Colossians 2:8-10

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TALKS FOR GROWING CHRISTIANS

Paul Warns Against World Views

BACKGROUND NOTES



DOCTRINAL POINT(S)

  1. Christ is supreme and all-sufficient.

  2. Worldviews that are not Christ-centered are false.
    a. Because they are empty
    b. Because they are man-made
    c. Because they are deceptive
    d. Because they are basic

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

  1. Don’t be kidnapped by philosophies which are not Christ-centered.

QUESTIONS

  1. What was the chief error in the false teaching in the first century in Colossae?

  2. State verses from this passage that clearly show the supremacy of Christ and the all-sufficiency of Christ. What needs to be added?

  3. Define “philosophy.”

  4. We all have a set of pre-suppositions, a basic philosophy, a grid. How do they affect the way that we think and the way that we live?

  5. Paul wrote about world-views that are not Christ-centered. He stated that they were empty, deceptive, man-made, and basic. Give specific illustrations in each of these three areas.

ANSWERS

  1. It lowered the Person and work of Christ.

  2. Colossians 2:9-10. Nothing needs to be added. It couldn’t be more plainly stated. Jesus is fully God, and in Him dwells all the fullness of God. He is the head of all principalities and power. All authority is given unto Him in heaven and in earth (Matthew 28:18).

  3. Philosophy is a love of wisdom. It is how you put your presuppositions together, the grid through which you view all things.

  4. All incoming data is filtered and interpreted through your basic philosophy, a set of presuppositions.

  5. empty – humanism deceptive – New Age man-made – evolution basic – Naturalism

DISCUSS/CONSIDER

  1. How did the example of the jigsaw puzzle illustrate a non-Christian worldview and a Christ-centered view?

  2. How could you keep from being a captive to a non-Christian worldview? Have you ever been taken in by a non-Christian world philosophy? If so, how did you return to the truth of the Scriptures?

CHALLENGE

  1. Meditate on the supremacy of Christ. How is He supreme in your life? Meditate on the all-sufficiency of Christ. What does this mean to you personally?

KEY VERSES

  • “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit.” Colossians 2:8

  • “For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” Colossians 2:9



Colossians, New Testament, TalksDeb Harms