Reject Additions to the Gospel!

A Lesson in Identifying False Teaching

Recap:

Last week we discussed the following points based on the Theological training from Paul in v. 8-15.

Christ is the foundation of our wisdom and knowledge.

v. 8-10

Reject man-made knowledge as foolishness as it is influenced by these demonic forces that are seeking to pull as many as they can away from Christ.

Christ is the foundation of our new life.

v. 11-14

Realize Christ has given us all we need for salvation and fullness of life.

Christ is the foundation of our victory.

v. 15

Reckon in your mind and in your heart, based on your belief in Christ-the Gospel, that you will not let the Satan and his minions rule your mind. They only want to pull you away from Christ but they have been defeated by Jesus’s death and resurrection and have no true power over you.

What Paul was seeking to do in this Theological discourse is let the reader know that the fullness of the Christian life can be found in Christ alone. We don’t need a bunch of extra stuff. We have all we need in Him.

Paul moves from the theological teaching to calling out the specific false teachings that the Colossians were facing, and he is sharp and to the point. The New Bible Commentary points out “Bad theology, leads to bad practice!”

So what we are going to do tonight is work through each of these false teachings that Paul is criticizing and see what we can understand and learn from it but I want us to remember the main principle that Paul wants the readers to know:

Main Principle: As Christians, we have fullness of life in Christ.

Before we dig into the meat of the text there are two things I want to share with you to help wrap your mind around some of these things:

1. False Teaching is teaching a doctrine or making a statement that is not true to the Word of God. (Apollos is Acts 18)

It’s like saying 2+2=5; it’s not true but if you receive the correction, then we can move on.

2. A False Teacher is someone who is teaching false doctrine and will not correct his teaching. (1 Timothy 1:19–20 “holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.” )

These are the individuals to steer clear of. These are the ones that Satan and his minions have a hold of. We pray for them and pray the Lord will show them the true Gospel.

3. If you don’t agree with a certain point of theological teaching, it does not make it wrong.

Some very smart people came up with the graphic (not all inclusive by any means) on the screen. It is important to note that the top of the pyramid are the things that we would be calling out as false teaching. These are teachings that are counter to the Gospel. The middle of the pyramid are things that would separate churches (denominations). The bottom are things that we can differ on individually as Christians in our own study.

That’s all great but how does this apply to what we are talking about today?

These individuals at the church at Colossae are saying at their core is that if you do these things that we tell you then you will have a special or more complete fullness and authority. That is false because it is counter to the core of the Gospel that in Christ we have all the fullness and authority that we need.

So let’s go and read Colossians 2:16-23

Colossians 2:16–23 ESV

Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God. If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

I believe Paul is addressing 3 false teachings in this passage:

The False Teaching of Legalism v. 16-17

Let no one judge you - don’t let anyone tell you you are wrong for not abiding by the Old Covenant laws.

These teachers/leaders are telling Christians that they have to abide by all of the old covenant Jewish laws “arguing they were essential for spiritual advancement” - ESV Study Bible.

Jewish diet was restrictive you can read about that in the OT.

The New Moon festival was a large day of sacrifice that came about on the new moon.

Sabbath is the day of rest, where all work and trading stopped.

Paul’s response to this false teaching is that Christ is the fulfillment of these practices.

All food is made clean as we see in Acts and Timothy.

Christ the perfect sacrifice has fulfilled the requirements for all sacrifices

The strict observance of the Sabbath is no longer about the actual day and time but attitude and heart that is focused on the Lord.

The False Teaching of Super-Spirituality v. 18-19

“Let no one disqualify you” - let no one deem you unworthy or less than because you have not had these “Super-Spiritual” experiences.

This false teaching claims that there is a deeper spirituality if you dabble in these particular mystic practices. He mentions asceticism here but we’ll get into that in v. 20-23 so I won’t say anything here.

They were therefore asserting their spiritual superiority on the grounds of these heightened experiences - Peter T. O’Brien, “Colossians,” in New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, ed. D. A. Carson et al., 4th ed. (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994), 1271.

There is a lot of different speculation as to what these practices actually were but what it appears to be based on some commentaries is that some of these leaders were claiming that they had visions that took them heavenly places and worshipped God the way the angels do.

Paul’s criticism is sharp: this attitude and outlook are dominated by the flesh. The teachers’ boast was that they were directed by the mind; Paul’s answer is ‘Yes, but it is a mind of flesh!’ To the suggestion that they were acquainted with divine ‘fulness’, the response is that all they are full of is their own pride! 19 The most devastating criticism is that by using their own private religious experiences as the basis of their authority they were in fact rejecting Christ as their Head. He is the source of life and nourishment by which his body lives and the source of unity through which it becomes an organic whole. - Peter T. O’Brien, “Colossians,” in New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, ed. D. A. Carson et al., 4th ed. (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994), 1271.

The False Teaching of Asceticism v. 20-23

Paul says, if v. 12 is true, why are you making yourself a slave to the law again?

Asceticism is really just hyper-legalism in this sense. With these foods that have already been made clean, the Jews have strengthened their stance even harder from do not taste to do not touch. These are man-made rules and regulations. These are additions to the Law..not even the Gospel. The Law was hard enough to keep as it was but they added even more restrictions over time, in hopes to gain some greater spirituality and authority.

Paul again brings sharp criticism in saying these just appear to be wise. These practices do nothing but deceive you into thinking you are better than others and don’t even hold any value in stopping the flesh.

For denying the body its desires merely arouses them, as is well known by many who have tried to lose weight by sticking to rigid diets. Neglecting the body, Paul argued, does not nourish the spirit. - Norman L. Geisler, “Colossians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 679.

In other words, you are not actually seeing to it that no one is taking your mind captive because you are already captivated by the idea that you can be more full of Christ than the next guy when really all you are full of is pride and foolishness.

Conclusion:

As we finish this section, let’s remind ourselves the main principle that Paul wants the readers to know through these first two chapters:

Main Principle: As Christians, we have fullness of life in Christ.

Christ is all that we need, in the good times and the bad times. There is nothing we can do that will make us more full. There is no other extra practice or action that we can add to make us more spiritual or more authoritative. We are not better than someone else if we do this X thing.

2 Peter 1:3 ESV

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,

Let us trust in that Divine Power and not try to stir up our own.