The Most Anti-Establishment Directive Of The Entire Bible

So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. [Colossians 3.5] 

Does this passage sound familiar? It should. It was discussed quite exhaustively (ironically) in the article Just Stop Already With All The Talk About Idols! based on almost exact wording found in Paul's letter to the Church in Ephesus (Ephesians 5.1-9).

Along with Paul's association of greed with idolatry, we should understand the following:

Debt is greed for money.

Insurance is greed for protection.

Medicine is greed for health.

Technology is greed for stuff.

And, I will add this... Religion is greed for complacency in faith and thankfulness.

If it sounds like I am anti-establishment, I suppose that would be an accurate assessment. Everything man does to be established is uncomfortably associated with greed for money, greed for protection, greed for health, greed for stuff, and, yes, greed for complacency.

What is the most anti-establishment directive of the entire Bible?

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

What is a follower of Christ if he or she is not anti-establishment? 

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. [Colossians 2.6-7] 

Man's way of desiring to be neatly established is exactly what Jesus said must be forsaken. Nothing ever upset the apostle Paul's established life like genuinely following Christ. Nothing will ever upset our established lives like genuinely following Christ. When a person's roots grow down into Jesus, He is the source for everything they receive. When a person's life is built on Jesus, He is the foundation for everything they give.

In Colossians 2.6-7, Paul revealed a couple of easily overlooked but important results that follow our roots growing down into Jesus and our lives being built upon Him. These results follow the transitional word then. It is only after Jesus is the source (everything we receive), that then our faith will grow strong. It is only after Jesus is the foundation (everything we give), that then we will overflow with thankfulness.

Strong faith and overflowing thankfulness are not the results of human will but of pure obedience to Christ. They are the results of singling out Jesus as the source of everything we receive and singling out Jesus as the foundation of everything we give. In other words, we cannot and will not experience strong faith and overflowing thankfulness until we have given up our own way, taken up our cross, and followed Jesus.

As long as we remain greedy (not giving up our own way) for money, protection, health, stuff and complacency, we have not let our roots grow down into Jesus and we have not let our lives be built upon Him. In this condition, and in plain Bible language, we are idolaters, worshiping the things of this world.

We must be sure of this: any time we genuinely attempt to give up our own way, take up our cross and follow Jesus, what we personally experience as obstacles to doing so ARE IDOLS. Being "established" in the world's eyes is everything giving up our own way, taking up our cross and following Jesus rallies against. And, as sure as this is Biblical fact, we can also be sure that, in particular, the idol of religion (man's greed for complacency) will offer highly academic, lofty, and, not ironically, watered-down alternatives that make both mountain-moving faith and overflowing thankfulness into abstract ideas more than commands of the Master.

Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. [Colossians 2.8]

The only sure way to avoid worshiping the things of this world is to let our roots grow down into Jesus, and let our lives be built on Him. This is the real life.

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. [Colossians 3.1-4]

Jesus Christ was a revelation to the established world. He remains a revelation to the established world today IN US. 

THINK! For Jesus to "stand out" in the established world required that He not do things the established way. For Jesus to "stand out" in the established world IN US requires that we not do things in our established way, but to give up our own way...

Now, read Colossians 3.5 again:

So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. [Colossians 3.5] 

If there was an easier way, Jesus would never have demanded that we take up our cross... And certainly, He would never have had to die on the Cross Himself. Our greed for established ways - idolatry - has no root in Christ and is not built upon Him rendering strong faith and overflowing thankfulness as mere abstract religion and wishful thinking instead of reality.

Father, Your Word continues to reveal Jesus and only Jesus. May we have eyes to see and ears to hear as we turn away from our established idols and look only to Him! So be it.