MESSAGE
FROM THE
WORD
TRYING TO IMPROVE ON JESUS
Colossians 2:8-23
SERIES: Colossians Message # 12
Several years ago my wife left me a list of chores to get to on my day off. One of the chores was to water all of the plants in the front yard and on the patio. When she returned, I proudly announced that I had completed the list. A little bit later, she was on the patio and asked, “Glen, why did you water my silk plant”? To be honest, I don’t know if I could have told you which of her plants was silk.
We live in the world of the artificial. From silk plants to margarine to plastic to non-dairy creamer to computer generated animation, much of what we live our life around is artificial. While our lifestyle may involve the use of some artificial items, our life should not be based on that which is artificial. Jesus came to show us real life. Heaven and Hell are real places and we will really spend eternity in one of those places.
For more than a chapter, the Apostle Paul has been opening up our minds and hearts to the reality of Jesus Christ and the truly Christian life. However, once the real is on the market, dozens of phonies will appear. This is just as true in the spiritual world as it is in the physical world. The very first act in the Bible by the human race is a test over whether we would take God at His word or look to an alternative. We chose unwisely.
The church is to teach the truth. We are to take the Bible and we are to teach it until it is in the mind and heart of God’s people. There is another aspect of the church’s ministry and that is its need to warn. We read ACTS 20:25-35 We do this is our own lives. Half of our conversations with our children involve, “don’t touch that”, “don’t play in the street”, “don’t hang out with those kids”, and “don’t take drugs” etc. Because there are dangers out there, we warn our children. This is why we periodically warn you about certain issues on the horizon.
As we come to our message from Colossians, we come to one of those warning passages. We are told, COLOSSIANS 2:8-23 There is a great deal of information in this passage, but I only want to deal with the primary warnings. Let me introduce the subject in this way. For the past chapter and a half, Paul has been arguing for the absolute sufficient nature of Jesus Christ. Because Jesus is God in the flesh, there is nothing one can add to Him which will make you more pleasing to the Father. However, because we live in a fallen world, the enemy will seek to try to add various ideas or actions to Jesus to make Him more acceptable to a sinning world.
This past week Pope John Paul II died. As all of the publicity has been generated and the quest for a new Pope has been discussed, many have commented on how they hope the new head of the Catholic Church will take a new path to liberalizing the Catholic Church. We are told, “think of how attractive the Church would be if they allowed birth control, gay marriage or the ordination of women?” With that in mind, I began to allow my mind to wander. Think of what would happen in the
FIRST, WE SEE INTELLECTUALISM. Paul uses the word “PHILOSOPHY”. This is a tragic term. Our word for philosophy comes from two Greek words meaning “the love of wisdom”. This is a big topic throughout the Bible. We read, PSALM 111:10; PROVERBS Believers should love wisdom. However, to separate wisdom from God is to become foolishness. We read, PSALM 14:1 It is impossible for one to reject God and be a true philosopher. Many have tried. Our world is filled with famous names given the title of philosophers. They all ended their lives in despair and hopelessness. The Christian is a philosopher who ends their life in hope because they understand that the purpose of life is to find the purpose of life—namely Jesus Christ.
SECOND, WE SEE EMPTY PROMISES. This is such a fascinating phrase. Paul mentions “EMPTY DECEPTION…” The word Paul uses for deception is the same word Jesus used in His parable of the sower when He talked about the “DECEITFULNESS OF RICHES…” The word “EMPTY” is also used by Jesus. We read MARK 12:1 When this man was sent off, His pockets were empty. Our world is filled with all sorts of “fool’s gold”. It is our task as the people of God to warn our world of the emptiness of the deceptions invading our culture. It is not because we want our friends to have no fun, it is because we see the “Emperor’s New Clothes” and recognize that he is naked.
THIRD, WE SEE TRADITION. We are to learn from the past. The past has much to teach us. We read ROMANS 15:4 What was done in the past is an opportunity for us to learn how to serve and worship God more deeply. However, tradition can become a liability if we use it as the form of our worship rather that as a learning experience. We read MATTHEW 15:1-6 Tradition is wrong when it becomes the standard for right and wrong rather than God’s word. We’ve always done it that way is no reason to do something. Tradition can be a powerful learning tool. The entire Passover celebration is a reminder of past history and how important it is to remind the next generation of God’s faithfulness to His promises. Here is the difference and the way you can tell whether your observance of traditions is correct. Paul does not tell these believers to ignore the traditions of the past. He warns them about “THE TRADITION OF MEN”. How do you know whether you are observing the traditions of men or following the precepts of God from past generations? Let me give you a good example. We are told by Luke ACTS -48 This is the passage from which we get our mission statement. That says, FAITH CHRISTIAN CHURCH SEEKS TO BRING PEOPLE INTO A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP BY STUDYING HIS WORD, ENJOYING HIS PEOPLE, PRACTICING HIS PRESENCE, AND CARING FOR OTHERS”. What are the “BIBLICAL TRADITIONS” which were observed by the first church? They studied God’s word, shared fellowship, partook of the Lord’s Supper, prayed and worshipped together. Those are Biblical mandates that must be a part of the work of God today.
A “tradition of man” would say that the worship service needs to be Sunday morning at . The song service needs to be with a piano and organ and out of a hymnal. Or, it has to be with a worship team with the help of a power point projector. The Bible must be proclaimed with KJV, NIV, NASV, or a modern translation. The pastor needs to wear a suit, or a robe, or a casual shirt. The traditions of men are the means by which we accomplish the traditions of God. We cannot do what God wants us to do without form and order. Our task is to accomplish God’s plan without being trapped in a form and a method that cannot be changed.
FOURTH, WE SEE ASCETICISM. Asceticism is a big word for the denial of that which is pleasurable. Paul mentions “FOOD OR DRINK…” in verse 16. Some of you come out of Catholic backgrounds and were taught that eating meat on Friday was wrong. Others come out of Mormonism and were told that caffeine was wrong. Other groups have their own do’s and don’ts. Some conservatives teach that having a glass of wine is a sin. Others teach that you need to be a vegetarian. Does the Bible give us restrictions as to over doing anything? It does, so that both gluttony and drunkenness is condemned equally. However, God has given all foods to be enjoyed.
Paul’s point is this, no special diet will make us right with God and no food will keep us away from His love. We need to remember that food is for the body, not for the spirit. As wise stewards, we need to be in control of our bodies so that we will be around to serve God for a long time.
FIFTH, WE SEE MYSTICISM. This tells us how relevant the Bible is to our culture today. Mysticism is the desire to find God outside of our physical or mental abilities. In other words, we seek to find God in the mysteries of life that no one can understand. The New Age Movement of today seeks to exploit this area. Look inside of you, channel your past experiences, use a crystal, check out the stars, or a dozen other means of bypassing what you can think or feel.
In essence, mysticism is the belief that one can find truth outside of that which is observable. In one sense Christianity is mystical because it bases its truth on revelation. At that point, though, mysticism and revelation part company. Mysticism states that one has to touch base with the inner self to determine what truth is. Paul deals with this attitude by stating, VERSE 19 Visions and dreams might be from God, but they need to be confirmed by the standard of God’s word. Christianity states that once the revelation is understood, that becomes the objective standard of truth. How can you tell if the Holy Spirit is talking to you or guiding you? You check with revelation and you check with that internal guide called your spirit. If God has spoken, go with His word. We read, JEREMIAH 23:25-32 If there is no revelation go with your intuition or your feelings. However, once God has spoken, that settles it. This is why Bible Study is so essential.
Here is the distinction. Mysticism receives its knowledge from internal experiences that have no provable connection to the observable world. Biblical Revelation comes from mysticism, but results in historical and observable factual information. So, a prophet mike get a mystical message from God, but it is proven to be true when the prophecy comes true.
SIXTH, WE SEE LEGALISM. In the church, many of the abuses in the area of mysticism occur among what might be addressed as the Charismatic wing. In the area of legalism, it is pretty evident that the abuses might fall into the camp known as the Fundamentalists. While that term has taken on a ring of negativity, its roots are really very honorable. In the early 20th Century, a move to deny the inspiration of the Bible began to creep into the church. A group of Christian leaders met to plan strategy and came up with some fundamental beliefs they felt had to be adhered to in order to be truly called Christian. It involved such issues as believing in the inspiration of scripture, the deity of Christ and the need to turn your life over to Christ for salvation. These were the “Fundamentals of the faith”. The danger of such a movement is obvious. Once you say there are certain issues of conformity necessary, people begin to look for ways to conforming to the form while denying the reality. Throughout this section such issues as food, drink, specific days of worship and spiritual actions are addressed by Paul. Fasting, times of prayer, special days to worship God and the denial of fleshly desires are all honorable. However, in themselves they are worthless. If you are an unbeliever and worship on the right day, if you are out of the will of God and fast for 40 days, if you are in sin and repeat prayers for ten hours, it is all meaningless. Those actions are only beneficial if you are in a right relationship with God. Baptism, communion, church attendance and Bible reading are all parts of the Christian life. None of those actions can make us right with God. It is only as we seek to worship God in spirit and truth that those actions then draw us into closer fellowship with the Father. The legalist says VERSE 21 The true believer says, “God I want to know you”.
SEVENTH, WE SEE POPULARITY. I don’t believe I am stretching this point, so let me make it. We read VERSE 16,17 That little phrase “THEREFORE NO ONE IS TO ACT AS YOUR JUDGE…” struck me as interesting. Why do we care what others think? Why do we allow ourselves to be intimidated into doing or believing what we don’t want to? It is usually because of peer pressure and the desire to be popular.
Even in the church, this can be a problem. In areas where the scriptures speak, God’s word is to be our judge. However, what about those areas where the Bible doesn’t speak, but the group you hang out with does. Whether it is in what you eat or drink, how you dress, or your particular attire, what is the basis of your standards? Is it, “everyone else does it”? Is it, “my church says so”? Is it, “our culture says this is how to be popular”? Or, is it, “I do my own thing”? Whatever you decide, what is the basis of that decision?
Let me conclude with this thought. We have been looking at what we can add to Christ to be more “with it”. Paul writes, VERSE 9 Jesus Christ is God in the flesh. He needs no addition. All we need is Jesus. The hymn writer put it so well when he wrote,
ON CHRIST THE SOLID ROCK I STAND
ALL OTHER GROUND IS SINKING SAND
ALL OTHER GROUND IS SINKING SAND
God has called us to live a holy life. That holy life affects how we behave, talk and think. However, simply performing deeds that look good is not sufficient. We must actually perform godly acts that are motivated by the Holy Spirit. It is then that we will hear those wonderful words from Jesus, “WELL DONE…”
This message is from the teaching ministry of Glen Jackson, pastor of Faith Christian Church in
