Just Wondering

These are some of the words of the apostle Paul to the Colossian church, and they are simply stunning:

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

This is my last day of pinch-blogging for the estimable Milton Stanley here at Transforming Sermons, and I wanted to take the opportunity to ask those who preach the gospel (and it should be many many more of us than just pastors and professional speakers), whether when we talk about our faith, when we give encouragement and guidance, when we teach "the word of the truth," as Paul calls it, is Christ first and last? Is he over all and in all? Does our message hold together in him? When we speak of God, is it the image of Christ we place before our listeners first and foremost?

These are questions I need to ask myself first of all. How does my preaching and teaching measure up to Paul's fundamental standard: can I say, with him, "I preach Christ and him crucified"?