Christ is Preeminent Over the World and the Church

March 11, 2012

Colossians 2:1-19

Paul outlines the philosophies of the world and he is talking to church folks. He says, don’t get tangled up in the philosophies of the world. The Church should not be a copy of the world. People should be able to look at us and see that there is a difference in us.

V2-4: Paul first says we must understand the things of God. We MUST know what God says. We may not understand all of it but we need to know what we can and cannot do. We know God as we read the Word of God and the Holy Spirit makes clear to us the things of God. The Word of God is a mystery to those who do not know God. God doesn’t want his Word to be mysterious to us so he makes provision so that we can understand the Word of God. God doesn’t want us to be deceived.

V6-7: Be rooted in God. We need to have a foundation in the Word of God. If my desire is to live for God then my foundation must be rooted in Him. No one wants to grow bent. WE want to grow straight. If you have a good foundation you will grow straight. If your foundation is wishy-washy you will not. Beware!

THE ONLY WAY WE CAN KNOW THAT WE ARE FOLLOWING THE WORD IS BY BEING IN THE WORD

Paul says beware of those who would cheat you or give empty promise. We can be deceived because we don’t know the principles of the Word. I can’t live for God and be breaking his Word.

V9-10: God is over all things. If we want to see success in our lives we have to know the savior.

V11-17: Christ is the head of the church and we MUST follow God’s Word. God is not concerned with the outward appearance but our HEARTS. People turn away from God because of so many rules (legalism) but we show our relationship with Christ through a change in our heart. The outward change is not as important as the inward change. We can live the Christian life through Jesus Christ.

It’s about RELATIONSHIP.

We want to be happy in our lives. We want peace in our lives. We want to know that everything is right between me and God.

V18: It’s NOT about religion. God says talk to me, directly to me. You don’t need an intermediary the way religion says. God must have preeminence in the church and over religion. Rules never get you close to God. It’s about obedience to a God who loves us.

The key is that it’s NOT about religion and making up things but about obedience to God. Religion never makes you do the right thing. The only one who changes our lives, in a way that we please God and ourselves, is God.

Christ must have preeminence (control) over everything. We must do it God’s way. When we do God makes sure that others see us. God wants us to be a standard in the world and not a copy.

Pastor Pete