Christ Alone: The End of Legalism

Opening Prayer

“Father in Heaven, we come before You today with grateful hearts. Thank You for giving us Your Word that reminds us of the sufficiency of Christ. Lord, help us to see that we don’t need Christ plus works, Christ plus rituals, or Christ plus religion—we need Christ alone. Open our eyes to the shadows that so easily distract us, and fix our gaze on Jesus, the substance, the Savior, and the Head of the church. Holy Spirit, teach us, convict us, and lead us into truth today. May Christ be magnified in this place, in our hearts, and in our lives. We pray this in the powerful name of Jesus. Amen.”

Introduction

Take God’s Word and turn with me to Colossians chapter 2. We are walking verse by verse through this powerful little letter where Paul lifts high the supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus Christ.

Now, the section before us today deals with a problem that is just as alive in our time as it was in Paul’s: the problem of Christ plus. The false teachers in Colossae were not telling people to abandon Jesus altogether—they were saying, “Yes, Jesus is good, but He’s not enough. You need Jesus plus works. Jesus plus Jewish festivals. Jesus plus ascetic rules. Jesus plus visions.”

But Paul writes with holy boldness to say, “No, you don’t need Christ plus anything. You need Christ alone.”

Let me be clear: legalism always sounds religious, but it is always dangerous. It makes salvation depend on what you do instead of what Christ has already done. And any time we add to Christ, we actually subtract from Him.

That’s why Paul is so urgent here. He knows that if you lose sight of the sufficiency of Christ, you lose the gospel. And friend, without the gospel, you don’t have salvation.

So, Paul takes us by the shoulders and says: “Don’t let anyone judge you, rob you, or enslave you. Christ is enough!”

Colossians 2:16–17 NKJV

16 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, 17 which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.

I. Don’t Let Anyone Judge You by Shadows (vv. 16–17)

The Old Testament system was a shadow that pointed forward to the real thing—Christ.

The sacrifices were shadows pointing to the cross. Hebrews 10:1 says, “The law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never… make those who approach perfect.”

Hebrews 10:1 NKJV

1 For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect.

The festivals were shadows pointing to Christ’s work in redemption—the Passover to His death, Pentecost to the Spirit’s coming, and Tabernacles to His future dwelling with us.

The Sabbath rest was a shadow pointing to Christ, who says, “Come to Me… and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

Matthew 11:28 NKJV

28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Here’s the danger: when you cling to shadows, you miss the substance.

Application: People today may not judge you over Jewish feasts, but they will try to judge you over external things—what you eat, what you drink, what you wear, what day you worship. Paul says: Don’t let them! Christ is the fulfillment. You are accepted in Him, not by shadows.

Illustration: To go back to the shadows is like hugging a photograph when your loved one is standing right in front of you. Shadows can’t save you. Only Christ can.

Colossians 2:18–19 NKJV

18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.

II. Don’t Let Anyone Rob You with False Spirituality (vv. 18–19)

These false teachers bragged of visions, mystical encounters, and worship of angels. They claimed special access to God that the “ordinary believer” didn’t have.

Paul cuts through it all: it’s not humility that people have—it’s pride. It’s not spirituality—it’s deception. It’s not maturity—it’s immaturity. Why? Because they had let go of the Head, Jesus Christ.

Notice the contrast:

They were “puffed up” by the mind.

True growth comes from being “nourished and knit together” by the Head.

You see, all true spirituality flows from Jesus Christ. He is the Head, and we are the body. You cannot live without connection to the Head.

Application: Friend, don’t be dazzled by those who promise you “secret knowledge,” “hidden truths,” or “higher levels.” There is no deeper knowledge apart from Christ. If someone says you need visions, angels, or hidden mysteries to know God—they are trying to rob you. Hold fast to Christ.

Cross-reference: John 15:5 — “Without Me you can do nothing.”

John 15:5 NKJV

5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

Illustration: Imagine a branch boasting about its fruit while it’s severed from the vine. The moment it is cut off, it withers. So it is with anyone who lets go of Christ to chase spiritual novelties.

Colossians 2:20–23 NKJV

20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations— 21 “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” 22 which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.

III. Don’t Let Anyone Enslave You with Worldly Regulations (vv. 20–23)

Paul asks, “If you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why… do you subject yourselves to regulations—‘Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle’?”

Paul is saying: You died with Christ. You were buried with Him. You were raised with Him. Why go back to the graveyard of rules?

Rules and regulations may look spiritual. Paul admits they have “an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body.” But they are powerless. They cannot conquer sin.

Romans 8:3 — “What the law could not do… God did by sending His own Son.”

Romans 8:3 NKJV

3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,

Galatians 5:1 — “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.”

Galatians 5:1 NKJV

1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.

Rules can restrain the flesh, but they cannot renew the heart. Only Christ can do that. Rules can create a religion of chains, but Christ brings a relationship of freedom.

Application: Legalism today says, “Don’t go here, don’t eat that, don’t drink this, don’t do that.” But beloved, holiness is not achieved by lists—it’s received in Christ. Christ in you makes you holy. Christ in you makes you free.

Conclusion

So what have we seen today?

Don’t let anyone judge you by shadows when you have the substance—Christ.

Don’t let anyone rob you with false spirituality—hold fast to Christ, the Head.

Don’t let anyone enslave you with worldly regulations—you are dead to the world, alive in Christ.

Now listen carefully: these false teachers were not denying Christ outright. They were adding to Him. But any gospel that says “Christ plus” is no gospel at all.

Paul thunders: “In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and you are complete in Him.” (Col. 2:9–10). Complete! Not lacking. Not waiting for something else.

Friend, it is not Christ plus religion. It is not Christ plus rituals. It is not Christ plus rules. It is Christ alone.

The gospel is not spelled D-O, but D-O-N-E. When Jesus cried, “It is finished,” He meant the debt was paid, the work was done, and salvation was complete.

So I ask you: are you resting in Christ alone, or are you still clinging to shadows and rules? Don’t settle for the shadow when you can have the Savior.

And if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed (John 8:36).

Closing Prayer

“Heavenly Father, we thank You for the freedom we have in Christ. Thank You that in Him we are complete—lacking nothing, wanting nothing, needing nothing beyond His finished work on the cross. Guard our hearts, Lord, from the chains of legalism and the snares of false spirituality. Teach us to rest fully in Christ alone. And Father, if there is anyone here today who has never trusted Jesus as Savior and Lord, draw them to Yourself now. Let them see that salvation is not in rules, rituals, or religion—it is in Christ and Christ alone. May we leave this place alive in Him, walking in victory and shining His light to the world. In Jesus’ mighty name we pray, Amen.”