Month: August 2024

 

The world, in the last few years, has reverted to a sort of barbarism. As practical Christianity has declined, rudeness and violence have increased. Neighbors quarrel with neighbors. Fighting is a major problem in our schools and the “gang wars” of the teenagers have come to present a serious menace in our cities. Fathers and mothers wrangle and bicker. Homes are disintegrating. High government officials in Washington engage in name-calling and in heated disputes not at all in keeping with the dignity of their office. Why and how has all this savagery crept into our social life? It is because we have forgotten Jesus’ words, “Happy are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth.” I have seen tough, rough, hardened men open their hearts by faith, receive Christ as Savior, and become gentle, patient, merciful gentlemen.

 

 

And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Ephesians 4:32

We will occasionally hear of a tragic event perpetrated by one person against another, whether intentionally or accidentally. The harm is so deep that the hurt party will say, “I don’t think I can ever forgive that person!” Humanly speaking, we can understand how pain can motivate such a reaction, but there is no biblical justification for it. The Bible clearly teaches that there are to be no limits—no exceptions—to our forgiveness of others (Matthew 18:21-22).

Because of a statement Jesus made to religious leaders in His day, some people think there is a sin so grievous that God will not forgive them. That is, they wonder if there is an unpardonable sin in God’s eyes. Yes, Jesus said that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven (Matthew 12:31-32). But He was referring to people whose hearts were so hardened against God’s revelations of Himself that there was no coming back. There is no unforgivable sin for those who want to be forgiven. “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

The standard for our forgiveness of others is the way God forgives us—without exceptions (Ephesians 4:32).

 

Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind.

–Colossians 2:18

Twelve years ago, Jefferson Bethke released a spoken-word poetry performance entitled “Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus.” Within two weeks, the video had more than 16 million views on YouTube. Bethke’s poem clearly struck a nerve with modern audiences, even though his message was at least two thousand years old. Though there’s no record that the apostle Paul ever performed spoken-word poetry, in his letter to the Colossians, Paul explained why he hated man-made religion but loved the true gospel of Jesus Christ.

In our study of Colossians, we’re in the heart of Paul’s letter to a church that was being infiltrated by false teachers. These false teachers weren’t Satanists or occultists; they were professing Christians who said the gospel of Jesus Christ is essential but not enough.

One group of false teachers was trying to add human philosophy to the gospel. They said, “You need Christ, but you also need human wisdom.”

A second group, the legalists, was trying to add rituals and regulations to the gospel. They said, “You need Christ, but you also need to adhere to the Old Testament laws and festivals.”

A third group of false teachers was trying to add mysticism to the gospel. They said, “You need Christ, but you also need a mystical, supernatural experience with God to be a truly spiritual Christian.”

In Colossians 2:18, Paul issued this warning against mysticism: “Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind.”

The Greek word translated as “defrauding” in this verse is an athletic term. It means to give a judgment against, the way a referee or an umpire makes a judgment in a sporting event. You probably know what it feels like when a team you support is on the wrong end of one of those calls. If a call by the referee ends up costing your team the game, you feel like you were cheated out of a victory.

Similarly, Paul was saying to the Colossian Christians, “Let no one rob you of the prize that belongs to you.” The prize is knowing that all is right between you and God and that you have everything you need to live the Christian life. Don’t let anybody rob you of that prize by saying you need an additional mystical experience. In Christ, you have everything you need.

 

When the morning dawned, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, “Arise, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the punishment of the city.” (Genesis 19:15)

God sent two angels to Sodom to inspect the city and to remove Abraham’s nephew Lot and his family before the Lord’s judgment came.

One significant reason the judgment of God was coming against Sodom and Gomorrah was because of their depraved sexual immorality, which included homosexuality (Genesis 19:4-5). In Ezekiel 16, God later condemned and rebuked the great sin of Judah in the latter days of the divided monarchy. God compared Jerusalem to the ancient city of Sodom, saying they were like sisters.

Ezekiel 16:48-50 describes some of those shared sins: pride, idleness, and injustice to the poor. Yet, those were not the only sins of Sodom that made them targets of judgment. Instead, those were the sins of Sodom also shared by her later “sister” Jerusalem. The Genesis text makes it plain that God was also grieved by their sexual violence and immorality, which is included Ezekiel’s list of sins under the words committed abomination(Ezekiel 16:50). In addition, Jude 1:7 clearly states that sexual immorality was one of the sins God noted at Sodom and Gomorrah, connected to going “after strange flesh.” The open and approved practice of homosexuality was one of the many sins of Sodom, Gomorrah, and their neighbor cities.

The morning dawned on the day judgment would come, and the angels had to beg Lot and his family to leave the soon to be destroyed city. The only ones to escape would be Lot, his wife, and his two daughters. Lot’s sons-in-law would be left behind as the angels urged Lot to escape the coming destruction and judgment

In how they urged Lot, these angels may serve as a pattern of evangelism.

The angels went after Lot, going to him and his house. Believers might wish that sinners would come to them, and some will. But Jesus didn’t say, “Sit back in church and let sinners come to you.” Jesus told His disciples to go out to all nations, preaching the gospel and making disciples (Matthew 28:18-20).

The angels warned Lot of what was going to happen, and in plain words. Today, it’s common to mock the “hellfire and damnation preacher,” but there is an appropriate place to warn others of God’s coming wrath (Colossians 3:6). Evangelism can and should include warning.

The angels urged Lot, urging him to flee destruction. The angels didn’t make a lifeless appeal, saying “Come or don’t come, we really don’t care.” With great passion and urgency, they did all they could to persuade Lot and his family. Our evangelism should have a note of urgency and passion, working hard to persuade others for Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:11).

Dear believer, let these three things mark your sharing of the gospel. When you find evangelists who do these things, support and encourage them.

 

The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God.

–Romans 14:22

This week, we’ve been looking at the problem of legalism in the Colossian church. Now let me point out two important principles from this passage for us today.

First of all, we ought to deal with other Christians on the basis of grace, not the law. Romans 14:13 says, “Let us not judge one another anymore.” In those areas the Bible is silent about, we are to quit judging other people. If you feel it’s wrong for you to drink alcohol or gamble, then I’m happy God has led you to that conviction. But don’t make your conviction somebody else’s command. We ought to deal with other people on the basis of grace.

Second, we need to differentiate between legalism and obedience. Somebody might read this passage and think, That means I’m free to do whatever I want to do because I’m under grace, not the law. No, we are to obey God’s commands. Even though the only Old Testament laws that apply to us today are the ones repeated in the New Testament, there are some rules we follow–not to earn our salvation but to merit God’s favor in our lives. God says if we follow His principles about morality, attitudes, and family, we’ll have better lives than if we disobey those principles.

We’re also to obey those whom God has placed in authority over us. For example, if you’re a teenager, don’t tell your parents, “Pastor Jeffress says it’s okay for me to have a can of beer.” Ephesians 6:1 says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” If your parents say you can’t have alcohol, that means no alcohol.

We’re to obey governing authorities as well. Romans 13:1–2 says, “Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. . . . Those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God.” In the United States, the law says you’re not to drink under the age of twenty-one. We are to submit to that authority. It is the same way with our spiritual leaders and our employers. Obeying God means obeying those who are in authority over us.

Remember this: grace is not the freedom to do what we want to do. Grace is the freedom to obey God out of love rather than fear. So many Christians are still living as slaves to sin and slaves to the law. If you’re a Christian, you are free from the burden of trying to earn God’s approval. Instead, you are free to serve God out of genuine appreciation for all He has done for you.

 

The Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.

–Galatians 3:24

What’s the cure for legalism? How do you solve the problem of legalism in your own life or in the church?

In Colossians 2:17, Paul gave two answers to legalism. He wrote that food, drink, festivals, and special days “are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ.”

The first answer to legalism is understanding the law. Paul said the Old Testament law was “a mere shadow.” The shadow of something is always inferior to the object of the shadow, isn’t it? That’s true of the law. The law was an imperfect representation of the righteousness of Jesus Christ. The purpose of the law was not to make people holy–nobody became perfect by keeping the law because nobody could keep the law. Instead, James said the law was like a mirror we look into to see how dirty we are (James 1:23–24). And Paul said, “The Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith” (Galatians 3:24).

The purpose of the law was to bring us to Christ, the only one who can make us clean, but it was an imperfect representation of Christ. We need to understand the limitations of the law. It was simply a shadow of what was yet to come.

The first answer to legalism is understanding the law, and the second answer is understanding Christ. Paul said in Colossians 2:17 that the law is a shadow, but “the substance belongs to Christ.”

Let me illustrate that for you. Let’s say you come home from work one day, and as you’re walking up the sidewalk to your front door, your mate and your children run out to greet you. But instead of hugging and kissing you, they hug and kiss the shadow you’re casting on the sidewalk. They’re on the ground embracing your shadow while you’re standing there by yourself.

Wouldn’t that be ridiculous? Why would they hug your shadow rather than hugging you? You are the real person; the shadow is an imperfect representation of you. But that’s what Paul was saying: the law was simply a shadow of Jesus Christ, an imperfect representation. Now that Christ is here and we have wrapped ourselves in His righteousness, why would we ever go back to depending on that imperfect shadow? That’s the cure to legalism: understanding that the law is a shadow, but Christ is the substance.