Having been buried with Christ in baptism...

 

Having been buried with Christ in baptism...

 

Colossians 2:12: "Having been buried with Him in baptism (*tō baptismō*), and raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead."

*Tō baptismō* (τῷ βαπτισμῷ) refers to the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Baptism is an ordinance recognized as the result of simultaneously fulfilling two things: the death of the body of the flesh and the birth of the body of the spirit.

"Through faith in the working of God (*dia* / διὰ)": *Dia* means "through," indicating that the power of resurrection is manifested through the faith of Christ. The faith of Christ is the faith that believes in the work of the Cross and in the fact that God the Father would raise Him from the dead. Those who are in Christ come to possess the faith of Christ.

Colossians 2:13-15: "And you, who were dead in trespasses (*paraptōmasin*) and the uncircumcision of your flesh (*sarkos*), God made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it."

*Paraptōmasin* (παραπτώμασιν) is translated as "trespasses" (or "transgressions"). Trespasses refer to the sins of the world.

*Sarkos* (root form: *sarx*) refers to the fleshly body (or the body of sin). It refers not to the physical body itself, but to the desires that arise from it. Believers generally associate this with original sin. Within the human heart lies a craving to become like God, which manifests in various forms—such as carnal emotions, religious zeal, and the desire for dominance. This nature must inevitably die together with Jesus on the cross.

An uncircumcised flesh signifies that the flesh has not died; because the flesh remains alive, the spirit within it becomes trapped and perishes. You—referring to your spirit—were dead due to this uncircumcision of the flesh, but through the circumcision (baptism) of Jesus Christ’s death on the cross, that dead spirit is brought back to life.

Baptism signifies the circumcision of the flesh; the ritual of baptism and the act of circumcision hold the same meaning. It signifies one who has died in the flesh and been reborn through the Holy Spirit. The spirit, once dead in the body of sin, comes alive and receives full forgiveness of sins when united with Jesus Christ on the cross. When one believes in the heart, God acknowledges this through the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

The written ordinances (legal statutes) represent the compulsory regulations of the Law. One must clearly distinguish between the Law and legalism. Those who are not in Christ live by legalism. However, those who are in Christ embody the fulfillment of the Law (the Gospel), because the compulsory statutes of the Law were abolished on the cross. They are no longer bound by the individual letters of the Law but come to understand its true meaning through the help of the Holy Spirit. Thus, they become those who hear the voice of the *Logos* within their hearts and realize the will of God. Those who focus on the regulations of the law are legalists, whereas those who contemplate God's will within the law are those who follow the Holy Spirit. Those who follow the Holy Spirit are not bound by regulations; instead, they enter into the gospel of Christ.

Colossians 2:16–17: "Therefore do not let anyone judge (*krineto*) you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ."

*Krineto* (κρινέτω) means "to judge." All the matters mentioned above are rituals rooted in legalism. Churches today also create and observe days similar to these festivals or establish and follow various rules.

A "shadow of things to come" implies that it is not the essence. The essence is *to sōma tou Christou* (the body of Christ / *sōma tou Christou*: the church belonging to Christ). Although *sōma* (σῶμα) is translated as "body," it refers to the church as the body.

Colossians 2:18–19: "Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify (*katabrabeuō*) you. Such a person also goes into great detail about what they have seen; they are puffed up with idle notions by their unspiritual (*sarkos*) mind. They have lost connection with the Head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow."

There are churches that emphasize mysticism. The word *katabrabeuetō* (καταβραβευέτω) is a compound of *kata* (meaning "according to" or "by") and *brabeuetō* (meaning "to rule" or "to arbitrate"). It implies that one should not allow mysticism to dictate or rule over them.

Mystical faith typically manifests as the worship of angels or claims of having received power or revelation from them; adherents assert that they have encountered angels and obtained prophecies or supernatural abilities through such encounters.

These individuals deceive and mislead others—extorting money by attempting to display prophetic gifts or miraculous powers—while cultivating an image of themselves as angelic beings.

The term *sarkos* (σαρκὸς) refers to vain desires arising from the flesh. In this context, it signifies the futile religious zeal associated with mysticism and idolatry, indicating that such religious sentiment is not the essence of Christianity.

The "Head" refers to Jesus Christ, the head of the church. Paul rebukes the practice of clinging to angels rather than holding fast to Christ. The "whole body" represents the saints; this signifies that believers grow spiritually through their connection to Jesus Christ, the head of the church.