Uniting Heaven and Earth
Christ in Philippians and Colossians
Complete in Christ
Lesson 10 - Wednesday
Shadow or Substance?
Colossians 2:16–19
In Epistle to the Colossians 2:16–19, Paul confronts a serious spiritual danger. Believers were being pressured to measure their faith by external religious practices. He highlights disputes over food and drink, and over festivals, new moons, and sabbaths—elements deeply rooted in the Jewish ceremonial system. These practices were real. They were biblical. But they were never meant to save.
Paul calls them a “shadow of things to come.” A shadow is not the reality. It points beyond itself. The substance, he says, belongs to Christ.
The Jewish-Christian influences troubling the church were insisting that Gentile believers adopt ceremonial observances as a mark of spiritual maturity. But Paul is firm: these practices were fulfilled in Jesus. They foreshadowed His sacrifice, His priesthood, and His redemptive work. Once the Substance has come, clinging to the shadow as a means of salvation misses the point.
This is not a rejection of God’s moral law. It is a rejection of using ceremonial observances as a ladder to heaven.
Paul also warns about asceticism and the “worship of angels,” pointing to a kind of mystical spirituality that appeared humble but was actually disconnected from Christ. He says such people are “not holding fast to the Head.” That Head is Jesus. Growth only comes from Him.
Jesus Himself confronted this mindset. In Gospel of Matthew 15 and Gospel of Mark 7, He rebuked religious leaders who elevated human tradition above God’s commandments. They were meticulous about ritual purity but neglected the weightier matters of the heart. Christ did not condemn obedience. He condemned substituting outward performance for inward transformation.
Now, regarding the Sabbath: the weekly seventh-day Sabbath, rooted in Creation, is not the ceremonial shadow Paul is addressing here. The yearly festival sabbaths tied to the sacrificial system are in view. But here is where Paul’s counsel still cuts deep for us.
Even when we are right about doctrine, we can be wrong in spirit.
“Let no one judge you,” Paul says. That principle matters today. Faithfulness is important. Convictions matter. But we must guard against becoming spiritual auditors of everyone else’s experience. If someone is growing in Christ, holding fast to Him, and walking in the light they understand, our role is encouragement—not condemnation.
As Seventh-day Adventists, we value obedience, health principles, and the Sabbath. Good. But those things must flow from Christ, not replace Him. When practice becomes a measuring stick for superiority, we have drifted from the Head.
The real question is simple: Are we clinging to shadows, or are we holding firmly to the Substance?
If Christ is central, obedience becomes joyful. If Christ is central, humility replaces comparison. If Christ is central, growth is organic—like a body nourished from its Head.
Stay connected to Him. Everything else finds its proper place.
Prayer
Father in Heaven,
Thank You for sending Jesus, the Substance to whom all shadows pointed. Keep us from trusting in outward forms or measuring our worth by performance. Help us hold fast to Christ as our Head, our righteousness, and our life. Guard us from judging others harshly, and give us hearts that reflect Your grace and truth. Root us deeply in Jesus, that our obedience may flow from love and not pride. In His name we pray, amen.
More on Lesson 10: Complete in Christ
This Quarter's Sabbath School Lessons Here: Christ in Philippians and Colossians
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