Please turn in your Bibles this evening to Colossians chapter 2 as we continue our study through the Word of God. Last week, as we began Paul’s letter to the church in Colosse, we saw Paul lay out the preeminence of Christ in Creation – 1:15-18; in Redemption – 1:19-23; and finally in the Church – 1:24-29. In other words Paul lays down the fact that Jesus is God and because He is God He rules and reigns supremely over all!
Now as we move into Colossians chapter 2 this evening we will see Paul give a warning for those who want to deny the deity of Christ, His preeminence and replace it with empty philosophies in Colossians 2:1-10. He then moves to the restrictive nature of religious legalism such as the Judiazers were doing in Colossians 2:11-17. He then moves to man-made spirituality or mysticism in Colossians 2:18-19. And Paul concludes this section with asceticism or a somberness or a life of denying everything in Colossians 2:20-23. Thus, as we will see, our sufficiency is in Christ and not these other things and like what was happening in Colosse back then, we see these things trying to creep back into the church today, some making huge strides into the church already and people are receiving them as gospel truth. With that said, let’s begin reading in Colossians chapter 2, starting in verse 1 and see what the Lord has for us this evening.
VERSES 1-2
Paul had not visited the church in Colosse and thus, he never met most of the people from this church and yet he loved them dearly. The word “conflict” in the Greek is AGON (ag-one’) in which we get our English word “agonize” from. That is the heart of a shepherd, his love for people, his desire to see them grow in the Lord, to mature in the faith.
Now what was Paul concerned about? He was concerned that they might be discouraged and thus, easy prey for the Devil to mess with their emotions and their thoughts and so Paul prays that they would be encouraged! Paul was concerned that they may allow disunity to grow within the body there in Colosse and so he prays for unity that is not forced but one that is based in the AGAPE love of Jesus Christ! Paul was concerned that they lacked godly understanding and because of that they did not have full assurance of their salvation and so Paul prays that they would understand the things of God having a full assurance of their salvation, and of all that God has for them. What a great prayer!
VERSE 3
How does the saying go, “Inquiring minds want to know”? The problem is that they are looking for wisdom, which is the proper application of truth and knowledge, which is correct information, in all the wrong places. Jesus is the answer to life’s questions, and thus, as we grow in the Lord we take that knowledge and apply it to our lives, which is wisdom!
Maybe you heard of the story of William Randolph Hearst, a very rich man to say the least. One day he was looking through a book of famous artwork and one of the paintings caught his eye. He wanted that painting and he told his aides to go and find it and buy it for him. They made some inquires and they could not find it anywhere and they reported back to Mr. Hearst that information. He told them, “If you value your jobs, do whatever it takes to find that treasure, and secure it for me immediately.”
Three and a half months later they returned to Mr. Hearst and he said, “Did you find the treasure?” “Yes,” they replied. “After much searching and painstaking research, we found it.” “Did you purchase it?” he asked. “No,” they said. Hearst, a little bewildered by their statement asked, “Why not?” They responded back, “Because we found it in your warehouse.” He already possessed that which he wanted and he didn’t even know it!
Folks, we already possess the wisdom and knowledge of God to get through any of life’s situations, no matter how difficult they may be. All the wisdom and knowledge we need for life is in Christ and is ours so why go looking elsewhere?
VERSE 4
People back then were seeking the hidden mysteries of God, and thus, as these men came around with fancy ideas, persuasive words, they began to believe these lies and the same is going on today. You have the Jehovah Witnesses who say God speaks to the Watch Tower and these people relay the message to the common people. You have those that are saying we are god. We have new revelations of God. We have additions to the Word of God. We have clarifications to what God really meant to say. You see, these deceptions are not by those that are agnostic or believe that you can’t know God, nor is it from Atheists who believe there is no God, but by religious people who use big words, big ideas to justify their position. But, if we have the wisdom and knowledge of God in our lives, then these false prophets won’t sway us!
VERSES 5-7
Paul never went to Colosse but he heard of their faith, probably from their pastor Epaphras, and he wanted to encourage them to continue on, not to let these heresy’s get a foothold in their lives and mess up their walk with Jesus. Like many today, the believers in Colosse were saved by grace through faith in Jesus, a relationship that began in the Spirit of God working in their lives. But now, what began in the Spirit they were going to try to perfect in the flesh, which will never happen. Thus, Paul tells them to get back to where it all started with Jesus, don’t complicate the relationship!
Paul also tells them to “walk in Him” which speaks of our daily lives, that as we move throughout our day He guides our lives. He also says that we are “rooted” in Him, which speaks of our life source. You see, we receive our spiritual nourishment from Him and as we do, fruit will be seen in our lives. And lastly, we are “built up in Him” or we are maturing in Him each and every day. Thus, take these truths you have been taught, having a solid foundation, and don’t be lead astray by these false teachers. Continue to grow into the image of Christ with a heart of thanksgiving! Peter put it this way in
II Peter 3:17-18, “You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
VERSE 8
This is a very stern warning by Paul to the believers in Colosse to be aware, to pay attention because the world’s philosophies are deceptive and they want to take you away from Christ, they will rip you off! The Greek word for “philosophy” is PHILOSOPHIA (fil-os-of-ee’-ah) and it comes from two Greek words; PHILEO, which means, “to love” and SOPHIA, which means, “wisdom.” So the word means the love of wisdom! Now here is the problem, you cannot find truth regarding life apart from Christ!
I know, some of you disagree with me, but hear me out. Look at the philosophies of the world over the years and how they change, how they contradict each other. Do they sometimes get it right? Yes, that is possible but why grope for answers to life’s problems, to life’s questions when God has the answer for you. Os Guinness puts it this way in regards to the futile effort of man and his search for the truths of life. He says:
Contemporary man, with his self-drawn picture of society as the “closed room” with No Exit, is caught metaphysically and sociologically. In the darkness of the room evidently without windows, perhaps without doors, he gropes round and round the edges. Can one hope that someone will dare to wonder whether there is any light other than the feeble sparks of his own making? Or will he stubbornly persist in treading the barren circle of poor premises?
- Os Guinness, The Dust of Death, p. 148
Thus, false teaching is according to the basic principles of the world, elementary knowledge like the ABC’s and not according to Christ. In fact, Paul put it this way in Colossians 2:20, “Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations.” Don’t become a prisoner to the basic principles of this world because we have died to those things in Christ!
Here’s the thing, if your car is broken down you don’t get out your Bible but you take it to a mechanic or you get a book on auto repair. If you hurt your leg, sprained your ankle you may go to the doctor or read up on what you can do for it in a medical book. That doesn’t mean we can’t pray that God would fix the car or heal the ankle, but most of the time we must get it fixed. The Bible is not a book on science even though when it speaks of scientific things it is 100% correct. Now, if you have a problem with your heart and soul, what do you do? You go to a therapist, a psychologist, you get books on how to overcome and-so-on, right? Wrong! That is what the church is doing today but it is not what we should be doing. When you have a problem with your heart and soul you bring it to Jesus, you get into the Word of God because the Word of God deals with life’s issues; with ourselves, with our fellow man, and with God. The world’s philosophies won’t help you here, but they will hurt you!
VERSES 9-10
Think about that for a minute. If the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ, then Jesus can’t be “a god” or a “junior god” or “almost god” but He is fully God; always has been and always will be!
Is Paul saying that those outside of Christ are not complete? You bet he is. You see, ever since the fall of man, we are born into this world in a state of incompleteness. Spiritually speaking because our fellowship with God is broken. Morally speaking because we do our own thing, we don’t follow the will of God. Mentally speaking because we don’t know the ultimate truth of God. But once we are saved we are complete spiritually, our fellowship with God has been restored. We are complete morally in the sense that we have God’s will to guide us. We are complete mentally because we have the truths of God in our lives. We have the mind of Christ. Peter put it his way in II Peter 1:2-4, “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” Thus, may we enjoy that fact knowing we are complete in Him!
Paul concludes by telling us Jesus has the authority over all the spirit beings because He not only created them, but He is God!
Don’t fall prey to the empty philosophies of the world, the traditions of men, but look to the Lord to guide you in all your ways. Now, in Colossians 2:11-17 Paul speaks of the restrictive nature of religious legalism, how it truly chokes the life out of a relationship with God!
VERSES 11-12
Most of the Colossian believers were Gentiles and thus, as the Judiazers came in, they tried to get these Gentiles to be circumcised in order to be saved, to keep the Law of Moses along with Christ. Paul puts that idea to an end by telling them they have already been circumcised by Christ, the circumcision of the flesh or that sinful nature that has been washed clean by the blood of Jesus. It is not an outward ritual but an inward reality! It is as Paul said in Romans 6:6, “knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.”
Today many will tell you that you must be baptized to be saved and some go as far as saying that if you are not baptized in their church and in this manner, then you are not saved! If baptism were necessary for salvation then Paul would not have said, “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.” I Corinthians 1:17. Baptism is a visual picture to people of what God has done in your life, that you have given your life to Him. It identifies us with Christ’s death as we go under the waters, and His burial as we remain under the water, and then with His resurrection, the resurrection life as we are brought up out of the water, the new life we have in Christ.
Paul put it this way in Romans 6:3-9, “Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him.”
VERSES 13-14
We were all spiritually dead in our trespasses and sins before we came to Christ! Think of it like this, we were not sick in need of a doctor, but we were dead in need of a Savior, in need of Jesus! And thus, God stepped in; paying in full the penalty for our sins and brought our spirits back to life so we could have fellowship with God once again! In Isaiah 1:18 we are told, “‘Come now, and let us reason together,’ Says the LORD,‘Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.’” The Living Bible puts it this way, “‘Come, let's talk this over!’ says the Lord; ‘no matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can take it out and make you as clean as freshly fallen snow. Even if you are stained as red as crimson, I can make you white as wool!’”
This is a rational choice on our part. Once we see ourselves as sinners separated from God, our only hope, our only answer is Jesus, the Savior of the world and it doesn’t matter how bad you were, you are cleansed by Him, washed as white as snow! Not only that, but God forgave us of all our transgressions, all our sins. Paul uses the Greek word CHARIZOMAI (khar-id’-zo-ahee) and it is the verb form of the ancient Greek word CHARIS or grace! Thus, we are forgiven or saved by grace through faith!
This “handwriting of requirements” was the debt a person owed and the debt of sin condemned us to Hell, it “was against us.” And God has come, taken all our sins, nailed them to the cross, and they are completely taken away, and the paper which contained all our debts has written on it TETELESTAI or paid in full! But what about this sin or that sin? TETELESTAI! Jesus completed the work for us and all we must do is receive the free gift by faith!
VERSE 15
Think of Satan and his demonic forces as Wiley Coyote! He is always after the Roadrunner and he has great plans to catch him but in the end it is Wiley Coyote that falls off the cliff, gets smashed or blown up, he always fails! Satan thought he won when Cain slew Able, but not so! Satan thought he won when he thought Haman would wipe out all the Jews, but he lost! Satan thought he had the world against Jesus, so much so that they put Him to death and at that point there must have been celebrations in the world of darkness. But, “Beep-beep!” Jesus conquered death and by paying the penalty for our sins, He gave us new life in Him and the victory of the Devil was over, he did not win! His ACME product of destruction didn’t work again! Thus, Jesus stripped them of their power over us; the sting of death is gone because Christ has given to us the victory! Don’t fall prey to the defeated enemy; give your life to the ultimate King, Jesus Christ!
VERSES 16-17
The tabernacle, the Jewish religious feasts were just a shadow of what was to come, they pointed to Jesus. Thus, food, drink, Jewish feast days, new moons, Sabbath days are not binding because they are a shadow and the shadow is gone for the substance is here, Jesus! Think about it. If my wife, Julie’s shadow was on the wall and you saw me walk over and hug her shadow, besides thinking I was crazy, it wouldn’t make any sense because Julie, her substance, is standing right there and thus, I would rather hug her than her shadow! The same should be true with our Lord, too often people hold onto a shadow of Him, hold onto Jesus!
Now in Colossians 2:18-19 we will look at mysticism or a man-made spirituality. It is trying to reach a higher spiritual plain by feelings, by intuition and comes to its conclusions based on the authority of self and thus it is self-authenticated! Which means it is worthless! There is nothing to substantiate it but self!
VERSES 18-19
All kinds of religions have come into being based solely upon man-made ideas. They make god or their goddess into what they want them to be. Several years’ back there was this angel craze with television shows, books, and pins. Everyone was talking about his or her guardian angels and how sad when the creator of angels was not even mentioned, Jesus was out of the picture! We are not to make anyone or anything more important than Jesus! And yet, even today that is done. In the Herald Times Reporter, March 4, 2005, in the obituary section, was this Memorare and it goes like this:
Folks, we are not to worship anyone or anything except for Jesus. According to the Scriptures, Mary said that she was a sinner in need of a Savior and Mary is not our intercessor, Jesus is! Paul put it this way in I Timothy 2:3-6, “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” May we not forget that!
These false teachers, in their spiritual pride, are puffed up, nothing more than a bag of hot air and their doctrines stink because they have not submitted to the authority of Jesus who is the head! What happens when you cut a chicken’s head off? When my dad was a kid they use to do this and he would tell me that these chickens would run around for a time with their heads cut off until they just finally dropped dead! So too for anyone who tries to bring forth these false doctrines, they won’t last because they have no head!
Now, in Colossians 2:20-23 Paul speaks of asceticism or someone who lives a life of self-denial and thinking that will earn them righteousness before God. It won’t!
VERSES 20-23
Have you ever met anyone who lives like this? Their whole life is “Do not do! Do not do! Do not do!” and they are miserable! You see, by their actions or what they don’t do they think they can reach up to God, work their way into a relationship with God, and that won’t happen! The nineteenth century Scottish preacher, Alexander McClaren said this regarding the futility of asceticism:
Any asceticism is a great deal more to men’s taste than abandoning self. They will rather stick hooks in their backs and do the ‘swinging poojah’ than give up their sins and yield up their wills. There is only one thing that will put the collar on the neck of the animal within us and that is the power of the indwelling Christ. Ascetic religion is godless, for its practitioners essentially worship themselves. As such, we are not to be intimidated by it.
- John MacArthur
Now does God call some people to live a life of self-denial, much more than He calls others? Yes He does and that is not wrong. You see, their action is not to gain spirituality or to get some points with God, it is done out of love, it is done out of obedience!
As I close this evening may we leave here understanding that the world’s philosophies, religious legalism, mysticism, and asceticism are nothing more than a broken cistern that can’t hold any water. In Jeremiah 2:13 the Lord rebukes Israel for this very thing as He says, “For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, And hewn themselves cisterns — broken cisterns that can hold no water.” Don’t forsake the Lord, He is the giver and the sustainer of life, He is the substance we need, He is the one who makes us complete and thus, may we draw close to Him as this story illustrates for us:
During the days of the Roman Empire there is a story of a very wealthy senator who had become estranged from his son. When the senator died unexpectedly, his will was opened and it was read. It said, “Because my son does not appreciate what I’ve done, I leave all of my worldly possessions to my loyal slave, Marcellus. However, because I am a man of grace, I bequeath to my son one of my possessions of his choosing.”
“Sorry,” said the testator to the son, “You can only take one of your dad’s possessions. Which will it be?” He replied back, “I take Marcellus!”
May that be our hearts desire, to take Jesus with us wherever we go, we need nothing more because we are complete in Him, not will be, we are! Don’t go after the basic principles of this world just receive Jesus for He is all you will ever need!