Jesus is Greater Than Supplements

Have you ever taken a supplement? Tell about taking vitamins in high school - impressed bc it made our pee orange. Must be working! Reminds me of scene from All Creatures where Siegfried makes purple smoke by mixing iodine crystals and turpentine so the farmers feel like they’re getting their money’s worth. Later learned it just meant everything was going down the drain.

Americans spend $60 BILLION on supplements every year. At the same time, Harvard Med says the are by and large a waste of time. Except in limited situations, most people get all the vitamins/minerals they need from a balanced diet. I know, you started taking garlic pills and now mosquitos don’t bite you. Whatever.

Our diet isn’t the only thing we supplement.

Income - help make ends meet or save for a vacation

Body - a little botox here or there improve something we think is lacking, get our teeth whitened, etc. My aunt tattoos on her eyebrows. She always looked surprised.

Education - we want a promotion so we invest in additional schooling/training

Sex life - the latest Vogue magazine will give you “ten ways to make your love life sizzle this Fall” which will involve taking a pumpkin scented bath together while feeding candy corn to each other.

These things aren’t necessarily good or bad. But I have to wonder what’s behind all these supplements. I wonder if at the core there is a sense of inadequacy, and if we only added this pill, this extra money, this physical enhancement - our life will be complete.

What happens when we bring our desire for supplements into our faith? Is it possible that we try to supplement Jesus? Have we bought into a cultural lie that tells us Jesus is ok for some things, but if you really want to get ahead you also need ____? What if all our supplements only dilute what Jesus wants to do for us and be for us?

This is the issue facing a young group of Christians. We started a series a few weeks ago going through the apostle Paul’s letter to the Colossians where he makes the case throughout that Jesus is Greater. These young believers are being confronted with a culture that tells them Jesus isn’t enough - they still need to worship idols, they need to practice Jewish rituals, they need this special knowledge that only the mystery religions can give them. They need to supplement Jesus.

I’ve call this message Jesus is Greater Than Supplements. The big idea this morning is that Jesus needs no supplement; in Jesus, you need no supplement.

Pray

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In Colossians 2, Paul lays out three ways these young believers were being tempted to supplement their faith in Jesus in order to find wholeness. Each one of these is a temptation we still face today. They are Reasoning, Religion, and Rules.

Human reasoning won’t complete you.

Colossians 2:8–10 “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fullness in him, who is the head of every ruler and authority.”

We don’t know for sure what philosophies were being introduced to these believers that were threatening the purity of their faith in Jesus. There is a clue in the Greek word “to take captive” - sylagogeo - which sounds very similar to the word for synagogue, the place where Jews worshipped.

Whatever they were, Paul said they were empty, deceitful, and purely human in their origin. They offered nothing of benefit that these believers didn’t already have in Jesus.

The reason for this is because of Jesus - he is the fullness of God. All that God is is fully present in human form. Everything you need in order to relate to God is found in Jesus.

And, we have been made complete in him. There is literally nothing that can be added to us that makes us more full than we already are in Jesus.

We still swim is worldly thinking if we’re looking:

Secular humanism - Humanity at center of universe; elevates human autonomy over divine authority. We are all little gods.

Moral relativism - right and wrong is not absolute but based on an individuals or cultures preferences. If it feels good, do it.

Utilitarianism - tells us the ends justify the means. Which lets us justify any kind of violence or cruelty toward others if we think they are a threat.

Consumerism - happiness is found in acquisition of material goods or experiences, often at the expense of love of neighbor. This is why there is so much “church hopping and shopping” among Christians.

Paul is reminding them and us: Beware of “isms”. Beware of supplementing yourself with any train of thought that deviates from a pure commitment to Jesus alone. He is the fullness of God. In him you find your fullness.

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Religion can’t hold you.

Colossians 2:16–19 “Therefore do not let anyone condemn you in matters of food and drink or of observing festivals, new moons, or sabbaths. These are only a shadow of what is to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Do not let anyone disqualify you, insisting on self-abasement and worship of angels, dwelling on visions, puffed up without cause by a human way of thinking, and not holding fast to the head, from whom the whole body, nourished and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows with a growth that is from God.”

Here Paul appears to be condemning all religious rituals. But that’s not the case. We know from the book of Acts that Paul himself observed the sabbath, and that there were times he was hurrying to Jerusalem arrive in time for a festival. Religious rituals are not the problem.

The problem is when ritual replaces relationship.

Ever been to a wedding? I’ve been to a lot. I’ve performed a lot. Ever notice they’re all about the same? There is ritual built into a wedding. It’s important ritual. But it can be dead ritual when there is no genuine relationship between the parties.

Church can become a ritual where you just go through the motions. You can pray without meaning it. You can mouth the words to songs without any love in your heart. You can listen to sermons simply to be intellectually stimulated. In that case, faith has become mere religious ritual. And Paul says this kind of religion cannot hold you. It cannot nourish you. It cannot make you grow into Christlikeness. In the end, this kind of religious ritual will let you down because Jesus will say, “Depart from me, I never knew you.” You’ve become detached from the head.

BUT - these same rituals can be life-giving when accompanied by authentic relationship to the head - Jesus. And through them find yourself attached to the only one who can hold you - Jesus. Mere religious ritual can never be a supplement for a growing relationship with him.

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Rules can’t help you.

Colossians 2:20–23 “If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the universe, why do you live as if you still belonged to the world? Why do you submit to regulations, “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch”? All these regulations refer to things that perish with use; they are simply human commands and teachings. These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-imposed piety, humility, and severe treatment of the body, but they are of no value in checking self-indulgence.”

Paul’s final warning is against those who try to find life through rule-keeping. The Colossians were facing those who were telling them they still needed to keep certain rules in order to be acceptable to God.

I think it’s easy to see examples of this in the church today. Certain things are lifted out of their context and turned into a legalistic rule that must be followed by everyone in order to be in God’s good graces.

Long hair and denim skirts

No R-rated movies or rock n roll.

We couldn’t play with regular cards in my youth group - had to be Uno. Hard to play Texas Hold ‘em with Skipbo cards.

Don’t dance, drink, or go with girls/boys that do. We use to tease in my church that we didn’t have premarital sex because we didn’t want anyone to think we were dancing.

I admire the heart behind these rules. I want to go on record that I think holiness is important. Following Jesus ought to make us better people, not worse.

The problem is that rule-keeping won’t make you holy. It will either make you depressed or self-righteous. Paul says all the rules in the world can’t help you. Only the love of Jesus can transforms you, not legalism.

So if you need rules, Jesus gave us just two: love God and love your neighbor. That’s enough.

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Human reasoning won’t complete you.

Religion can’t hold you.

Rules can’t help you.

I want to go back to what I think is the key verse for this whole section. Paul says, Colossians 2:9–10 “For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fullness in him…”

I don’t remember grammar very well, but when Paul says that “you have come” - what tense is that?

Paul is declaring that, if you are in Christ, this is your reality. You already have everything necessary to be whole and complete before God. You don’t need the best of human reasoning, empty religious rituals, and legalistic rules. The One who is the fullness of God has made you full in himself.

This fullness is available because Jesus has taken our sin and all the charges against us and nailed them with himself to the cross. What looked to the Romans and Jews like a defeat was actually his great victory. In death, he conquered death and hell. And he declares those who put their trust in him forgiven.

Has there ever been a time when you are certain that you surrendered your life to Jesus, trusting in his death for you? If you have never asked Jesus to forgive you, would you do that now?

Offer a prayer of invitation...

Heavenly Father, I know I have done wrong. I know I deserve the suffer the consequences of my actions. But I believe Jesus died to take my place, and that he suffered death for me so that I won’t have to. I am making the decision today to surrender myself to you and making Jesus my Lord. Please forgive my sin and make me your child forever. Amen.

If you’ve made that decision today I invite you to compete a Connect Card and I will reach out to you to talk about what this means and how to take some next steps in this journey.

For the rest of us, what if you could accept that you are already complete in Jesus? That you don’t need to add anything for him to love you more. That you don’t need to strive in order to be more acceptable in his sight? That you can live free of isms, religion, and rules? You can be completely confident that you have all you need in Jesus.

Hearing that this is true is one thing. Getting that truth into your heart is something else.

Introduce to practice of breath prayer. It’s an ancient practice to help stay connected to God throughout the day by integrating prayer into your natural breathing rhythm. The prayer is divided into two, breathing in the first part, breathing out the second.

IN: Jesus is the fullness of God. Breathe in the fullness of Jesus into your life.

Out: I have fullness in him. Release to Jesus any sense of inadequacy.

Practice it together...

There’s always going to be someone offering a supplement. Maybe you’ll find a reason why you really should up your intake of ginkgo biloba. But when it comes to faith, there is no supplement needed. You already have all you need.

Jesus needs no supplement; in Jesus, you need no supplement.

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Invite people to stand. Ask for worship, ministry, and Communion team to come down.

Every Sunday we close our time by receiving Communion together. This symbolic meal reminds of Jesus’ sacrifice. That he has died, he has risen, that he will come again for us, and that he is the source of our spiritual nourishment. We believe Jesus is present with us as we take his body and blood.

We think Jesus invites everyone to this table. If it’s your first time, or you’re not even sure yet where you stand with Jesus, we think he would welcome you here. If you would like to participate, after I pray step into the nearest aisle. Someone at the front will take a piece of bread dipped in wine and offer it to you as the body and blood of Jesus. If you prefer not to have wine, close your hands together and that will be the sign for them to give you a sealed container with grape juice and a wafer.

What does God want us to minister to this morning?

Let’s rejoice together with all God’s people in the words of Psalm 23:

Psalm 23 NRSV

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.

Thank him that he is all we need. That we find our fullness and satisfaction in him.

Thank him that through the blood of his cross he has washed our sins away. Through his victorious resurrection he has guaranteed us eternal life. Through his ascension and the outpouring of the Spirit he has made us one with you.

We remember Him who for us and for our salvation, on the night that he was betrayed...

Come Holy Spirit and overshadow these elements. Let them be for us your body and blood so that we can participate in your redemptive work for us. May we find mercy, healing and salvation through the finished work of the cross. Amen.