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Guarding Our Completeness in Christ

July 28, 2019 Speaker: Michael Knight Series: Colossians

Topic: Christian Growth Passage: Colossians 2:16–23

We are “completely complete” in Christ. Nothing satisfies like Jesus. In Colossians 2:16-23, the Apostle Paul warns believers at Colossae not to fall back into old, pre-salvation thinking. We don’t need other things to complete us.

1. Guard Yourself Against Legalism (Colossians 2:16-17; Matthew 7:18:20; 1 Corinthians 8:8)

“Legalism is the religion of human achievement. It argues that spirituality is based on Christ plus human works. It makes conformity to man-made rules the measure of spirituality.” - John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Colossians and Philemon, (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 1992), p. 116

• Don’t let people judge you in your diet.
• Don’t let people judge you in your days—religious celebrations and keeping of the Sabbath. (Leviticus 21 & 23; Acts 20:7; Romans 14; 1 Corinthians 5:7)
- Keeping rules doesn’t make you more righteous.
- It can make you a more critical, judgmental person. 
- It robs you of inward joy.
- It can create a focus on the external rather than the internal. (Galatians 5:1)

* DON’T LET PEOPLE JUDGE YOU BASED ON MAN-MADE RULES; YOU ARE COMPLETE IN CHRIST!

2. Guard Yourself Against Mysticism (Colossians 2:18-19)

“Mysticism may be defined as the pursuit of a deeper or higher subjective religious experience. It is the belief that spiritual reality is perceived apart from the human intellect and natural senses. It looks for truth internally, weighing feelings, intuition, and other internal sensations more heavily than objective, observable, external data.”  - John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Colossians and Philemon, (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 1992), p. 120

* DON’T LET PEOPLE DEFRAUD YOU BY LETTING THEM CONVINCE YOU THAT YOU NEED SOME RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE; YOU ARE COMPLETE IN CHRIST!

3. Guard Yourself Against Asceticism (Colossians 2:20-23)

“Asceticism is the practice of self-discipline, especially the renunciation of certain bodily pleasures.... Asceticism is the attempt to achieve holiness by rigorous self-neglect, self-denial and inflicting pain on oneself.” - Millard Erickson, Concise Dictionary of Christian Theology, (Ada, Michigan: Baker Publishing Group, 1986), p. 15

- Asceticism feeds the flesh by denial of the flesh (fasting, etc.). It doesn’t give you merit with God. Our righteousness is in Jesus Christ.

* DON’T SUBMIT TO MAN’S DECREES TO EXPIATE SIN; YOU ARE COMPLETE IN CHRIST!