Colossians - Pastor Peter's Bible Insights

Colossians

By Peter Marshall McLewin

Left: View of the Honaz Mountain range from Laodicea.

Colossae is at the base of the distant range.

Are you crazy about mountains? When I was a child, my parents owned a vacation home in Africa at the base of 5,000-foot Bulwer Mountain. The adventure of climbing that mountain holds a special place in my childhood memories. When I am around mountains, my eyes are always drawn to the top of the range. I look up more when I am around mountains. Our text in Colossians invites us to look up.

Colossae is located at the beginning of the Meander Valley at the base of the 8,000-foot Honaz mountain range. I believe my visit to the ancient site helped me understand something about our text today. The Colossians were accustomed to looking up at their mountain range, but Paul wanted them to look even higher. He wanted them to set their sight on heaven. That is a powerful insight. Church, we need to lift our sight higher. What do we need to see? We need to see ourselves seated in heaven. We need to see Jesus sitting at the right hand of 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. 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.” Colossians 3:1-4

Verse One

If: is better translated “since.” It is a done deal; those who are in Christ are seated in heaven.

Raised us with Christ: Our position with Christ. This is the same message that Paul gave to the Ephesian church. “…raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 2:5-10

Keep seeking: (zeteite)

This is the orientation of a person’s will.

It requires continuous action. Daily action is required, not just in our reading and devotions, but in every decision that we make every day.

Things above:

God’s agenda needs to become our agenda.

It is the practical application of the Lord’s prayer into our life, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

Verse Two

Set your mind:

To “set” ourselves takes a conscious effort.

Athletes understand the importance of the cadence, “Ready, set, go!”

Athletes who jump the gun have not properly set themselves.

To “set” ourselves spiritually we have to turn off the distractions of this world and focus our minds on our seat in heaven, seeing Christ at the right hand of God.

Christians jump the gun and get out of step with God when they are not spiritually set.

Set your Mind: (phroneo)

This refers not to our emotions but to our minds.

We need to develop a heavenly mindset.

Lightfoot suggests that, “You must not only seek heaven; you must also think heaven.”

To do this we have to turn away from earthly thinking and turn toward heavenly thinking.

In Colossians 3:8 Paul writes about the kind of earthly thinking that we are to turn away from...

“But now you also, put them all aside….”

Anger (orge) impulse

Wrath (thumos) passion together burning anger

Malice (kakia) wickness mean behavior

Slander (blasphemia) slander talking directly to or behind one’s back