"In any religion, ritual and tradition can be expressions of the Truth.  But rituals and traditions have no eternal value. . . . Eternal Truth never changes.  So only God is eternal Truth.  Any religion, sect, or denomination is on dangerous ground when it elevates its rituals and traditions to a place that equals the Truth Himself.  When that happens, the people who follow those beliefs usually start thinking that everyone else should follow their rituals and traditions.  They then find it hard to have mercy, compassion, and tolerance for people who don’t follow their rituals and traditions.  The rituals and traditions become the rules by which they live as well as the standard for them to say who’s “in” and who’s “out,” who’s accepted by God and who’s not." -- Karyn Henley, Love Trumps Karma, page 44

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.
He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation,
for through him God created everything
in the heavenly realms and on earth.
He made the things we can see
and the things we can’t see—
such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world.
Everything was created through him and for him.
He existed before anything else,
and he holds all creation together.
Christ is also the head of the church,
which is his body.
He is the beginning,
supreme over all who rise from the dead.
So he is first in everything.
For God in all his fullness
was pleased to live in Christ,
and through him God reconciled
everything to himself.
He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth
by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.
                                                                   -Colossians 1:15-20 NLT*

 

*Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.