Good Morning Girls Resources (Colossians 2)
Welcome back to Week 2 in the Book of Colossians!
Our daily discussions out on Facebook have been wonderful! If you missed them โ I hope you will join us this week. They are so helpful!
Here are the links to last weekโs posts on the blog, in case you missed any of them:
Reset Your Mind – Based on Colossians 1
Intro and Resources for Colossians Week 1
If you are new here โ jump in with our reading this week and catch up on the weekends. All are welcome to join anytime โ there are no enrollments or sign-ups!
This Weekโs Bible Reading Plan:
(Facebook Leaders: You can use this as your Facebook Header this week. Just right click and โsave asโ or screen shot it.)
This weekโs Reflection & Discussion Questions
(Leaders: Copy and paste these into your groups. If you do not have a group, use these for a personal time of reflection.)
Colossians 2:1-5
In chapter 2, Paul wanted to correct wrong thoughts that had infiltrated the church. One of the false teachings was Gnosticism, which is the superiority of knowledge. The Gnostics prided themselves in having knowledge of mysterious things; so Paul is using their own language against them saying that the treasure of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ, and the only way we can understand these mysteries is through knowing Christ.
We live in the information age where knowledge is always increasing. We can find the answers to anything we need to know in seconds by simply tapping on our device. But true knowledge and wisdom is not found on search engines or through AI. True wisdom and knowledge is found in Jesus Christ.
Solomon said in the book of Proverbs that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, knew that wisdom and knowledge are found in fearing and knowing God. The only way we can discern false teaching from true doctrine is by knowing what Godโs word says for ourselves. It is tempting to trust Bible teachers to tell us what the Bible says, but God wants us to read his word for ourselves. The Holy Spirit wants to speak to you directly through his word. In what area do you need to improve when it comes to reading and studying the Bible and letting the Holy Spirit personally guide you?
Colossians 2:6-7
As we saw in chapter 1, walking indicates a lifestyle. Walking is something we do every day, and at nearly every part of our day. Paul is encouraging the church that now that they have received Christ, by grace alone and through faith alone, they need to walk in him. They are to live a lifestyle that is rooted in him, built up in him, established in their faith, and abounding in thanksgiving.
Our faith is rooted in the gospel. As we understand the deep love of God for us, our roots grow deeper and we begin to be built up in him. As our faith grows we are like an established tree with our roots going deeper and deeper and our branches reaching toward the sky. Rather than living in guilt we are free to live a life that abounds in thanksgiving.
For those who have followed WomenLivingWell.org for a long time, you know that I end every blog post with these words, โWalk with the King.โ God is with us! Our relationship with the Lord is to be alive and active. I want us to daily acknowledge Godโs presence and walk with him being rooted, built up and established in him alone. Our strength comes from the Lord! When we live in this way, the result will be an abundance of thanksgiving. So letโs take the time now to abound in thanksgiving. List five to ten things below that you are thankful for.
Colossians 2:8-15
Paul is reminding them to not allow manโs philosophy, deceit and traditions to lead them away from the true message of the gospel. The issue in Colossae was that the message of the Judaizers mingled with the message of the Gnostics saying that Gentile Christians had to be circumcised in order to complete the work of salvation. Paulโs argument here is that the work of circumcision is a work of the heart. Salvation is already complete through Christโs blood. There is no more room left for manโs work to complete salvation.
When Christ died on the cross, he canceled the record of our debt and forgave our sins. Christโs work on the cross triumphed over Satan and all of his philosophies he uses to lead men astray. You see, there is a battle in the spirit world that we do not see. In that spirit world, the enemy has been put to shame and yet he still tries to lead us astray. He does not want us to rest in Christโs work on the cross which is sufficient for our salvation and acceptance by God.
You cannot be any more loved and accepted by God than you are right now, and itโs not because of anything youโve done or not done, it is because of the blood of Jesus sacrificed on the cross. What philosophies or human traditions have led you astray in the past? Do you find yourself trying to earn Godโs love and pleasure by living at a certain Christian standard? In what way does todayโs truths set you free so your motivation for living the Christian life is love for Jesus, and not an effort to earn his pleasure?
Colossians 2:16-19
The word โthereforeโ links this verse with the preceding passage; so, Paul is saying that because of Christโs work on the cross that granted them their salvation, they were not to allow others to judge them because of their diet or whether they chose to observe certain holy days. These commands God gave to his people in the Old Testament were a shadow or a foretelling of Christ and his sacrifice. In that day, there were Judaizers who were trying to impose Old Testament ceremonial laws on the Gentile Christians as a completion of their salvation, but Paul reminded them that Christโs blood alone is sufficient.
Paul was concerned that after having been freed from the bondage of the world, these Gentile Christians were now allowing Judaizers to place upon them another kind of bondage to ceremonial laws that Christโs sacrifice had fulfilled. It is easy to get led astray by false teaching that sounds good when we donโt know what the word of God actually says. This is why it is important to know the word of God, so we can immediately recognize when someone is teaching a false gospel.
In what ways have you allowed manโs teaching of certain rules or legalistic requirements in the church, to bind you in a false belief that your righteousness and holiness comes from following these rules and not by Godโs grace and Jesusโ blood alone? In what way can you see now that this is a false gospel?
Colossians 2:20-23
Paul reminded the believers in Colossae that they had died with Christ and had been freed from the worldโs system. How then, could they become more righteous and holy by following manโs laws of โdo not handle, do not taste, and do not touch?โ These legalistic rules were according to manโs teaching and not Godโs. While these men appeared to be wise, they were actually promoting a self-made religion of no value. Rather than their rules restraining the flesh, it actually indulged it in subtle, and harmful ways.
Look at all the โdo notsโ in this passage. This is what legalism looks like. Legalism is a list of man made doโs, do nots, restrictions and rules. The danger of legalism is that we are temptd to base our rightouesness on all the things we โdo not doโ rather than on the finished work of Christ on the cross. While some say they are just trying to control the flesh with their list of rules, what actually ends up happening is they become prideful, judgemental and self-reliant, which is an indulgence of the flesh. They may have the appearance of humility, but it is a false humility based on external behavior rather than a pure heart.
As we can see, legalism in the church has been a problem for centuries. In what ways have you been tempted to follow man made rules in the church? A legalist leaves no room for the Holy Spirit to lead the believer. In what ways can you avoid legalism by walking in the Spirit and yielding to his guidance in your life?
To print the 20 Reflection and Discussion Questions for Colossians โ> Click Here
This Weekโs Verses of the Day:
(Leaders: You can use these images in your groups by using right click and โsave asโ or screen shoting them.)
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Hereโs the Printable Bible Bookmark for Colossians.
Hereโs another explanation of the SOAK Bible Study Method and Bible Coloring Chart if you need more guidance:
Here is the SOAK method I refer to in the video:
And the Bible Coloring Bookmark:
Click HERE to Print the full page Coloring Chart
or Click HERE for the Bookmark Coloring Chart
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I commend you for committing to study this book with us! If you want to go deeper in your study, I encourage you to use on-line commentaries and Bible Study tools.
Have a wonderful week in Godโs Word โ Iโll see you back here on the blog this Friday as we go deeper into Godโs Word together! Donโt forget to join me every weekday morning out on Facebook!
Keep walking with the King,
COURTNEY
Did you miss last weekโs new video? Here it is again:
The Colossians Journal is available on Amazon!
If youโd like to purchase a printable-digital copy
(so you have it right away) at half the price
click HERE.
