2Colossians 2

1I want you to know what a struggle I am going through for you, for God's people at Laodicea, and for all of those followers who have never met me.Select Colossians 2:1

2I do it to encourage them. Then as their hearts are joined together in love, they will be wonderfully blessed with complete understanding. And they will truly know Christ. Not only is he the key to God's mystery,Select Colossians 2:2

3but all wisdom and knowledge are hidden away in him.Select Colossians 2:3

4I tell you these things to keep you from being fooled by fancy talk.Select Colossians 2:4

5Even though I am not with you, I keep thinking about you. I am glad to know that you are living as you should and your faith in Christ is strong.Select Colossians 2:5

Christ Brings Real Life

6You have accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord. Now keep on following him.Select Colossians 2:6

7Plant your roots in Christ and let him be the foundation for your life. Be strong in your faith, just as you were taught. And be grateful.Select Colossians 2:7

8Don't let anyone fool you by using senseless arguments. These arguments may sound wise, but they are only human teachings. They come from the powers of this world and not from Christ.Select Colossians 2:8

9God lives fully in Christ.Select Colossians 2:9

10And you are fully grown because you belong to Christ, who is over every power and authority.Select Colossians 2:10

11Christ has also taken away your selfish desires, just as circumcision removes flesh from the body.Select Colossians 2:11

12And when you were baptized, it was the same as being buried with Christ. Then you were raised to life because you had faith in the power of God, who raised Christ from death.Select Colossians 2:12

13You were dead, because you were sinful and were not God's people. But God let Christ make you alive, when he forgave all our sins.Select Colossians 2:13

14God wiped out the charges that were against us for disobeying the Law of Moses. He took them away and nailed them to the cross.Select Colossians 2:14

15There Christ defeated all powers and forces. He let the whole world see them being led away as prisoners when he celebrated his victory.Select Colossians 2:15

16Don't let anyone tell you what you must eat or drink. Don't let them say you must celebrate the New Moon festival, the Sabbath, or any other festival.Select Colossians 2:16

17These things are only a shadow of what was to come. But Christ is real!Select Colossians 2:17

18Don't be cheated by people who make a show of acting humble and who worship angels. They brag about seeing visions. But it is all nonsense, because their minds are filled with selfish desires.Select Colossians 2:18

19They are no longer part of Christ, who is the head of the whole body. Christ gives the body its strength, and he uses its joints and muscles to hold it together, as it grows by the power of God.Select Colossians 2:19

Christ Brings New Life

20You died with Christ. Now the forces of the universe don't have any power over you. Why do you live as if you had to obey such rules as,Select Colossians 2:20

21“Don't handle this. Don't taste that. Don't touch this.”?Select Colossians 2:21

22After these things are used, they are no longer good for anything. So why be bothered with the rules that humans have made up?Select Colossians 2:22

23Obeying these rules may seem to be the smart thing to do. They appear to make you love God more and to be very humble and to have control over your body. But they don't really have any power over our desires.Select Colossians 2:23