Colossians 2:18-19 - Spiritual Elitism
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 this section of Scripture we’re looking at the Colossian error of mysticism or spiritual elitism. In our last lesson Paul spoke out against legalism that had sprung up as a result of the gnostic teaching taking place at Colossae. In these two verses he’s battling against an attitude of superior spirituality based on mysticism or visions and revelations.
In verse 18 he tells the Colossian believers not to let anyone “disqualify” them. This is the only place in the New Testament this Greek word is used. It literally means to act as a judge or umpire, to decide against, to declare unworthy of the prize. The idea of judging builds on verse 16, but here it is more serious. Here it is judging a person’s fitness for eternity. Think of sporting event, “let no one make a bad call against you, that results in you loosing the event.”
Part of this judgement involved “insisting on asceticism.”
When you insist on something, you demand to have it, not accepting anything else. The word translated as “asceticism” literally means humility or lowliness of mind. Someone who insists on humility is someone who is proud of their humility. If you think you have humility, especially if you tell others you are humble, you are not. Humility is so difficult to achieve. Pride is so easy to possess.
The second thing they insisted on was the worship of angels. › Continue reading
