Setting Your Minds on Things Above
So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. (Colossians 3:1-2)
Chapter 3 of Paul’s letter shifts now from explaining key doctrinal stands about Christ to practical application, starting with verses 1 to 4. As a reminder, the false teachers were attacking the supremacy and fulfillment found only in Christ Jesus. By diminishing Christ and deeming Him less than God, the false teachers could then lure believers into thinking that they need to pursue other avenues such as special revelations and experiences over Him. Yet, as we have seen in the previous chapters, Christ is God, and in Him, believers can be complete and experience true freedom.
Colossians 2:20 states, “If you died with Christ to the elements of this world, why do you live as if you still belonged to the world?” After becoming a follower of Christ, Paul reminded believers to leave behind the worldly habits that they used to partake in. Then, in Colossians 3:1, “So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.” After they leave behind the sinful past that had “died,” believers, being transformed and being made alive “with Christ,” they are now challenged to pursue “the things above,” found in God’s Word and through prayer, walking with Christ daily in a relationship. Paul inserts again the reminder that Christ is above the earthly things, is supreme, being “seated at the right hand of God, “a position of glory and authority.
Then, in verse 2, “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” Believers are challenged to focus on what matters in the realm of eternity. Including myself, we tend to hyper focus on earthly problems and issues. But, if we take our present conditions into perspective of eternity, we can see what truly matters versus what is temporary and trivial. For example, let’s say I get cut off on the road while driving. I could harbor anger and ill-thoughts against the one who did that, but in respect to eternity, such an event is nothing, so to hold onto anger in such a moment is only hurting myself. Our perspective changes when we realize what truly matters in the scope of eternity. Our lives, as James says, are a vapor, here for a short time then gone. In the time that we are blessed on earth, may we set our minds on things above, focused on God’s kingdom, and be active kingdom workers, sharing the gospel message to those around us.
Blessings,
Isaac De Guzman
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