This transcript was generated by whisper.ai.

Welcome to Daily Drive Time Devotions in Day 4 of our study together through
Colossians Chapter 2. We're going to be looking at verses 16 to 19 today. As we
begin these verses, let me remind you of what we ended up talking about
yesterday.

We ended by talking about the cross. Everything we're going to talk about today
is because of what happened at the cross. Canceled, our sins are canceled at the
cross, disarmed, the powers of evil are disarmed at the cross.

And because of that, we should begin to act and live in a different way. And as
Paul writes in verses 16 to 19, he talks about acting and living in a different
way when it comes to what false teachers or false teachings are challenging us
to do in our lives. What he's saying here is, if I don't accept into my heart,
into my life, the true and deep power of what Jesus did on the cross, then I'm
going to think I have to add something else so that I can feel the power of God
in my life.

I'm going to be drawn into and even captivated by these temptations that false
teachers lay out that say, "Hey, if you'll only do this, if you'll only live
this way or be this kind of person, then you'll really have the spiritual power
that you need. When I really understand the power of the cross, I don't need
these things. " That's the therefore.

In verse 16, the first word is therefore. And whenever you see a therefore in
the Bible, the famous phrase is you have to ask, "What is it there for? " Well,
it's there to remind you that this is all about the cross.

Therefore, because of what Jesus did for you on the cross, therefore, do not let
anyone judge you by what you eat or drink or with regard to a religious festival
or a new moon celebration or a Sabbath day. Going on, verse 17, "These are a
shadow of the things that were to come. The reality, however, is found in
Christ.

Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels
disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what
he's seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. He has lost
connection with the head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together
by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow.

" Paul tells you what to watch out for here. Watch out for two things. Watch out
for people who evaluate your spirituality according to their list of rules.

Everybody has their list. Here, he talks about what you eat or drink or a
religious festival, a new moon, a Sabbath day. It's good to have a Sabbath day.

It's good to have a day of worship. But people who judge you by how you handle
your Sabbath day, your spirituality, that is big trouble, and they like to trap
you. They like to trap you into thinking, "If you'll just handle your Sabbath
day, your Saturday that you worship, or your Sunday that you worship God with
other believers, if you'll just handle that in this certain way, then you'll
truly be close to Christ.

" Their list of rules. Paul says, "Wait a minute. Let's look at the truth.

In the Old Testament, God did give some rules about what you should eat. God did
give some rules about days that you should worship. And even in the New
Testament, God encourages us to gather together to worship, but this list of
rules, it should not be seen as spirituality.

These are simply tools in our lives for our spiritual growth. Rules, Paul says
here, even the good ones are only a shadow. They're a shadow of the things that
were to come.

The reality, he says, is found in Christ. So again, Paul takes us back to
Christ. Whenever anybody wants to put something in between you and Jesus,
whether it's a list of rules, even good rules, or anything else, don't let them
do it.

Get the stuff out that's between you and Jesus, because the whole idea of the
Christian life is Jesus Christ. The whole idea of the Christian life is Jesus
Christ. Now, that leads to this next one, when we talk about things that are put
in between you and Jesus.

Watch out for people who want to evaluate your spirituality according to their
list of rules, and then watch out for people who delight in false humility and
false worship. These people had a false humility. Humility was so humble that it
was actually pride.

The humility was so humble that they thought they couldn't talk to God, that
they thought they couldn't connect with God. Whenever you hear somebody say
something like, "Well, God wouldn't be interested in me. " Well, God certainly
wouldn't hear my prayers.

Well, God doesn't see what's happening in my little life, my little corner of
the world. That is false humility. Why is it false?

Because the Bible tells us clearly that God is interested in you. He created
you. He loves you.

He has a purpose for your life. It's false humility. And this false humility for
them led to the worship of angels.

We've talked about that a couple of times in Colossians. What's the big idea
about this? Why did they worship angels?

Because of their false humility. Because they believed in the Gnostic teaching
that God couldn't be in direct contact with people. The material world, material
people, we're just too evil.

And so we needed, we need go-betweens between us and God. And they came to the
point where they worshiped these go-betweens. They said, "Well, we can't get
close to God because this world's too evil and we're too evil.

We can't actually talk to him, worship him. But angels, you know, they're not
quite God. So maybe we could worship angels.

" So that's what they did. And you still see this today. The question behind
this is, why do people worship what God has made instead of the God who made it?

For instance, today, why do people worship nature but not worship God? That
makes no sense at all. Yet you find people doing it all the time.

Why would I worship the things, the beautiful things that God has made, but not
personally talk to the one who made them? That's like the author of a book being
in the room and me talking to somebody that's right next to the author saying,
"Wow, this is a great book. I really appreciate this book.

This book has changed my life," and not personally talking to the person who's
there. The only reason to do that is because either you believe you can't
connect with God or and here's the depth of this, you don't want to connect with
God. Why do people worship nature but not worship God?

Truth of the matter is, by false worship, I can still live the life that I want
to live. You see, the minute I get into direct contact with God, God's going to
direct my life. He is the Lord.

He's the master of this universe. But if I can get in contact with something
that's lesser than God, something that's not as personal as God, then I don't
have to worry about that directing my life. That's why we allow false worship to
come into our lives, because we want to control our gods.

We want to control our life. Paul says, here's how you recognize when this is
happening, somebody who's involved in false worship and false humility, they go
into great detail about what they've seen, what they have seen. Not what God's
word says, not what Jesus did, but their great detail is about just my
experience.

It's all based on experience. None of it's based on Jesus or on truth. Well,
when it comes to experience, we could argue experience all day long.

You've got to go back to truth. And the truth is, when somebody tells me their
experience or when I tell somebody else my experience, I may be lying, I may be
confused, I may not remember it right, but I'll tell you this. God did come into
this world in Jesus Christ.

God did change history in that Jesus died for us on a cross and was resurrected
again. Those are truths that no one can argue. Those are firmly established in
history.

The greatest historians say that this is the greatest history and it cannot be
denied. And that's the truth that you hold on to. You watch out for people who
want to evaluate you according to their list of rules and make that into some
kind of spirituality.

And you watch out for people who delight in false humility and false worship. In
fact, Paul says about these people, these false teachers, they've lost
connection with the head. They've lost connection.

In thinking they couldn't make connection or in not wanting to make connection,
they've lost connection with the head, which is Jesus Christ. And that's the one
from whom the whole body supported and held together. That's the one from whom
God causes it to grow.

So what's the lesson in this when false teaching comes my way or when I see it
in somebody else's life? Get connected to Jesus. Get connected to Jesus Christ.

In fact, as we pray together, let's take a few moments to do that right now. And
as you pray, say, Jesus Christ, thank you that by your death for me on the cross
and because of your resurrection from the dead, as the book of Hebrews says, I
can come boldly now to the throne of God and I can talk to you personally. And
if some some false word from someone has kept you from thinking that lately,
this prayer might be the most important prayer you pray.

God, thank you that I can come boldly to you and talk to you personally about
anything, about everything. And so, Jesus, I come to you right now and talk to
him, talk to him personally about your life, talk to him about decisions and
needs, praise him for what he's doing right now. Connect with him, not not the
thought of him, not some far distant him, but the fact that Jesus Christ is
right here right now and you can connect with him.

Don't lose connection with the head of the church, Jesus Christ. Keep connection
with the head of the church. He's never going to turn his back on you.

He's never going to be far from you. You draw near to him. He draws near to you.

Jesus Christ, we thank you that we are connected to you because of what you have
done for us, your love for us. In your name, we praise you. Amen.

Well, join us tomorrow. Paul has a few more things to say to these false
teachers as we end our study of Colossians 2.