Rooted in Christ!

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Colossians 2:6-10 "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. 8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ. 9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and in Christ you have been brought to fullness."
The false teachers were trying to persuade the Christians in Colossae to seek a philosophy the explains life's greatest mysteries. A commentator has this to say about what Paul meant by this, 
"This philosophy that threatened the Colossian Christians was a strange ecclectic mix of early Gnosticism, Greek philosophy, local mystery religions, and Jewish mysticism. The philosophy threatening the Colossian Christians was so dangerous because it was not obviously sinful and licentious. It was high-sounding and seemed highly intelligent." (Guzik)
Instead of being swept up into this philosophy Paul says, "Just as you have received Christ stayed rooted and built up in him."
Rather than connecting with a tradition, philosophy, or unknowable spirit; a Christian is connected with a person, Jesus Christ.  The mystery of God was revealed in a person, Jesus Christ.  Jesus revealed God's purpose for humankind and when someone accepts Jesus by faith they receive the fullness of God in Him.  
So since they have the real thing in Jesus, he urges them not to go back to unknown mysteries, vague philosophies and various types of spirits.  Rather than being swept back into captivity by these false teachers, the believers could live out their faith and grow in the fullness they already have in Christ.
There are many people young and old who accept Christ as their Savior and Lord only to later fall away from the faith.  Often they fall prey to some philosophy which discounts and diminishers who Jesus was and is in favor of some worldly philosophy or spiritual mysticism.   The antidote is to live out your faith staying connected to Jesus in your daily life.  When you are walking with Christ and with other believers the hollowness of the world's philosophies are obvious.  The experience of living with and in Christ blows away the competition.  But if your relationship with Christ depends only on traditions and rituals it will be missing the vital components of living out of Jesus' fullness.  
Many Christians fall away from the Christian faith because they don't stay rooted in Christ and don't continue to live their lives growing into the fullness of who He is.  Like a tree that has no roots, they are blown about when any wind kicks up.  But when our lives our rooted deeply in Christ, nothing can shake us.  Are the roots of your faith in Christ continuing to go deeper?  May we continue to grow into the fullness we already have in Christ!    


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