"Look Up"

Seek for and set your mind on the things that are above with Christ.

Colossians 3:1-3

Bible Passage

Colossians 2:20-23 (CSB - Christian Standard Bible)

20If you died with Christ to the elements of this world, why do you live as if you still belonged to the world? Why do you submit to regulations:

21“Don’t handle, don’t taste, don’t touch”?

22All these regulations refer to what is destined to perish by being used up; they are human commands and doctrines.

23Although these have a reputation for wisdom by promoting self-made religion, false humility, and severe treatment of the body, they are not of any value in curbing self-indulgence.

Bible Passage

Colossians 3:1-4 (CSB - Christian Standard Bible)

1So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

3For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

1

HOOK (Grab Attention)

Illustration

Being born:

When you are born as a baby, you no longer thrive off of the same scenery and context that you did before.

2

BOOK

Bible Passage

Colossians 3:1 (CSB - Christian Standard Bible)

1So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Explanation

“IF you died” (2:20) vs. “IF you have been raised” (3:1)

Your salvation, you being BORN AGAIN is a LIFE ALTERING event.

When a baby leaves the womb, everything in that womb becomes UNNECESSARY to that baby.

IN THE SAME WAY, when you are born again, everything in that old way of existence becomes unnecessary and unnatural to you.

"IF" you have been raised..."

This is a HUGE question that each of us need to ask ourselves to "examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith" (2 Cor. 13:5)

to "make our calling and election sure" (2 Peter 1:10)

There are too many people in what we consider to be Christianity who call themselves "Christians" who are not "born again"

They have not been raised to new life.

they are still living in that womb of the flesh.

They are still abiding/functioning in the death and destruction of sin.

Some may look ratchet

Some may look religious

but they're not right with Our Father and they need to be born again

"Seek the things above"

"IF you have died with Christ to the elemental spirits of this world"

"IF you have been raised with Christ" into new life, having been born again

"SEEK the things above"

"Above" what?

Everything that is beneath the MOST HIGH

SEEK to FIND the things where Christ is, at the the right hand of God

What is at His right hand?

Pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11)

Delightfulness

"forevermore" = "to the end"

There is no end of the MOST HIGH

Jesus sits at the right hand of the Father

If we are IN Christ

If we keeping our gaze on Him

Our hearts will be full of delight

The Septuagint version reads:

"You shall fill me of gladness with your face"

Bible Passage

Colossians 3:2 (CSB - Christian Standard Bible)

2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

Explanation

Not only should we "seek to find" the things above with Christ, we should:

"SET your minds on things above, NOT on earthly things"

KJV uses a more descriptive word:  "AFFECTION"

"Set your AFFECTION on things above"

"Seek to find" the things above with Christ"

"Set" your AFFECTION on things above"

When you are delighted with a thing, you think about it a good bit...

ILL:  "Your feet must be tired, 'cause you've been running through my mind ALL DAY long...

When you have set your AFFECTIONS on something, it will consume your mind.

Too many times, we find ourselves with our AFFECTIONS set on earthly things

this doesn't mean that you cannot have ambitions to do well in your work and reap those benefits and enjoy them.

YAHWEH worked when He created everything and saw that it was "good" = excellent, beautiful, admirable

Prosperity Gospel vs Poverty Gospel

Ecclesiastes 5:18-20

"Here is what I have seen to be good: It is appropriate to eat, drink, and experience good in all the labor one does under the sun during the few days of his life God has given him, because that is his reward. 19 Furthermore, everyone to whom God has given riches and wealth, he has also allowed him to enjoy them, take his reward, and rejoice in his labor. This is a gift of God..."

When we have our AFFECTIONS SET on earthly things, that is whenwe go terribly wrong...

our minds are consumed with things LESSER than YAHWEH

IN ESSENCE, we need not let ANYTHING have our AFFECTIONS more than God

There is nothing HIGHER than the MOST HIGH

He is our Father

Jesus is our brother

WE ARE HIS FAMILY AND HE IS OURS

To have our AFFECTIONS SET on anything other than Him is a LESSER joy...

Insufficient.  Incomplete.

It would be like settling for looking at someone's shadow INSTEAD of looking at the PERSON

HE IS OUR LIFE.

Bible Passage

Colossians 3:3-4 (CSB - Christian Standard Bible)

3For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Explanation

IF we are BORN AGAIN, our old life of death DIED with Christ on the Cross.

Our LIFE, the only life we have ever REALLY experienced, is hidden with Christ.

We are growing into the Life He has given us.

The more we put to death the old life, the more we grow into the LIFE hidden in Him

our flesh WAS dead, IS dying, and WILL die once and for all.

we WERE resurrected and restored

we are BEING resurrected and restored

we WILL BE resurrected and restored

Bible Passage

Colossians 3:4 (CSB - Christian Standard Bible)

4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Explanation

When Christ, OUR LIFE (Zoe), is manifested to us, when we see Him, we will also manifest with Him in glory...

When Jesus comes back we will be be with him in His magnificence and splendor as the sons and daughters of YAHWEH.

This also means that whenever Christ is manifested in our lives now, His glory is manifested in those Godly actions of obedience and love, by the gospel.

In other words...if there is anything "good" seen in us, it is his glory that is seen and NOT our own....

3

LOOK

Application

What do we do with all of this??

IF we have been born again and have been raised with Christ:

We will have a desire to SEEK and find the delightful things hidden with CHRIST at the right hand of God

We will SET OUR AFFECTIONS on HIM and NOT be consumed with earthly things

We have to realize that anything LESSER than CHRIST will be HIGHLY disappointing and insufficient.

We need to SEEK HIM and SET our AFFECTIONS on HIM in ALL THINGS.

4

TOOK

Challenge Application

HOW to we get back right?

When we find ourselves frustrated, worried, walking in the flesh, we need to have the presence of mind, in the Spirit, to realize that if we are in this condition, it is because our EYES are not SET on HIM.

We need to quickly find His feet through prayer and listening to Him according to His Word

Worship.

We have too much to be grateful for.

we were DEAD.

now we are ALIVE, filled with the very LIFE of God Himself.

we have been made into His Family by the gospel.

I want to CHALLENGE you to take an inventory of your life and to see what your AFFECTIONS are SET on in life...

Does JESUS have your heart more than anything else"?

or

Are there things that are choking out your AFFECTIONS for Him?

TODAY is the day to make those things right...

PRAYER.