shadmans Musings  

For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. (Col 3:3-4) In these two verses, Paul starts by looking back, and a look at the present and then finishes with a glimpse at the future. As Max Anders put it,  The believer’s identification with Christ brings not only a past break with sin and a present security, it also means a glorious future. [1]  Paul is expressing the enormous change that has occurred in all believers. Our union with Christ from an understanding that we are dead in our sins and to our previous life which bound and controlled us, to the impartation of the life of God in and through us, to an understanding of the protection we have in Christ, and finally to a future revealing of us with Jesus at His second coming.  Hidden With Christ For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. (Col 3:3) Definition: ‘you have died’ – The Greek word, a...

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. (Col 3:1-2) In the previous chapter, starting at verse 8, Paul began encouraging the Colossians not to allow themselves to be deceived by anything that would exalt itself above Christ. The world is full of false philosophies and false teachers who will do everything in their power to entice them away from their devotion to God they had previously received.  When a person puts their faith in Christ Jesus, then that person is joined to Christ so strongly that they are separated from their former self and are now dead to the world. Our union with Christ is in both His death and His resurrection. In this chapter, Paul moves on to urging believers to pursue a practical Christian life. As MacArthur said, “Paradoxically, before Christians can reach the world, they must first leave it.” [1]...