July 30, 2006

Colossians 2

Rev. Brian Hawes

Prayer and Scripture reading: Warren

 

·      This morning we’re continuing our series in Paul’s letter to the Colossians.  Last week we talked about all the power that is available to us in Christ, and Paul wrote about how God can show that power through suffering.  So let’s continue.

·      Colossians 2 – For I want you to know how great a struggle I have on your behalf and for those who are at Laodicea, and for all those who have not personally seen my face, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.  Paul’s struggle isn’t to be set free from prison, which it is believed he wrote this letter from.  Paul is concerned about three things.  First, that the hearts of the believers would be encouraged.  Why should they be?  Because of the power of God poured into them through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ – the same power that is available to us.  Second, that this encouragement comes from hearts knit together by God’s love.  God’s love is the great equalizer.  No matter who we are or where we come from, His love is poured out equally to all of us at the foot of the cross.  And God’s love is the only thing that can knit the hearts of believers together.  God’s love is the only thing that enables us to love one another sacrificially.  Third, that we realize the full riches of what we have in Christ.  Forgiveness of our sins.  Transformation of our lives.  Power for living.  The result?  We come to know Christ as He really is, and in knowing Him, we become like Him.

·      Verse four - 4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument.  5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.  6 Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.  8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.  Paul’s concern is that Christians not be led away from true faith in Christ.  He wants all believers to stay disciplined and focused on Jesus Christ and walking in Him.  There were many trying to deceive Christians in the first century into following various forms of idolatry.  Just like today.  Paul encourages us to stay rooted in the truth of Jesus Christ and to be filled with gratitude to God.  When we have a thankful heart, it’s a lot easier to stay focused on the source of our power for living, Jesus Christ.  Gratitude helps us fight off the deceptions the enemy of our souls is trying to get us to buy into.  In Matthew 24:24, Jesus, speaking of the end times, says, “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect.”  Gratitude to the Father for what He’s done for us through the death of Jesus on the cross will help us fight deception.

·      Verse nine - 9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, 10 and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority; 11 and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; 12 having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.  What does it mean that all the fullness of God dwells in Christ?  The word translated fullness denotes completeness and was used to describe a ship’s crew.  Here, the fullness of God means all of the divine powers and attributes and all the saving grace and power of God.   Think of it – all of God the Father in Jesus, and all of God the Spirit in us.  That’s exciting, isn’t it?!  The power of God has made those who have saving faith in Christ Jesus to be complete – to have His mighty power working within us.  So what does this have to do with circumcision?  Paul’s telling us that Christ died to accomplished the most important circumcision – the removal of sin from our hearts.  When we realize that through His death we’ve died to sin and now have all the fullness of Him dwelling within us by the power of the Holy Spirit, then we can truly begin to live and to become like Christ. 

·      Verse thirteen - 13 When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, 14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.  What can a corpse do to bring itself back to life?  Right – absolutely nothing!  We were spiritually dead in our sins and could do absolutely nothing about it.  When we were most helpless, Jesus raised us up from spiritual death by dying physically so our sins can be forgiven.  He died so that all of our sins could be forgiven – not some of them, not just the really minor ones, but all of our sins.  Our debt to God was sin, and our fate was sealed.  We were doomed.  The law was crashing down on us and the weight of our debt was crushing us.  But Jesus nailed our debt of sin to His cross when He died on it, so that we can be forgiven.

·      Verse fifteen - 15 When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.  16 Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day – 17 things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ.  18 Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God.  20 If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as 21 “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” 22 (which all refer to things destined to perish with use) – in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men?  23 These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.  This is a long section, but it’s all talking about the same thing.  Does anybody know who the phrase “rulers and authorities” is referring to?  Spiritual beings who are under the control of Satan.  Ephesians 6 talks about them more.  Jesus has disarmed these spiritual rulers and authorities, meaning all they can do is going around making a lot of noise and whispering lies into our ears.  We have to be careful not to be deceived into following rules and regulations forced on us by others that have nothing to do with becoming like Christ and bringing glory to God.  And kids, I’m not saying you don’t have to obey your parents – the Bible says you do.  When people tell you that Christianity has to follow a certain style or ritual or tradition that the Bible doesn’t address, be very careful.  Someone could be trying to lead you astray.  We can’t depend on rules to save us – we can only depend on the crucified Christ.  We can do things to bring us closer to Christ and make us more like Him and bring glory to His name, but those things will not save us.  Only as we depend on Christ are we saved.  Worship styles and forms will not save us.  Charismatic personalities will not save us.  Rigid legalism will not save us.  Only Jesus can save us, and we will grow only as we follow His lead.

·      Which is why Paul is puzzled in verse 20.  If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as 21 “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” 22 (which all refer to things destined to perish with use) – in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men?  23 These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.  The Colossian Christians were submitting themselves to the old Jewish rules and regulations.  Those rules may have made them look good, but inside they were dying because they were not living for Jesus.  They had been deceived.  Something we need to understand is that, as much as I believe in the power of spiritual disciplines to help us draw nearer to Christ and become like Him, if they just become points to check off and to make ourselves look good, they’re useless.  As long as we stay committed to them so that we’ll become more like who God wants us to be, they’re great.  But if they become a tool to make us look like we’re more mature than we are, and that’s an easy trap to fall into, they lead only to death.  Jesus died to set us free from sin and to enable us to live Spirit-empowered lives.  We don’t have to follow a set of rules and regulations.  If we live according to God’s Word by the power of His Spirit, we will live like we’ve never lived before!

·      William M. Woodfin wrote, The proof of Christianity is not a book but a life. The power of Christianity is not a creed but a Christian character; and wherever you see life that has been transformed by the grace of God, you see a witness to the resurrection of Jesus (as cited on PreachingToday.com).

·      Folks, if we have received Christ into our hearts and lives and submitted ourselves to His Lordship, we will live Spirit-empowered lives.  And that’s great news for all of us!  I encourage you – obey God’s Word but don’t fall into man-made traps.  As Galatians 5:1 says, It is for freedom that Christ has set you free.  Let’s be free!  Let’s pray.