The Consummation of All Things
The exaltation of Jesus Christ is a central theme in the New Testament, revealing his role in the redemptive plan of God toward mankind. Scripture testifies that God has placed Christ above all things, granting Him supreme authority in heaven and on earth. We see in scripture that the purpose of Christ being the head is to bring all things into a fullness or consummation of all in God the Father.
Christ Above All
Paul writes, God raised Christ “far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come” (Ephesians 1:21, NKJV). This exaltation is not symbolic—it is actual and cosmic in scope. The Father “put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all” (Ephesians 1:22–23). The purpose of Christ being head, Paul writes, is so we grow up into him.
The Fullness of Time and the Consummation of All Things in Christ
Scripture reveals that history is not random or cyclical, but directed by God toward a climactic fulfillment or consummation. Paul writes that God’s redemptive plan was “to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ” (Ephesians 1:10, NIV). This “fullness of time” (Greek: pleroma tou chronou) refers to the divinely appointed moment when God’s purposes, long hidden in God in the beginning, are fully revealed and enacted.
This is echoed in Galatians 4:4: “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law.” The incarnation of Christ marked the beginning of this age, the new covenant established by his death allows for the fulfillment of God's eternal purpose through Christ, but the consummation awaits His return, when all will be gathered together in Him.
In 1 Corinthians 15:24–28 we see after Christ has reigned and subdued every enemy, including death, “then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father... that God may be all in all.” This is the consummation: not merely the end of history, but its divine completion—when all creation is restored to perfection under God.
Even then the glory of Christ is brought to a consummation or fullness, the Son one in the Father. Jesus prays for this in John 17: 1-5, "I glorified you on earth fulfilling the work which you gave me to do. And now Father glorify me at your side, of the glory which I had with you before the world existed."
In the fulfillment of all things we see the hope of our calling and of our eternal inheritance. We also see in Jesus's prayer in John 17 the fulfillment of his mission from the Father and the future glory that will come in oneness again with the Father.
Revelation 21:1–5 gives a picture of the future fulfillment of all things: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth... the former things have passed away... Behold, I make all things new.” The fullness of time culminates in the renewal of all creation, where God dwells with His people and there is no more death, sorrow, or pain.
This vision is not abstract theology, it’s the hope that anchors the church.
The Fullness of Christ In The Church
Jesus's ascent on high had an eternal purpose of us being brought into his fullness, as Paul states in Ephesians 1:21-23, "... And he placed all under his feet and gave him head over the church, which exists his body, the fullness of the one filling all in all."
We see more of the fullness God purposed through the Church, stated by Paul in Ephesians 4:8-16, where he writes Jesus ascended on high and gives gifts to men. Gifts, not authority, which speaks of how the great in His kingdom become last, ministers/servants, according to what God purposed in the church, or the work of ministry.
The church needs servants who follow the example of Christ, not lording over and exercising authority over but emptying themselves for God's eternal purpose in the church- Matthew 20:25-28. Nothing works against this purpose more than the deceit of earthly riches, traditions and doctrines of men that break God's commandments or forsake the weightier things, pride and exaltation of ministers who seek the glory of men over God.
In Ephesians 4:11-12 we see the gifts given for the work of ministry are meant to bring the church into the fullness of God in Christ, "and he gave [gifts] the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors, and teachers to equip the saints for the work of ministry to build up the body of Christ."
Just to note, evangelism is one gift given for the work of ministry, it brings the chosen into the fold. But to say this is the mission of the church, that we are all one member (say the gift of evangelism in the body is the mouth, or outreach are the hands and feet of Christ) is incorrect. The body grows by each supporting member into mature adulthood, clearly stated by Paul in Ephesians 4:13-16. To say it is all about one is incorrect. What God has purposed in the church, which was eternally purposed, is a fullness of God in Christ.
The building up of the body, thus ministry, has this goal, "until we all attain unity to the extent of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, into mature adulthood, the measure of that stature being the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4: 13). Christ was the Son of God but emptied himself becoming a servant to fulfill God's purpose. Thus, so should minsters/servants of Christ.
He ascended on high and gives gifts to men so that the church is brought to a fullness of God in Christ. The consummation of this will be complete when Christ again is one with the Father in glory, like as he was before the world existed. And where he is, he has prepared a place for us, so that we will exist with him in glory and that the Father may be over all and in all.
The Final Act: God the Father Exists All in All
This exaltation of Christ is not the final act. Scripture reveals a profound mystery: that Christ, having subdued all enemies and reigned until the last enemy—death—is destroyed, will then return all to the Father. Paul writes, “Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power” (1 Corinthians 15:24). This act is not a relinquishing of glory but the fulfillment of, “that God may be all in all” (1 Corinthians 15:28).
Paul writes there is "one God and Father of all, the one above all, through all, and in all." The narrative of Christ’s exaltation is not merely about His supremacy, but about the restoration of all things to the Father through the Son. It is a vision of unity, where the Son’s obedience and reign culminate in the eternal glory of God the Father and those he has predestined in Christ.
The glorification of the Son in the Father has a great impact on the chosen children of God, who share in his glory, chosen for this purpose. We see this in Jesus's prayer, John 17:22, "just as the glory which you gave me, I give to them so that existing one just as we are one."
There is great hope in our calling, as Paul states in Romans 8:28-30, "... because those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, to the extent he exists the first fruit among many brethren. Now, the ones he predestined, these he also calls, and those called he also justifies, now, those justified, these he also glorifies."
The consummation of the Son in the glory of the Father is the consummation of the glorification of those predestined to be his own, so that God the Father may be all in all.