8/5/07 - Pentecost 10 - Col. 2:6-15

CONTINUE IN WHAT CHRIST HAS TAUGHT
- Do not be fooled by the principles of this world
- You have been rooted and are being built up in Christ

It is not politically correct in this country to tell someone that they are wrong. And so it is also considered unacceptable to preach against false teachings from the pulpit. Because the thinking is: “What right do you have to say that your interpretation is better than mine? Each passage can mean different things to different people. There is no absolute truth; what I believe is the truth for me.” No it’s not. No it is not. There is an absolute truth. It is what Christ has taught. It is God’s Word. And the Lord has made sure that his Word is clear. The Lord has made sure that Christians are able to understand what he is saying without a doubt. And so it is not a matter of interpretation. It is not a matter of what a particular individual thinks or feels or wants to believe. It matters what the Word of God clearly says. And if a there is a teaching contrary to that clear Word of God, it is not only my duty to warn you about it, it is also your duty to avoid it.
Listen to what Paul says to us today, “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” Paul was not afraid to preach against teachings that were contrary to the gospel. In fact, he often times mentioned specific people that Christians were to avoid and ignore. Far be it from me, as your spiritual leader, as the under-shepherd of your souls, to leave you in the dark and not warn you about those principles of this world that can harm and destroy your faith. I will preach against anything that goes against what Christ has said. Because any false teaching that is not in line with what Christ has taught us in his Word is a direct attack against him. This is his Word! He has written it down for us to read and understand and believe. He takes his Word seriously. And so anyone that comes along with a teaching that contradicts his Word is doing one of three things: calling Christ a liar, or they are placing their own understanding above Christ’s wisdom, or they are simply picking and choosing what they want to believe and when. False teaching, not matter how small of a difference it seems to be, should offend you! It offends Christ! The Christ in whom you have been rooted! The Christ in whom you are being built up! It is a danger to your faith and a disgrace to your Lord to put up with any teaching that he has not taught.
False teaching, no matter what topic it has to deal with or what church teaches it, can all fall under the heading Paul mentions in our text: they are all based on “the basic principles of this world.” One of the basic principles of this world is: I have to do something to get something. I have to do something to get something. Almost all false teachings can be categorized under this basic principle. So that the fault of any false teaching is that it no longer focuses on Christ but on yourself. Listen to what Dr. C.F.W. Walther - a leader of the Lutheran church back in the 1800’s - says about those who teach things contrary to God’s Word. “No matter what other false doctrines they may teach, they all have this grievous error in common, that they do not rely solely on Christ and his Word, but chiefly on something that takes place in themselves.” The basic principle of this world is that you have to work for it, you have to earn it, you have to do something to get anything. The problem is: this is not what Christ has taught us.
Let me give you an example. One of the most common false teachings in this country at this time is that you have to make a decision for Christ, that you have to decide in your heart to accept him, that you have to consciously choose him and dedicate your life to him - only then can you be considered a Christian. Do you see the basic principle of this world lying underneath this false teaching? You have to do something to get something. Reformed churches, evangelical churches, Baptist churches, Methodist churches, and many more will teach that you have to make a decision for Christ. And this is a very dangerous teaching! Because if you think that you have to make a decision - that means your salvation does not fully rely on what Christ has done for you, but what you have to do to accept Christ. Your salvation suddenly hinges on your decision, on something that you have to do. But that is not what Christ has taught.
Jesus says, “You did not choose me but I chose you” (John 15:16). Christ teaches that “It is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves - it is a gift of God, not be works so that no one can boast” (Eph. 2:8-9). Faith is a gift. You don’t have to do anything for it. You don’t have to make a decision to believe. Faith is given to you as a gift. In fact, you can’t do anything to believe in Christ. Because Jesus tells us right here in our text for today: “When you were dead in your sins… God made you alive with Christ.” All unbelievers are dead in sin. They are spiritual corpses. So were you at one time. So was I. Before we were brought to faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior through the written Word or through baptism, we were dead in sins. That means we couldn’t do anything. We couldn’t choose to become alive. We couldn’t make a decision to become alive. We were spiritual corpses. God made us alive with Christ. He did the work. He did the deciding. He chose you. This is what Christ teaches in his Word - contrary to the basic principles of this world.
Do not be fooled by false teachings. And do not be fooled into thinking that they are no big deal. Because that’s what we’re tempted to think all the time, isn’t it? We’re tempted to think: “If someone believes in Jesus as their Savior, so what if he thinks differently about baptism or the Lord’s Supper or the end times? You have to pick your battles. Is it really worth separating ourselves from someone because they are a little off on some minor points? Is it really worth it to make a big deal out of those things that might not be exactly in line with Scripture?” Yes it is. It is a big deal. It is worth separating ourselves from those who hold to false teachings because Christ does. He doesn’t consider any of his teachings “minor.” He doesn’t consider it all right if someone wants to believe in something other than what he has taught. So why should we? Why should we tolerate those teachings that go against Christ? Why should we pass them off as unimportant when they are in opposition of God’s truth? We have a hard time recognizing the dangers of false teaching like we should. What a danger that is to our faith. And what a disgrace that is to our Lord.