Colossians 2:18-19

"Let no one defraud you by acting as an umpire and declaring you unworthy and disqualifying you for the prize, insisting on self-abasement and worship of angels, taking his stand on visions [he claims] he has seen, vainly puffed up by his sensuous notions and inflated by his unspiritual thoughts and fleshly conceit" Colossians 2:18.

"Keep defrauding you of your prize" (katabrabeuo from katá = against + brabeuo = be a judge or umpire and thus award the prize in a public game) literally refers to an umpire who decides against one, declaring him unworthy of the prize and so defrauding him of the prize of victory. In context, it refers to the depriving one of his or her spiritual reward.

Paul is referring to a "disqualification" just as when a judge disqualifies those who run out of their designated lane in a race, etc. In the same way those believers who turn from faithfully following Christ will be "robbed" of their rewards from Him at the Judgment Seat (Col 5:10, 1Cor 3:10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 2 John 1:8). These believers will not lose their salvation, but they will lose their rewards. Paul is warning against the false teachers who come in among the flock like savage wolves, bringing a persuasive, perverse message (Acts 20:29, 30, 31) composed of false doctrines that would rob believers of their spiritual blessings, not only in this present life but at the Bema judgement of the saints.

The key elements in this portion of Paul's warning are "false humility and the worship of angels." Both of these are common elements of false teachings. In Colossae there was an ancient teaching (later called "Gnosticism," meaning knowledge) which held that there is a hierarchy of angels between all human beings and God which must be placated and acknowledged, and that one's knowledge, which began in virtual ignorance, increased with such contact until at last one entered into the fullness of understanding of the Oneness of all things. That ancient heresy is known as the New Age Movement in which adherents seek the true Oneness of things because we are all part of the universe of created matter, and are united in Oneness with God. It claims to move you beyond self, but in actual practice, if you examine teachings like this, you discover that they focus on self; that the real goal is to develop all your self powers. That is why it is called the human potential movement --- the idea that everything is already there inside of you, and all you need to do is bring it out and develop your possibilities and full potential (Col 1:27). I have seen allot of this kind of stuff on Opera Winfrey. It's like the sign on a wall "The Light you seek is in your own lantern." So the teaching is that you already have it all---now discover it.

Whitney Houston sings, "To love yourself is the greatest love there is." which could be the theme song for the human potential quest. What is the danger of that? The apostle puts it very plainly: it "disqualifies you for the prize

19. And not holding fast to the Head, from Whom the entire body, supplied and knit together by means of its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.

In verse 19, we are still inside of Paul's warning about false teachings and are taken to the most important truth - The Head... He whom we are in - Christ Jesus. In the act of not being lead away, deceived, or disqualified, our focus must be directed to Christ as the Head, The Leader, Redeemer, Advisor, Wonderful Counselor, Teacher, and Father. The focus is not on "not being deceived". I see allot of energy being spent by well meaning Christians toward not being deceived by this and by that... when really our focus just needs to be in Christ Jesus. Seeking His Word, listening to the leading of The Holy Spirit and walking in a confidence in Whom we are in... Amen? In Christ we have His Fullness, remember... and He is growing us the whole while.

We will pick back up with verse 18, next time.

I love you.