 |  |
These pseudo-visions were evidently related to angels who posed as being the
necessary mediators between God and men and so supplanted the One Mediator, Christ
Jesus. This led to their worship, the very thing Satan craved, for he was behind these
false spiritual powers. Satan desires nothing less than the position of God Himself and
the adoration of all creation. How pleased he must have been about the developments at
Colossae! And when we grasp what was happening there, we can better appreciate
Paul's deep concern for the believers who formed the church in that place.
To cease to `hold fast to the Head' could only lead to disaster. Using another figure,
the Lord Himself said, `As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the
vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in Me . . . . . if a man abide not in Me, he is cast
forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and
they are burned' (John 15: 4-6).
Severance from Christ means spiritual death and fruitlessness. So the Apostle goes on
to state:
"If ye died with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the
world, do ye subject yourselves to ordinances, handle not, nor taste, nor touch (all which
things are to perish with the using), after the precepts and doctrines of men? Which
things have indeed a show of wisdom in will-worship, and humility, and severity to the
body; but are not of any value against the indulgence of the flesh" (2: 20-23 R.V.).
Paul has already insisted on the believer's identification with Christ in His death,
burial, quickening, raising and ascension. He goes on to further apply this to them in a
practical way. If this was true, why did they act as though they were still the slaves of
Satan and of men? Why subject themselves to such negative restrictions such as "don't
handle this", "don't eat or touch that", etc., etc.? This was only a mockery of real
sanctification. On the surface it might appear to be humble and wise and spiritual. In
reality it was futile and utterly of no value in preventing the indulgence of the old sinful
nature. Such taboos were also perishable and passed away in the very acts themselves.
They were purely of human invention and were completely deceptive.
There are Christians today who need reminding that real sanctification is positive and
active, not merely negative. It is not sufficient for a believer to say, `I do not do this or
that'. It is what we actually are and do that really matters. This is what an unbelieving
world is watching, not merely our negatives.