16 So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbaths. 17 For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality. 18 Don’t let anyone condemn you by insisting on pious self-denial or the worship of angels, saying they have had visions about these things. Their sinful minds have made them proud, 19 and they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body. For he holds the whole body together with its joints and ligaments, and it grows as God nourishes it. 20 You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following the rules of the world, such as, 21 “Don’t handle! Don’t taste! Don’t touch!”? 22 Such rules are mere human teachings about things that deteriorate as we use them. 23 These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline. But they provide no help in conquering a person’s evil desires. (Colossians 2:16-23 – New Living Translation)
It is good to have high moral standards and set rules for ourselves so we would walk on the right path and be a good person. However, following the rules and meeting the standards only reflect that we have strong commitment and discipline. It does not help in conquering our evil desires. We can follow the rules and do good with a bad motive. We can still have evil desires. A lot of time, we cannot control our thoughts and evil desires just come into our mind naturally and instantly. Only God can help us to deal with our evil desires. He is the only One who can get rid of our sinful minds. The stronger our connection with Christ, the stronger our strength to fight against our evil desires. There is no self-help. “Conquering Evil Desires for Dummies” is not available. We MUST rely on God.
“You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. ”
