“Let no one defraud you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase which is from God.” Colossians 2:18-19.

To recap, chapter 2 refutes four heresies that were beginning to defile the church at Colosse.

These heresies are as follows, the error of men’s worldly philosophy, Colossians 2:1-10, Jewish legalism, verses 11-17, mystical teachings such as worship of angels, verses 18-19, and asceticism, verses 20-23.

We saw in Colossians 2:18, posted on 3-30-20, the warning to stay away from evil men and to reject their heretical teachings.

“Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple.” Romans 16:17-18.

“For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction [hell], whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame – who set their mind on earthly things.” Philippians 3:18-19.

Scripture teaches us in verse 18 that there is no other source of knowledge or power other than in Christ Jesus.

We will concern ourselves here with the cure for the heresy of mystical teachings taken up in Colossians 2:19 which gives us the truth of how to maintain a healthy church and Christian life.

“…and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase which is from God.” Colossians 2:19.

“…not holding fast to the Head” is the most important part of this verse. The Head of the church is Christ.

“And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.” Colossians 1:18.

As you may have seen in these studies, all error begins with allowing an angel or false prophet to add something to the revealed word of God. Scripture is complete, and it says that of itself in 2 Timothy 3:16-17.

“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17.

The Apostle Paul has this to say about false doctrine.

“I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.” Galatians 1:6-9.

Holding fast to the Head who is Christ is the only way the church can be effective, or even survive. When Jesus is seen as just a man and not God the Son, He loses His position in the church.

When He is seen as just a great prophet, He loses all of His credibility, and becomes someone to be imitated but not someone who can save or comfort anyone.

When His shed blood is ignored or denied altogether, people die in their sins.

Everything, meaning everything, revolves around Jesus Christ and who He is.

“For God has allowed us to know the secret of His plan, and it is this: He purposes in His sovereign will that all human history shall be consummated in Christ, that everything that exists in heaven or earth shall find its perfection and fulfillment in Him.” Ephesians 1:9-10, J. B. Phillips Translation.

All we need to know about Jesus is contained in the word of God, the Bible, nowhere else.

When you study Scripture you will learn that the more you know, the more there really is to know. You will have found that you have only scratched the surface of something that no angel or philosopher or false teacher can tell you.

This is why it is only from the Head that the entire body of Christ is “nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments” because it is His body and He has put it together as He pleased.

“For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.” Romans 12:3-5.

“For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body – whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free – and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For in fact the body is not one member but many.” 1 Corinthians 12:12-14.

“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness by which they lie in wait to deceive, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head – Christ – from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.” Ephesians 4:11-16.

This body is meant to grow, “with the increase which is from God.” It is only the healthy body connected to the Head that will fully grow with the increase that comes from God.

It is clear by these Scriptures that each and every Christian, no matter whom, has a function in the body of Christ.

It is also clear that too many Christians spend too much of their time coveting someone else’s place or gift in the body of Christ instead fulfilling their own God given function.

These folks will receive no reward in heaven for doing someone else’s job and ignoring their own because they thought it was beneath them. It is also possible that the insignificant little job that one despises will lead to greater things.

“For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.” 2 Chronicles 16:9a.

Jealousy and the despising of others because of their place in the body will keep people like this from doing what they were called to do, which will also rob them of their reward.

If ever in all of history there was a time for the body to function as a united whole, it is now at the end of the church age.

Though that might not happen, it does not prevent you (me too) the individual from doing what you were called to do, because you, the individual will give an account to Jesus Christ as to what you, the individual did with the gifts He gave you.

“But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written: ‘As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God.’ So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.” Romans 14:10-12.

Colossians 2:19 taken from godisrevealed.com posted on 1-22-14, updated on 4-2-20.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version, copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission, all rights reserved.