Christians desire maturity….spiritual progress… Just a closer walk with Thee. Once a man or woman has accepted Christ, it is natural and right to desire spiritual growth. Just as a baby is born with a desire to learn to walk, Christians long to know what it is to walk by faith in the ways of their Savior, fully pleasing and giving glory to Him. However, on the path to growth there are no shortcuts. A baby must first learn to support his head, then sit up, and then finally balance his weight on his legs, before taking that first tentative step. Believers must walk with Christ, step by step, leaning on Him, learning His ways. In such a manner we grow in Christ and bear fruit.
The Colossian believers were in danger. False teachers were tempting church members with heresies that seemed to promise a fast track, or some better way, to spiritual growth. That sounds so tempting! Paul reminds the church to walk in Christ just as they had received Him, by faith, dependence, and by hearing and understanding the teaching of the word of God. Paul’s message to the church is God’s message to us. He wanted them to know that in Christ alone, believers have all they need to live the Christian life. Believers are to grow in knowledge and application of what they already have been given in Christ.
I’d like to briefly share the “Reader’s Digest condensed version” of the Colossian heresy, give a few examples from both the NT and modern times, and tell how Christ is the antidote we need to combat each of these false teachings. Paul presents Christ as the standard, and explains why everything else falls short! Keep in mind as we look at these passages we are dealing with a combination of many beliefs presented in the false teaching. Though we have them lumped into nice, neat categories there will be a lot of cross-over between beliefs, and you will see some that are contradictory. Paul presents them all as something to be on guard against.
First, in verses 8-10, we see the false teaching of human philosophy. “Philosophy” simply means “to love wisdom,” and that in itself is not wrong, as there is a Christian philosophy of life built on the wisdom of God. The problem here is the philosophy is “human” and therefore leaves God out of the equation (see “not according to Christ” in verse 8). The false teachers promoted a wisdom based on human traditions and basic principles of the world. Basic principles meant “the elemental spirits of the universe, the angels that influenced the heavenly bodies.” Early Gnostics believed in angels and promoted the idea that Christ had the body of an angel and it was only “apparent,” not real. They also believed that angels and the heavenly bodies influenced people’s lives. This is a warning to believers against the occult, horoscopes, astrology, mediums, and the like.
Another modern form of this sort of philosophy could be humanism. If “humanities” includes the study of the academic disciplines such as literature, philosophy, arts, and sciences, humanism goes the next step in saying that in this knowledge are the answers to the problems of man. We see people today looking for answers in science, technology, government, medicine. However, in man’s quest for knowledge we will never find the answers for the deepest need of man: the problem of sin.
The antidote to human philosophy is the deity of Christ (verse 9- For in him the whole fullnss of deity dwells”). We cannot find the answers to our most perplexing questions by leaving God out of the equation. In Christ the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily. Only in the God/man union of Christ can we find the answers to man’s problems, especially the answer to the sin problem. The highest wisdom given to man is found in Christ. It is amazing God has made the wisdom of Christ available to man, as in verse 10 we read, “you have been filled (or made complete) in Him”. The way to Christian maturity is to grow in knowledge of Christ, His person, His work, and application of that knowledge to our lives by the power of the His Spirit at work in us. If you study, apply, and grow in these things, you will have greater wisdom than the most respected and highly regarded intellectual in any field found on earth.
Next, in verses 11-17, we see the false teaching of Jewish legalism. Warren Wiersbe points out that Gnostic legalism was a bit different than the Jewish legalism Paul countered in the book of Galatians. Gnostic legalism said that following the Jewish law would help make believers more spiritual. They taught believers should be circumcised, watch their diets, and observe holy days to become part of the spiritual “elite.” We see modern-day counterparts in some legalistic fads that are introduced into the church. It may be a teaching that you must wear your hair a certain way, that you should avoid wearing makeup, going to parties, watching movies, etc., etc. If you do (or don’t do!) these things, you show your spirituality. There may also be some confusion among some Christians about whether or not to observe parts of the Jewish law such as the celebration of festivals or of the Sabbath.
Paul teaches the antidote to legalism is the reality of Christ. The law was a “shadow of the things to come, but the substance (or the reality) belongs to Christ.” Are you a proud mom or grandma? Do you like to show off pictures of your grandchildren to your friends? Well, imagine what would happen if you ran into a friend at the store, pushing one of those precious grandchildren in the stroller. Would you pull out your pictures? No! You gladly unbuckle the child from the stroller and place that child in your arms, and together you and your friend delight in this little life. Forget the pictures, you’ve got the real deal in your arms! We have Christ, and can let go of the pictures that pointed to Him. With the examples of circumcision and baptism, Paul is teaching that Christ has done for us what the law never could: He has separated us from sin by the death of our old nature and resurrected us to a new life that will please God. We learn by His Spirit how to please God in ways the law could never touch—what it truly means to love God (the intent of the first 4 commandments) and love our neighbor (the intent of the last 6.) We don’t need to follow a set of man-made rules to become more spiritual, we have already been made truly spiritual by God. We need only to grow in what He has given us--Christ.
Third, we see the false teaching of mysticism in verses 18-19. The mystics taught that God is too high and lofty to be approached directly, so you have to come to Him through various emanations, or lesser gods. Visions were promoted as a way to quickly come in contact with the divine. We can see mysticism in the modern church where believers are encouraged to pray to saints, or the Virgin Mother, rather than to Christ Himself. The thought is that man is too sinful to approach a holy God, thus the “false humility” Paul speaks about in verse 18 (NIV.) However, this is actually a subtle form of pride because it assumes greater wisdom about approaching God that God Himself has given. In Hebrews 10:19 God commands believers to “have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus.”
The antidote to mysticism is found in the headship of Christ (verse 19). He is our head, and by being in fellowship with Him we are nourished and grow “in a growth that is from God.” (verse 19) As our Head, Jesus grants us direct access to the throne of God. There is not even any reason to drag our feet or hang our head, as Christ Himself ushers us in to the throne room of the Most High God.
Finally, in verses 20-23, we see the false teaching of asceticism. An ascetic is a person who practices strict self-denial as a measure of personal and especially spiritual discipline. It is clear that the false teachers in Colossae taught that matter was evil, therefore they made rules about what to handle, taste, and touch. We may be apt to think of the monks and monestaries of the Middle Ages when considering a form of this practice. I had a hard time thinking of extreme examples of asceticism in the church today (we tend more toward comfort these days), but there are subtle forms in those who beat themselves up continually over the guilt of past and present sin, perhaps in hope that arousing guilt will one day be enough deterrent to help them overcome the sins that plague them.
Asceticism is legalism turned to harsh discipline. While spiritual discipline has its place, pure asceticism does nothing to sanctify the soul. In fact, the practice of asceticism serves to arouse the desires of the flesh to an even greater degree. If you’ve ever been on a diet, you know exactly what I’m talking about! The antidote to asceticism is the power of Christ over sin. God condemned the carnal nature as too vile for improvement, and we cannot conquer our sin nature in our own strength. In Christ that nature has been put to death, and the believer has been given a new nature which is spiritual, and is able to walk in obedience to God’s commands. This is why Paul tells us in Col 3:5 to “put to death what is earthly within you” and to “put on” the new nature. We’ll talk more about how that really works in next week’s lesson.
In conclusion, if you have a clear understanding of the false teaching in Colossians 2, you will be able to discern and discredit false teaching in your walk with Christ. Don’t be deceived: everything you need for life and growth is found in Christ! Where are you looking for the answers to your most pressing questions? You have the wisdom of God available to you in Christ. What are you doing to become more “spiritual?” You have the righteousness of Christ! That’s as spiritual as you can ever get in God’s eyes! How are you pursuing fellowship with God? You have access to Him in Christ. What is your strategy for overcoming habitual sin? You have power in Christ. His life and resources are yours. Walk in Him. There is no other way.
