Resurrection Realities

Literary Context

The Apostle Paul has been clear from the beginning of this epistle: Christ is sufficient and Christ is supreme. Because Christ is superior to all things, those who are united to Him possess everything they need to live before the face of God. The Colossian church was being troubled by the syncretistic teaching of false teachers who encouraged believers to seek spiritual fullness through means other than Christ. Throughout the letter, Paul exposes the emptiness of their teaching by repeatedly directing the church back to the supremacy and sufficiency of Christ. As chapter three begins, Paul returns to the central realities of Christ's exaltation and His people's union with Him in His death and resurrection. The exhortations that follow are not detached moral commands but the practical implications of that union. Paul grounds the believer's pursuit of holiness in participation with the Holy One, calling those who have died and been raised with Christ to live in a manner consistent with their new identity.

Read

Colossians 3:1–11 ESV

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming. In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.

Pray

Introduction

One of the great paradoxes of the Christian life is that believers are constantly commanded to become what they already are.

Scripture says:

You are holy; therefore be holy.

You are light; therefore walk as children of light.

You are a new creation; therefore put off the old self.

And here in Colossians 3:

You have died.

Therefore, put to death what is earthly in you.

Paul is not calling Christians to create a new identity for themselves. He is calling them to live consistently with the identity Christ has already secured for them.

But this idea can be difficult for us to navigate.

FCF

Though we have been raised with Christ, we are prone to live as though our old earthly identity, sinful desires, and worldly divisions still define us.

And while this may be our inclination, we fight against it by remembering that:

Main Idea

Because we are united to the risen Christ, our lives must be shaped by that union.

What does this union produce in our lives?

A New Orientation: We must seek and set our minds on the realities of our life with Christ. (vv. 1–4)

The structure of Paul’s argument in verses 1-4 is comprised of two commands (to seek the things that are above and to set your minds on things that are above). The basis for the commands follows (verse 3 tells us is our union with Christ), and a reminder of our future hope provides perspective, not only regarding the future, but for our lives now as we live under the reign of Christ.

What does this new orientation lead us to do?

Seek the things above: Let Christ's reign shape your ambitions. (1)

The command to seek is an exhortation to orient our focus on Christ. Verse 1 is a conditional sentence in which the if clause or the protasis provides the basis for the commands in verses 1 & 2. The claim of this clause is that the Colossian Christians, indeed all Christians have been raised with Christ. Paul is encouraging the Colossian church to understand themselves as partakers in the resurrection power of Christ. Paul encouraged the Colossians in this way earlier:

Colossians 2:12–13 ESV

having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,

This, I suggest, is what Paul expresses here in verse one when he proclaims that we have been raised with Christ. This would have been comforting to the Colossians as they struggled to understand their own standing with God in light of the false teaching they were hearing. They were taught that spiritual fulfillment came through their own severe treatment of their bodies, obeying various aspects of the OT law and worshipping angels. Christ alone provides this satisfaction, which is something the Apostle has already made clear in the previous chapter (2:9-10).

If you belong to Christ, you have experienced a resurrection with Christ. You died to the reign of sin and you have been raised to victory over sin.

This brings us to the first command in our text: seek the things that are above. The command literally reads keep seeking. We are in the process of unpacking the idea that our union with Christ produces in us a new orientation. Stating the idea that way was based mainly on this command to seek the things that are above. The seeking is a desire to have one’s thinking and lifestyle continually oriented around Christ’s rule. The false teachers mentioned in the previous chapter encouraged their followers to focus on the heavenly realm by downgrading their earthly resources through severity to their bodies and by worshipping angels and by elevating ecstatic experiences through visions. But Paul has been declaring the sufficiency of Christ from the beginning of this letter. He declared that the Colossians have all they need in Christ in whom all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell (1:19) because they are saints who are in Christ (1:2). One commentator observed that the false teachers start from an earthly viewpoint, and through their own efforts (like asceticism) they attempt to transcend their own bodily existence and rise into the heavenly dimension. The Apostle Paul starts from the reverse direction: from the resurrected Christ in heaven and His fulness, which works itself out in earthly life.

We are called to seek the things that are above, because that is where Christ is. In other words, the church is commanded to orient our lives around the heavenly realm because that is where Christ is. This is not to suggest that Christ is not with us here in the earthly realm, but the lives of God’s people are to be centered on Christ who is reigning. He is seated at the right hand of God. I suggest this is an allusion to Psalm 110:

Psalm 110:1 ESV

The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”

This Psalm makes clear that:

His victory is accomplished.

His reign is active.

His enemies are defeated.

His people belong to Him.

Paul argued in 2:10, 15 that Christ has defeated all the spiritual powers and forces and the He alone should be worshipped.

I think most of us would say we look forward to heaven. Again, what Paul is exhorting us to do in verse one does not exclude concerns about our earthly experience, but what are your dominant thoughts about heaven? Can much of your heavenly day-dreaming be described in “no more” language?

No more pain

No more physical problems

No more relationship troubles

No more financial hardships

No more difficulties at work

No more work

No more political corruption

No more war

No more uncertainty

And certainly, all of this is true of heavenly expectations. But we are told what is most precious about heaven, and what is most fulfilling now about seeking the things that are above: Christ. Christ who is seated at the right hand of God. As we seek the things that are above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God, we are oriented to our pain, relationship troubles, the frustrations of the world and uncertainty that does not prevent these things from impacting our lives, but assures us that these things and their impact are and will always be under the reign of Christ.

Samuel Rutherford famously wrote in his letters about the appeal of heaven:

"O my Lord Jesus Christ, if I could be in heaven without thee, it would be a hell; and if I could be in hell and have thee still, it would be a heaven to me."

Christ is our treasure. There is nothing that will fit our ambitions more for the glory of God.

But there is also an exhortation to

Set your mind on the things above: Let Christ's reign shape your perspective. (2)

The difference between seeking and setting

I will pause here to acknowledge that while ambitions and perspective are different, the distinction between the two are perhaps not so easily identified. I will at least spend about thirty seconds explaining my understanding, and why I think both these concept are here used to describe what happens when we seek and set our minds on the realities of our lives with Christ.

Our ambitions speak to what we are living for, and in this case it is the things that are above where Christ is. Our perspective addresses how we are interpreting life: our values, assumptions, worldview.

So, seeking directs our ambitions; setting our minds directs our interpretation of life.

The nature of setting our minds on the things that are above

The command to set your minds is a command that involves our dwelling. Our deep thinking. The rest of verse two helps us understand Paul’s direction here. What are we to dwell upon? The things that are above not on things that are on earth. In other words, the direction of our thinking is to be steered by our thoughts of what is eternal and not what is confined to this world. Paul’s familiar exhortation to not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your minds is good commentary for what Paul is saying in Col. 3.

But the significance of the verb set your minds is demonstrated by how it is used in another Pauline epistle, which was most likely written around the same time period. In Philippians, after the call for believers to be like-minded, Paul criticizes those whose mind is set on earthly things (Phil 3:19). Instead believers’ citizenship is in heaven (v. 20). This reminder of the heavenly orientation of believers is present in Colossians. In both contexts (Phil & Col), the call to focus or set your minds is grounded in the lordship of Christ.

Acknowledging Christ’s Lordship

And consider the contrast between things on earth and things that are above in light of where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God in verse 1. The command is not to withdraw our minds from earthly responsibilities but to interpret those responsibilities under the reign of Christ.

So, when we suffer instead of asking why is this happening to me we ask how might Christ be glorified in this? In our opportunities and pursuits instead of asking how can this benefit me, we ask how can this be used for Christ’s glory?

And this brings us to another result of this result of the new orientation from our union with Christ. We

Remember your life with Christ: Your present identity and future destiny are found in Him. (vv. 3–4)

Verse three provides the ground or reason for the commands in verses 1 & 2: for you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. We can think of this reason as comprised of two parts.

Our union with the death of Christ (3a)

For you have died needs to be understood in light of

Colossians 2:20 ESV

If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations—

Paul is saying that the Colossians have been identified with Christ and that they have been liberated from from the evil powers. When we combine our union to the death of Christ with our union with His resurrection, as has been declared in 3:1, we can understand this death not as a sign of weakness but one of empowerment in Christ as He defeated the power of death in His resurrection.

the other part of the reason

Our lives are hidden with Christ (3b)

There are four implications of this hiddenness:

Paul is saying that Christ is our life. This is another way of saying what has been said throughout this epistle, which is the people of God are united to Christ in His death and resurrection.

To be hidden with Christ implies the security we find in Christ. Verse four makes clear that the purpose of this hiddenness protects the people of God as they wait to appear with Him in glory. If you are in Christ, you will be with Him. You are protected, not from unpleasant experiences, but from separation from your Savior.

Col 2:3 asserts that in Christ, all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden. Paul, using the same word in the next chapter, affirms that the lives of believers are also contained in Christ. The false teachers among the Colossians made much of gaining access to the heavenly mysteries, but Paul declares that believers are already hidden with all the treasures in Christ. There is no need to seek treasures elsewhere.

Finally, the hiddenness of believers makes clear that the identity of believers can be found only in Christ. In a world that has become so confused about identity, it is important that the church is clear. Our identity is not determined fundamentally by titles, achievement, the political leaders with whom we align or oppose, or our favorite theologian. Hopefully all of those things are shaped by our true identity which is best described as being in Christ. As one commentator put it: believers are called to identify themselves simply in reference to Christ.

To summarize: Our true life is presently hidden → Christ is presently hidden from the world's sight → Christ will be revealed → we will be revealed with him.

Verse 4 connects our union with Christ to the past, the present and the future:

Why seek and set your minds on things above?

Because of your past union with Christ

You died with Him.

You were raised with Him.

Because of your present union with Christ

Your life is hidden with Him.

Christ reigns now.

Because of your future union with Christ

You will appear with Him in glory.

Another product of our union with Christ

A New Purity: We must put to death and put away the practices of our former life. (vv. 5–10)

The relationship between the first section of our text (verses 1-4) and the next section (verses 5-11) is connected by the word therefore. As many of us know, this marker points us back to something that was said before, and in this case I suggest the issue that the Apostle is referencing is our union with Christ. This is not particularly surprising since this has been a theme throughout this epistle. Look at verse one. If the conditional statement is turned into an indicative statement, verse one would read, you have been raised with Christ. This is a reference to our union with Christ. Verse three states this with more poetic language: … you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. If we put his all together to get the flow of Paul’s thought going into verses 5-10, we might understand it like this: you have been raised with Christ. You have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God, therefore (v. 5) put to death what is earthly in you. Our union with Christ, in other words, has provided us a new purity, and this new purity is to move us to put away the practices of our former (before dying with Christ and being raised with Christ) lives.

But Paul’s concern here is larger than the holiness of individual Christians. As we move through these verses, we will see that putting to death the practices of the old life is part of God’s work of creating a renewed people. The new purity of verses 5–10 will lead us directly to the new humanity of verse 11.

How are we to understand Paul’s exhortation to live in our new purity?

It is an exhortation to:

Put to death our idolatrous desires (5-7)

I want to give credit to the work of David Pao, in his commentary on Colossians here. It was his work that helped me understand the vice and virtue lists we see in the NT more clearly. In Colossians 3, there is a vice list in verse 5 and verse 8. In the same chapter, a virtue list appears in verses 12-14. I suggest that Decalogue provides theological illumination for Paul's categories.

Paul explicitly identifies covetousness as idolatry; nevertheless, the entire list can legitimately be understood theologically as involving disordered worship. Here’s my rationale:

In chapter two, Paul rebuffed the false teachers because of their teaching that the people of God should seek higher forms of worship. Paul points out that this misses the mark because it fails to recognize the sufficiency and supremacy of Christ. They were not, as 2:19 says, holding fast to the Head.

Consider what Paul does not do in chapter three. He does not begin by warning against angels worship or asceticism or ecstatic visions, which is what the false teachers were promoting in chapter 2. I suggest Paul doesn’t do this because he is seeking to expose the deeper, more fundamental issue, which is idolatry. We noted last week that while the false teachers may have appeared spiritual, they were encouraging people to seek spiritual fullness somewhere other than Christ. This is idolatry.

Finally, I want to focus a little more on covetousness. Covetousness is the substance of the tenth commandment: you shall not covet… Paul appears to be saying that coveting is not merely wanting something too much; it is worshipping something other than God. In other words, the tenth commandment exposes violations of the first: you shall have no other gods before me.

This addresses the primary concern of this epistle: the supremacy of Christ. We have all we need in Christ, and there is nothing more satisfying to our souls than what Christ has provided us. Most of what is mentioned in verse five is connected to sexual sin. I wonder if we typically think of sexual sin as idolatry. Engaging in sexual sin, be it premarital sex, pornography, lust etc., is giving our allegiance to, our trust in, our pursuit of contentment in something other than Christ. At the deepest level, sexual sin is not merely a violation of God's design (though it is); it is a worship problem. It seeks from pleasure, intimacy, and affirmation what can ultimately be found only in Christ.. Yes, it is a degradation of a good gift of God. Yes, there are enslaving consequences to those who indulge their flesh in this way, but the real offense of it is it is worshipping some other than the one true God.

The significance of this vice list is made clear by Paul’s warning in verse 6: on account of these the wrath of God is coming. The vice lists in the NT function to depict the lifestyle of those who are in rebellion against God and are therefore in the crosshairs of His wrath. Paul is urging believers to give themselves passionately and seriously to the work of divesting themselves of the attitude and lifestyle of this world.

Paul is also pointing us to the future with his warning regarding the wrath of God. Those who persist in these sins as a pattern of life demonstrate they have not been

Colossians 1:13 ESV

… delivered… from the domain of darkness and transferred… to the kingdom of his beloved Son,

Paul already referenced the future in verse 4:

Christ will appear

His people will appear with Him in glory

And now, Paul is warning in verse 6:

the wrath of God is coming.

The question that arises in this already/not yet tension is: Why would those who have died and been raised with Christ continue to embrace the very things that belong to a world upon which God's wrath is already descending and will one day fully fall?

Of course, there is no satisfying explanation. Our response must be to confess and acknowledge it as idolatry.

Paul, at the very least is warning the Colossian Christians not to allow the desires mentioned in verse five to characterize their lives. Perhaps this had already begun to happen. The change of lifestyle has already been noted in chapter 2:

Colossians 2:6 ESV

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him,

The word of putting our sin to death is one that understands that sin is not managed, excused, renamed, accommodated, or merely regretted. We identify it, confess it as rebellion against Christ, refuse its occasions, starve its desires, replace its lies with truth, seek accountability where necessary, and pursue the corresponding righteousness.

We often don’t want to dwell on the past, especially when the past is as dark as the one of the Colossians. It can be defeating. To recognize that before we were redeemed, we had sexually immoral, impure, evil and covetousness desires is sobering, but we can understand why that was. But to acknowledge that those desires still exist in us can be terribly discouraging. The Colossians’ past is the same as our past if we are in Christ:

There are not a few of us who experience recurring temptation, be it sexual, anger, covetousness or something else, and when we read penetrating language like, on account of these (the vice lists in verse 5 & 8) the wrath of God is coming, we may find ourselves wondering if we are actually in Christ.

Remember gospel grammar:

You have put off the old self (v.9) You have put on the new (v. 10) And you are being renewed (10)

The statement of faith we read earlier on sanctification emphasizes that it is a progressive work of the Holy Spirit, but that it begins at regeneration. God decisively sanctifies His people when He regenerates them, but continues to sanctify them throughout their lives and the battle against sin is fought. The presence of warfare does not mean renewal isn't happening; warfare itself belongs to the new existence.

So church, we are exhorted to wage war against our flesh and its evil deeds, not to preserve the work of redemption that God has accomplished in us, but because He has accomplished it in us.

In light of the new purity in which we live as a result of our union with Christ, Paul also exhorts us to

Put away destructive attitudes (8)

If the first list exposes sins that dethrone Christ in the heart, the second exposes sins that destroy the relationships Christ has created. And that shift from personal desires to our relationships with one another begins preparing us for what Paul will show us in verse 11 that God’s work of renewal is creating not merely new individuals, but a new people.

Verse 5 highlights sinful desires of individuals.

Verse 8 highlights attitudes that are destructive in relationships.

Think about this. Anger, wrath, malice, slander, obscene talk and lying (v. 9) all destroy relationships when they become patterns. And like the list in verse 5, I suggest n the background of this list are the Ten Commandments.

anger, wrath, malice is connected to the 6th commandment which is do not murder. We know from the gospels that to harbor anger or bitterness in our hearts is to commit murder.

slander and lying is connected to the ninth commandment which is do not give false testimony (do not lie).

I will stop short of claiming that Paul is intentionally walking through the Ten Commandments one by one. But I do think there is a strong argument that Paul's categories reflect the same two-dimensional concern as the Decalogue:

Right worship of God.

Right love for neighbor.

And our union with Christ moves us into these commitments.

We are also exhorted to

Remember the transformation that God has accomplished and is perfecting in you. (9-10)

Paul now grounds his exhortation in verse 8 and the beginning of verse 9 with a note on the new identity of the Colossians. Notice how Paul talks about removing or doing away with the old self. It is something that has already taken place: seeing that you have put off. Paul isn’t suggesting that they have not done this but pointing to the implications of this completed work.

In light of 2:11-15, where the metaphor of taking off clothing, what we see in verses 9 & 10 likely reflects the background of baptism, when believers participate in the death and resurrection of Christ. In Colossians, Paul uses this change of clothing to signify an inaugurated new creation relationship. The idea of a new creation relationship is confirmed in verse 10: the new self is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its Creator. The imagery of verse 10 recalls the fundamental truth established in the Garden: that God created us in the image of God, and while we are burdened by the Fall and sin, we are being renewed in and through our union with Christ. Let me suggest two implications of this renewal here:

Renewal of one’s nature. Off with the old, on with the new

A new community that bears the image of God. This becomes especially clear as we move into verse 11.

The renewal of the image of God is seen not only in personal holiness but also in the creation of a community unlike any other on earth—a people whose identity is no longer determined by ethnicity, social status, or cultural background, but by their union with Christ.

Our lives are shaped by our union with Christ. The final product of this we will consider today is:

A New People: We must live in light of the new humanity Christ has created. (v. 11)

Verse 11 is not an afterthought. It is the culmination of everything Paul has been building toward since verse 5. The people of God have put on the new person, and that renewal necessarily creates a renewed humanity in which former identity distinctions lose their determining significance. God is not only creating holy individuals; He is creating a holy people.

How are we to think of the new humanity Christ has created?

God’s renewal of His people removes worldly distinctions between them.

If you are looking at the ESV translation of the Bible, the first word of verse 11 is here. If you happen to be looking at the Legacy Standard Bible, you see the italicized phrase a renewal. The reason those two words are italicized is because those words are not present in the original language. So why did the translating board of the LSB decide to put those words there? Because they see the connection we are all supposed to see, that the word here is grammatically connected to the new self in verse 10.

It is a little confusing, so let me suggest a way of understanding Paul’s point here:

Paul's point is that within this renewed humanity—the new people God is creating in Christ—the distinctions that once divided people no longer determine their identity or standing before God.

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul references this same work of God as resulting in one new man, and it is clear that the new man is corporate.

So, don’t miss the flow of Paul’s argument:

Put off the old self. (v. 9)

Put on the new self. (v. 10)

The new self is being renewed after the image of its Creator. (v. 10)

In this new self/new humanity, old divisions no longer define us. (v. 11)

Genesis presents humanity as bearing God's image.

Sin fractured:

our relationship with God,

our relationship with one another.

In Christ, God is restoring His image.

Therefore the restored image is seen not only in:

personal holiness (vv. 5-10),

but also in:

a reconciled community (v. 11).

That seems to be precisely why Paul immediately lists divisions:

Greek and Jew

circumcised and uncircumcised

barbarian, Scythian

slave, free

These are distinctions that defined identity in the old age. Paul is not saying these distinctions cease to exist. Jews remained Jews, Greeks remained Greeks, slaves remained slaves, and free people remained free. His point is that these distinctions no longer determine a person's value, standing, or identity within the people of God.

But:

"Christ is all, and in all."

Christ is all.

He is the source of our righteousness.

He is the basis of our acceptance.

He is the center of our worship.

He is the ground of our unity.

And Christ is in all.

The same Christ dwells in every believer, regardless of background, status, ethnicity, or life experience.

Church, we need to recognize identity markers that could rival Christ. Paul lists the ones the Colossian church faced. What about us?

Political affiliation

Economic status

Educational background

Race

Homeschool/public school/private school distinctions

Blue-collar/white-collar

It’s not that we can’t have discussions or even debates about these areas of our lives. We cannot however, loose sight of the prevailing truth about our connection to one another and that is God has created and continues to work in and through a new humanity that is based on the blood of the cross of Christ. As God makes His people holy, He is creating a new humanity that anticipates the renewal of all creation.

Conclusion

Church, Paul's burden in this passage is not merely that we would think differently, behave differently, or relate to one another differently. His burden is that our lives would increasingly reflect what is already true of us in Christ.

We have been raised with Christ.

Therefore, our orientation must be shaped by heavenly realities. We seek the things above and set our minds on the things above because our lives are hidden with Christ in God.

We have been raised with Christ.

Therefore, our purity must be shaped by our union with Him. The desires, attitudes, and practices that belonged to our former life no longer define us. We put them to death because, in Christ, we have already died to them.

We have been raised with Christ.

Therefore, our relationships must be shaped by the new humanity He has created. The distinctions that once divided us no longer determine who we are. Christ is all, and in all.

The great temptation for every Christian is to live as though the old world still defines us—to find our identity in earthly things, to indulge the desires of the flesh, or to divide ourselves according to worldly categories. Paul reminds us that none of those things are ultimately true of us anymore.

We have died.

We have been raised.

Our life is hidden with Christ in God.

And one day Christ will appear, and when He appears, we also will appear with Him in glory.

Until that day, let us seek the things above, put to death what is earthly in us, and live as the new people Christ has redeemed by His blood.

For because we are united to the risen Christ, our lives must be shaped by that union.

Benediction

1 Thessalonians 5:23–24 ESV

Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.