lll. TIii!: CONDITIONS OF A rror.v WALK IN CnmsT. "Having been rooted and bein1 built _up i~ him, and b:i~g e~tabljshed in your faith, even as ye were taught, abounding therein with thanksg1vmg. 'I here is here an expressive variety of metaphor. 1. The believ(fl' must be firmly rooted in Ghrist. '!'his is done once for all in regeneration. It is a past act. 'l'ho tree may shake in its topmost branches, but its roots are firm because thoy grasp the solid earth. So the firmness of believers is due to Christ (John x. 28, 29), and hie Rap makes them fruitful (John xv. 5). The believer is to" cast forth his roots as Lebanon," and thus he will" grow up unto him in all things." 2. IIe must be built upon Ohrist as the Foundation. (1) There is no other foundation (1 Cor. iii. 1 L). As tho foundation upholds the house, so is the believer upheld by Christ (~fatt. xvi. 18), (2) The building is progressive-" being built up in him" (l Cor. iii. 9-15). The believer is to receive" the strengthening of his faith" in Christ. Thus the body or Christ "maketh increase of itself in love." 3. He must be established infaith. "Established in your faith, even as ye were taught." (1) Faith is the great means of giving stability to life. "It is a good thing that the heart be established with grace" (Heh. xiii. 9). (2) Faith itself needs stability. The Gnostics exalted knowledge above faith, but faith holds the key or tha soul's position. "There- fore ba not faithless, but believing;" "Lord, increase our faith." The strong faith of Abraham gave him the stability that marked his singularly consistent and holy career. (3) Faith must have constant reference to its grounds in the Word-" even as ye were taught." The Colossians were not to follow the false teachers, but Epaphras, their teacher. 4. Th(fl'e must be an abounding faith mingled with thanlcsgiving. "Abound- ing therein with thanksgiving." (1) We cannot trust God too much. We ought, therefore, to pray continually, "Lord, increase our faith." \Ve ought also to add to our faith every other Christian grace (2 Pet. i. 5). (2) Our faith must overflow with thanksgiving. We must be sensible of our mercies and privileges, and thus we shall get the comfort and benefit of them by "giving of thanks."-T. C. Ver. 8.-.A warning against speculative deceiv(fl's. "Take heed lest there shall be any one that maketh spoil of you through his philosophy nnd vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ." Mark- I. 'l'nE NATURE OF TllE PHILOSOPHY HERE CONDEMNED. It is philosophy inse- parably connected with "vaiu deceit." '!'here is a philosophy which is highly ser- viceable to religion, as it is the noblest exercise of our ratiollal faculties; but there is a philosophy prejudicial to religion, because it sets up the wisdom of man in opposition to the wisdom of God. 1. The apostle refers to the Judreo-Gnostics who regarded Ohristianity mainly as a philosophy-that is, as a search after speculative truth, and not as n revelation of Christ and a. life of faith and love in him. The apostle claims for the gospel that it is thus "the wisdom of God." 2. He refers to the speculative result of such a philosophy. It tends to "vain deceit;" it is hollow, sophistical, disap- pointing, misleading. It is the "science falsely so called" which "puffs up" a.nl cannot edify. It always tends to undermine man's faith in the Word or God. II. TnE ORIGIN OF THIS PHILOSOPHY. "After the tradition of men." H had its source in mere human speculation, nnd could not appeal to inspired books. Our Lord condemned the Pharisaic attachmant to traditions ,(Matt. xv. 2, 3, 6; Mark vii. 8, 9). '!'hie later mystical tendency was strong in its traditions, which it reserved for the exclusive use of the initiated. III. THI!: SUIJJECT-JlfATTER OF THIS PIIIL0S0PHY. "After the rudiments of the world." '!'his seems to point to ritualistic observances worthy only of children, but not adapted to grown men. They belonged "to the world "-to the sphere of external and visible things. These rudiments were "beggarly elements," done away in Christ. IV. lTs NEGATIVE WORTHLESSNESS. "And not after Christ." 1. It harl, nol Christ for its ~utltor; for it followed "the tradition of men." 2. It had not Christ for lts Subject; for it displaced him to make way for ritualistic ordinances and angalic medi- otors. No philosophy is wortl1y of the nome that cannot find a place for him who is the highest Wisdom (1 Cor. i. 30). V. THE DANGERS OF TIIIB PlllLOS0PHY. "Take heed lest there shall bo any ono that maketh spoil of you," It would have an enslaving effect, partly by its ritualistic drudgeries aud partly by its false teaching. There a.re worse losses than the loss of 112 THE EPIS'l'LE 'l'O THE COLOSSIANS. [on. H, 1-23,
property or c-ven children. This false philosophy would involve: 1. The loss of Ch1·i.,- tian liberty. (Gal. v. 1.) 2. The loss of much of the good seed sown in 0/wiseian hearf.s. (lllatt. xiii. 19.) ~- T~~ los.s qf what Christian~ had wrought. (2 John 10.) 4-. The loss of first love. (hcv. 11. 1.) 6, TM loss of the Joys of salvation, (Ps, li, 12.) -T.C.