Counsel from a Concerned Apostle, Part 2

Today from Chuck Swindoll about big followings. A culture where afraid of being a part of a minority group will be afraid of being your company or neighborhood it's okay you're walking with Christ you're growing stronger in the truth and now you begin to overflow with prosperity preachers charlatans who steal money from unwitting followers. We tend to think that aberrant theologians are new to our generation counterfeit Christianity has been around for many generations today on Insight for living.

Chuck Swindoll continues to study, he began on Thursdays program Colossians chapter 2 in this passage Paul emphatically stated.

Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophy and high sounding nonsense. So how do we discern the difference between what's real and what's fake teaching from Colossians chapter 2 Chuck titled his message counsel from a concern grateful we are our father for this land in which you live. For most of us are homeland the place of our birth, the place where we were first loved and trained and taught for the freedom that has been hours as we have enjoyed throughout our lives. Liberty and the pursuit of your will, are grateful we are to have been privileged to live in this land. How thankful we are for the men and women who stand among us today for what they represent the grief in the loss of a loved one who wants wore the uniform of our country and those who served faithfully and well who completed their calling and live today with the memory of the things learned through the hardship of the training and in many cases the combat. A beautiful is this world around us how delighted we are to be able to enjoy the beauty because of the liberty that has been provided for the beauty of the earth for the glory of the skies for the love which from our birth over and around us live Lord of all the we pray.

We give you this prayer with gratitude today. Our gifts are yours and rightly so, because you own it all and we trust you to use these gifts to disseminate the good word of God to places that have heard before and rejected and those places that have never for the first time heard of Christ, give courage to those who represent you in difficult places and protection for those in dangerous places today and give us an overwhelming sense of gratitude because of the privilege we have two worship freely without interruption. Because of the courage and the faithfulness of heroic men and ultimately because of the name of the Savior. We give you our thanks and our gifts.

Every once the download is searching the Scriptures. Studies going to incite world.or/study another message from Chuck called counsel from a concerned apostle, the great apostle Paul astute theologian, brilliant mind surrounded himself with people matter-of-fact when we get to the to the second chapter of Colossians, we find him writing words of love and understanding and compassion for people he's never met. The only way he knows them is through a friend named Francis who is mentioned more than once in this little letter but he cares about copyrights of agonize for you and for the church at Laodicea for many other believers who have never met me. Personal we don't know each other face-to-face I pray for you.

I have you in my heart, and he continues I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. Look at those words.

I don't know them personally, but I long for them to be encouraged and to know what it is to have loving arms around her shoulders. I hope you're not trying to make it on their own. We need each other. He continues I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God's mysterious plan, which is Christ himself in him like all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Verse four tells us I'm telling you this so no one will deceive you with well-crafted argument. The terms well-crafted convey the idea of persuasive we call it smooth talk. Paul cares about these people living in Colossae only wanted deceive you with their well-crafted arguments for though I am far away from you. My heart is with you. Those words of love by the way I'm not near you I got you on my heart, I rejoice that your living is you should get your faith in Christ is strong. I wanted to stay strong. I don't want to get week. I don't want you to hear the siren song. Some false teachers who says me tell you what you're missing by that kind of narrow thinking Christ isn't all you cracked him up to be. Let me teach you what you're missing and they come with her smooth talk while I'm on the subject of awarding money have you marked some warnings, verse four, so no one will deceive you with well-crafted arguments. Verse eight there's another one. Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies of high sounding nonsense of the word capture is to take you captive to march you into their their place where they will hold you. It is like an addiction. You can get free of some of the call sometime your life is in danger. Verse 16. Don't let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbath at the list of legalistic things that the leader is saying you need to start doing or stop doing. If you don't you won't know the pleasure of God the give you the list. That's the earliest biblical list.

So he warns them about falling in the trap of the legalists. Some of you have lived there you can stand and speak on your own to tell others around you. What you went through not only trying to live up to the list, but when you decided to break free from. You were shunned, you were ostracized and props still are still going on 18. Don't let anyone condemn you by insisting on pious self-denial or the worship of angels. This whole asceticism that he's him emphasizing. Don't let anyone rob you of your prize or disqualify you see now why we need one another what Paul weren't there to warn them that fall into the trap. It's very appealing.

In case you don't know cultists don't wear a little badge that says I represent a call.

Don't do that I'm being facetious. Obviously very attractive people can they sell you in their on their doctrine and how attractive they can make it opaque. How could I have missed this fact. It reminds me of second Corinthians 11 back to that when you do that please right-click second Corinthians 11 beginning at verse two show you something about the. The beauty of simplicity of Christ. 11 to I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself.

I promise you as a pure bride to one husband, Christ. But I fear not often you hear Paul admitting a few but I fear that somehow your pew or an undivided devotion to Christ will be corrupted. Just as Eve was deceived by the cunning ways of the serpent to the scene in the Garden of Eden is the serpent not whatnots crawling on his belly that happened after he was cursed.

Serpent is a very attractive animal created by God and having turned against his creator. He is now engaged in the subtle drawing of thinking minds to his own teach, so he says to E look at this, you could be like God, you'd know what God notes.

And she took.

She gave to Adam look at the good she's deceive Adams and John peters bites right into it.

That having been given the garden and all the big beautiful because they moved away from the simplicity of the rules don't eat of that fruit.

You have to know Hebrew to understand what that means in Genesis. You don't need to know and original language. It means exactly what it says, supposes, I'm concerned that somehow your pure an undivided devotion to Christ will be corrupted.

There it is, say hi. I just really believe in the Lord Jesus Christ stay there, stay there while it's pretty simple. Beliefs stay with the simple. It has Not become aware of, but put your commitment to Christ fact, look at what he goes on to say you Corinthians happily put up with whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach.

Keep reading or a different kind of spirit than the one you received or different kind of gospel than the one you believed where you going there because there to see their socks. Enter this into the subtle seduction look across the page visually with those deceivers look like. Verse 13 these people are false apostles which you love it that he calls it what it is because is not politically correct as well be like Paul, one of my heroes. There are many left.

These people are false prophets. Their deceitful workers, they disguise themselves as apostles of Christ. Of course they do. Of course they do their appealing their attractive their deceitful workers who disguise themselves, but I'm not surprised even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light, so it's no wonder that his servants who disguise themselves as servants of righteousness got away from the the old medieval idea that devil is red creature that sits on the shoulder going yeah I got his pitchfork slammed his senior year and make you this is not to have only he loves it. If you think that he is the most when some attractive gorgeous appealing creature you could ever meet sweep you off your feet. Plus he's been at it long before you were even born. He knows every cheek in your armor by with a little bit of deception you get sucked right into is like a vortex of current that you can't fight now you see what you need other people you need to be accountable.

Those people that have the right to ask you the hard questions you know I'm I'm concerned about what you're starting to read. I'm I'm troubled that it takes those potshots at the things you been taught to believe and I know it sounds attractive and always got several letters after his name at I realize there are number people that follow him but but but but but wait wait wait wait I'm concerned for you. If I'm living in isolated life chances are great that I'll be sucked right into it you check it out. You check out those that get drawn into cults are often isolationist, who got a little bit disillusioned in life and this new teaching sounds very attractive. Back to Colossians 2 someone no one deceive you with well-crafted argument. I rejoice that your living as you should let your faith in Christ, a strong affirmation. Fabulous. Don't you love that he says to them. I commend you for living as you should, and your faith in Christ is strong.

Notice how we put your faith in Christ is strong. Each of these is a slap in the Gnostics face they're not hearing that their faith in Christ is important there hearing the opposite is not really that important. Oh, the apostle says you're strong because your faith in Christ is strong never get far from the person of Christ.

When you do your headed for trouble.

Now having affirmed them gives the basic rudiments of Christianity look at them in verses six and seven. You talk about versus worth memorizing. There they all. Colossians 26 and seven should be on the lips and in the mind of every believer in Christ.

Those are two verses that are worth your memorizing this into the and now just as you accepted Christ Jesus is the Lord that salvation. That's the new birth. Christianity begins for each individual, but are putting our faith and trust in Christ by our accepting him.

The Lord Jesus Christ. That's that's the first part no notice for the wrong, you must use the word you must continue to follow him, just as you have trusted in Christ given him your soul for eternity.

So you must "with him. It's just like life were born little infants tiny babies. We can't walk. We can't talk.

We can't feed ourselves. We were even teeth. We are totally helpless little babies. And as we get little older, we start to grow T bite and we can begin to crawl would like to set up before long we like to well but it's called toddlers as they walk like that in the stumbling around in a ball and get back up in the Paula get back up. A toddler never says that I am never going to walk because I cannot walk now. Toddlers keep radically stay at it grab mother's and dad's crazy retail if their head and started to bleed you patch above the right back up right for the carpeting that their learning how to walk. That's the Christian live continue doing it the quicker you fell your body falls when they learned to walk, continue wants to be added stay at is what we need other people.

Ecclesiastes chapter 49 through 12 to about of the one that we read the whole section 3 or better than to we need each other. So keep on walking. Continue to follow him and others more as you began to master this walking, you begin to put your routes down fun.

It was great getting to walk you have not been birthed. You have now begun to walk so you grow in Christ, and you begin to deepen your routes.

Let your roots grow down into him and let your lives be built on here, not on some high sounding philosophy not on some slick wording in the pickup from the false teacher will be mesmerized because is a big following.

If we go by big following the cults are winning. Don't be afraid of minorities will be afraid of being a part of the minority group will be afraid of being the only one in your company or neighborhood it's okay you're walking with Christ are growing stronger in the truth that you were taught, and now look at the ultimate you begin to overflow with thankfulness great. A couple of verses were birthed, we began to walk. We put our roots down and then we start to produce and what we produce thankfulness that you pin ready to give you versus Scripture to put in the margin of Colossians 2, six and seven. It's Hebrews 1315. Hebrews 1315 doing by him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is the fruit of lips giving thanks to his name by him. None other than the Lord God let us offer the sacrifice of praise continually. The fruit lived, giving thanks to his name naming the knee name of Christ, giving thanks to his name midway through a message from Chuck Swindoll titled today study counsel from a concerned apostle arising from Colossians chapter 2. Please stay with us because Chuck is asked to have a few minutes to share some personal thoughts with you and if you like to learn more about this ministry. Be sure to visit us online@insightworld.org well over the years we discovered that our listening audience as a healthy appetite for studying the Bible on their own. So in addition to these daily programs we have developed a wide variety of resources designed to help you learn more about God's word. For instance, Chuck is written a commentary on Colossians affect this hardbound book includes his commentary on Philippians and Philemon as well, as you'd expect, the commentary is academically sound, but equally important is designed to help you integrate what you learn into every aspect of your life and that makes sense because Christ is our all in all, that means his truth should become evident in the daily choices we make will to purchase a copy of Chuck's commentary on Colossians go to insight.org/offer or call us if you're listening in the US dial 1-800-772-8888 and one more thing. Did you know Chuck has a daily email devotional@sent to your inbox each morning to help you start your day with God. Thousands are taking advantage of these daily inspirations that come from some of Chuck's best writing and you can to the email devotional is absolutely free. All you need to do is sign up@insight.org/devotional Chuck in our 43 years of ministry insight for living. His only had two announcers Al Sanders began that all back when the star program and remain with us for 17 years and then we met Dave Speicher who is but our program announcer for the next 25 years. They became insight for lumens. Announcer back in March 1997. Can it be that long ago. I personally picked Dave's wonderful voice even before I had met him. I'd been presented with several talented people, but there was something about Dave's voice that drew me in and long before I even knew his name. I chose that voice and you know why you been listening to it all these years and then I met Dave, what an authentic marvelous man. Dave is humble and quickwitted, sincere, and always a lot of fun. But let me assure you they Speicher is deeply committed to his craft is given his entire adult life to the cause of Christian broadcasting. This was Dave's choice to pass the baton on to the next program host. Believe me, it wasn't ours and so we accept what Davis chosen to do and we wish him all the best, Dave has expressed a desire to spend more time with his wife Lori and their wonderful grandchildren. What a great game plan for the future. Dave often says my job is simple through my words and my voice. I draw listeners into each day's topic and then proof I did out of the way. One day the sort of what I do message after message. Whether it's Sunday or Wednesday or Friday afternoon or at a Chapel or Delta seminary or maybe a meeting here at the insight for living but you know it better than anyone I've ever known. March 2022 day will reach his 25th anniversary with insight for living is a magnificent milestone and we commend you Dave for that accomplishment when you release Dave willingly but reluctantly, however, is with a deep debt of gratitude that we say goodbye to our dear friend and longtime announcer.

We wish you and Lori and your family all the best. Thank you Chuck thank you so much wasn't expecting this I it's been an enormous privilege to be a part of your team all these years, I have such love and respect. And really the whole I felt team and I really believe the best days are ahead.

Thanks again for letting me friends to get in touch with insight for living today. Feel free to call listening in the United States dial 1-800-772-8888 or go online to insight.I'm Dave Speicher grateful to come alongside you 25 years is your program host and inviting you to join us again Monday to hear the Bible teaching of Chuck Swindoll on insight for living.

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