11. Since all “fullness” dwells in Christ, what can be said about the need for human philosophies and traditions?

¹¹ Jesus Christ’s perfect example and teachings do not have to be supplemented by human philosophies and traditions. In his letter to the Colossians, the apostle Paul developed this aspect further when he wrote: “Look out: perhaps there may be someone who will carry you off as his prey through the philosophy and empty deception according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary things of the world and not according to Christ;

12. (a) What are the “elementary things of the world”? (b) Why could Paul refer to faith-destroying reasonings and teachings as “empty deception”?

¹² Back in the first century, Christians were in danger of being led astray by the “elementary things of the world,” that is, the primary or fundamental principles of the world alienated from God. These elementary things included the unscriptural concepts of the Greeks and other non-Jewish peoples as well as the non-Biblical traditional Jewish teachings. On the surface, some of the philosophies and teachings may have seemed very plausible. They may have been accompanied by reasoning and argument that had a certain appeal to human thinking. But they lacked a solid foundation. These baseless teachings​—whether on doctrine, on human conduct, or as to how things should be done in the congregation—​were really “empty deception.” So, there was good reason for Christians to be on guard against becoming the prey of some false teacher and being turned aside from the way of the truth.​—Compare 1 John 2:26, 27.