The letter to Colossae was written by Paul, to the church in Colossae, probably sometime around a.d.60-62, before a major earthquake occurred and destroyed most of the area. The church there never met Paul, and only knew of him through Epaphras, who was with Paul during his imprisonment in Rome.
The culture in the region of Colossae was of mixed religious variety with many Hellenized Jews and pagan religions. It is possible, looking at Colossians 2:16-23, that we can see some of the beginnings of Gnostic thought. However, it is just as likely that this is just a syncretic Judaism with pagan thought. The apparent imposition of observing certain holidays, festivals, and new moons, and Sabbaths is a combination of both forms of religion.
In verses 16-18, we see the commands of Paul for the believers not to allow anyone to rob them of their reward by
“… taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, …”
Col 2:18 (NKJV)
A false sense of arrogance was accompanied by those who appeared to be spiritual by imposing a sense of higher spirituality and placed this yoke upon the believers there.
This was added to by the worship of angels and looking into visions that seemed to be a signal of special knowledge into spiritual matters that gave the legalists the upper hand in matters. However, Paul calls this robbery. Why?
It was robbery, not just of the life of grace for the believers in Colossae, but robbery of the worship that was due the One who had saved them! The legalists were placing angels at the same level of reverence as the Saviour. This caused them to become disconnected from the Head of all believers by trying to focus their faith not on Christ, who is the head but on angels instead (v.19)
Paul then uses a poetic play on words in verses 20 and ch. 3:1. He starts 20, “If then you have died…” and verse 1 of chapter 3, “If then you were raised…” In these verses Paul gives the two sides of the gospel coin. If we died to the old way of life, why do we still look to our human, cognitive “gnosis”, appeasing to the regulations of the flesh? We are free, not bound to submission of the flesh.
If we have been raised with Christ, we have freedom to obey Him and Him alone. Yes we are free from the regulations of the flesh, but we are obligated to live in obedience until we go to be with Him, or He returns, whichever comes first.
Since I shared my story a while back of how God brought me back to the faith after many years away from church and His fellowship, looking to this passage causes a light to go off.
This is what I noticed with the current state of the modern American church.
The church is more caught up and concerned with living in an experience of seeing special visions and having services that cater to the individual and making them feel the fellowship of “people like them.” Hence the church is no longer filled with saints making decisions to live holy lives, but sinners living like, well, unholy.
The modern charismatic movement has made the faith the laughing stock of religiosity in the church today. They are more and more concerned with who had the closest contact with a heavenly being than the last moron, who didn’t even realize that if he HAD come into contact with an angelic being, he would have flung himself to the ground face first because of the second-hand shekina glory. But as such, he wound up conversing with what is not really an angel (what could it have possibly been? Hmmm.)
The church has become less concerned with correct doctrine and more concern with meeting the needs of the “seeker”(which is biblically, hogwash). In a drive to become more relevant, the church has made a partnership with the devil and therefore become a child of hell that must be called to repentance.
Hold fast to the Head, Christ. For it is in Him alone you find salvation. In Him alone will His church be built, not worldly advertising demographic.
In Him alone does our Redeemer draweth nigh.
Soli Deo Gloria,
Aaron “Tree” Landis
At 7:00 AM, 
Castusfumus
If you mean by leadership that IS concerned with doctrine and equipping the saints for work of ministry, there are several. John MacArthur, R.C.Sproul, Phil Johnson, John Piper, to name a couple.
On the other side, those less concerned with doctrine would be Rick Warren, TBN television's Paul Crouch, Bill Hybels, to name a couple.
There are those out there in pastoral leadership who see the issue of the "seeker sensitive" and Emergent movement as dangerous who aren't necessarily on the national scene. What really concerns me is the fact that many have fallen into the trap of pragmatism. "Whatever gets 'em in the door" mentality that causes them to abandon the true calling of the church leadership which is to "equip the saints for the work of the ministry"(Eph. 4.12). As I pray your pastor is as well.
Thanks for the comments. Hope this helps. (even if it is a matter of opinion) :)
Sounds like you must go to my Church. I got back in church about three years ago after being out for a 14 year lapse and I joined a church that has some of these practices and I have gotton so involved (sound and stuff) that I hate to leave but am in the midst of hard prayer and hoping to see if I am suppose to be a lonley Calvinist trying to survive in the turmoil and seeker junk with the Arminianites and try to slay the giant on my own like David or WHAT!!!! I didnt have these concerns when I joined br=ecause all I did before was warm the pughs, but now I have been reading stuff my buddy has suggested and now my eyes have been opened by the likes of MacArthur, Sproul, Clotfelter and Piper. I guess the bottom line is I will continue to teach my youth class and others around me the TRUTH until (like my buddy said), I get excommunicated.
The church has become less concerned with correct doctrine and more concern with meeting the needs of the “seeker”(which is biblically, hogwash).
Can you think of anybody in leadership roles off the top of your head????