Colossians 2:16-23 BIBLE STUDY

Our Lives in Christ!

General Idea: Our lives shouldn’t be about a list of do’s and dont’s. A long time ago the Church of the Nazarene thought they were being “Holy” when they were actually being legalistic. No dancing, no going to the movies, etc..

Questions:

What do you think of organizations that have a lot of rules and regulations: 1.comforted that you are a part of something bigger than you 2.fee a purpose that you know is better, or 3. do you feel overwhelmed and constrained?

Why are our lives in Christ not about a set of dos and dont’s? What is the real, impacting message about being in Christ?

Why do you have, or should you have no need to fear condemnation, or need to follow some ritual or tradition to be a growing Christian?

5. Why do some Christians have a need to regulate others in what they should do? When and how can this be a good thing-like accountability and discipline? How can this be a tool in refusing to know and practice the grace of our Lord?

How does legalism keep evangelism and new people out and away from the Church? What can you and your church do to stop and prevent this while still following God's precepts for holiness?

Contexts and Background:

Like any church or Christian group that tends to take on its surrounding community characteristics and customs, so the church's values and wants can mimic its cultural environment as it did for these Colossians.. Paul is reinforcing to them the need of knowing who Christ is and what He has done so they can hold onto Truth. He wants to make it clear to them that He is enough for salvation and daily life-no added ingredients are needed.

Do not let anyone judge you/pass judgment v15 refers to legalism and being bonded to a set of human rules and regulations. This church observed both the traditional Jewish and some pagan festivals to placate the power brokers in the church and community as well as seeking to influence angels.

Festival, New Moon was a monthly celebration to commemorate and dedicate the beginning of each month to some pagan god. Here, this refers to an aspect of paganism, the practice of "asceticism." This is the seeking to achieve spiritual power by secrets and manipulation or self abasement, then partying with it. It also refers to fasting and other stern spiritual disciplines that seek to manipulate one's will over God's! This may seem to indicate a "how dare they do that," but the question is do we do this in some other ways

Paul also spoke of this in the book of Romans...

· Do not let anyone judge you/pass judgment refers to legalism and being bonded to a set of human rules and regulations. This church observed both the traditional Jewish and some pagan festivals to placate the power brokers in the church and community as well as seeking to influence angels.

Romans 14:1–11 NKJV

Receive one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things. For one believes he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables. Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him. Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand. One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks. For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and rose and lived again, that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living. But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written: “As I live, says the Lord, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God.”

Romans 14:1-11

How have you or have you seen others pass judgment upon others in matters that are unimportant? Have you, or have you noticed that these people tended to ignore the much greater things of Christ?

Why do some Christians have a need to regulate others in what they should do? When and how can this be a good thing-like accountability and discipline? How can this be a tool in refusing to know and practice the grace of our Lord?

Sabbath. This was a weekly celebration of rest and worship, lasting Friday evening through Saturday evening. Traditionally on the seventh day, the Sabbath was instituted at creation. It is also a reminder of the redemption to come for the people under the Law, the redemption that we now have in the work of Christ (Duet. 5:12). However, the early Christians were keeping the same festivals and religious observances for purposes of manipulation, seeking faith and assurance in them as well as worshiping spiritual beings. Some were adding in extras such as fasting on the Sabbath to prove one's spiritual superiority. Paul tells them that they are now free from such bondage

(NKJV)

1 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. And His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. 2 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!” 3 But He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he entered the house of God and ate the showbread which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? 5 Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are blameless? 6 Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple. 7 But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless. 8 For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Shadow of the things-This is a philosophical term from Plato meaning "the real unseen world" versus the world shadows and ideas in which we live. A philosophy to distinguish the real world from the false and what is real is only a shadow of the real we can't see. Here, it refers to the O.T. being a type and shadow that testified to Christ. But, we are not tied to the Law nor do we have an obligation to follow it, because Christ has liberated us ().

Life Application New Testament Commentary Christ’s Sacrifice Once for All / 10:1–18

Until Christ, animal sacrifices took place “year after year” on the Day of Atonement, reminding the people of their guilt. In the new covenant between God and his people, God promises that he will remember our sins no more because of Christ’s one-time sacrifice.

Let’s read....

(NKJV)

1 Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? 2 For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. 3 So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. 4 Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. 5 For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. 6 But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.

How does legalism keep evangelism and new people out and away from the Church? What can you and your church do to stop and prevent this while still following God's precepts for holiness?

· Substance/body of Christ. Usually refers to the Church as the Body of Christ, but here it refers to a comparison of Christ as The Substance in contrast to a mere shadow of these false teachings. Pagan converts were bringing in their ideas of spirituality, causing confusion about who Christ is and how we are to approach Him. Here Christ is pictured as absolutely real. There is no copy!" Christ alone is sufficient!

· False humility/asceticism. Humility here means "self abasement." This is not the good kind but rather taking spirituality to a dangerous extreme as to work one's self up with ecstatic prayers and over-emotionalism through drugs, deprivation, physical torture, and stimulation to get revelatory visions, spiritual experiences, or power. Thus, these false teachers were getting their ideas from cults and imagination rather than from God's Word, and then teaching them to others. A similar practice has been done by some Jewish and Hindu mystics, Monks in the Middle Ages, and in some Native American cultures. This comes across as one being pious and pure or spiritual, but in fact, one becomes deceived, leading to a dysfunctional spiritual and personal life.

Why can't we grow spiritually by seeking what we want or manipulating God? How and why do some Christians do this? What are some of the false humilities, false self-sacrifices, or rituals you have seen or tried? How did they work out?

How does legalism keep evangelism and new people out and away from the Church? What can you and your church do to stop and prevent this while still following God's precepts for holiness?

Worship of angels. These spiritual beings, God's messengers, were being worshiped. The practice involved petition, invocation, or praying to angels. They thought they were honoring angels by pleasing them so they would give them a blessing because they thought angels controlled the crops and stars and determined one's destiny (as the Greek and Roman gods) This, in fact, placed the people in bondage when they could have had liberty and real blessings. Paul explains how foolish and worthless this viewpoint was; we cannot make any power, knowledge, insight, or mediation happen between us and God.

· Disqualify/beguile you. Meaning to be your referee and decide what is good and bad for you; also to steal or condemn or distract you from His prize for you. Only Christ is our Umpire and Lord (; ).

Head. This meant the source of life, as in our ability to know and grow in Christ can only come from Christ. Jesus is the head, the main theme of , as Christ is the Supreme mediator-pure, Holy, and only! He is the Head; we are the body to take His lead and follow to be His hands and feet in the world. The question is, is He leading us and our churches, or are we seeking to lead Him? Our life in Christ is because of Christ and we must seek to honor Christ (; ; ; ; ; )!

· Head. This meant the source of life, as in our ability to know and grow in Christ can only come from Christ. Jesus is the head, the main theme of , as Christ is the Supreme mediator-pure, Holy, and only! He is the Head; we are the body to take His lead and follow to be His hands and feet in the world. The question is, is He leading us and our churches, or are we seeking to lead Him? Our life in Christ is because of Christ and we must seek to honor Christ (; ; ; ; ; )!

· Basic principles/elemental spirits. This is a Greek philosophical image like mystery, referring to the elements of the universe, or "elemental matter." Here, it is referring to the bad doctrines of trying to please or worship angelic beings that disregard the foundations of truth and the simple message of the Gospel. God's true Truth is far deeper, more intense, and more insightful than any religious or humanistic thinking or great reason (; , ; ; ).

· You submit to its rules/subject yourself. Why bow to pagan practices,decrees, and rules, as the Pharisees added to God's precepts () when we have union with Christ? We have freedom from law; there is no profit or value in these dangerous distractions (; ; -15; ). Beating down one's self physically or psychologically to remove lusts and desires of the flesh does not work and only brings more harm. Do we seek the doctrines of man that lead nowhere but to despair or the doctrines of God that lead to liberty and salvation? We must seek Christ as Lord over all-including our desires, and then we will see maturity and success in dealing with passions (; ).

· Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch! Adding in our regulations and legalism to Christ's finished work is a heinous sight and slaps our Lord in the face saying He is not good enough (; )!

· Self imposed/self made religion/will worship. God desires the fruition of our will to truly, sincerely, and lovingly offer up our worship of Him, but when we do it out of obligation or routine, it becomes meaningless and even repugnant ()! Our Worship of Christ must be sacred, heartfelt, and genuine, with never an afterthought, routine, whim, or a series of meaningless rhetoric or ritual. Nor is true worship about seeking our needs, desires, or inserting our presumptions or expectations or procedures or regulations; rather, real worship is respect and reverence for our Lord God, the way He wills and instituted it. True worship is a matter of our hearts, not our will. The will is to be surrendered, and the heart is to be opened and given to Christ. Never forget: He is the Sovereign Lord (; ; ; )!

· Lack any value/of no value refers to the "ascetic discipline," the self-discipline or self-denial out of our will and obligation. To get something back is not only of no value, it is also very harmful personally and spiritually. This why God hates it. Also, beating down on our bodies does not help us get over the desire of bad passions and sin. We can never grow spiritually by seeking what we want or manipulating God though false humility, false self sacrifice, or indigence and rituals. Even if they are seemingly good, and we are disciplined, if the underlying purpose is to get our own way, we are in the way of His Way.

Devotional Thoughts and Applications:

This passage is about the problem and lure of legalism. We think the gospel of grace is too simple, and perhaps in logic and reason it is. However, thinking we have to add to it is insanity. Legalism substitutes what is great with what is fleeting. It robs what our God has freely given; it replaces our spiritual nourishment and liberty in Christ with junk that is empty and fleeting. It is defrauding as it puts a price tag on the purchase of our soul that Jesus has already paid for.

Legalism wants to steal from us and then continue to extort us like a mobster seeking protection money. We are never to live by religious traditions and obligations when we have liberty in Christ. We are not to seek new or exciting teachings when they do not line up to His already stated precepts. Rather, we are to live in His grace and add nothing of ours into it.

Additional Questions:

2. Why are our lives in Christ not about a set of dos and don'ts? What is the real, impacting message from this passage about being in Christ?

3. Why do you have, or should you have no need to fear condemnation, or need to follow some ritual or tradition to be a growing Christian?

4. How have you or have you seen others pass judgment upon others in matters that are unimportant? Have you, or have you noticed that these people tended to ignore the much greater things of Christ?

5. Why do some Christians have a need to regulate others in what they should do? When and how can this be a good thing-like accountability and discipline? How can this be a tool in refusing to know and practice the grace of our Lord?

7. What does it mean to you that your completeness is in Christ alone? How are you connected to and in Christ? Do you feel and know it? If not, why not?

8. Why can't we grow spiritually by seeking what we want or manipulating God? How and why do some Christians do this? What are some of the false humilities, false self-sacrifices, or rituals you have seen and tried? How did they work out?

9. How does legalism keep evangelism and new people out and away from the Church? What can you and your church do to stop and prevent this while still following God's precepts for holiness?

11. What do you need to do to have more assurance, confidence, strength, and nourishment in Christ? How can you better know, think, and feel His presence, work, and precepts?

12. How do the mysticisms and philosophies of the world and various religious sects or false teachers become exciting and contagious? How can they be empty, dangerous, and unfulfilling? What can you and your church do to help people discern what is false and misleading and what is True and fulfilling?