Col. 2:16,17 ¶ So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.
Col. 2:9 For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;
Paul’s letter to the church in Colossae deals with a doctrinal error that seems to pop up in every generation. They had somehow substituted types and shadows as well as an over emphasis on angels rather than the revelation of God seen only in Jesus Christ. Why humans insist on symbolism rather than the real boggles the mind.
During the height of the charismatic renewal in the 1970’s and 1980’s there were several of these side journeys that became just that, trips off the main road often ending up in a ditch. One of those errors was an over emphasis on Jewish Christianity. Suddenly everyone had some sort of jewish roots and many began to embrace jewish religious practices and adornment in the Christian worship services. Jesus fulfilled all of the jewish ceremonies, He is the substance that every shadow points to. Again, why settle for symbolism when we have reality in Christ.
One of the other errors was the over emphasis of angels and demonic warfare. Suddenly, there seemed to be more of an emphasis on commanding and dispersing angels and tearing down strongholds than on the Lord. The problem? We never see any of the New Testament dealing with angels or demons in thieve ways. Keep your eyes on Jesus, that was Paul’s message. Here are some thoughts from the ESV Study Bible on this passage explaining the error in Colossae.
“A central feature of the local folk belief was a tendency to call on angels for help and protection from evil spirits. This characteristic is well attested in many inscriptions and ancient documents. For instance, a magical stone amulet designed to be worn around the neck for protection from evil spirits reads, “Michael, Gabriel, Ouriel, Raphael, protect the one who wears this… Flee, O hated one, Solomon pursues you.” What likely happened at Colossae is that a shaman-like figure within the church had attracted a following and was presenting himself as something of a Christian spiritual guide. This person probably claimed to have superior insight into the spiritual realm and was advising the Colossian Christians to practice certain rites, taboos, and rituals as a means of protection from evil spirits and for deliverance from afflictions”.
So lets take heed to the wisdom we hear from the Apostle Paul, “For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily”. If all of God is in Christ and Christ is in me, I’m good. Angels and symbols pale in comparison to His glory.
