Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God. Colossians 2:18-19 (ESV)
It seems that everyone wants to get a leg up on the everyone else. Our need to be superior or at least be in the superior group is a result of the fall of mankind to Satan's temptation. He insinuated that Eve was being overlooked and that she could get ahead and even get into the God-group if she would eat of the forbidden tree. That curse has hounded us for the duration of history. Of course Jesus as the last Adam canceled that curse, but many of us have not yet appropriated the blessing. So we continue to live vulnerable to those who sport an elitist spirituality. They offer a scenario of special experiences, and achievements that qualify them for greater revelation thus greater privilege. If we don't follow them or recognize their elevated position, we are considered among the common and unprivileged.
Notice what the elitists were using to create the elevated category. First, asceticism was used to display a special level of humility. Everyone knows we should be humble. How can we accuse someone who is blatantly humble? Anytime humility is featured as a badge for spirituality, it ceases to be humility. True humility is the unconscious demeanor that results from living conscious of someone greater. Leaders who try to appear humble are frauds. Second, they are involved in angel worship. Maybe it isn't blatant so as to draw attention to the idolatry. It could be emphasizing encounters with angels and the special messages they receive from them. People who believe in the existence of angels are usually impressed by such an experience. It makes early morning bible study and prayer seem insignificant and unspectacular. (I do believe in the existence of angels, but I am confident their messages are not superior to what the Holy Spirit reveals to the lowest saint as he or she prays.) Third, they go on and on about the special messages they have received through visions. Paul who wrote this letter had experienced visions on several occasions, so we can be sure he was not seeking to outlaw them. He is aiming at any and all experiences that would take the attention away from Jesus, the head of the church.
This is very applicable for us in our day. So many Christians feel unqualified to know and communicate with God personally. They are sure that others who are not as "ordinary" as they can hear God more clearly and be utilized more fully. So they are vulnerable to false leaders who manipulate them by insisting that they have the answer to specific mysteries and solutions to every problem. After all they are special with God. He has revealed things to them that ordinary people just can't get. They may magnify (and exaggerate) their call to ministry. Combining visions, angelic visitations with their own self abasement they seek to qualify themselves as worthy of leadership. And so often we acquiesce. By so doing we actually disqualify ourselves.
There are no special classes among the body of Christ. We all get our life and assignment from the head. We all have the same access to him and we are all living by the same Spirit. Sure we all have various experiences with the living Christ, but the manner he communicates with us does not give us leverage. A simple whisper by the Spirit is as profound as thunder, visions, and angelic visitations. I have been in conferences where a gifted man explained a biblical text that released great insight and passion, yet was neglected when another stood and told about a message he received the night before by an angel standing at the foot of his bed. All ears were alert to this message because of the way it was reported to have arrived. That is dangerous. Truth must be consistent with the clear teaching of Scripture rather than measured by the message supposedly received from an angel.
God has qualified the "in Christ" people to hear and obey him. They have the only valid relationship possible between God and mankind. What God has qualified, let no man put down.
SYNERGY - Better Together: October 01, 2010 click for more > Five Pillars of New Testament Discipleship: : October 15, 2010 click for more > Family Reunion Retreat: December 03, 2010 click for more >
