Colossians 1:15-23, Part 12

Then, Christ the Sustainer. Verse 17 says, "He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." And Hebrews 1:3 says, "The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word." Whereas the doctrine of Christ as Creator stresses his transcendence, the doctrine of Christ as Sustainer places the emphasis on his immanence. In other words, as God he is other than and greater than the creation, but by his power and wisdom he actively sustains and regulates the existence of this creation and all the occurrences within it. This doctrine teaches that God not only creates, but he also maintains and controls what he creates. And since he has created all things, he also maintains and controls all things.

This completes the biblical teaching on metaphysics, so now we have a firm position on both the origination and the continuation of creation. That is, the creation does not contain within itself the power and wisdom to sustain and regulate itself. It was made by God but was not made into God, not that this was possible, and so it depends on him for its continual existence and operation. "The point is not that He lets the world exist but that He makes it exist." And because it depends on God for its existence and operation "moment by moment" – at this time the issue is the idea of continuity and not the precise expression by which we should designate this continuity – one moment in creation (the totality of its contents and configurations) is not the metaphysical cause of the next moment, so that in creation itself one moment bears no necessary relation to the next. Rather, it is God who directly sustains – or as some say, continuously creates – his creation moment by moment. The continuity is not inherent in the creation, but it is established in the mind of God.

Again, this biblical, rational, and necessary position on metaphysics also entails that God is the metaphysical author of sin. The implication is almost always denied by tradition and prejudice without argument. For example, Jonathan Edwards affirmed continuous creation, then immediately denied this necessary implication, but could not offer a case for the denial. Thus a splendid statement on God's exhaustive providence is marred by false piety and tradition. If we would be so bold as to take Goliath's sword, then let us not cut off our own heads with it. Let us go all the way in theological consistency. God has done nothing wrong, and he does not need us to be ashamed for him.

The doctrine of divine providence comes under this section of Christ as Sustainer. And this is often divided into ordinary providence (all events, thoughts, and actions), and special providence (such as miracles). We cannot discuss the entire doctrine here. In our context, the emphasis is that Christ sustains and controls everything – every detail of every object and every person. Because of his pervasive and precise power, "we know that all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28). Christ directs all of history, and rules over all nations and cultures. In all things he has the supremacy.