Complete In Christ
“ … in (Christ Jesus) dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power. Colossians 2:9-10
The verse above was written by the Apostle Paul to a New Testament Church. The Colossian church was being threatened by a complex set of false teachings … Each aspect or component of this heresy was concerned to offer the Colossians ‘fullness’. Each one was essentially saying ‘You have faith in Jesus. That is good. Now to really experience the higher life, you must go on to such and such.’ Each of the various features of this heresy can be characterized, then, as a “Christ-plus” teaching.
“Christ-plus” teachings are still with us. Christians are often asked if they are experiencing fullness or victory in their lives. Aware of their many deficiencies, all Christians have to say that they are not what they ought to be. Quick as a flash comes the answer: “The problem is that we have not gone to the next level, and to get to that level we must go beyond Christ.”
To hear these people tell it, Christ is important, but He is not sufficient.
The Apostle Paul responds to such teaching with the resounding affirmation that Christ is Supreme and sufficient and all “Christ-plus” teachings are mistaken and dangerous
… Many seem to think that false teaching died out with the Colossians and there is nothing for us to fear at this point. No matter how far some stray from the historic Christian faith, there are always those who see no danger. They are ever ready to explain such deviations as nothing more than a slight difference of emphasis or mere semantics. But false teaching is still present and still powerful, and the words of the Apostle John are still in effect: “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world”
( 1 John 4:1 )
… Many professing Christians still look for guidance from horoscopes and other extra-biblical sources. Many even go so far as to speak of having their own angel to guide them. Without realizing it, they have been taken as a spoil in our spiritual warfare against Satan. They have fallen into the trap of a “Christ-plus” religion.
It is in Christ that Christians have fullness. This does not mean that we are little gods who share His deity. It rather means that in Christ Christians have the source of all the grace, wisdom, and strength needed for living this life…
Some day this life will be over. When it is, we will find ourselves in the eternal realm and face to face with the Christ who is Lord over all. On that day, every knee will bow before Him and every tongue will confess His Lordship. And on that day, those who were not satisfied with Christ in this life but chased after “Christ-plus” teachings will see their folly. There in the blaze of His glory, they will be amazed that they could have ever been so blind. And those who went through life affirming the supremacy and sufficiency of Christ will regret that they did not better serve Him and better proclaim His sufficiency. The challenge before us is to live now as we shall wish we had lived on that day.
Extracts from:
Hold Your Course
ISBN 0-85234-592-5
By Roger Ellsworth
© Evangelical Press
Used with permission
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