Colossians 2:8: “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.”

June 27th, 2022 by Pastor Ed in devotional

In the 1st century, Gnostic teachers were trying to get people to believe their selfish, humanistic, philosophical lies. This term “philosophy” or literally “the love of wisdom” appears only here in the New Testament. Paul meant more than the academic discipline of philosophy that we are familiar with. He meant any theory about God, the world, or the meaning of life that is outside of God’s revealed truth in Scripture. People then and still today claim to have attained a supposed higher knowledge than the Bible.

Paul points back to the simple but profound things taught by Jesus Christ. He warns that the Gnostic teachers didn’t believe that the Bible was God’s inerrant word to mankind. And so they become like a ship without a rudder or an anchor in the storms of life. Like so many today, they became convinced that relying on their own intellect and understanding would allow them to successfully chart their own way through life. When Paul said, “lest anyone cheat you,” he used the Greek term for robbery. He didn’t want these false and empty doctrines to rob them of the grace, freedom, and joy they had found in Jesus Christ.

While in college or university, it can be easy to become overly impressed with titles and degrees. We even call the instructor who holds a PhD degree in a university classroom, a professor, which is an abbreviation in Latin for “Doctor of Philosophy” or literally “Philosophiae Doctor.” But without God leading your life, even if you are talented enough to earn multiple doctorates, you will simply loose your way. And there is an even greater danger for those considered wise by the world to start believing their own press and consider themselves too intelligent or sophisticated to surrender to a simple, child-like faith in Jesus Christ. Oh that the simple gospel will always be enough for us!

“LORD, You are more than enough for us. Please walk with us and lead us into correct paths this day.”