Ephesians 1:22
And God put all things under Christ’s feet, and gave him to the church as head over all things.
And God put all things under Christ’s feet, and gave him to the church as head over all things.
It's still about Christ. Nothing escapes Christ. Nothing is being built apart from Christ.
After telling us that God raised Jesus from the dead and raised him up above everything, Paul said it did not end there. He puts all things under Christ's feet and gave Him to the church as head over all things.
Paul has been communicating divine totality in this passage. Not that there is any challenge to the supremacy of Christ, but Paul had been putting it beyond doubt.
- 1:10: The heading of all things in Christ.
- 1:21 Christ raised above every rule.
- 1:22: All things put under Christ's feet.
We have the one who humbled Himself (Philippians 2:5-11) now elevated to the highest heavens. It was not by competition, or by an election, but by divine appointment.
And giving Christ as the head of the church over all things shows you the church's special place.
One thing is clear: the church is joined to Christ and derives its identity from him.
This is the first mention of the church in this passage. The one who died, hung between two thieves, is the head of the church, of the billions of people that constitute the church.
What a difference humility makes. The one who was left alone, deserted, is now the head, occupying the place of preeminence in all realms: the realm of the church, the realm of the unseen, and the unseen.
Jesus did not have to do anything to raise Himself; rather, He submitted to being the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29).
He became sin (2 Corinthians 5:21); He experienced humiliation and bore God's wrath.
Peter, I believe, was referring to Jesus when he admonished us to submit ourselves to the power of God, who will lift us up in due season (1 Peter 5:6).
In a way, we have the same call as Jesus: the call to humility before lifting; to face mockery and sometimes death, but with the hope of resurrection before us.
Christ is God's gift to us, just as we are Christ's gift to one another.
God sent Christ, just as Christ is sending us (John 20:21).
We mirror Him, as the head; He sets the direction we follow.
Paul will return to this concept of Christ as the head later in chapter 5 (Ephesians 5:25-32).
There, Paul used the relationship between the man and the woman as a window into understanding Christ and the church, discussing Christ's responsibility to the church and the church's responsibility to Christ.
Flowing from Christ to the church is the blood in redeeming work and the word in sanctifying work; and submission flows from the Church to Christ.
Still in this same book, Paul wrote that Jesus set some in the church (Ephesians 4:11-12) to deliver that word that ensures that the church is prepared for Christ when He comes back.
Christ feeds and cares for the church. So Christ's headship is not ceremonial; it is active now and in an ongoing way.
We are closely identified with Jesus in the most intimate way possible. We see that with Jesus telling Paul, "Why are you persecuting me (Acts 9:4)?"
The point is that nothing escapes Jesus when it comes to the church, and there would be correction, as we see in the letters Jesus wrote to seven churches (Revelation 2-3).
Again, what is required of the church is Christ's submission and obedience. As the head, Jesus sets the direction, hence the absolute necessity of submission to God.
Even though we cannot see God, this passage tells us what He has done. We are supposed to believe the message of truth. From verse one, we have a litany of God's acts. The point is God is alive. And Jesus said that His father is working (John 5:17).
And in this verse, we see God not only raised Jesus up, but also put all things under Christ, and then gave Christ as a gift to the church.
And when Jesus said nothing shall by any means hurt us when it comes to the demonic powers. That is the truth (Luke 10:19); whatever the devil is doing is just a game we can laugh at, similar to Elijah's reaction to the prophets of Baal's screaming (1 Kings 18:27).
These things are not written for fun. Christ raised up above all powers, and having all things put under His feet, and then given as the head over all things to the church, is not just a play on words; it is the reality we live in now. We are untouchable.
Glory to God!
