Friday, October 27, 2017

Don’t Allow Yourself To Be Distracted

One of the most effective tools false teachers use is the idea that there is something more that is missing from your spiritual life, whether it be financial wealth and prosperity, or a second blessing of being filled with the Spirit so that you can speak in tongues or do miracles.  Hundreds of seminars, revivals, and training sessions are held each year trying to produce that something extra in the Christians who attend.   In order to obtain these extra things, we need to spend more hours in prayer or soul winning or positive affirmations, give more offerings to the Lord, take some special discipleship or other training course or start using a different style of music and worship service to attain maximum spiritual blessings. 

Paul paints a very different picture in Colossians 2:10-15.  “And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.  And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.”

When you received Christ, you received the Holy Spirit.  If you do not have him, then you have not been saved, according to Romans 8:9.  “…Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.”   A physical circumcision is unnecessary, because God has spiritually circumcised us, removing our sins through Christ’s being cut off or killed for us. We have been crucified with Christ through faith, and have received a new life, with all our sins forgiven.  He has set us free from the law which made us aware of our sins, so that we are no longer subject to it, as Romans 10: 4 tells us.  “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.”  He has defeated Satan and the powers of the world, and is now seated on the throne in heaven as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  We are completely remade as II Corinthians 5:17-18 tells us.  “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.  And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ…”   

Because God has changed us completely, making a new person of us, we ought not allow others to condemn because we don’t do things the same way they do.  Colossians 2:16 commands, “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.”    Those physical practices are only an attempt to show physically what is happening spiritually.  The real worship is spiritual, as John 4:24 tells us.  “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”    The heart attitude is far more important than the physical rituals or practices. 

We need to be careful not to let false teachers destroy our blessings by making us feel inferior or focusing our attention on spirit beings or other things.  Colossians 2:18-19 instructs, “Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.”  Too often unspiritual leaders have an inflated ego that leads them to talk about things they have no real knowledge about, and the focus becomes on those things rather than on Christ himself.    When the focus is on Christ and what the scriptures teach, God will cause the church to grow both numerically and spiritually, without all their programs and promotions. 

As Romans 10:4 says, “Christ is the end of the law to everyone that believeth.”  Colossians 2:20-23 asks, “Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, (Touch not; taste not; handle not; Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men?  Which things have indeed a show of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.”  Why go back to trying to be good enough to go to heaven by keeping earthly rules when Christ has already done everything for us.  While those things give an illusion of being good and righteous, and make us feel good, they will never produce eternal satisfaction. 


We must not let ourselves be distracted by all the expert’s seminars and programs.  Colossians 3:1-3 commands, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.”  We are dead to the world and its things no longer control our lives.  Our concern ought to be on pleasing Christ rather than any earthly accomplishment.    We shouldn’t be any more  worried about how many we win to Christ, how big a church we have, or whether we can speak in tongues than whether we have a million dollars to retire with.  As I Corinthians 3:5-7 reminds us, our accomplishments count for very little.   “Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?  I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.  So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.”  Any worthwhile results are thanks to God’s work rather than ours.  

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