David Bahn – Reflections

As you pray these psalms today praise our God: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Psalm 12:6-7

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. ³ For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

⁵ Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. ⁶ On account of these the wrath of God is coming. ⁷ In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. ⁸ But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. ⁹ Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices ¹⁰ and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. ¹¹ Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all. Colossians 3:1-11 [ESV]

Call me cruel or sadistic, but I get a certain pleasure out of killing wasps. I’m sure they serve some  positive environmental/ecological function. But they kill the caterpillars in our yards that would otherwise become butterflies. Butterflies: who would ever want to kill one of those? Plus the wasps strike terror in our granddaughters whenever they see one while visiting our house. So…wasp…DIE! Maybe you can enlighten me about wasps’ positive contribution to the good of the world.

Sin, on the other hand, is a bit more illusive. The lure of the sinful flesh, and the deceit of Satan conspire with the world’s glitzy appeal. They team up to make sinful choices pleasing to the eye, good for food, and desirable for wisdom (cf. Genesis 3:6). Why not give in? Why not take the bait? Why not let this pet hang out for a while. The bottle of booze that mocks your willpower. The credit card bill too easily hidden from your spouse. The stop on the way home that you can blame on a traffic snarl. The secret bank account that you dip into from time to time. No big deal. You can hang out with them, right?

Wrong. Every forbidden fruit is poisonous. Every juicy bait hides a sharp barb. Every pet demands to be fed. Sometimes you just have to put things to death. You have to shred the credit cards. You have to move the computer out of the out-of-the-way office. You have to tell the guys you won’t be stopping by. You have to kill the sin. You have to put to death the deeds of the flesh. 

Some would would have you move into a monastery. Some say abandon all worldly pleasures. But that’s not really a solution. Paul makes that clear (cf. Colossians 2:20-23). These, he says, may have the appearance of godliness, but they don’t really deal with the inner self. 

To die to sin is an act of repentance. It’s contrition for the things done wrong, or the things left undone. It’s faith in Jesus’ love and God’s goodness. And it is a daily practice. It’s what Martin Luther offers in his explanation of the significance being baptized with water. He asks, What then is the significance of such a baptism with water? His answer speaks to us today:

It signifies that the old person in us with all sins and evil desires is to be drowned and die through daily sorrow for sin and through repentance, and on the other hand that daily a new person is to come forth and rise up to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. ³ For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

⁵ Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. ⁶ On account of these the wrath of God is coming. ⁷ In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. ⁸ But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. ⁹ Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices ¹⁰ and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. ¹¹ Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all. Colossians 3:1-11 [ESV]

In the movie, Little Big Man, Dustin Hoffman plays the part of Jack Crabb, the sole surviving white man at Custer’s Last Stand at Little Bighorn. Jack is adopted by the Native Americans and is taken in by Old Lodge Skins, played by Chief Dan George. He becomes Jack’s adoptive grandfather. Whenever Jack visits him Old Lodge Skins says, “My heart soars like a hawk to see you again.” But at the end of the movie when the old man goes out to die, things don’t go quite as planned. He awakens from his near death experience and asks, “Am I still in this world?” 

We seldom need to ask that question. Life is hard all around us. Reminders of our broken world, fallen humanity, and our own sinful flesh regularly remind us that we are still in this world. Life is not easy. There are many challenges. And although we may long to be with Jesus in heaven, we know we’re not. 

But Paul says here that we have died, and our lives are hidden with Christ in God. Certainly that is true; scripture would not lead us astray. This comes after we have been reminded that we have been raised with Christ. Through baptism we have been united with Christ’s death and resurrection. We died with Christ. We have died to sin. We have died to the elemental things of this world.

But we must be reminded of this. The world’s ways all too often sweep us up in their strong currents. We get distracted, deceived, and deluged with opportunities to ignore God’s ways. Somehow we need to claim a death to those things. 

It happens in baptism. It is secured in Jesus’ resurrection. And it is a daily need to repent and believe all this. Living with no concept of God’s ways, or how we have been led astray from them is all too easy. Letting go of the world’s allurements, and setting our minds on the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father is a continuous process of repentance and belief. 

Holding the vision of Christ in glory, where he deserves to be, and anticipating our eternal joy in him is the essential element of such a life. Such a life is built on a daily recalling of our baptism, and intentional self-reckoning (cf. Romans 6:10-14) as dead to sin and alive to God in Christ. That’s the world I want to be in. 

Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. ¹⁷ These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. ¹⁸ 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, ¹⁹ 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.

²⁰ If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— ²¹ “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” ²² (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? ²³ These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. Colossians 2:16-23 [ESV]

In the movie Shadowlands, Anthony Hopkins plays C. S. Lewis, the renowned author of “The Chronicles of Narnia” series, a bachelor and Oxford University professor who spends his free time debating with fellow academics at a pub. Although he seems entirely uninterested in love, Lewis agrees to marry Joy Gresham (Debra Winger), an American writer who is looking to secure British citizenship. Their arrangement soon becomes a romance, and, when Joy is diagnosed with terminal cancer, their bond grows even stronger. It’s a powerful and very edifying movie about suffering and the Christian hope. 

Lewis was a gifted former atheist who was converted to the Christian faith and became a strong apologist for the faith he once renounced. One of my favorite Lewis quotes expresses how we live in the shadows of life without realizing it.

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” -― C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory, and Other Addresses

Paul point us to religious practices that have the appearance of godliness but have no power to shape the heart and bolster true faith and hope. These are shadows of something far greater; these celebrations, observances, and ceremonies. Grand pomp and glorious circumstance may tickle our imaginations. We may want to stay on the mountaintops of extraordinary experiences. We may wish to capture the winds of late spring or late autumn in hopes of letting it out in the dark days of winter or heat of summer. But those are only glimpses of a greater glory that awaits us with God in heaven. 

We will join angel choirs, throngs of worshipers, elders, living creatures, seraphim and cherubim in praise to God on that Great Last Day. For his glorious grace will be fully realized. He will have his way in us: life, joy, peace, love will all be complete. No shadow. No quickly gone fleeting shadow. Reality. Unmoving. Unchanging. Joy. Life. Peace! Come, Lord Jesus! 

Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. ¹⁷ These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. ¹⁸ 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, ¹⁹ 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.

²⁰ If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— ²¹ “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” ²² (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? ²³ These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. Colossians 2:16-23 [ESV]

Gotta watch those email chains! I learned that the hard way years ago when I made an ill-advised and incorrect comment about someone. That someone eventually got wind of it because he was in the email chain. Boy did I regret what I had said. It was not particularly evil. But it was definitely unkind. And wrong. I accused someone of “not getting it.” I sincerely thought he didn’t. But I was the one who didn’t get it. I didn’t see the connection of his thoughts. I didn’t see how his idea would work. I didn’t get it. 

It might be said that Paul’s rejection of the connection between regulations, “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch,” provide a greater control over the indulgence of the flesh. Seems to me at first glance that such regulations would help. By not touching, not tasting, not handling certain things I might be more able to resist the temptation to other indulgences. 

Perhaps this is just the forbidden fruit syndrome. If I am told I cannot have something, I’m much more likely to want it. Like when I’m on a diet and I can’t have sweets or snacks. I want them more. Perhaps this is part of the story. But when Paul speaks here of “stopping the indulgence of the flesh,” it is clear that this is more than mere outward actions. The flesh is within us. It’s the part of our being that delights in the devil’s schemes. It’s the part of us that wants nothing to do with God. It’s the part of us that can too easily hide behind outward shows of piety. A priest can wear a collar while doing unspeakable things to those in his care. Outward piety is no guarantee of inward purity. 

So is the opposite true: eat, drink, and be merry! No rules. No laws. No prohibitions? Paul is not arguing for that. Shall we sin more that grace may abound? No never! (Romans 6:1) What, then, is the key to stopping the indulgence of the flesh? It’s not asceticism and severity to the body. Nor is it epicureanism and sensual abandon. 

It’s a matter of remembering who you are. You are a redeemed child of God. You are part of the Body of Christ – of whom Jesus is the head. When Jesus was tempted to turn stones into bread, the issue wasn’t bread or stone. The issue was from whom was he going to take his cues? Who would lead him? We are followers of Jesus. We follow his lead. He leads us to love God first and most, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. We are part of a body of believers, knit together in the bonds of faith and love. Faith and love defines us. Thusly defined we will battle the wiles of the sinful flesh far more successfully. The connection we need is to the Head, and to one another in the Body of Christ. 

Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. ¹⁷ These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. ¹⁸ 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, ¹⁹ 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.

²⁰ If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— ²¹ “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” ²² (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? ²³ These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. Colossians 2:16-23 [ESV]

John Ortberg is a gifted author, and inspiring teacher. In one of his books he makes a challenging observation. In essence, people have different ways of identifying themselves as followers of Jesus. Some wear crosses. Others have a very pious manner of speech and mannerisms. Still others have a unique way of dressing. He asked (I think in regard to a particular type of clothing and unworldly lifestyle) whether we’ve decided that if we can’t be observably different from the world, we should be weird. 

I have friends who have a peculiar way they hold their hands as they walk to Holy Communion. I have other friends who wear clerical collars almost everywhere. A friend of a friend even wore his on a canoe trip! You may know I don’t wear a clerical collar any longer – though I used to. And here’s the marvelous thing about the true Christian faith: we’re free in regard to all these things: clothing choices, clerical garb, crosses, crucifixes, or any other outward expression of our faith that is in keeping with love for God and love for neighbor. 

That’s part of what Paul is getting at here as he writes to the people in Colossae. Don’t let people judge you by outward expressions of religion, or the lack thereof. And in regard to the things identified by Paul, the issue had to do with the impact of the Judaizers, a group of supposed Jesus-followers who wanted to require things beyond that which had been determined in Acts 15. There, the requirement was simple:

“For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay no greater burden on you than these few requirements: ²⁹ You must abstain from eating food offered to idols, from consuming blood or the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality. If you do this, you will do well. Farewell.” – Acts 15:28-29

To add a requirement of circumcision or other Old Testament observances to the requirements of being true Christians was a stumbling block of man, not of God. So Paul doesn’t just say that it’s OK not to observe these Old Testaments rituals. He implores them not to let anyone tell them they must. 

Why would he do this? Perhaps it’s the same reason Luther refused to baptize by immersion: Because people were saying that the only valid baptism was by immersion. He would not acquiesce to that demand. In fact he refused it. He didn’t want to cause people who had not been immersed to doubt the validity of Jesus’ words, and God’s promises. 

I have no quarrel with my collar-wearing brothers. I don’t really care if someone walks a certain way to go to the communion rail. As long we we are not being offensive or provocative, we are free to follow these customs or not. But that’s not often an issue I wrestle with.

More important is whether any of these things actually help us live more godly lives. In the eyes of the world such a life is way more weird than any garb. And God just might provide the opportunity for witness through such true weirdness. 

As you pray these psalms today, may the Holy Spirit inspire your faith, move you to praise God, and invite others to receive God’s gift of salvation.

Psalm 5:1-8

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, ⁷ rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. ⁹ For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, ¹⁰ and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. ¹¹ In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, ¹² having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. ¹³ And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, ¹⁴ by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. ¹⁵ He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.  – Colossians 2:6-15 [ESV]

My favorite stop in our Footsteps of Paul tour was was in Philippi.  We went to the river that ran through the area near the city ruins. The pavement of the ancient Roman road also marks the spot. It is most very likely the location of Lydia’s conversion and baptism. This is the first recorded baptism on European soil. It looks much like the photo above. Lush green with nearby flowing water.

More than a sentimental memory or even a lovely symbol of rebirth, baptism is the gift of God that connects us with Jesus’ grace and power. Paul makes it clear here by alluding to circumcision, and speaking of baptism as a circumcision made without hands, that baptism marks us as part of the family of God. Even more, we were connected with Jesus’ death and resurrection in baptism, according to Paul here. 

But this is far more than a theological nicety, or theoretical argument. Having reminded the believers there of their conversion, receiving Christ as Lord, he calls on them to walk in Christ. Not to let their conversion be a once and done event, but the beginning of a path of life. And that’s not a throw-away phrase. Walking with Jesus is a way of life, not just a slice of the pie, or even the biggest slice of the pie. It’s who you are. It’s your identity. Saved. Redeemed. Baptized. Submitted to Christ’s authority because he submitted to death in your place and nailed your sins to the cross. 

All he has done, and our part in Jesus’ redemptive work overflow into a life of faithful, humble, joyful, and grateful obedience. It’s who we are. 

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, ⁷ rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. ⁹ For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, ¹⁰ and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. ¹¹ In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, ¹² having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. ¹³ And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, ¹⁴ by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. ¹⁵ He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.  – Colossians 2:6-15 [ESV]

I have a “Rolex” watch. At least that’s what the faceplate says. It’s large, chunky, almost gaudy. It doesn’t run. Never has. I paid good money for it too. I bought it while in China for $5.00. Yes, $5.00. Not $50. Not $500. Certainly not $5000 which real Rolex watches sell for … and more!

When I was haggling with the street vender for it, our Chinese guide took Diane aside and said, “That’s not a real Rolex!” We knew that. I bought it because I knew it was a fake. I bought it to use as a sermon illustration (which I finally did just a few weeks ago – although I bought it in 2004). It still looks good on the outside. Impressive even. But it’s worth only the novelty value. 

There are many cheap imitations in the world today. From fake Louis Vuitton purses to knock off tools, machines, and jewelry. For some that’s good enough. They just want to look the part. They only want to dazzle for the moment. Doesn’t have to be the real thing. And if all you want to do is impress someone, I guess that’s well and good. 

But when it comes to life and death, salvation and damnation, even the best imitation will not do. Paul is making that point here with the people of Colossae. Human philosophies, empty deceit, human traditions, and the elemental spirits of the world had captured the fancy of some of the people there. None of these will satisfy, redeem, deliver, or stand the scrutiny of real life and death, heaven and hell.

Against those empty and false fakeries, Paul holds up Jesus. He is the One who is the head of all rule and authority. He is the one who circumcised their hearts in baptism, who was raised from the dead, and died on the cross to cancel their debts. God disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in Christ. 

God did this also for you and me. We have been buried with him in baptism. We have been forgiven by his sacrificial death. We have had our debt cancelled; the debt we could never pay. In him we have been made alive. He is Lord. When we walk with him, we need never swagger in borrowed braggadocio. We need not impress anyone. We need not be anyone other than who we are. Or act anyway that is not an expression of faith authentic to us. 

He is no knockoff. Nor should our walk of faith be. For that I am very thankful. I hope you are too, dear reader. I hope you are thankful too.

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, ⁷ rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. ⁹ For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, ¹⁰ and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. ¹¹ In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, ¹² having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. ¹³ And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, ¹⁴ by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. ¹⁵ He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.  – Colossians 2:6-15 [ESV]

“Nailed it!” That’s a complement in the photo club of which I am a member. Exposure, composition, impact, technical treatment, printing, mounting, matting: all spot on. Everything is just perfect. When we meet, three or four members are asked to fill out judging sheets that tally scores from 1-10 in similar categories. The totals run from 15 (a very low 5 in three categories of certain entries) to as high as 40 (a perfect 10 in each of four categories in other special entries). One club member would occasionally even. give zeros! But his scores so tilted the average that they were often not factored. Our thought was that if you bring in a photo you get at least a 5 in each category. Very few deserve either a 15 or a 40. But some come close!

Anything less than perfect is unacceptable to God. He is 100% committed to pure and perfect love, obedience, and faithfulness. And the sentence in that regard for us mere mortals is death. There is no one righteous. Not even one. That’s one reason we Christians ought to be the most humble people on the planet. We know we’re not perfect. We know and admit that we have sinned. In thought, word, and deed. We’ve done the things we ought not to have done. We’ve left undone the things we ought to have done. We have not loved our neighbor as ourselves. We have not loved God first and most and always above all. We have sinned. We were dead in our tresspasses and sins. 

But we who were dead, God has made alive. Buried with him in baptism, we have been raised to newness of life. Our trespasses have all been forgiven and the record of debt that we owed on account of our sins has been cancelled! It’s been nailed to the cross. God nailed it!

God did that through the only One who every completely nailed it in all of life and death. Jesus Christ, in whom the fullness of deity dwells bodily lived perfectly in our stead. Then he paid the ultimate price for us who have failed to do so. He was nailed to the cross. And along with him our certificate of sin was also nailed. There is no more record of it. 

Satan may still accuse. He may insinuate his way into our lives and try to take us down. But he has no power. He has been disarmed. His threats are empty. His power is drained. He can only bluster. I look forward to the day I don’t have to take that in faith, but will experience it by sight. I look forward to the grand celebration of Jesus’ triumph over all his enemies. He is my lord and my hero. He nailed it…for you and for me!