Colossians 2:16-23
Colossians • Sermon • Submitted
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· 66 viewsFinding your identity in Christ not in what you do or do not do.
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16 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.
17 These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.
18 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,
19 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.
20 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—
21 “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch”
22 (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings?
23 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.
Pray
Who are you?
Who are you?
This is the question I started last week’s sermon with, and as we continue in Colossians chapter 2, Paul continues to write the Colossian church about their identity. Whereas in the verses preceeding this passage, Paul teaches what we should find our Identity in (Jesus, our new life in him!), here he is telling us what we should not find our identity in.
We’re all looking for a story big enough to live in?
In our search for that story, we’ll be tempted to not just let our own personal preferences define us, but also to allow other people to define us:
Are you finding your identity in what other people say you are?
MBTI, Ennagram, Spirit Days (hair, sox, etc... )
This isn’t anything NEW!!! There’s nothing new under the sun.
The early church was facing the same problems. People from outside & even within the church were coming in and trying to define what the church should be, not based on Jesus’ or the Apostle’s teachings, but based on their own desires for the church. In effect they were saying “I prefer the church to be like me...”
Jesus was a good first step… NOW you have to xyz!!!
Rather than singing out to God as we did to start this service, “Do what you want!” There were false teachers in the early church coming in to the church saying, “Do what I say! Live by my preferences.”
Let’s look at the text. Try to figure out what challenges the early church was facing. See what Paul says about them, then we’ll look at our lives today and see if there’s anything we can take and apply to our own lives.
Colossians
16 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.
17 These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.
18 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,
vs. 16 - Theres some history Paul has here and context we cannot ignore.
vs. 16 - Theres some history Paul has here and context we cannot ignore.
In - Peter’s Vision
is given a vision of animals coming down from heaven and the voice of God telling him to eat, that nothing is “unclean”
In - Paul visits Peter
(a relatively new believer) is sent to Jerusalem from Antioch to as Peter and the other Apostles about the Jewish regulations for Gentile believers. Peter tells him about his blanket vision & they eat more bacon wrapped shrimp with the gentiles
- Details on that Visit
We get even more details about what happens. Some believing Jews come rolling into town, who are not on the same page as Peter & Paul, so Peter stops eating with the Gentiles.
I’m sure this was justified in Peter’s mind, as being all things to all people (that’s actually a Paul quote), but look at what his actions communicate to all the believers
If you were a gentile believer and the church leader no longer hung out with you when “influential” people were in town.
Barnabas was led astray… Paul confronted Peter to his face, saying he was out of step with the Gospel
- Jesus came eating and drinking and they called him a drunk and a glutton, John neither ate or drank and they said he had a demon! You can’t win with Legalist!!!!
vs. 17 - Everything in the Jewish law was but a shadow of what was to come, but now Jesus has come. He has fulfilled the law on our behalf making us right with God, not on the basis of our works, but on Christ’s work.
colossians 2:1816Jesus came eating and drinking and they called him a drunk and a glutton, John neither ate or drank and the called him a prude.
17 These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.
vs. 17 - Everything in the Jewish law was but a shadow of what was to come, but now Jesus has come. He has fulfilled the law on our behalf making us right with God, not on the basis of our works, but on Christ’s work.
18 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,
16Jesus came eating and drinking and they called him a drunk and a glutton, John neither ate or drank and the called him a prude.
Calls out false humility - Denouncing Sinful pride
vs. 17 Shadow of things that are already fulfilled in Jesus
Calls out false humility
What is Asceticism - There were other false teacher in the Church (Gnostics) whose basic teaching was that all matter is evil - That’s right ALL Matter (even our bodies)
Gnosticism is false teaching. There are traces of it in our world today
There are lvls of spirituallity
Jesus was a human that reached a higher level of spirituality
The prided themselves in their unreasonable self-denial
/
What’s the answer to these temptations the early church faced
Colossians 1:19
19 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.
19 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.
20 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—
21 “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch”
22 (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings?
23 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.
Why were people doing this?
They were not holding fast to Jesus
When you hold fast to Jesus you aren’t prone to wander into these areas of false teaching.
Paul is fighting against legalism in the church
not because he hates rules, but because people were trying to replace relationship with regulation
Legalism vs. Lawlessness
These are two extremes on a single spectrum
- These are the two extremesboth equally
both equally grieve the heart of God - because both deny the completed work of Jesus on the cross
both equally
Both the Legalist and the Lawless find the cross offensive.
The lawless person sees the law of God, and says that’s unfair!!! and lives like there is no law
The legalist looks at the cross and says, that’s unfair!!! It’s too good to be true - I have to do something to earn my place in God’s family
The Prodigal and the Older Brother
Both try to find their value and worth in what they do, not in their relationship to their father.
Exposit this text
The older brother is a legalist refusing to even engage with the father, trusting his own works instead his relationship.
The Prodigal, after living lawless life, cannot believe the love, grace and mercy of his father.
both - if they are able to receive the father’s love - are welcomed into the feast
20 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—
21 “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch”
22 (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings?
23 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.
“Elemental Spirits of the World” - Satan
Paul is proclaiming unraveling the deceptive nature of the enemy. Legalism in the life of the believer or in the church is nothing short of a scheme of the enemy meant to steal, kill, and destroy.
At Cistern Church we do not have any l
Some churches, some traditions, have placed man made regulations (legalism - going beyond what scripture says) as a front-gate measure for keeping the church pure. They have in their constitution & by-laws All members will abstain from alcohol & tobacco, but say nothing of the sins of pride & self-righteousness
by doing so they are charting out a direct path to hypocrisy or self righteous pride. And the enemy rejoices.
Piper - at the end of time, there will be 10’s of millions more people in hell because of legalism in the church than there are because of alcohol abuse
At Cistern Church we do not have any specific language in our constitution and by-laws regarding alcohol for the same reasons we don’t have anything on our by-laws regarding sugar, or bread, or gluten....
Satan will use any means necessary to make the beauty of the cross an offense and a stumbling block for anyone who might believe and be saved - even legalism.
Why we’re tempted by legalism - rules are easier than relationship.
why my kids are acting out. It’s incredibly easier to get mad and restate the rules and tell them to get in line or else!!! than it is to pause, and ask what’s wrong? This isn’t like you, what are you thinking/feeling?
In the same way, relationship with the God of the universe is a scary prospect… we’d rather just have a cold set of rules to follow.
Closing
Sinclair Ferguson
“Legalism & Lawlessness are non-identical twins from the same womb”
birth from the lie the serpent told in the garden, you can’t trust God’s goodness or his commitment to your flourishing
both fail to comprehend the joy of obedience
Both see God’s love as conditional and unwilling to give blessing
the lawless person refuses to play the game, while the legalist takes on the burden of obedience, seeking to pry blessing from God hand
Both see obedience as a way to get God’s blessing, not as a means of Getting God
Both require the same treatment: A new vision of the beauty of God himself and his free, and costly grace
There’s only one cure for legalism: Understanding and tasting union with Jesus Christ himself: this leads to a new love for and obedience to the law of God
God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in Him.
Barclay - This is a return to un-christian slavery not an embrace of christian freedom
Piper - At the end of time, there will be 10,000’s more people in hell because of legalism in the church than there will be because of alcohol abuse. Legalism is a more deadly disease because it doesn’t look like a disease!!!
Legalism is a more deadly disease because it doesn’t look like a disease!!!
What we don’t need are front-end regulations to keep this place “pure”, but a new heart, a new creation full of faith and joy in the goodness of our father… but to pray, preach, and proclaim the gospel with our lives.