The Book of Colossians part 5 – Week 15 / April 7th


“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the
Lord, so walk in Him…”
Colossians 2:6

This second chapter of Colossians sees Paul “getting down to business” as, having set forth the glories of Christ’s person and work, he now begins to deal with the issues that have been undermining the faith of the believers at Colossae. This subtle attack against their faith is one that is also being experienced by the believers at Laodicea (2:1) and it amounts to Secular Philosophy, Gnosticism and Religious Legalism. Of a truth nothing has really changed as the modern church still has to resist the intrusion of these deceptions only they have taken on new names! So, this chapter holds great relevance for us all today and we should heed its warnings. Paul admits that part of the problem is the fact that the peddlers of these errors are very often smooth talkers or, as he puts it, deceivers who use “persuasive words” (2:4).  All of this has greatly burdened Paul even though he has not really had personal contact with many of them. (2:1)

At the root of their problem is the failure to fully understand the fact that Jesus is God, one with the Father from all eternity (2:2). This understanding he calls a mystery (2:2) as if they understood it, as they should, they would know then that to have Christ in your life is to possess:
1.    All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (2:3)……and,
2.   All the fullness of God (2:9)

Knowing these two things would in turn mean that they would understand that they are “complete in Him” which also means there is no power or principality that is greater than Jesus and this gives their faith assurance, strength, well being and stability (2:2).

So then for Paul this means that:

1.    They should be encouraged (2:2).
2.    They should stand together in the truth or, as he puts it, display “good order” (2:5).
3.    They should be steadfast (2:5).
4.    They should live out their faith in Christ just as they began it when these deceptions were not there (2:6).
5.    They should grow and allow the life of Christ to fully flourish in their hearts (2:7).
6.    They should be thankful (2:7).

We would do well to take note of these things and practice them. Above all we must remember that when we have Jesus we have everything. There is nothing more that God can give us or that we should search for save to know Him better! And this is achieved by regular Bible reading, prayer, fellowship and the breaking of bread (Acts 2:42). It all seems so simple that some just cannot believe that it is true; but it is.

This section closes (2:8-10) with Paul warning us about:

The Dangers of secular and humanistic philosophy
The Bible is not in contradiction to the disciplines of science, mathematics and nature. The wonders that these disciplines introduce us to are worthy of noting and learning but it is very often the conclusions that people draw from these wonders or findings that we have to resist. Thus the marvels of the human body, that have been unearthed in the last century and more, do not therefore mean that we should adopt the conclusion that we have evolved from monkeys! No, it means that we should glorify God and praise Him for His greatness. Also, we should resist these “basic principles of the world” as, if embraced, they will lead us to the place where we abort babies and by so doing sanction murder on a huge scale. When God is not acknowledged and consequently our accountability to Him is rejected we will eventually diminish the value of life and condone murder. This is the truth!

Sadly, these evils are penetrating the church, just as they were in Paul’s day, and they have to be resisted. We see them all around us and especially in the redefining of marriage and sexuality. This battle rages at an intense level and it is going to escalate bringing the believing church more and more into conflict with the world. The truth is that the unsaved or natural man is an enemy of God (Romans 5:10) and according scripture is so self centered that he has no desire to seek God and indeed cannot (Romans 8:7). His conclusions will then always reject God and he will manipulate data of any type to express his hatred of God. Recently an ardent secular evolutionist debating a Christian creationist was soundly outwitted in the exchange but was heard whispering to his colleagues, “At all costs we must not let the divine foot through the door” meaning; even though we have been defeated we cannot, must not and will not acknowledge the existence of God. This says it all!

Secular humanism is invading the church everywhere today producing a corrupt and harlot church. Believers who stand on the truth of God’s word are increasingly being ostracized, smeared as extremists and even branded a danger to society. Jesus said that this would happen (John 16:33). Nevertheless, we must stand firm and not be overtaken by this corruption.

Malcolm Hedding

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