above all christ: growing in christ

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ABOVE ALL CHRIST: GROWING IN CHRIST 1. INTRODUCTION A. We are continuing our series through the book of Colossians this morning. I’ve titled this message “Growing in Christ,” because this week, we are going to consider what it means to grow as a Christian. As I was preparing for this message and thinking about growth, I came across a story of a group of tourists that was walking through a beautiful, picturesque village. It looked like something out of a Thomas Kincade photo. They came across an elderly gentleman sitting on a park bench. One of the tourists asked the old man, “Were any great men born here?” and the man replied, “No great men. Only babies.” This story illustrates a powerful spiritual truth. When we are born again, none of us are born as spiritually mature Christians. We are babies in Christ. But now that we are born again, God expects us and enables us to grow in Christ. B. However, as we’ve talked about in previous weeks, the Colossian church was facing pressure from false teachers, and this letter was largely written to respond to the false teaching. One of the major things about this false teaching is that it was a threat to the supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus Christ. The false teachers wanted to offer the Colossians a religion that was “Jesus plus ____”. And the main point of this letter is that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is supreme over all things. And since Jesus is supreme, he is totally sufficient for everything in our lives. C. Last week we saw that Jesus was sufficient to save us from the penalty of our sins and defeat Satan. Our sins were nailed to the cross, and Christ has triumphed over the forces of darkness and put them to open shame. And because of that, Jesus is sufficient to cause us to grow and mature as believers. The problem with these false teachers is that they were offering shortcuts to spiritual growth. They were offering spiritual “get-rich quick schemes.” What the apostle Paul is teaching us this week is that true spiritual growth only comes by daily holding fast to Christ. With this in mind, let’s take a look at our passage. D.

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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,[d]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. Colossians 2:16-19

2. SPIRITUAL GROWTH DOESN’T COME THROUGH RELIGIOUS REGULATIONS A. The first point I’d like to make about this passage is this-Spiritual Growth doesn’t come through observing certain religious regulations. The false teachers in Colossae were, in effect, telling the believers in the church that they needed to follow the ceremonial law of the Old Testament in order to grow spiritually. B. Paul lists 4 things here. First, he lists “food and drink.” This is probably a reference to the dietary laws of the Old Testament. God commanded that Israel not be like the nations around them, and so certain animals were considered to be ceremonially unclean. This included pigs (bacon!), shellfish, and more. These false teachers were telling the believers in Colossae that they needed to follow these dietary laws to be truly “spiritual.” However, in Acts 10, the Apostle Peter received a vision of a sheet coming down from heaven with unclean animals on it. God commanded Peter to kill and eat. Peter, thinking he was more holy than God, said, “No! I’ve never eaten anything unclean!” God responded by saying, “What God has called clean, do not call common” (Acts 10:16). So God has already declared that the dietary laws of the Old Covenant are no longer binding on the New Covenant Church, but these false teachers were trying to bring them back under them. C. The next three things that Paul mentions in verse 16 are related to ceremonial festivals and practices. First, he mentions “festivals.” There were many annual festivals on Israel’s calendar, such as the feast of Passover, the feast of Pentecost, the Day of Atonement, etc. Next, he mentioned “New Moons.” In the Old Testament, God commanded the people of Israel to make special offerings at the beginning of every month. Finally, he mentions the Sabbath. I don’t have time to get into this debate in this sermon, but I don’t believe that this verse abolishes the fourth of the ten commandments. I believe that the Lord’s Day of the New Covenant has replaced the Sabbath of the Old Covenant, and that we as believers are morally obligated to treat Sunday’s as holy. I’ve written this week’s approaching Sunday blog post on this very issue if you’re interested in reading more. D. I believe that these three things, “festivals, new moons, and sabbaths” should be taken collectively as a reference to the entirety of the ceremonial law of the Old Covenant. They are referring to the sacrificial system that God gave to Israel. E. So here’s the point- the false teachers in Colossae were trying to bring the believers back under the sacrificial system of the Old Testament. They told them, “Yes, you need Jesus, but you also need to continue to offer the animal sacrifices that were commanded under the law of Moses.” Here’s what Paul had to say about that: “These 2

are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” The entire point of the Old Testament sacrificial system was to point forward to the once and for all sacrifice of Jesus! And now that Jesus has come, we don’t need the shadows anymore! Just think of the Passover as an example. This was a feast that the Israelites celebrated to remember their deliverance from Egypt. During the feast, each family would sacrifice a lamb in memory of the Passover lambs that were slain, whose blood covered the house to prevent the angel of death killing the firstborn in the house. Paul says in 1st Corinthians 5:7, “For Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed.” The Passover was a shadow that was intended to point forward to the reality that Jesus would be the “lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” F. To live in the shadow when the reality has come is to live as if the reality is still gone. To observe the ceremonies of the Old Covenant after Jesus has already come and died on the cross is to live as if Jesus never came. Those sacrifices like are a picture, but Jesus is the person in the picture. It’s like a soldier that clings to a photo of his wife and children while he’s deployed overseas. On lonely nights he will look at that picture with tears in his eyes as he imagines being home with his family, holding his wife and playing with his kids. But how foolish would that solider be if, when he gets off the plane and sees his family standing there, with tears in their eyes, holding up a big sign that says, “welcome home daddy!”, he pulled the picture out of his pocket and just stood there, staring at the picture! When you come face to face with the reality, you don’t need the picture anymore. G. So Paul was telling the Colossians, and subsequently us, that Spiritual growth doesn’t come through observing these religious regulations, but only through Jesus, who is the substance of all of these things. So here’s how this applies to us. I think that we’re often tempted to do the same thing. Don’t get me wrong- I don’t think any of you are tempted to offer 7 lambs on the next full moon (If you are, you can talk to the prayer team afterwards. . .) No, the false teachers were encouraging the Colossians to substitute a religious practice that was in itself good for the fulfilment that is Christ. Keep in mind that the dietary and sacrificial laws of the Old Testament are good things. They were commanded by God Himself. But they were pictures of Christ that were being treated by the false teachers as additions to Christ, but functionally became substitutes for Christ. H. So here’s the question-Are there any good things, even biblical things, in your life that you are looking to as a means of growing as a Christian that are functionally becoming a substitute for Jesus? It could be someone else’s faith. For you younger people, you could be trusting in your parents strong faith in God as your way of becoming spiritually mature. If you’re married, you could be doing the same with your spouse’s faith. Maybe you’re banking on your good works such as church attendance, community service, concern for social justice, your abstinence from alcohol and cussing, or general niceness as the ultimate means of growing spiritually. Those are all good things in themselves, but when we treat them as 3

ultimate things, we push Christ out of the picture. True spiritual growth requires a relationship with the person, not just the picture.

3. SPIRITUAL GROWTH DOESN’T COME THROUGH SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCES A. But that’s not all the false teachers were encouraging the Colossians to do. Moving on in our text, Paul tells us that spiritual growth doesn’t come through Spiritual Experiences. Verse 18 says, “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” (Colossians 2:18). The false teachers were boasting in their visions and angelic worship and ascetic practices as if they were the means of becoming spiritual. B. The Greek word in the phrase “Let no one disqualify you” means “to act as a judge who rules and awards prizes in a contest. So it could literally mean, “let no one act as your referee.” These false teachers were the self-appointed spiritual referees in this congregation. They sought to intimidate the believers by imposing certain rules and practices on them and act as if the believers would be spiritually inferior if they didn’t do them. These false teachers were “puffed up without reason by a sensuous mind.” They were arrogant about their supposed level of spirituality. C. I hope you know that the church today isn’t immune from this sort of spiritual bullying. In every Christian circle today there are self-appointed referees who treat Christians from other circles as if they aren’t as holy or spiritual as them if they don’t do certain things. In my own camp, those who would affirm reformed theology, we tend to look down on other believers that haven’t read Calvin’s Institutes. We tend to treat spiritual growth as if it is something that is merely intellectual. Charismatic circles, on the other hand, tend to emphasize mystical experiences as if they are the standard of spirituality. I know many people that were made to feel spiritually inferior because they didn’t speak in tongues. In more traditional Christian circles, people are treated as spiritually inferior if they enjoy any kind of entertainment that isn’t in the Christian sub-genre. I remember being told when I was growing up that it was a sin to listen to secular music, to watch any movies that weren’t Christian, etc. I could give many more examples, but all three of these illustrate the truth that we are prone to treat other Christians who aren’t as concerned about one particular aspect of spiritual growth as us as inferior to us. This is sinful and disunifying, and Paul says “Let no one disqualify you.” Therefore, don’t let anyone do it to you, and don’t do this to anyone else. D. Paul tells us here that the false teachers encourage them to worship angels. Now, obviously this is sinful. Every time an angel is worshipped in the Bible, they immediately rebuke the worshipper and command them to worship God alone. However, in this context, I don’t think that the angels are being treated as the 4

ultimate object of worship, but rather as a means to attain a higher level of spirituality. These false teachers were teaching that God is so far removed from human experience that we can’t ultimately know him, but the way to reach him is through a series of emanations of him that come to us. They believed that Jesus was just one in a series of emanations from God. Therefore, worshipping angels was a way to “walk up this spiritual stairway.” They were treating the angels and Jesus as stairs on the stairway to heaven, and Jesus was just a little higher up the staircase. These angels were being treated as functional mediators between God and man. E. But what does the bible say about this? “There is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1st Timothy 2:5). There are no other mediators. And Jesus is not just one stair on the stairway to God-He is both God, man, and the entire staircase. Jesus is not a way to come closer to God; He is the only way to God. Because you are a sinner and God is holy, you need a mediator. You need someone to stand between you and God to reconcile you to Him. There is no one else that can mediate between you and God other than Jesus. Not angels, not Mary, not the saints, not your relatives, no one but the man Christ Jesus. F. These false teachers also “went on in detail about visions.” They boasted in their religious experiences as if they were the standard of spirituality and would look down on others that didn’t have similar experiences. I think that our current church culture in America is filled with this sort of thinking. We are so prone to treat religious experiences as the measure of a spiritual person. Many of us think that we are Christians today because of some “warm and fuzzy feeling” that we had years ago. G. Speaking from experience, I grew up going to an awesome summer camp. Now, I don’t want to discredit these things-I’m leaving for SWO tomorrow, after all. It’s so valuable to have that time away from the ordinary routine to focus on the Lord and seek Him more intently. But I can remember year after year having this intense emotional experience at camp and swearing I’d never sin again and I’d read my bible for 9 hours a day and burn all of my secular CDs. Then a week later I’d be back to my normal life and nothing had changed. H. We can’t judge a person’s spirituality based on their spiritual experiences alone. Spiritual experiences can very well be genuine, but they can’t be the basis for spiritual growth. Growth in Christ is not about having a powerful experience and then always looking for a bigger and better one. But that’s what we’ve done in the American church. We taught our kids a generation ago that Christianity is all about having that powerful “summer camp” experience and then wonder why a lot of church services feel more like a rock concert than worship. It’s an attempt to recreate that initial spiritual high, and like a drug addiction, our tolerance keeps getting higher and higher. I. 5

The Bible tells us that there will be people who had intense spiritual experiences that aren’t true believers. A clear example of this is Hebrews 6:4-6:

J.

For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt (Hebrews 6:4-6).

K. BTW- This passage is not teaching that a believer can lose their salvation. Pastor Shaun preached this passage a few years ago, so if you’re curious about that you can listen to his sermon. My point is this- It is possible to have intense, genuine spiritual experiences and still not be a believer. Those things can’t be the basis for spiritual growth. L. But if true spiritual growth isn’t about those spiritual experiences, what is it about?

4. SPIRITUAL GROWTH ONLY COMES THROUGH ABIDING IN CHRIST A. Paul tells us in our passage for this morning that the ultimate problem with the false teaching that is being presented is that in it, they are 19 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. B. True spiritual growth only comes through Abiding in Christ. Just as the body is kept alive by its connection to the head, we are spiritually nourished through our connection to Christ. Flip over with me to John 15. We see the exact same principle in Jesus’ teaching there to his disciples. C. “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:1-5). D. Apart from Jesus, we can’t do anything. We can’t grow. We are like a plant that has been ripped up from the ground and tossed aside. We will wither up and die. But if we abide in Christ, we will bear fruit. We will grow. But we can’t do it on our own. And ultimately, that was the problem with the false teachers in Colossae. They were telling the believers in that church that they needed “Jesus plus (fill in the blank)” to be truly spiritual. Jesus plus Old Covenant regulations. Jesus plus the worship of angels. Jesus plus mystical experiences. But “Jesus plus” anything equals nothing. Jesus plus nothing equals everything. Jesus does not need help to save you. And Jesus does not need help to sanctify you.

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E. This passage also teaches us that true spiritual growth has no shortcuts. Abiding in Christ is a lifelong process. Don’t buy into the teaching that there is some sort of “second blessing” that will instantly make you spiritually mature. Becoming like Christ is something that you will never complete in this lifetime, and many of you that have been walking with the Lord for a long time will testify that, the longer you’ve been walking with the Lord, the more and more aware you are of the depth of your sinfulness. This can be frustrating and discouraging. Pastor Shaun often says that one of the things that he is most excited about in heaven is the reality that he will be without sin. I think all true believers live in that tension. We long to “arrive” spiritually. We want to be free from the presence of sin in our lives. But as John Newton, the author of “Amazing Grace” once said, “I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am.” So don’t be discouraged. This is a lifelong process, but God the Father is so committed to making you holy that He sent His Son to die for you and His Spirit to live within you. He won’t give up on you. 9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9). F. Lastly, Colossians 2:19 says that when we are connected to the Head, who is Christ, we “grow with a. growth that is from God.” It is God who causes us to grow. We are totally dependent upon Him to grow just like a flower is totally dependent on sunlight and water to grow. Without the Spirit of God working in us, we are helpless to grow. This doesn’t mean we can just sit around and wait for God to grow us though. God’s working in us to cause us to grow is basis for our working to grow. “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12-13). We must work hard to grow, but the basis of that growth is God’s work in us.

5. CONCLUSION A. I’m sure many of you are thinking, “That’s great. I’d love to grow spiritually. But how? This “abiding in Christ” stuff sounds great, but what do I do?” I’m glad you asked. The secret to spiritual growth is that there is no secret to spiritual growth. It’s the same stuff we tell you to do week in and week out. Come to church. Read your Bible. Pray. Get baptized. Take the Lord’s Supper. Join a small group. Serve the community. Go on a mission trip. Love your spouse. Disciple your kids. I get the feeling that the false teachers in Colossae weren’t satisfied with what we call the “ordinary means of grace” like the ones I just listed. They thought it had to be something bigger than that. The cheap shortcuts to spiritual growth that the false teachers in Colossae were pedaling are like get-rich-quick schemes. They promise a shortcut to success, and they end up being a massive waste of money and time. But 7

there are no shortcuts here. It’s living day in and day out in relationship with Jesus and with His church. It’s the choice to repent and believe in the gospel every day. B. So If I get just get really practical for a minute and move from preaching to meddling, I’d like to encourage you to do this: Whatever time you wake up in the morning for work, set your alarm a little earlier. Whatever time your kids wake up in the morning, set your alarm just a little earlier. For some of you that could be an hour. For some of you 5 minutes would make a tremendous difference. Get alone with God and have communion with him. Speak to Him in prayer and let Him speak to you through His Word. It is more important than anything you have to do that day. The reformer Martin Luther is famous for a lot of things, but not a lot of people know just how devoted this man was to prayer. He used to spend hours every day in prayer. One day he is reported to have said, “I have so much to do today that I must devote three hours to prayer.” Aren’t we usually the opposite? When we have a lot going on, our time with God is the first thing that gets pushed to the side. It should be the other way around. The more we have to do, the more we need to be reminded of our dependency upon God for everything. C. So Coastal, devote yourself to spiritual growth. There is nothing more important in your life than your growth to become more like Jesus. True growth is from God, through Christ. There are no shortcuts. It’s not about one-time experiences, but a lifetime of growing. May we be a church that is committed to “hold 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.”

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