Seek, set your mind on things above

Colossians 3:1-17 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. ³ For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

⁵ Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. ⁶ For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience, ⁷ and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. ⁸ But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. ⁹ Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, ¹⁰ and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him— ¹¹ a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.

¹² So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; ¹³ bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. ¹⁴ Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. ¹⁵ Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. ¹⁷ Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.        When we seek the things which are above, where Christ is at the right hand of God, we seek to fulfill and live out what Jesus taught us to pray; Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.      We are praying and we are seeking that the realities of heaven would be manifested here on earth. In scripture, every time we are given a glimpse into the heavenly realm, we see that there is constant worship there, where Jesus and the Father are. Worship is a key for us. If we are to seek the things above, we need to create an atmosphere here on earth, which is like what is in heaven.  Isaiah 6:1-3 is one of the places where we see into heaven:   In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple.  Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.”      Again in Revelation 7:9-12:      After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands;  and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”  And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God,  saying, “Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”     The situation and the circumstances of the earthly realm do not change the fact that God is Holy. He is forever worthy of our praise and our worship.

When we, as Paul says: Set our minds on the things above, not on the things that are on earth, we are not just longing to get there, to look forward to what will be. We are setting our mind on what is, not what will be. We are seeing and setting our mind on Christ Jesus at the right hand of God.  Hebrews 12:1-2 says:   Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.     Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith, He is the object of our faith. When we fix our eyes on Him, when we set our minds on Him;   We walk by faith, not by sight. (2 Corinthians 5:7)        It no longer matters what the circumstances of earth are, when we are focused on the one who created and controls heaven and earth.  

If we will seek the things above, if we will set our minds there; then Paul tells us what will follow, we will:   consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.  For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience,  and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them.  But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices.       None of these negative aspects of life on earth, life in the flesh, exist in heaven. When we seek and set our minds on what is above, we seek to no longer have these things impact and rule our lives. When we focus on the things of earth we are affected by them. When we focus on evil and on hatred and division, on immorality and impurity, those are the things which impact the way we think and the way we act. When we focus on Christ, we begin to act as He acts, we:     put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.      We are restored to the way God intended and created us, in the image and likeness of Him, when we set our minds above.

May Paul’s exhortation in today’s text be our prayer and our desire, as we seek and set our minds on Christ.         So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience;  bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.      Amen