Keeping Christianity Simple

How complicated is your life? If you’re anything like me and most of the women I know, you’re busy. Really busy.

Maybe you are a “stay at home” mum with a house full of toddlers who keep you running while trying to take care of your family’s home.

Or maybe you work outside the home while your children are in school and then race home to finish homework before taking them to practice and making sure they get something to eat.

Maybe you’re a single woman whose days are filled with building a career, spending time with friends, and even volunteering in your community.

Perhaps you’re retired and the chaos of your young family’s life is far behind you. Still, your days are filled with activities, not to mention the work and worry you put into your children’s families and, very likely, your parents’ care as well.

No matter what stage of life we’re in, life is rarely simple. So when we’re presented with an idea or offer that seems too simple, we immediately doubt that it could be real. Simple, in our complicated world, seems too good to be true.

The book of Colossians in the Bible is a letter from the Apostle Paul to people who had heard the good news of Jesus Christ and understood it. Not only that, but they had committed to living by it. That good news was simple. Jesus himself delivered it in John 3:16-17:

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

The people in Colossae had heard this good news, understood, and believed it. As a result, their lives reflected their faith. They were known for their love of God and for the way they showed love to people.

Then came the naysayers. The philosophers and religious leaders who tried to convince the Christians in Colossae that faith, grace, love, and salvation were all very complicated to understand and difficult to get. They taught that there must be something more that had to be done to earn God’s grace and love. These people demanded that rules were followed and even taught that secret knowledge was necessary and could only be attained by an elite group of people. Theirs was a gospel-plus message. The gospel was good, but it wasn’t enough.

The Apostle Paul wrote an encouraging letter to remind the Christians in Colossae to keep it simple. He told them not to get distracted from the truth by rules and traditions, but to keep living out their faith by showing their love for God and for others.

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.” Colossians 2:6-8.

So much of our lives feel complicated because of our busy schedules, careers, children, relationships, finances, heath issues…. The list could go on and on. But faith doesn't have to be complicated. It can and should be simple. Don’t over-complicate it with “hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition.”

God loved you so much, He paid the price for your sin through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus. Through him you can have redemption and the forgiveness of sins. Through Jesus you can have a relationship with God. That’s good news, and it’s simple.

Notes from the Women’s Bible Study.