What are some rules that you follow as a Christian? Abstaining from alcohol? Not working on the Sabbath? No TV, no dancing, no movies? Do you give something up for Lent, or abstain from meat on Fridays? Do you feel you have to dress up for church on Sunday, or that men should not have facial hair and women should wear dresses that fall below the knees? Paul warns the Colossians that these are man made rules and not God’s rules. God emphasizes inner holiness rather than outward conformity.
Jesus himself was accused of refusing to conform to rules of the Old Testament. He healed on the Sabbath, He picked grain on the Sabbath, He ignored the Pharisee’s elaborate hand washing custom, He opposed paying taxes to Caesar, He had dinner with tax collectors and befriended prostitutes. Jesus, the Son of God, the holiest of all, who led a perfect life, was condemned for refusing to conform to these outward laws.
The “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” (Colossians 2: 21) rules are policies which man derived from the commandments set forth from God through Moses. Jesus did not break Old Testament rules, but rather the traditions which were man’s interpretation of the commandments. Man-made laws based on God’s law have their root in pride, with a belief in commending ourselves to God by our own good deeds. This is looking at the externals, not at our hearts. Jesus, in his defiance of these laws, instead applied the law on a heart level, setting an example for all Christians. When you walk in grace, the Spirit will lead you to act in a way that honors Him, and this will come from your heart and not from conformity to the law.
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. Matthew 5:17
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. John 1:17
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