Second Sunday after Pentecost

 Sermon Text: Colossians 2:13-17

 Other Readings: Deuteronomy 5:12-15 and Mark 2:23 - 3:6

 

Note: In verse 16, Paul alludes to “kosher” dietary laws from the Old Testament; you can read about those in Leviticus 11. The religious festivals Paul had in mind can be found in Leviticus 23.

  1. “…having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us” (v. 14 NIV). In that verse, Paul uses legal language to describe spiritual standing before God. What is the “legal” document that Paul probably had in mind?
     
  2.  “…having disarmed the powers and authorities” (v. 15 NIV) Which of the following options do you think is a good match for “powers and authorities”? Explain your position.
    1. Past supernatural forces that were at work but are no longer (e.g., demons)
    2. Past social structures that were at work but are no longer (e.g., the Roman Empire)
    3. Both supernatural forces and social structures that were at work but no longer are
    4. Supernatural forces that were at work and are still at work (e.g., demons)
    5. Social structures that were at work (e.g., the Roman Empire) and are still at work (modern governments)
    6. Both supernatural forces and social structures that were at work and are still at work (i.e., both demons and governments)
       
  1. “Do not let anyone judge you…” (v. 16 NIV) Which of the following options do you think best explains what kind of judging Paul has in mind? Make your case. (Bonus points if you can use the Pharisees in our Gospel Reading to build your case.)
    1. Criticizing you
    2. Taking you to task
    3.  Deciding for you
    4. Excluding you
    5. Another option
       
  2. What are some modern day “shadows” that so-called Christians use to judge others by?
     
  3. The NIV translates our text’s final phrase this way: “The reality, however, is found in Christ.” The Greek says, “The body is Christ’s.” It is not a stretch, then, to say that in Jesus we have the embodiment of sabbath rest. In what way(s) does Jesus embody the ultimate rest that God wants to give us? (Bonus points if you can connect it to specific language in all three readings.)

 

  1. Paul probably has in mind the so-called “moral law” of God. That is, God’s unchanging moral standard for all people of all time, namely, that they be holy as he is holy by loving him with all their being and by loving their neighbors as themselves.
     
  2. Options “d” and “f” seem the most likely. In our circles, you generally will find pastors leaning more towards “d” because of passages like Ephesians 6:12.
     
  3. The best option is probably letter “d.” Think of the way that the Pharisees were judging Jesus and the disciples in our Gospel Reading. They were essentially saying that they were excluded from God’s people because they were not following their super strict (and purely human) Sabbath rules.
     
  4. Answers may vary based on personal perspective. We might think of things that people commonly “fight” over, though. Things like which version of certain prayers a church uses… what a congregation’s liturgy might look like… what kind of dress code a person has at worship, etc…
     
  5. Jesus is the God who gave Israel physical rest after redeeming them from slavery in Egypt; Jesus has given us spiritual rest by redeeming us from slavery to sin. We can be at rest in Jesus because we know that he is Lord and has control even over our bodies (as in the Gospel Reading). We put our souls at rest knowing that we have been made alive with Christ and that all our sins are forgiven (our sermon text)!