Colossians 2:20-23
~16 min read
SERMON OUTLINE
- 💭 Consider this: Are there any practices in your life that are done to impress others rather than to glorify God? What steps can be taken to turn from seeking the approval of others and instead serve God with a pure heart?
- I. The Vanity Of Man-Made Rules
- II. The Vanity Of Do’s And Don’ts
- III. The Vanity Of Self-Promotion
💭 Consider this: Are there any practices in your life that are done to impress others rather than to glorify God? What steps can be taken to turn from seeking the approval of others and instead serve God with a pure heart?
TRANSCRIPT
Our text for today’s message is taken from Colossians chapter 2:20–23.
Allow me to read for you: “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 shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body: not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.
The Lord bless the reading of His holy and sacred Word.
In our previous messages, we have learned what some theologians called the Colossian heresies. Verses 16 and 17 are about the pursuit of spirituality through human achievement. It is legalism. A legalist is someone who believes that salvation or a person’s spirituality is based on Christ plus human works. So how spiritual a person is depends on his ability to conform to certain human standards.
Verses 18 to 19 are about mysticism, which is the pursuit of spirituality through a deeper and higher religious experience. A mystic is someone who believes that the ability to perceive spiritual realities is apart from human intellect and natural senses.
Verses 20 to 23 are about asceticism, which is the pursuit of spirituality through a life of self-denial. An ascetic is someone who sells everything and goes and lives in a monastery, for example.
Basically, these three heresies attacked the sufficiency of Christ. Is Christ all-sufficient, or do we need Christ plus something else for salvation? Most certainly, Christ alone is all-sufficient. In Christ, we have complete salvation, complete forgiveness, and complete victory.
That was why the Apostle Paul took the trouble to explain that if God had given the Colossians, through Jesus Christ, complete salvation, complete forgiveness, and complete victory, why are they still living as if they belong to the world? Why are they still following the philosophies of the world? Why are they still living such a life contrary to what they have been taught, as if Christ alone was not sufficient? This is what this passage is all about.
Throughout church history, this is something all too common. In the third century, there was this person named Saint Anthony. He was the first person to start the monastery. And it was believed that Saint Anthony had never changed his clothes or washed his feet. To him, that kind of self-denial would make him spiritual.
Then some years later, another man named Simeon Stylites went a little further. He spent almost 37 years of his life living on the top of a 50 foot pillar. To him, the path to spirituality was to draw himself away from the world and to expose his body to the elements.
Subsequently, there were thousands and thousands of monks and nuns, including Martin Luther, who turned their backs on the world and lived in the monasteries.
Somehow today, people are still thinking in the same way - that spirituality is about self-denial, something that we do to ourselves to make God accept us, something that we restrain ourselves from doing that we may be seen as spiritual.
Some years ago, I led a group of Christian brethren to help a pastor remove some furniture from his house. When we arrived at his house, it was a very simple house. He did not even have a sofa set, but only some cushions lying on the floor. His rooms did not have doors, and he simply used old curtains in place of the doors.
There is nothing wrong with the simple décor in the house. The problem is when the brethren who helped in the removal later on said to me, ‘That pastor is really spiritual.’ I asked them, ‘How do you know he is spiritual?’ They said, ‘Well, look at his house. It is so simple.’ But what has that got to do with spirituality?
Another pastor in Malaysia used to ride a motorcycle to church and Bible study meetings, and people would say he is so humble, he is so spiritual. But again, what has that got to do with humility and spirituality?
Some people may say pastors should ride bicycles to church. Others may say that is not good enough. They should walk to church. Yet others may say, ‘No, I disagree. I think they should go on their knees and crawl to church. That would be the true measure of spiritual excellence.’ Those are just human perceptions and man-made rules that they concoct in their minds.
People tend to take spiritual pride in self-denial. Now, there may be some self-denials that are necessary. For example, if you are called to be a missionary to go to a third world country to preach the gospel, like Hudson Taylor who went to inland China. He left the comfort of his own home. He lived like the Chinese and ate like them. He even wore a pigtail like the Chinese.
Why did he do that? So he could identify with them and then minister to them. In doing so, he had to deny many things. If that is God’s will for you to accomplish what He wants you to accomplish, to do the work He wants you to do, to be in the place He wants you to be, that is well and good. But even then, it must never be used as an indication of spirituality. Hudson Taylor did what he did simply because God enabled him, and that was God’s will. God had called him.
The title of our message is: ‘The Vanity of Self-Denial to Achieve Spirituality’.
I. The Vanity Of Man-Made Rules
Firstly, Paul emphasised the vanity of man-made rules. He began by saying in verse 20 of Colossians 2, “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”
As believers, we have died with Christ. As Galatians 2:20 says, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”
We are one with Christ. We are one with Him in His suffering, in His death, and in His resurrection.
So Paul was saying, if you have died with Christ, then why are you still going back to the rudiments of the world? You should be free from them. Rudiments can mean basic elements or elementary principles. It refers to the basic world systems.
In other words, what he meant was, if you are dead in Christ and made alive in Him, why are you still living as if you belong to the world? Why are you still living as if you are following the philosophies of the world? Why are you still subjecting yourselves to ordinances? The word ordinances refers to those man-made rules designed to promote spirituality. The more you conform to those man-made rules, the more spiritual you are. This is what the world says.
II. The Vanity Of Do’s And Don’ts
What were those man-made rules? Verse 21 says, “Touch not; taste not; handle not.” This is the vanity of dos and don’ts. Most likely, “touch not” is a reference to those people who teach that one of the highest forms of self-denial is to abstain from marriage. One good example is the Roman Catholic priests who abstain themselves from marriage.
By the way, the Roman Catholics believe that Peter was the head of the church. The Pope, according to their view, was the successor of the Apostle Peter. And they misinterpreted when Jesus said to Peter, ‘Upon this rock I will build My church.’ They thought and presumed that Jesus was speaking about Peter, who would be the foundation of the church.
Since Peter’s name means Petros, they thought that was the case. But when Jesus said, ‘I will build My church upon this rock,' He used another Greek word, Petra, which means big rock. The name Peter means stone or small rock. In reality, Jesus was speaking about Himself being the Rock, the solid foundation from which the church is built.
The point I am trying to make is that even if they look to Peter to be the foundation of the church, he was married. Remember, Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law. So if Peter was married, why would the Pope and the priests abstain themselves from marriage? Nevertheless, they still teach that if one denies himself of marriage, he is very pure and spiritual. This is very pervasive in the Roman Catholic Church.
Probably, “taste not” is a reference to those people who teach that another form of self-denial is to abstain from eating meat. In other words, be a vegetarian in our modern times. Better still, be a vegan.
Please turn with me to 1 Timothy 4:3. The false teachers were forbidding the people “to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.”
There is nothing wrong with staying single if that is God’s will and you have the gift of celibacy. In fact, remaining single may help you to be more effective in serving the Lord. Just as there is nothing wrong with abstaining from eating meats, especially when you are fasting and praying. But remember, at the very beginning, God created food and instituted marriage, and then He pronounced them as good.
God created them to give man joy and to bring Himself glory. How foolish it is to abstain from God’s kindness and to deny Him to be glorified. These are the things that God has created to be received with thanksgiving. If we have meat to put on the table, we give thanks to God. If God brings someone into our lives for us to get married, we give thanks to Him. It is a blessing.
And yet the false teachers had the audacity to forbid what God allows. We do not know for sure what the phrase “touch not” is referring to. Perhaps there are some people who forbid the handling of strangers or unbelievers or someone who is considered religiously inferior, like the scribes, Pharisees, and the Jews during Paul’s time who treated the Gentiles with disdain and treated them as religious inferiors.
They did not even allow them to hear the message of salvation. As Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 2:16, “forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved”. So they considered them as unclean, not worthy of hearing the gospel message.
Or maybe “handle not” is a reference to the things of the world. So there are people who emphasise that you should not wear expensive clothes or eat good food. A simple diet and simple clothes are necessary for spirituality. So the moment they see someone wear branded clothing or eat good food, he or she is deemed as not spiritual.
Or if they see someone wearing simple homemade clothes and eat simple food, he or she is deemed as spiritual. Obviously, we should not eat like a glutton. We do not live to eat but eat to live. And we should dress modestly. A godly girl would not dress sensuously to tempt others.
But a girl can still wear a very decent dress all the way down to her ankles, and yet she can have a lustful heart. So what we eat and what we wear is only a good indication of our spirituality if it is a true reflection of our hearts. It is the heart that matters, and God sees into the innermost of our hearts.
The problem with these things, “touch not, taste not, handle not”, is because they are seen as essential elements to salvation, to true worship, to true service, to true spirituality. It is all an outward show today.
If you look at all the religions in this world, they all have a certain set of rules. Touch not, taste not, handle not. The Muslims will tell you that one must not eat pork. The Mormons will tell you that one should not drink coffee or tea.
The Buddhists will teach that monks are forbidden to sleep on comfortable beds or handle money or eat food after midday or indulge in entertainments or wear jewellery or perfume. This mentality is so contagious, directly or indirectly, that it has crept into the Christian churches as well.
Christianity has become a set of dos and don’ts, not in accordance with the Word of God, not in line with the commandments of God. People look at you and say if you do not come for prayer meeting, or do not attend fellowship group meetings or Bible studies, or you are not serving in a particular way in a specific ministry, you are not spiritual.
Please do not misunderstand me. All these spiritual activities are good and necessary. But it is not about the attendance. It is about the heart. And God sees into the heart why we are doing what we are doing.
If we love the Lord, if we love His Word, if we love the fellowship of the saints, we would most certainly want to attend those spiritual activities and serve together with the brethren to the glory of God. Right? So it is not just the actions. It is not just a set of dos and don’ts. It must come from our hearts, and it must be in line with God’s truth.
But all these people during the time of Paul were teaching sets of dos and don’ts known as the rudiments of the world, which are outside of the Holy Scriptures. And only when you conform to these man-made rules, then you will be considered spiritual.
Look at verse 22, “Which all are to perish with the using; after the commandments and doctrines of men?” Notice the last phrase, “after the commandments and doctrines of men.” Which means they are not God’s commandments. They are the commandments and teachings of men. They are just some humanistic religions.
Can you imagine the food that you eat, the wealth that you have, the jobs that you do, they are all perishable things. After you use them, they would perish. Right? And yet men would take these perishable things and impose them on you as measures of spirituality.
God does not expect all of us to live in poverty. If it is God’s will for us to be poor, we should accept it humbly and believe that He has a purpose for it. If it is God’s will for us to be rich, like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Job, and so forth, it is most certainly not sinful, because God is the One who has blessed us.
But we must make sure that we use our resources wisely to the glory of His precious Name. All these things will one day perish.
III. The Vanity Of Self-Promotion
Our final point is the vanity of self-promotion. Why do we say these man-made rules have something to do with self-promotion? Look at verse 23, “Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body: not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.”
In other words, all these self-deniers may have the appearances of wisdom in your own idea of worship, services and spirituality. Your outward show of humility – and even subject yourself to self-torture, self-abuse, and willingly afflict yourself – is to make yourself appear to be spiritual, to make yourself feel good about yourself, so much so that you think you have elevated to the next level of spirituality.
That is self-promotion, but it is empty. Vanity of vanities, because there is no value at all. What you do with no connection to your heart for God means nothing. And what you do is of no value at all because it cannot fight against the flesh.
Instead, it satisfies the flesh, because that is what the flesh wants, to feel good, to feel that you are spiritual, to be praised, to have your back patted by someone saying, ‘Well done. You are so godly, so holy.’ You are satisfying the flesh.
There is no one and nothing we can do, relying on our own abilities and strength, to fight against the evil lust and temptation that so easily besets us. We have absolutely no spiritual power to fight against the flesh if we live such a life. It is all an outward show.
There was once a monk named Benedict who thought that as long as he was away from the world, far, far away, he was free from sin and temptation. He would be spiritual and holy. So he went into the deep jungle, dug a well, and lived in the well.
This is a true story. And every day he arranged for someone to bring him food and water. And every day this person would tie a rope around a pail and then lower it down into the well for Benedict to eat the food and drink the water.
One day, as the pail was being lowered down, Benedict saw how the rope wavered, and he was reminded of a beautiful woman dancing before him. And he started to lust in his heart, even though he was in the deep well.
Finally, he realised that the true origin of evil and temptation was not in his outward show of spirituality or in what he could do. But it was within his own heart. And there is no one who can conquer his heart except the Spirit of God.
Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 6:16–18, “Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.”
So the outward show of spirituality is for the world to see, and it is for us to feel good about ourselves. But it is the heart that matters. Because our heavenly Father who sees in secret, sees into the deepest recesses of our hearts, and He knows why we do what we do.
No one can help us. No one can save us. No one can transform our lives. Only the Almighty God.
Today we are living in perilous times, and the attack on the sufficiency of Christ, that Christ alone is sufficient, has changed its gears. If you consider the charismatic movement, from self-denial it is swinging to the other extreme - the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel.
They will say to you, if you are rich and wealthy and healthy, you are blessed by God. You have faith. God is pleased with you. Your prayers have been answered. But if you are poor, sick, and unsuccessful, then you have not been blessed or you lack faith in God. You are not spiritual. They have swung to the other extreme. Spirituality is about how much you have and who you are.
Dear friend, Satan, our great adversary, is most happy to present Christianity in this kind of light. Because a religion of Christ plus self-denial, or Christ plus human works, will distract the people from the heart of Christianity, the essence of Christianity, which is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Satan knew that such a religion would appeal to the human senses, because men prefer the idea that the way to go to God is through my own works, one of which is self-denial. And through that, God will find me acceptable, rather than accepting the fact that we are all undeserving sinners who need God’s forgiveness.
There is nothing we can ever do that can earn our salvation. Absolutely nothing. It is only to the cross we cling, trusting that Jesus came for us, He died on the cross for us and shed His precious blood to wash away all our sins, rose again from the dead, and He is the life and the resurrection.
And we embrace Him by faith, trusting in nothing else, only Him alone. That is the only way. And we thank God for His precious, infallible, and inerrant Word that teaches us that in Jesus Christ alone we have complete salvation, complete forgiveness, and complete victory.
In the words of Hudson Taylor who said this, ‘Christ is either Lord of all, or He is not Lord at all.’ In other words, Christ is either your Lord, the One who saves you, the One who is your Master whom you trust in Him alone, or He is not your Lord at all.
I pray that all of us, regardless of what we have done, by the grace of God we may have done some good things, praised by men, remembered by people, but it is always by the grace of God.
Nothing we can ever do, can earn God’s acceptance for salvation. Once we are saved, through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, whatever we do in Jesus’ Name will bless Him.
May the Lord bless us with the teachings of His precious Word. Let us pray.
Our Father in heaven, we give Thee thanks for how Thou hast enabled us to study through the Book of Colossians, and we have come to this passage. For in time past, Thou hast taught us about the dangers of legalism and the dangers of mysticism, and today Thou hast taught us about the vanity of self-denial to achieve spirituality or salvation.
No one can ever do that. It is only in Jesus Christ, the all-sufficient God. In Him alone we trust. In Christ we have complete salvation, forgiveness, and victory.
And we pray that we will trust in nothing else, only the blood of Jesus Christ, not the rudiments of this world, for they are about the commandments and doctrines of men, man-made rules to make us look good before the world or to make us feel good about ourselves, thinking that we have reached a certain level of spirituality. But in reality it is empty, because there is nothing in our hearts. And without Christ, we can never fight against the lust, evil, sin, and temptation that besets us.
So we pray that Thou wilt teach us that it is not because of us, but in spite of us. We should always cling to the cross, trusting in Jesus, the all-sufficient God, the One who saves us and continues to save us and will save us to the uttermost.
We pray all this in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
THE BOOK OF COLOSSIANSA Faith And Love That ShinesA Faith And Love That ShinesColossians 1:1-4
The Blessedness Of Our Christian HopeThe Blessedness Of Our Christian HopeColossians 1:5-6a
The Transforming Power Of The GospelThe Transforming Power Of The GospelColossians 1:6b-8
The Need For PrayersThe Need For PrayersColossians 1:9
Prayer for Spiritual ExcellencePrayer for Spiritual ExcellenceColossians 1:9-12
Walk Worthy Of The LordWalk Worthy Of The LordColossians 1:10-11
What Does It Mean To Call God Our Father?What Does It Mean To Call God Our Father?Colossians 1:12a
What Does It Mean To Be Citizens Of God’s Kingdom?What Does It Mean To Be Citizens Of God’s Kingdom?Colossians 1:12b-13
I Am Redeemed And ForgivenI Am Redeemed And ForgivenColossians 1:14
Christ, The Invisible GodChrist, The Invisible GodColossians 1:15
Jesus Our Creator Loves Me, This I KnowJesus Our Creator Loves Me, This I KnowColossians 1:16-17; Romans 8:37-39
What Is Christ’s Relationship With The Church?What Is Christ’s Relationship With The Church?Colossians 1:18
What Does It Mean To Be Reconciled To God?What Does It Mean To Be Reconciled To God?Colossians 1:19-22
The Evidence Of Our SalvationThe Evidence Of Our SalvationColossians 1:23a
Are We Willing To Suffer For Christ?Are We Willing To Suffer For Christ?Colossians 1:23b-24
How Faithful Are We?How Faithful Are We?Colossians 1:25-27
What Does It Take To Be Faithful In The Ministry?What Does It Take To Be Faithful In The Ministry?Colossians 1:28-29
The Indispensable Component In Serving GodThe Indispensable Component In Serving GodColossians 2:1-2a
This Is What I Wish For You To Have And To BeThis Is What I Wish For You To Have And To BeColossians 2:2b-5
Message 3: What is Christ to you? My Covenantal Head!Message 3: What is Christ to you? My Covenantal Head!Colossians 2:4-9, 19
The Evidence Of Our SalvationThe Evidence Of Our SalvationColossians 2:6-7
Message 4: What is a healthy and sound church? My Covenantal Haven!Message 4: What is a healthy and sound church? My Covenantal Haven!Colossians 2:7
Our Spiritual Union With ChristOur Spiritual Union With ChristColossians 2:11-12
Message 2: What is Church to you? My Covenantal Family!Message 2: What is Church to you? My Covenantal Family!Exodus 12:48-49, Colossians 2:11-12
What It Means To Be ForgivenWhat It Means To Be ForgivenColossians 2:13-14
Faith In Christ Is The VictoryFaith In Christ Is The VictoryColossians 2:15
The Danger Of Being LegalisticThe Danger Of Being LegalisticColossians 2:16-17
The Danger Of Spiritual DeceptionThe Danger Of Spiritual DeceptionColossians 2:18-19
The Vanity Of Self-Denial To Achieve SpiritualityThe Vanity Of Self-Denial To Achieve SpiritualityColossians 2:20-23
Seek Those Things Which Are AboveSeek Those Things Which Are AboveColossians 3:1-2
What Does It Mean To Be In Christ?What Does It Mean To Be In Christ?Colossians 3:3-4
Mortification Of SinMortification Of SinColossians 3:5-7
Put Off All These ThingsPut Off All These ThingsColossians 3:8-9
Put On The New ManPut On The New ManColossians 3:10-11
Human Wisdom Versus God’s WisdomHuman Wisdom Versus God’s WisdomColossians 2:8-10
