And it is a privilege to turn to our God through His Word this morning. And so I invite you to take out your Bibles as together we turn to the book of Colossians, Colossians chapter 2. And in Colossians chapter 2, we'll start with verse 16 and read through verse 23. Reminded of our own weakness a lot of times. That's why we also, before we read God's Word, I'll turn to Him and ask for the working of His Holy Spirit. But we are a weak people. I have a stool up here, not because I'm super unconventional, but I was jumping in the waters of the Pacific Ocean, of all things, and I tore my calf muscle. So, all things. I jump in Lake Michigan and I have no problems. But I come here and I don't know what it is. So, you see me sitting down. I'm not trying to be unconventional. I just maybe need a little break from standing. But we need our Lord's help physically. We look forward to the glorious resurrection, but spiritually too. And so before we read God's Word, let's turn to Him and ask for the strengthening of His Holy Spirit. Let's pray. Lord, as we have the privilege now of hearing Thee speaking to us, we pray that Thou wouldst give us ears of faith to hear, to see Jesus Christ through our hearing. Lord, but we need Thy Spirit to strengthen us and to continue to point us to our Lord and Savior in whose name we pray. Amen. Colossians 2, starting with verse 16. Therefore, do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, Or with regard to religious festival, a new moon celebration, or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come. The reality, however, is found in Christ. Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. He has lost connection with a head from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow. Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belong to it, do you submit to its rules? Do not handle. Do not taste. Do not touch. These are all destined to perish with use because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom with all their self-imposed worship, their false humility, and their harsh treatment of the body. But they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ back in Beaverdam, I've had the privilege of preaching through the book of Colossians. We're still going through it back in Beaverdam. But I've been very encouraged by the Apostle Paul in his words, again, as he points us to Jesus Christ. But of course, we do so in the context of the church. That's why the church is so important. The means of grace are important. But I came across an article last month or so on CNN.com that was entitled, Are There Dangers in Being Spiritual but Not Religious? That's a question that's worthwhile asking, of course. But it's an article that interacted with sort of the differences between religion and spirituality. And especially interacted with surveys that have been done with those in the younger generation, a lot of times called the millennials, 18 to 29 year olds. And those surveys show how millennials are identifying themselves much more so as spiritual rather than religious. Those, again, two terms, spiritual versus religious. Now, maybe some of you don't know there's really that much of a difference between the two, but there is at least to many other people. Being religious is being formally connected to something like a church with all that's involved with that, such as what we're doing here this morning, going to church on Sundays or attending Bible studies, things like that. But being spiritual is more so going it alone, not even formally belonging necessarily to any church or, I would say, mosque or temple, but as an individual just sort of doing spiritual activities when I want and how I want just sort of to meet my own personal needs. That if I, let's say, would like a prayer from the Roman Catholic monastic order, I'll use that. And if I like a certain meditation from Buddhism, I'll use that. And if I like a certain verse from the Psalms that gives me comfort, I'll memorize that. And if I like the practice of fasting for a month, like Muslims do during Ramadan, then I'll try my hand at that. That's sort of spirituality. It's creating my own habits, my own traditions, my own even sorts of beliefs about who God is and the spiritual world, but drawing from other spiritual traditions, faith traditions. Sort of like maybe if you go to Old Country Buffet. I forget if there's an Old Country Buffet out here or not. But going there and just sort of picking and choosing, Again, what it is, the types of foods we most enjoy, one that fits you best on that day. I'm feeling a little Mexican maybe, so I'll have a little bit more Mexican food, or I'm feeling a little Italian today, I'll have that. Except, of course, it's not food that you're picking, but it's spiritual practices and teachings. Not getting tied down by one church, or even the Bible alone, or even in many ways Christ alone with who He is. And this way of being spiritual, of doing spiritual life is on the increase among younger ones in our nation. In fact, 72% of millennials, again, those 18 to 29-year-olds, surveyed, found that they are more spiritual than religious. Which, of course, if that holds steady, then that creates difficulty for the church. Because the church is considered religious rather than spiritual. Because a church like Escondido URC, for instance, says, you know, the Bible is true, And the Apostles' Creed is true. And the elders of the church have a certain spiritual oversight, again, over us. And as we heard this morning with Jordan in a profession of faith, we say, you need to profess your faith before you can approach the table of the Lord. You know, things like that. But that's religious rather than spiritual, according to that definition. Like, again, the church, you say, well, you need to believe in Jesus Christ. That He is the only way to the Father. and apart from Him is eternal damnation. These are religious things to say. But then you get those types of words which are typical among those who identify themselves as spiritual but not religious, such as what I pulled from a Facebook page. The article referenced to a Facebook site that was created for those who are spiritual but not religious. One of the post scenes came from a Carol Wheeler. She wrote this on this Facebook site. She said, I'm communing directly with the Creator. That is not egotistical nor selfish. I have a great passion for helping the poor, sick, and everyone else. The only difference is I don't need a church to tell me when to pray or how to pray or what to believe or what not to believe. I also do not need to hate anyone because of what they believe or what name they've assigned to the Creator. And in the years, of course, in many people, this sounds very freeing. This sounds like the best way because people sometimes like us, you see, are said to be maybe old-fashioned. Maybe we're programmed robots, almost obediently following what other people have told you to believe without questioning or thinking. You just follow because your religion tells you and it is said that this is the way it is to be. And so you're manipulated by a forceful leader or by a minister in the pulpit or you're guilted into things. And, of course, the more enlightened you become, you'll see that religion is the source of many of the world's problems. Terrorism, beatings, anti-women teachings, anti-gay prejudices, anti-other religions, anti-environment, the source of most of our world's conflicts and wars lay at the feet of religion. If a wrong has been done, no doubt, eventually, if you go to the root cause, you can find religion, it's said. And so why be tied down by religion, all that comes with it, when you could be more of a free thinker? You can pray how you want and to whom you want and what way you want. You could even pray to yourself. You can study the teachings of Jesus and Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. and Mother Teresa and the Prophet Muhammad. You can find out what's best about each of them and you can make it your own. You take the good spirituality parts and you leave the bad controlling religion parts behind. Which sounds neat and attractive to many, of course. Obviously to many younger ones in our nation today because many are walking away from the church in record numbers. Or rarely going to church, identifying themselves more spiritual. Of course, that's bad news and good news. Bad news, of course, is that it's happening. The good news is it's not a new thing. It seems in many ways that even the Apostle Paul had to deal with something similar in his day. And he even seems to write about it here in Colossians chapter 2, which we read from this morning. And so we turn to God's Word, of course. And we look to Him. in the face of our culture. We look to Him about what He points us to. And how the Apostle Paul here talks about a firm reliance, especially in the book of Colossians. He says you need a firm reliance upon Jesus Christ without substituting Him with all other spiritual sorts of activities. Because there were those in the church of his day who were saying, yes, Jesus Christ, but go ahead, you need other sorts of spiritual activities as well. activities and beliefs perhaps that made some of them feel superior to others in the church. But like it or not, congregation, to follow after Jesus Christ means in many ways that you are religious. Because we think of religious in terms of Jesus Christ, the absolute of who He is, we know that there is no room for competition with Jesus. Jesus Christ is everything we heard this morning. Or He is nothing. You can't have Jesus on your own terms. You can't have Jesus Christ and also add to Him with some other things. Which I realize in many ways, again, is a very much religious sort of thing to say because you're trying to nail down a correct way of seeing things. And you're doing that by saying that they're an incorrect way also of doing things. In fact, there are spiritual activities that are not good, no matter how spiritually or personally beneficial you might feel from them. Because any time a firm reliance upon Jesus Christ is either added to by something or taken away from, then the Apostle Paul says here that it is a no-go, and that's why, in fact, I've entitled the sermon this morning as unspiritual spirituality. and so the apostle paul writes in verse 16 and 17 this warning really a warning of not trying to distract christians with other sorts of spiritual requirements and the apostle paul again wrote this in verse 16 and 17 he said therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink or with regard to a religious festival a new moon celebration or a sabbath day these are a shadow of the things that were to come. The reality, however, is found in Christ. And so, yes, what seemed to be the problem here in Colossae? Well, starting in verse 16, we begin to see a little bit more firm idea of the wacky sort of teachings and philosophies that were being taught and practiced and even encouraged by some in the church in Colossae towards fellow churchgoers. Maybe you could even call it Judaism-like. I'm not quite sure. but the thing was yes you need jesus you definitely need jesus but you need more than jesus as well this dark and lurking sort of temptation to want to add to the fullness of what it means to be found in jesus christ alone as if being filled with jesus christ wasn't enough for you but you needed somehow to add to it in order to be filled with christ and so in many ways it seems to be the issue here in verse 16 and 17 this Judaism light which taught that yes it's great to have Jesus but you need to do more you need to also add to what Jesus Christ has done for you by let's say not eating certain foods or by observing certain religious festivals or celebrations or days now of course this is part of the old covenant it wasn't, especially parts of Levitical law. Those which laid down, again, for God's people, the old covenant people, Israel, about things that they were not to eat and things that they were. Such as Leviticus 17, for instance. Verse 13 and 14. Leviticus 17, verse 13 and 14 says, Any Israelite or any alien living among you who hunts any animal or bird that may be eaten must drain out the blood and cover it with earth. Because the life of every creature is its blood. That is why I say to the Israelites, you must not eat the blood of any creature because the life of every creature is its blood. Anyone who eats of it must be cut off. Well, there we see, for instance, something that they were not to eat. Or Leviticus chapter 11, verses 9 through 12, but another example of it. It says, of all the creatures living in the water, of the seas and the streams, you may eat any that have fins and scales, but all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales, whether among all the swarming things or among all the living creatures in the water, you are to detest. And since you are to detest them, you must not eat their meat, and you must detest their carcasses. Anything living in the water that does not have fins and scales is to be detestable to you. Another word for detestable there is to be an abomination to you. and so the apostle paul then comes along here and sledded to the church in colossi and and he tells them that these things that you've been told even those of you who have more jewish heritage among you he says where you've been taught about these certain abominations here even these dietary laws for instance these laws in leviticus even these are all laws these are all shadows of a future reality you see he says this future reality of course we know is in jesus christ this future reality is though from paul's perspective and from our perspective it is now a past reality from israel they were looking forward but now we are on the other side of jesus christ jesus christ has already come and so these eatings and these drinkings and these festivals are no longer necessary requirements. They're old covenant laws that God used to remind His people that they are to be a distinct people. They are not to worship the gods of the nations around them. And these are some of the boundaries that God is establishing for His people to get them to look forward even to the ultimate one who was to come who would be their fulfillment which is Jesus Christ. But we don't need these sorts of laws anymore to make us a distinct people. Not that you aren't a distinct and unique people because you still are a congregation. You are. But your uniqueness, your distinction is not found in many ways anymore in some of the do's and the laws that you keep. But your uniqueness, your distinction ultimately is found in belonging to Jesus Christ. Jesus is the one who makes you unique. Jesus is the one who makes you distinct. And so we say, ultimately, all I need is Jesus. All of these extra laws and activities that Paul addresses here, when done for the purpose of being real spiritual, we could say they're a waste. And in fact, even worse than a waste, they are a distraction. Because anything that causes you to look away from Jesus Christ and instead to focus upon yourself, that's a negative distraction. Which is why when we think about our culture today, with so much that passes as spirituality to help build you up and feel at peace, in many ways is a negative distraction. Sometimes what comes up is yoga. Some of those sites. Do you think that it will make you more attentive to God and what He wants for you? Well, you could ask yourself this question. Does the practice of yoga get you to focus upon Jesus? Or does it get you to focus upon you? Yoga is not about Jesus. Yoga is about you. It's about the centering of you and your energies. And yet, yoga is but one expression of this type of spirituality that people are searching for. Now, it's not the only one. Another member of that Facebook page extolling spirituality and sort of saying, ah, we don't like religion. Someone who posted on there was Adario Presio. He put it well when he wrote this, when he was thinking about religion versus spirituality. He said, I grew up in a devoutly Christian, he said, well, Baptist, home. And while some of the tenets of Christianity and the story of Jesus appeals to me, especially the Beatitudes, even as a kid, I just couldn't get my mind around this idea that only Christians escape eternal damnation. Over the years, I've become less and less doctrinal. The minute a religious group tells me that they are in sole possession of the incontrovertible truth, that's when they've lost me. Whatever it is that leads you to a more peaceful and truthful existence, ancient texts, health and wellness, literature, art, volunteerism, mentoring, advocacy, or the example of people, living or dead, that you admire, he writes, do you? That's my philosophy and I'm sticking to it. That's what he wrote. And the funny thing is, congregation, that while maybe this kind of advice to do you sounds perhaps even freeing, it's really as burdensome as telling someone, eat this, don't eat that, practice this religious day. All instances that Paul writes about here. And these things are burdensome ultimately because it gets us to take our eyes off of Jesus Christ, of resting solely on Him. And it puts the burden back upon us. Again, it is burdensome. I went back again to that Facebook page. I was just reading some of the line of thinking of those who continue to live this way. And one of the members on one of the discussion questions asks and says to others, It says, what is your biggest fear, frustration, or concern regarding your own spiritual well-being? What is your biggest desire for your spiritual life? And one of the answers I was given by one of those who responded to that said, well, my fear or frustration is this. Am I not practicing, meditating, praying, fasting, doing yoga enough? Am I not doing these things enough? What more could I be doing, he wrote. What more should I be doing? What I'm doing, could it be easier? Or something I desire, he said, is to love unconditionally and lead by example with unconditional acts of love and service. Now I read that, brothers and sisters, and I say, now where has the burden shifted here? The burden has shifted to the individual, to the eye. You see, I'm not meditating enough, perhaps. I'm not fasting enough. I'm not doing enough yoga. I'm simply not doing enough. Or maybe when I'm doing, it could be done easier. I'm not loving unconditionally enough. I am not doing enough acts of service for others. Or to apply it to the concerns that the Apostle Paul raises, I'm not eating the right sorts of foods. I'm not honoring the right types of holy days. I'm not honoring the right sorts of angels or saints. All of which the Apostle Paul shoots down. For instance, in verse 18 and 19. Again, he wrote this. He says, Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. He has lost connection with the head from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow. Because again, what is the problem? The problem is this disconnection from the head. Who is Jesus Christ? It says that in verse 18 again. Chapter 1. And when you get disconnected from Jesus Christ, so to speak, by taking your eyes off of Jesus and you instead focus upon all sorts of things that you need to be doing. Well, you lose touch with Him. And you lose touch with His body, the church. In fact, Paul continues to write here in chapter 2, you need to keep going back to Jesus Christ as your primary identity. And this is such a huge theme in the book of Colossians. He just keeps pointing to Christians, find your identity, not in yourself. Your new identity is found in Jesus Christ. When you see yourself, you are to see yourself as one who now belongs to Jesus Christ. Now, that's going to have implications on how we live our lives. And he's going to cover that in chapter 3. But here in chapter 1 and 2, he continues to go back and say, you find your identity in Jesus Christ. For instance, in verse 20 through 22, again, he writes this. Now, see where he's putting the identity of Christians here. He says, since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belong to it, do you submit to its rules? Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch. These are all destined to perish with use because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom with their self-imposed worship, their false humility, and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. Now again, in verse 20, notice where Paul reminds us where you have a new identity as a Christian and it's in Jesus Christ. He says, you died with Christ, he writes. And because you are bound to Jesus Christ now, you are no longer bound to the regulations of this world when it comes to how God sees you. He sees you as belonging to His Son, Jesus. And Jesus perfectly kept God's laws. Don't get bogged down by those who teach you that you need to do such and such a thing in order to be really spiritual. To be really holy. Because it seemed that there were those even in the church in Colossae who were teaching fellow Christians this. These Christians weren't good enough. They needed to do more in order to be looked upon by God as being worthy. And so they laid down for some of these fellow Christians the laws such as do not taste, do not handle, do not taste, do not touch sorts of rules. And if they followed these rules, do not handle, do not taste, do not touch, well then they would be well on their way to being good Christians. But that's not how God did things. He declared that if you belong to Jesus Christ, then you are already a good Christian in his eyes because Jesus has become your new identity. Now notice again that as Paul addresses some of these things, he doesn't say that these kind of practices are foolish looking. In fact, he says just the opposite in verse 23. He says, in fact, they actually have the appearance of wisdom, don't they? I said, wow, you meditate two hours a day? Wow, you beat yourself with a rod every time you have an impure thought? Wow, you only eat a vegetarian diet? That is huge. Wow, you only allow yourselves to speak during one hour each day? Wow, you live without electricity or driving cars? And of course, all these are very impressive sounding. because they all require elements of self-denial. For instance, who doesn't admire the Amish for their simple lifestyles? And yet you aren't a lesser Christian than they are, brothers and sisters, because you have electricity or because you drive cars, and because most of you perhaps don't grow your own food, or you do wear colorful clothing or you put on makeup this morning. Now, sure, we can applaud them, for instance, for being counter-cultural. Let's not think that they are fuller Christians in God's sight than you are. Because what makes a Christian a full Christian is not what you do, but what Christ has done. So that when you are in Christ, when you are united by faith to Him, You see, you have in Christ already all the fullness that you will ever need. He is your everything. To which, as Christians, we say, hallelujah, God is good. Because that is truly a free message. We can say that to a world around us that says, oh, be spiritual, do all these activities. We say, but I find my fullness in Jesus Christ. The Gospel is freeing, beloved. It's not slavery. It's a freedom in Christ. So I don't need to deprive myself in order to look better in God's eyes. I can live with a fullness of how God made me to be. In fact, I can even live with a certain boldness because of who I now am in Christ. and so beloved i pray that jesus christ is your full identity pray that you find a great freedom in that and a freedom therefore to love god with all that you are and the great freedom to love your neighbor as yourself amen let's pray and we give Thee thanks O Lord for Jesus Christ who is our everything we give Thee thanks O Lord whenever Christ is exalted whenever He is showcased to be our all in all Lord as we heard even in a profession of faith this morning with acknowledgement that Jesus Christ is His all in all and as we too can honor that and say, yes, Jesus is my everything. And so, Lord, may that be our hope week after week. Lord, may that be our freedom week after week. May that be our assurance that Jesus is our everything. Lord, strengthen our faith. And may this identity, Jesus Christ as our identity, may it continue to shape and transform our lives as we think more as Jesus thought, as we do more as Jesus did. So Lord, that we might continue to give an expression of our great thankfulness and love as we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.