Colossians 3:1,2, ‘Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth’.
If we are raised up with Christ, then keep seeking the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Let us set our minds on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
Colossians 2:12, ‘12having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead’.
We are buried with Him when we take baptism, and also raised up with Him, through faith. Now we need to seek Christ, all through our lives, in all circumstances, we need to set our minds on the things above.
Paul wrote this letter to Colossian Church (there were some false teachings). Paul says about the supremacy of God.
Colossians 1:15,16, ‘15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him’.
Hebrews 1:3, ‘3And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high’,
Lord Jesus Christ is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature. Let us continue to seek Him, look to Him, and we can receive salvation, only through Jesus Christ.
Colossians 1:17,18, ‘17He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. 18He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything’.
1 John 2:16, ‘16For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever’.
Al these lusts – ‘the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the boastful pride of life’ are there in this world and we need to overcome these lusts through our Lord Jesus Christ and keep seeking the things above.
Romans 6:4, ‘4Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life’.
We see here very clearly that; we were buried with Him through baptism into death. God wants all of us to walk in the spiritual realm and not to be carried away, with the matters of this world.
V5, ‘5For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection’,
We are united with Him in the likeness of His death and we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection. Thank God, He gave us a resurrected life with Him.
Ephesians 2:4-6, ‘But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus’,
God is rich in mercy. We are saved only by the grace of God. It is His pure mercy, that we were made alive in Him. He has lifted all of us, up, into the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. It is in Him, we should live.
Colossians 3:3, ‘For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God’.
Thank God. Our lives are hidden with Christ in God. He is our life. When He is revealed, we are also revealed with Him in glory.
V4, ‘4When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory’.
Matthew 6:33-34, ‘But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own’.
We need to seek His kingdom and His righteousness first, in our lives and through that, all these things, which are required for our lives, will be added up. He has given everything to us and made us, alive! Thank God for His Word. Tomorrow has its own things to worry, but it is going to be cared. We see the ‘reasons for our anxiety’ in the above verses, is about the ‘wealth’.
V25-32, ‘25 “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? 27And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? 28And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, 29yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. 30But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! 31Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ 32For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things’
When there is a supremacy of God in our lives, we will be taking care of God’s kingdom first and slowly everything is added into our lives. He knows we are of little faith. We need to get reminded of this truth in our lives – that ‘God is in control of everything’.
Genesis 32:10-12, ‘I am unworthy of all the lovingkindness and of all the faithfulness which You have shown to Your servant; for with my staff only I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two companies. 11Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, that he will come and attack me and the mothers with the children. 12For You said, ‘I will surely prosper you and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which is too great to be numbered.’
We know about Jacob being a grabber, how he also, came out of his mother’s womb grabbing the heel of his brother and all his life, he was grabbing in one way or another, the wealth of this world, also, out of the fear of his brother, he fled to his Uncle’s home and we know what happened there and finally he wants to come back home and he was praying to God to save him. God blessed him, He gave him wives, families. Jacob says, he crossed the Jordan river with one staff, and now I have become two companies. Finally, he was praying to God, that his life should be preserved from his brother Esau.
22Now he arose that same night and took his two wives and his two maids and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23He took them and sent them across the stream. And he sent across whatever he had.
When he was left alone, we see that, God met with him. Though Jacob sought the things of the world, God met with him and broke him. He was limping for the rest of his life.
24Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. 25When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he touched the socket of his thigh; so the socket of Jacob’s thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with him. 26Then he said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” But he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28He said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.”
We need to be like him. We need to be kept alone before God, if we really want to meet with the Lord. Jacob had sent away everything and whatever he had, now he is alone with God, wrestling with God. He wrestled till the end. God blessed Him.
30So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved.”
Though he saw God, face to face, his life was preserved. Day by day we need to struggle in our lives, that we need to seek God first in our spirit – through whatever pressures we have in our lives.
Hebrews 11:21, ‘21By faith Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff’.
We see the change in Jacob, after he met with the Lord and by being broken. By faith he was blessing the sons of Joseph, worshipped – leaning on the top of his staff; as he said he crossed the Jordan with his staff. Though God blessed him in everything Jacob was still holding on to his staff and worshipping, leaning on top of it. He became a ‘blesser’ from ‘grabber’. Same way, God is changing us also. We need to be a blessing to others until the end of our lives.
23By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s edict. 24By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, 26considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward’
We see Moses was seeking the things of above, not setting his sight on the things of the world.
27By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing Him who is unseen.
There is an unseen God in our lives also. When we keep seeking the Lord Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit He communicates to us every day in our lives. Thank God for His Word.
Romans 12:1-2, ‘1Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect’.
We should not be conformed to this world. But be transformed by the renewal of mind. When we go through the hard times, we need to get renewed. This happens only when we submit our bodies as a living and holy sacrifice to God. Once we repent from our sins, we can clearly see, what God wants from our lives, by giving us more ‘light’ in our lives. We see the Word of God as ‘torch-light’, the light it gives, helps us to see the coming step, so we need to continuously be in light, so we can see our way also, continuously. When we walk in the light, in the will of God, we will be able to see more clearly. This can happen only by the renewal of our mind.
Philippians 4:13, ‘I can do all things through Him who strengthens me’.
When we think of inefficiency of things we cannot do, let us heed to the Word, which says, we can do all things through our Lord, who gives us strength.
V11, ‘for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.12I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need.’
Paul is saying to the Philippian Christians, that he went through all situations in his life and learned to be content and learned to do all things through Christ who gives Him strength. God is also encouraging us that, ‘Whatever situations we are going through in our lives, we need to be content in every circumstance’. Thank God for the hope and the strong desire He gives us to seek the things above and the strength He gives us, through His Word and the power of His Holy Spirit, will lead us. Thank God for His Word and encouragement.
