Definition and Meaning:
Preeminence refers to the state of being superior or surpassing all others in authority, rank, or importance. In a biblical context, it often denotes the supreme status of Jesus Christ in relation to creation and the Church.

Biblical References:

1. Colossians 1:18 :
"And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in all things He may have preeminence."
This verse highlights the preeminence of Christ as the head of the Church and the first to rise from the dead, underscoring His authority and supremacy in all things.

2. Colossians 1:15-17 :
"The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in Him all things were created, things 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. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together."
These verses emphasize Christ's preeminence in creation, affirming that all things were made through Him and for Him, and that He sustains all of creation.

3. Philippians 2:9-11 :
"Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
This passage speaks to the exaltation of Christ, affirming His preeminence as Lord over all creation, deserving of worship and acknowledgment by all.

Theological Significance:

· Christ's Supremacy:
The concept of preeminence is central to understanding the supremacy of Christ in Christian theology. It affirms that Jesus is not merely a part of creation but stands above it as its Creator and Sustainer. His preeminence is foundational to His role as the head of the Church and the one who reconciles all things to God.

· Authority and Worship:
The preeminence of Christ demands recognition of His authority and calls for worship and submission to Him. As the one who holds the highest place, Jesus is worthy of all honor and glory, and His name is above every other name.

· Eternal Purpose:
The preeminence of Christ is tied to God's eternal purpose, which is to bring all things under the lordship of Christ. This divine plan is revealed throughout Scripture, culminating in the ultimate reconciliation and restoration of creation through Christ.

Practical Implications:

· Christian Living:
Recognizing Christ's preeminence should influence the believer's life, leading to a Christ-centered existence where His authority guides decisions, actions, and priorities.

· Church Function:
In the Church, acknowledging Christ's preeminence ensures that He remains the focal point of worship, teaching, and community life. It calls for unity and submission to His leadership as the head of the Church.

· Mission and Evangelism:
The preeminence of Christ fuels the mission of the Church to proclaim His lordship to all nations, inviting others to bow before Him and confess Him as Lord.

In summary, the preeminence of Christ is a profound truth that permeates Christian doctrine, worship, and practice, affirming His unrivaled status and central role in God's redemptive plan.(n.) Superiority in prominence or in excellence; distinction above others in quality or rank; rarely, in a bad sense, superiority or notoriety in evil; as, preeminence in honor.PREEMINENCE

pre-em'-i-nens: Superiority, especially in noble or excellent qualities. The word stands for: (1) mothar, "what is over and above," "excellence"; "Man hath no preeminence above the beasts" (Ecclesiastes 3:19); (2) proteuo, "to be first"; "That in all things he (= Christ) might have the preeminence" (Colossians 1:18); (3) ho philoproteuon, is translated "who loveth to have the preeminence," literally "who loveth to be first" (of Diotrephes, 3 John 1:9).

4409. proteuo -- to have the first place
... to have the first place. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: proteuo Phonetic
Spelling: (prote-yoo'-o) Short Definition: I have preeminence, am chief ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4409.htm - 6k

5383. philoproteuo -- to strive to be first
... to be first. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: philoproteuo Phonetic Spelling:
(fil-op-rote-yoo'-o) Short Definition: I desire preeminence Definition: I ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5383.htm - 6k

4053. perissos -- abundant
... Short Definition: abundant, greater, vehemently, advantage Definition: more, greater,
excessive, abundant, exceedingly, vehemently; noun: preeminence, advantage ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4053.htm - 8k

5247. huperoche -- a projection, eminence
... huperoche Phonetic Spelling: (hoop-er-okh-ay') Short Definition: superiority,
excellence Definition: superiority, excellence, preeminence, authority. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5247.htm - 7k

4284. proecho -- to hold before
... pro-ekh-om-ahee) Short Definition: I excel, surpass Definition: trans: I hold before;
mid: I excuse myself; intrans: I project, excel, surpass, have preeminence ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4284.htm - 6k

5236. huperbole -- a throwing beyond, excess, superiority
... Spelling: (hoop-er-bol-ay') Short Definition: surpassing excellence, exceedingly
Definition: excess, surpassing excellence, preeminence; adv: exceedingly. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5236.htm - 7k

4410. protokathedria -- the chief seat
... chief seat. From protos and kathedra; a sitting first (in the front row), ie
Preeminence in council -- chief (highest, uppermost) seat. see GREEK protos. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4410.htm - 6k

4411. protoklisia -- the chief place (at the table)
... From protos and klisia; a reclining first (in the place of honor) at the
dinner-bed, ie Preeminence at meals -- chief (highest, uppermost) room. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4411.htm - 6k

4195. mothar -- abundance, preeminence
... mothar. 4196 . abundance, preeminence. Transliteration: mothar Phonetic Spelling:
(mo-thar') Short Definition: advantage. ... plenteousness, preeminence, profit. ...
/hebrew/4195.htm - 6k

3499a. yether -- remainder, excess, preeminence
... 3499, 3499a. yether. 3499b . remainder, excess, preeminence. Transliteration:
yether Short Definition: rest. Word Origin from yathar ...
/hebrew/3499a.htm - 5k

3499. yether -- remainder, excess, preeminence
... 3498, 3499. yether. 3499a . remainder, excess, preeminence. Transliteration:
yether Phonetic Spelling: (yeh'-ther) Short Definition: abundant. ...
/hebrew/3499.htm - 5k

3504. yithron -- advantage, profit
... better, excellent, profitable. From yathar; preeminence, gain -- better,
excellency(-leth), profit(-able). see HEBREW yathar. 3503, 3504. yithron. 3505 . ...
/hebrew/3504.htm - 6k

3498. yathar -- to remain over
... root Definition to remain over NASB Word Usage abound (1), had some left (1), had
left (1), have preeminence (1), leave (3), leave a remnant (1), leave of it ...
/hebrew/3498.htm - 6k

Since Then, in Reference to Our Hope of the Resurrection, Christ ...
... the head of every creature, as it is written, "Who is the head of all, the first
born from the dead, that in all things he might have the preeminence;" how is ...
/.../7 since then in reference.htm

Grace Flooding.
... He that cometh after me in point of time is become first in relation to me in point
of preeminence: for He was before me both in time and in preeminence. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/gordon/quiet talks on johns gospel/grace flooding.htm

Whether Order is Properly Defined?
... Yet there is no power of preeminence in them, such as is mentioned here in the
definition of Order, as appears from the subsequent explanation (Sent. ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether order is properly defined.htm

The Holy Spirit in Relation to the Father and the Son. ...
... Him, who by the Word made and by Wisdom adorned all things, when the Word was made
flesh (John 1:14) that as in heaven He had the preeminence, [38] because He ...
/.../the demonstration of the apostolic preaching/chapter 2 the holy spirit 2.htm

The Date of the Beginning of Noonday.
... of the internal history of the church in the third century he says that "the bishops
of Rome, Antioch and Alexandria had a kind of preeminence over all others ...
//christianbookshelf.org/orr/the gospel day /chapter i the date of.htm

The Servant-Lord and his Servants
... principles in the Church and in society, but I do not enlarge on that; only let
me say in a word"that here is the one law on which preeminence in the Church ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture b/the servant-lord and his servants.htm

Texts Explained; Sixthly...
... because He became man, that, as the Apostle has said, He who is the Beginning' and
First-born from the dead, in all things might have the preeminence [2612] .'. ...
/.../select works and letters or athanasius/chapter xxi texts explained sixthly.htm

The First Kings.
... were dissensions and civil strife in Israel, in consequence of these departures
from the Lord, and strange melancholy blindness to their preeminence over other ...
/.../headley/half hours in bible lands volume 2/the first kings.htm

A Greater than Solomon
... to say of himself""A greater than Solomon is here." Any person who was really greater
and wiser than Solomon would be the last man to claim such preeminence. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 27 1881/a greater than solomon.htm

Preface
... as a teacher of eloquence, bearing away the palm in his department from all his
rivals, and associating his name, even to a proverb, with preeminence in the art ...
//christianbookshelf.org/kleiser/the training of a public speaker/preface.htm

Preeminence (5 Occurrences)
... in prominence or in excellence; distinction above others in quality or rank; rarely,
in a bad sense, superiority or notoriety in evil; as, preeminence in honor ...
/p/preeminence.htm - 8k

Pre-eminence (6 Occurrences)
Pre-eminence. Preeminence, Pre-eminence. Preeminent . Multi-Version Concordance ...
(See JPS DBY WBS). Preeminence, Pre-eminence. Preeminent . Reference Bible
/p/pre-eminence.htm - 8k

Bread (433 Occurrences)
... BREAD. bred (lechem; artos): I. DIETARY PREEMINENCE II. MATERIALS 1. Barley
2. Wheat 3. Three Kinds of Flour III. ... I. Dietary Preeminence. ...
/b/bread.htm - 58k

Glory (590 Occurrences)
... seems to be "weight," "heaviness," and hence in its primary uses it conveys the
idea of some external, physical manifestation of dignity, preeminence or majesty ...
/g/glory.htm - 71k

Yahweh (6653 Occurrences)
... The center of the world had changed-for Assyria had gone to its long home, and
the city claiming preeminence was not Nineveh but Babylon. ...
/y/yahweh.htm - 39k

Nicopolis (1 Occurrence)
... of his preaching at Patras, Zacynthus, Cephallenia, Corcyra (the modern Corfu),
which, as a way-station to and from Sicily, always held preeminence among the ...
/n/nicopolis.htm - 10k

Jehovah (20094 Occurrences)
... The center of the world had changed-for Assyria had gone to its long home, and
the city claiming preeminence was not Nineveh but Babylon. ...
/j/jehovah.htm - 38k

Lead (192 Occurrences)
... 16. (vi) To guide or conduct, as by accompanying, going before, showing, influencing,
directing with authority, etc.; to have precedence or preeminence; to be ...
/l/lead.htm - 42k

Graecia
... In the 4th century BC many felt, as did Isocrates, that even "Hellene" stood not
so much for a distinction in race, as for preeminence of culture, in contrast ...
/g/graecia.htm - 21k

Woman (4043 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary Was "taken out of man" (Genesis 2:23), and therefore
the man has the preeminence. "The head of the woman ...
/w/woman.htm - 45k

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