What is the meaning of Colossians 2:23? Such restrictions indeed have an appearance of wisdom Paul is speaking of the man-made rules—“Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch” (Colossians 2:21)—that the false teachers were pushing. They looked impressive. • They seemed pious, much like the “whitewashed tombs” Jesus described in Matthew 23:27. • Proverbs 16:25 reminds us, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” • 2 Corinthians 11:14 notes that even Satan “masquerades as an angel of light,” so outward “wisdom” alone proves nothing. The lesson is clear: if something only looks wise but is not anchored in Christ and His Word, it is counterfeit. with their self-prescribed worship “Self-made religion” (v. 23, ESV) invents its own paths to God instead of following His revealed way. • Mark 7:7–8: “They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.” • Isaiah 29:13 shows the same problem in Israel’s history—lips that honored God while hearts remained distant. • Colossians 2:6–7 had already urged believers to be “rooted and built up in Him,” not in personal inventions. Any devotion that is not commanded or commended by Scripture ultimately exalts self, not Christ. their false humility The ascetics acted humble—avoiding certain foods, rejecting ordinary pleasures—but the humility was a show. • Colossians 2:18 speaks of those “puffed up without cause by his unspiritual mind” while pretending lowliness. • Matthew 6:16–18 warns against fasting “so as to be seen by men.” Real humility agrees with God about sin and grace (James 4:6); counterfeit humility loves attention for its own strictness. and their harsh treatment of the body Beating the body into submission looks rigorous, yet it cannot change the heart. • 1 Timothy 4:3 mentions teachers who “forbid marriage and abstain from foods” as signs of later-times deception. • 1 Kings 18:28 records prophets of Baal cutting themselves—zealous but spiritually empty. • While Paul “disciplined” his body (1 Corinthians 9:27), he did so to serve the gospel, not to earn righteousness. Biblical self-control values the body as God’s temple (1 Corinthians 6:19) rather than despising it. but they are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh Rules can restrain behavior for a moment, but they cannot kill sinful desire. • Romans 8:3–4: what the law could not do, God did by sending His Son, freeing us to “walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” • Galatians 5:16–17 points to the Spirit as the only effective power over the flesh. • John 15:5: “Apart from Me you can do nothing.” Only union with Christ, not external regulation, produces genuine holiness (Colossians 3:1–3). summary Colossians 2:23 exposes the emptiness of self-made religion. Man-centered rules look wise, invent their own worship, parade a phony humility, and abuse the body—yet they cannot curb the flesh. True victory over sin comes from Christ’s finished work and the Spirit’s indwelling power, not from human regulations. |
    |