Aleethia!

This post is part of a teaching series on the book of Colossians. All of the lessons in this series can be found here. In the first lesson we outlined the book. In each subsequent lesson we look at one small section of the outline and seek to answer five questions concerning the text.

In the last lesson we say Paul dealing with the underlying philosophy of gnosticism that was held by the false teachers at Colossae. Now Paul begins to deal with specific teachings and practices that had grown out of that philosophy. In these two verses, the issue is legalism.

What is legalism? The word literally means “excessive adherence to law or formula.”

I see two courses of action that I would define as legalism for Christians.

Regarding salvation - thinking that our adherence to, or keeping of, the Law is what merits our salvation. This is self-righteousness, self-earned righteousness. This is what the Pharisees did that Jesus called them out for. They made sure to keep strict outward laws, but their hearts were wicked and unregenerate. They thought they were better than others because of their works. John Piper says that legalism occurs when people turn the commandments into a job description whose payment (wages) is salvation. ¹

Adding man-made laws to God’s Law and insisting on the keeping of them, for either salvation or church membership. This would include churches that will only allow you to be a member if you promise not to drink, or dance, or play cards, or that (if you are a girl) you will not wear pants (at least not to church). Or even if these things are not formally part of the church membership, they look down on, condemn, or withdraw fellowship, from those who do these things.

Aside from man-made regulations, we know that our salvation is not dependent on our keeping the law, it is dependent on Jesus having kept the law for us. Once we are saved, by grace not works, what is our relationship with God’s Law supposed to look like?

Are we to keep the Law? Or are we free not to keep it, since we are not under the law, but under grace?

Let me ask you this, is the Law (of God) a good thing? Yes! For several reasons. Psalm 1 tells us that the man who delights in the Law of the Lord is blessed. Psalm 19 gives us many positives concerning the law. (see Psalm 19:7-11)

All through the Psalms we see positive affirmations concerning the law.

In the New Testament we have these positive statements concerning the law.

Matthew 5:17 (Jesus come to fulfill the law)
Matthew 22:34-40 (summary of the law)
Matt 28:19-20 (all that I commanded you)
John 14:15 (love & keep)
1 John 5:2 (loving God = keeping his commandments)

As a Christian, can we be to “excessive” about keeping God’s law? Can we be to excessive about loving God? I don’t think so. With that said, we do need to make sure though that our focus remains on our heart, and not the visible aspects of keeping the law. That issue is what Jesus was dealing with in the Sermon on the Mount. Keeping the law with our hearts, makes the law even stricter!

Here’s a video that deals with this idea.

One major problem in modern Christianity is the opposite of legalism, and that is cheap grace.

Cheap grace is …

…the grace which amounts to the justification of sin without the justification of the repentant sinner who departs from sin and from whom sin departs…Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession…Cheap grace is grace without discipleship…²

Let us not attempt to use grace as a means for license to do what we want rather than what God wants. Paul tells us in Romans 6 that we are freed from bondage to sin by the grace of Christ, but this does not at all mean that we can, or should, go on sinning! Quite the opposite, we are to live even more holy lives. Since whomever you obey is your master, if we obey sin, sin is our master, but if we obey God, then God is our master.

Romans 8:3-4 teaches that Christ died on the cross to defeat sin, so that we could obey the law.

Now, let’s deal specifically with what’s going on here in Colossians.

Paul begins verse 16 with the word “Therefore” which means he’s drawing a conclusion from what he just said. What he said in the previous paragraph is the reason for what he’s about to say.

He tells the believers in Colossae not let anyone “pass judgment on you”. The Greek word translated into this phrase, primarily denotes to separate, select, or choose. It would appear that the false teachers of proto-Gnosticism were insisting on certain behaviors as a necessary part of (most likely) salvation. If a person didn’t conform to their standards of conduct regarding these things, that person was judged, or separated from those who did conform.

What standards of conduct were they insisting on? Two things really, though the list contains four specifics.

1. Food and drink
2. Holy days (festival, new moon, Sabbath)

What do you think he means by “food and drink”? OT dietary laws as given by Moses?

I don’t think so. I have two reasons for this belief.

First, the Mosaic dietary laws contain no commands concerning drink. They give instructions about which animals are to be considered food and which are not, but the only regulations concerning drink in the OT Law have to do with alcohol when priests are entering the temple, or someone has undertaken a Nazirite vow.

Paul often deals with the subject of alcohol in the NT, and with the subject of meat offered to idols, or vegetarianism. His teaching is the same as Jesus, in that it is OK to drink wine, eat meat offered to idols, eat meat in general, but only if your heart is right before God in these things. Drinking to excess and becoming drunk is a sin because it harms the body, which is the temple. In the same way eating gluttonously is a sin.

Secondly, considering the particulars of the Colossian heresy, it is likely that the false teachers were teaching strict abstinence from wine or alcoholic drink, along with vegetarianism, and possibly severe fasting. They would teach these things as a means of asceticism (severe self-discipline and abstinence from all forms of indulgence) because of their dualistic view of matter and spirit. (see previous lesson Colossians 2:8-15)

It is my belief then, that this passage has nothing to do with Mosaic dietary laws. That is an entirely different topic. I would say this. Remember that anything done outside of faith is sin (Romans 14:23). It would be possible that keeping the Mosaic dietary laws could be sin if done from the legalistic perspective of trying to merit salvation by keeping the Law. On the other hand, knowing that they promote healthy living, which glorifies God, and purposefully choosing to ignore them could be sinful idolatry of worshiping self and insisting on eating whatever you please regardless of how it affects your body and brings no glory to God.

The second conduct the false teachers were insisting on was the observance of certain holy days, i.e. Festivals, new moon celebrations, and Sabbaths.

Here we have annual (festivals), monthly (new moon), and weekly (Sabbath) holy days. The ceremonial law of the OT has been fulfilled by Jesus so there is no need to continue with sacrifices and offerings, other than the offering of ourselves as living sacrifices.

Any attempt to offer sacrifices is a dishonoring of Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross. But that’s what legalism is all about. It is an effort of man to make either ourselves or others moral. It is saying that Jesus sacrifice was not sufficient, but that I must add to it my own works to merit salvation. This is where the “Therefore” at the beginning of the verse comes into play. Paul just finished talking about the sufficiency of Christ to the believer.

you have been filled in him - v.10

Legalism strikes at the heart of the Gospel, that Jesus paid it all. His work was sufficient and complete on the cross. Our justification is done. Our sanctification is worked out by his power in us, in our union with him.

Just to be clear, it is easy to see the legalism in insisting on observing the annual festivals with their attendant sacrifices, or the new moon burnt offerings, but what about the Sabbath? Jesus didn’t abolish the Sabbath, the Sabbath is a day to rest from our normal routine and focus on God (Christ, who is the Lord of the Sabbath), remembering that he is our creator, sustainer, and savior. The Sabbath is a gift from God to man, not a burden. To be legalistic about the Sabbath would be to make the mistake of the Pharisees and make a list of does and don’ts for the Sabbath, to insist that it begins at 6pm on Friday night and ends at 6pm on Saturday night. That kind of nitpicking legalism is completely missing the point of the Sabbath, which is to focus on Jesus and devote yourself to seeking him with your whole heart and engaging in activities that will increase your love for God and men.

In verse 17 Paul tells us that these things, festivals, sacrifices, sabbaths, are but a shadow of Christ. The festivals and sacrifices reminded us of what was to come in Christ. He came and we now have that. We celebrate communion to remember it, instead of looking forward to it.

Our eternal Sabbath rest of being completely focused on Christ is coming. In some ways it is already here in our union with him and release from the bondage to sin.

Christ does requires our obedience.

If you love me, you will keep my commandments. - John 14:15

But he provides us with a helper

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever. - John 14:16

To say that we must rid ourselves of the law is to disregard the words of Christ. To rely on our own keeping of the law for the earning of God’s favor is to disregard Christ’s work.

Our salvation is not dependent on our keeping the Law, but it is seen in us when we do keep the law.

To be under the law is to give God the service of a slave who fears the lash; but to be under grace is to serve God out of pure love to him…and to give the obedience of a child, and not the homage of a serf!

…if we are loved of God with an everlasting love, and are no more under the law, but free from its curse, let us serve God with all our heart’s gratitude to him…Let the loosing of our bonds be an argument for our service. ³

I’ll leave you with this quote from C.J. Mahaney. This is from his book, The Cross Centered Life.

A lot of us wrongly stereotype a legalistic person as one who doesn’t go to the movies, or who thinks that any music with a beat is evil. Legalism is much more subtle and serious than that.

Here’s a simple definition that I use: Legalism is seeking to achieve forgiveness from God and acceptance by God through obedience to God.

In other words, a legalist is anyone who behaves as if they can earn God’s approval and forgiveness through personal performance. Thomas Schreiner writes that ‘legalism has its origin in self worship. If people are justified through their obedience to the law, then they merit praise, honor, and glory. Legalism, in other words, means the glory goes to people rather than God.’

Are you starting to see what a serious problem this is? Though we might never state any of its underlying assumptions in plain English, the implications of legalism are staggering in their arrogance. Legalism claims that the death of Jesus on the cross was either unnecessary or insufficient. It essentially says to God, ‘Your plan didn’t work. The cross wasn’t enough and I need to add my good works to it to be saved.’

Of course, no Christian would dare utter such terrible words. But when we shift our concentration away from the gospel, legalism slowly and subtly twists our thinking until our lives make this awful statement on their own. They speak more plainly than words. ⁴

1. John Piper - Why The Law Was Given
   
2. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship (First Touchstone Edition 1995), p 44-45
   
3. Charles Spurgeon, Spurgeion’s Sermons (Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI, 2007) Vol 8 p196
   
4. C.J. Mahaney, The Cross Centered Life: Keeping the Gospel the Main Thing (Multnomah Books, 2002)