as we want.  It means we can pause and spend time with the Lord without worrying things will fall through the cracks. It means we can work faithfully, not fearfully. We can trust, even if it doesn’t make sense. 

I love that Paul says, “all things were created through [Christ] and for him.” This helps us to remember that nothing exists outside of Jesus’s ultimate authority and purpose. I think this should become the new mantra “all things through him and for him.” I wonder how that might help us decide how we spend our time in the first place. I bet it would shape what we exert our energy on. I bet it would impact how we respond to the chaos around us.  

Let’s give that a try. 

Questions for reflection: 

How does knowing Jesus holds all things together impact your desire to draw near to him? 

In what area of your life do you need to stop depending on yourself to secure an outcome?