Sermon Title: Do Not Be Fooled, Study to be Approved (2Tim2:15)
Colossians 2:8 EASY English Bible
Be careful that you do not believe any false teachers. The ideas that they teach may seem clever. But they really want to deceive you. They are ideas that have come from the human minds of our ancestors. Or ideas that come from spirits that belong to this world. They are not the true message about Christ.
Background:
1. This letter was written during one of Paul’s many imprisonments for announcing Jesus as King. Unlike his other letters, this is addressed to a group of people that he had never met and a community that he didn’t start.
2. Epaphras had also mentioned some of the cultural pressures that were tempting them to turn away from Jesus. Paul wrote this letter to encourage the Colossians, address the issues Epaphras had raised, and challenge them to a greater devotion to Jesus.
3. Key Themes: Jesus as King over all creation, Liberation through Jesus, Freedom in the Messiah
6 You have accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord. So remember that you belong to him as you live your lives. 7 Get your strength from Christ himself, so that you become stronger and stronger.[a] Continue to believe the true message that we taught you. And thank God very much for everything.
The Problem:
The Colossian church was facing problems from false teachers who were threatening the faith of its members. These teachers were undermining the deity of Jesus and the sufficiency of his sacrifice on the cross.
Their teachings included:
Ungodly philosophy(God does not exist but morals come from good men), Jewish legalism (live by the Torah), Mysticism (Horoscopes, crystals amulets, etc.), Ascetic living (Fasting example), and An emphasis on rules and regulations that is found anywhere in Jesus or the Apostle teachings.
Message:
Here are some arguments we have today about what is in scripture and why people have a problem with Christianity.
Are these phrases from the Bible:
1. “Spare the rod spoil the child” false from a 17th century poem by Samuel Butler
2. “God works in mysterious ways” false from 1731 English poet William Cowper
3. “Three wise men visited Jesus on the day of his birth” No number was specified
4. “This too shall pass” false do not appear in the bible
This too shall pass
1. It’s not in any translations it could be considered a coin phrase or idiom.
An example of an idiom would be Better late than never (Better to arrive late than not to come at all) Easy does it (slow down) Hang in there (Don’t give up).
2. Where to find this phrase in the bible:
· 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
· If we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; 2 Timothy 2:3
· Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4
· Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. James 4:14
James has spent most of this chapter warning about the wisdom of the world. This includes the attitude of success at all costs, and selfish ambition. In that context, verse 13 imagined the declaration of a businessman: "Today or tomorrow, we will…" James wants us to hear this statement in the context of his prior points. We should recognize our own arrogance in believing that we are the masters of our own fate. We want to think of ourselves as able to do whatever we put our minds to, especially if that involves gathering for ourselves money or status or comfort.