Renewed or Reused
Renewed or Reused
11 In Him you were also circumcised
with the circumcision made without hands,
by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh,
by the circumcision of Christ,
12 buried with Him in baptism,
in which you also were raised with Him
through faith in the working of God,
who raised Him from the dead.
13 And you, being dead in your trespasses
and the uncircumcision of your flesh,
He has made alive together with Him,
having forgiven you all trespasses,
14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us,
which was contrary to us.
And He has taken it out of the way,
having nailed it to the cross.
15 Having disarmed principalities and powers,
He made a public spectacle of them,
triumphing over them in it.
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.
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.
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.
M.O.I. – Christian Freedom
C.I.T. – Paul wanted the Colossians to realize the complete deliverance God had brought about in their lives and the freedom that came with it.
Thesis – If Christians, today, would only understand the freedom they have through Jesus Christ to enjoy life and live for Him, they would not want to return to a lifestyle of false religion and works.
Proposition – I want the church to see how completely they are forgiven and guard against returning to a lifestyle of religion. Only through doing so can they fully experience the Christian life.
Probing Question – What does this passage teach about the total forgiveness of God and the danger of returning to a lifestyle of religion and works?
Unifying Word – Understandings
Transitional Sentence – Can you imagine someone that had been set totally free from bondage and enjoying a life of freedom voluntarily deciding to reenter bondage? The sad reality is that many Christians do just that by returning to religion and works.
I. Through faith in Christ, we have been completely changed. Vs. 11-15
II. Through religion we return to a pattern of works to please God. Vs. 16-19
III. Through knowledge of God’s Word we realize our position in Christ. Vs. 20-23