Let us turn once again to God's
word in that portion of scripture that we read in verses of the
third chapter in Paul's epistle to the Colossians. Colossians
chapter 3 and reading again at verse 1. If ye then be risen
with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ
sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things
above, not on things on the earth, for ye are dead, and your life
is hedged with Christ in God's. When Christ, who is our life,
shall appear, then shall he also appear with him in glory." In these verses we come to what
we might describe as the more practical part of the epistle. This is Paul's wont, of course,
as he writes his various epistles in the former part. We normally
have great doctrinal truths plainly stated, and then in the latter
part the practical implication of those truths, how the truth
is to affect the way in which these believers conduct themselves,
the manner of their living. And so here in Colossians the
first two chapters contain great doctrinal truth particularly
concerning the Lord Jesus Christ in his person and in his work. And so here in the opening words
of the third chapter Paul reminds of what this should mean with
regards to the way in which they conduct themselves if they are
truly trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ that He has spoken of.
And this morning I want us to particularly concentrate on the
exhortation that is given here in verses 1 and 2 with regards
to seeking and setting He says, seek those things which are above. Set your affection on things
above. And the language is strong, it's
the language of command, the language of exhortation. If they are those who have a
true spiritual union with Christ who died and is risen and ascended
on high, then they too must set their affections on those things
that are in the heavenly places. But first of all, before we come
to the actual exhortation that we have in those first two verses,
I want us to examine somewhat the reasons behind the exhortation. which is spelt out, of course,
quite plainly in the third verse. For, he says, ye are dead, and
your life is hedged with Christ in God. Here is the reason, then,
why they should be seeking things above, the reason why their affections
should be set on those things above. For, or because, because
ye are dead. and your life is hit with Christ
in God. This must be the consequence.
If what is said in verse 3 is true of them, then they will
attend to those exhortations that are found in the first two
verses. The reasons then, behind the
exhortations, we see them here in the third verse. And there
are two reasons He says, for ye are dead. And then another
reason, your life is hid with Christ in God. Well, let's first
of all examine these two reasons behind the exhortation. Ye are
dead. Remember what he says at the
beginning of the verse, he says, if ye then be risen with Christ,
to be risen with Christ, it is obvious they must first of all
have been those who were dead. And of course that was their
natural condition once upon a time, before God came in his mercy,
before there was that new birth, that communication to their souls
of new life, spiritual life. The sinner must be born again,
must be born from above. see what he said back in chapter
2 and verse 13 you being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision
of your flesh at the quickens together with him having forgiven
you all trespasses as they were once dead in trespasses
and sins the spirit came into their souls and it was a mighty
work and it was an effectual work that was wrought within
them He says the same, does he not, in those familiar words
at the beginning of Ephesians chapter 2, you are to be quickened
who were dead in trespasses and in sins. And as I say, it's great
power that is necessary in the soul of the sinner who is so
dead, so spiritually dead, if there is going to be any evidence
of new life. there in chapter 2 verse 12 he
says ye are risen with him that is risen with Christ verse 13
remember quickened together with him oh it's the power of Christ
that was demonstrated in their souls when they were sinners
lost and dead in all their trespasses and all their transgression As
we have it there in Ephesians chapter 1, it's the exceeding
greatness of God's power to usward who believe according to the
working of His mighty power which He wrought in Christ when He
raised Him from the dead and set Him at His own right hand
in the heavenly places. They are those then who Paul
says here in the opening words of the chapter, are risen with
Christ because they were previously dead in trespasses and in sins. But coming back to what he says
here in verse 3, for ye are dead, he is not so much here in verse
3 referring to what their condition, their state was before they were
born again, he's not really speaking of what they were by nature. It's not their previous condition
before regeneration, but rather, in verse 3, is he speaking of
their state as a result of being born again from the dead. He says, for ye are dead, or
literally, for ye died. Ye died, he says. And the verb,
it's a very strong verb, it's the aorist, and it indicates
a once and for all action. There's no equivalent really
in our English language to the particular verb that is used
here in the original Greek. It is a strong verb then indicating
an action that was a once and for all action. They die. You see, at conversion, what
he is saying at conversion, the believer dies. Yes, he is born
again, there is new life communicated to his soul, and yet strangely
at the same time he dies. And what does he die to? He dies
to the world. He dies to the world. Look at chapter 2 and verse 20,
Wherefore if ye be dead, It's really the same verb as we have
in verse 3 of chapter 3. Therefore if he died with Christ
from the rudiments of the world, why as though living in the world
are you subject to ordinances? When the believer is born again,
yes there is that new life, that spiritual life, the life of God,
that comes into his soul, he's a partaker of the divine nature,
and yet at the same time, he dies. He dies to this world,
he dies to the former way of his living. And all of that,
of course, is so wonderfully set forth in believers' baptism. Isn't that what Paul tells us? quite clearly in the sixth chapter
of his epistle to the Romans. In Romans chapter 6 and verse
3, know ye not that so many of us that were baptized into Jesus
Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried
with him by baptism into death. that like as Christ was raised
up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also
should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together
in the likeness of His death, we shall also be in the likeness
of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man is crucified
with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth
we should not serve sin. Believers' baptism, and baptism
of course is only baptism where there is immersion, and in the
immersion we see the professed believer buried, buried in the
waters of baptism, rising together with the Lord Jesus Christ, rising
now in newness of life. Here in chapter 2 and verse 12,
buried with him in baptism, wherein ye also are risen with him through
the faith of the operation of God who has raised him from the
dead. What a wonderful picture then
we see in baptism of this particular truth. are dead. You died. You died to the former
way of living. You died to this world. And that's what is being professed.
I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless I live, yet not
I, but Christ liveth in me. And the life which I now live
in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved
me and gave himself for me, says the Apostle. Here then is the
first reason that lies behind the exhortation that we have
in those first two verses. The reason why you seek the things
above, sexual affection of the things above, is because you
have died. Died to this world. Died to the
ways of the world. But then he gives a second reason. for or because you are dead,
and your life is hedged with Christ in God. It's interesting,
Calvin comments here, concerning this expression, your life is
hedged, he says it's buried under the
ignominy of the cross. The believer you see is a follower
now of the Lord Jesus Christ. And as a follower of the Lord
Jesus Christ, what does he do? He must take up his cross. All his life is hid in this world
under all that ignominy that comes with being a true follower,
a real disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. He has that gift of faith
spoken of in chapter 2 and verse 12 that faith that is of the
operation of God or that gracious work of the Spirit of God in
his soul he has faith but what comes with that? Philippians
chapter 1 and verse 29 the Apostle says to the Philippians unto
you it is given in the behalf of Christ not only to believe
on him but also to suffer for his sake not only to believe
on him but also to suffer for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ,
to no tribulation in the world, to no trials, troubles in this
world. Now it is true of course that
the believer comes into the possession of God's grace and all the blessings
of that grace He is granted by God those exceeding great and
precious promises. Remember how Peter speaks of
them in writing in his second epistle, and there at verse 3 in chapter
1 he says, according as his divine power is given unto us all things
that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him
that hath called us to glory and virtue, whereby are given
unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these ye might
be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption
that is in the world through life." What a favoured position
is that then of the child of God. what blessings he receives
from the hand of God. It is a truly glorious thing,
is it not, to be a Christian believer. But, at the same time,
there comes those trials and those troubles, and the blessings,
as a result, might be hidden from the believer's view. And
Peter says the same when he writes in his first epistle. Yes, the
blessings are great, and yet what does the believer experience
at the present moment? Now for a season, he says, if
need be, you are in heaviness through manifold temptation.
Look at the context there in that first epistle, previous
to making that statement, he speaks of all that the believer
has received of the grace and the goodness of God, blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according
to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by
the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, all that new life
that he has, you see the life of Christ that has come into
his soul, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that faith
has not a way reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the
power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed
in the last time, wherein ye greatly rejoice. The believer
has much reason then to be glad, to be joyful. But then says Peter,
though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through
manifold temptations. Oh, the believer then finds at
times that his life is hidden. It's hidden, buried under all
that ignominy that comes with the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we see it not only in the
New Testament Scriptures, we see it with the Godly in the
Old Testament. David in the Psalms so often
speaks of his troubles, his trials, his difficulties. And not only
David, but others of the Psalmists. In Psalm 73 and verse 13, Asaph
says, and wash my hands in innocency
for all the day long have I been playing and chastened every morning. Now the believer finds that his
cause is indeed a very strange cause in this world. He has died
for the world and yet in the world he only knows trouble and
trial and difficulty. Now he needs then to be encouraged
in the way, and this is the encouragement that we find here in the following verse, verse 4,
he says, When Christ, who is our life, shall appear then,
shall ye also appear with him in glory. Lord, there is that
blessed prospect, you see. And this is that that is given
as an encouragement to the believer whilst he is in the midst of
the trials of this world. In the world you shall have tribulations,
says Christ, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. And
Christ has overcome the world, he is risen, he is now ascended.
And the one who is ascended on high is to return again, he is
to come in power and great glory. and they are to be looking and
watching and waiting and anticipating his appearing when Christ who
is alive shall appear. O beloved, now are we the sons
of God, yet he doth not appear what we shall be, but we know,
says John, that when he shall appear we shall be like him,
for we shall see him as he is. The believer as a blessed inheritance
that has been laid up for him in the heavens. I have not seen
nor heard, neither have entered into the hearts of man the things
that God has prepared for them that love him. And so whilst his life in this
world might be said in a sense to be buried under all the ignominy
of the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, yet there is in Him that
blessed hope and He is looking for the appearing of His God
and Saviour, even the Lord Jesus Christ. Where is His life in
this world? It is hid. Ye are dead and your life is
hid. And where is it hid? With Christ
in God. And don't we need to carefully
mark the prepositions here? It's with Christ, he says. It's
in God. And the world can have no understanding
then of the favoured position that the Christian finds himself
in. Even in the midst of all his
troubles, he is one who by Saving faith is united to the Lord Jesus
Christ. His life is in Christ. Christ
is his life. And Christ, of course, is that
one who is to him truly the eternal Son of God, the only Saviour. How safe, how secure is that
life that has been given to him. I give unto them eternal life,
says Christ. and they shall never perish.
No man is able to pluck them out of my hand. My Father which
gave them is greater than all. No man can pluck them out of
my Father's hand. Here then we see something of
the reasons behind the exhortations that are given in the first two
verses. for or because ye are dead, ye
died. When born again by the Spirit
of God, yes, there was that communication of new life, and yet, though
there was new life in the soul, you died to this world, and your
life, says Paul, is hid with Christ in God. And so coming now to the actual
exhortation in those first two verses. If ye then be risen with
Christ, seek those things which are above. Where Christ hitteth
on the right hand of God, set your affection on things above,
not on things on the earth. Two aspects really to the exhortation. Seek those things which are above. And what are the things that
are above? Well, they are those things where
Christ is. Because Christ is no more upon
the earth. Christ has accomplished all his
great work here in the earth. He has fulfilled all righteousness.
He has wrought salvation by the obedience of his sinless light. and also by that great oblation,
that great sacrifice that He made when He laid down His life
in order to redeem the sinner. And our God has set His seal
upon that work of Christ. For Christ ever pleased the Father,
the Father has raised Him again from the dead, and the Father
has received Him now into the very heavens. And there He is.
seated on the right hand of God. And that's where we're to seek
Him. That's where we're to seek Him. He is in that position of
privilege, that position of power. Remember how in the opening verses
of his epistle to the Hebrews, the Apostle Paul speaks of Him.
and speaks of his diaton just as we see his diaton in the opening
chapters of this epistle to the Colossians how Paul time and
again delights to speak of the person and the glories that belong
to the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and there In Hebrews chapter
1, what does he say? He speaks of him being the brightness
of God's glory, the express image of his person, upholding all
things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged
our own sins, sat down on the right hand of the majesty on
high. All he who appeared upon the
earth was none other than God, God manifest in the flesh, the
blessed Emmanuel. And having accomplished all that
work, He has now ascended and He is set down at the right hand
of the Majesty on high. And that's where we are to seek
Him. That's where we are to seek Him. The psalmist counsels in Psalm
110, the Lord said unto my Lord, sit thou at my right hand until
I make thine enemies thy footstool. O David, there calls him Lord. O David, sees him as one who
is equal to the Father. The Lord said unto my Lord, sit
thou at my right hand. This is where Christ is. He is
in heaven. Who is gone into heaven and is
on the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers being
made subject unto him, says Peter. He is clearly then in that That
favourite place at God's right hand. The place where all authority
and all power has been given unto Him. He is that one who
rules. He is clearly a sovereign saviour. And so we are to seek Him as
such. We are to seek Him as such. We are to look to Him as such
a saviour as that. And if we are seeking Him in
such a place, such a position, is it not evidence that we are
those who are risen with Him? If ye then be risen with Christ,
seek those things which are above where Christ sitteth, on the
right hand of God. All that we receive in our Christian
life must come from Heaven. John the Baptist says in that
third chapter of John a man can receive nothing except it be
given him from heaven all that we have, all that we are comes
from him how we are to therefore be such as are ever seeking him
and looking to him looking on to Jesus the author and finisher
of our life knew for the joy that was set before him, endured
the cross, despising the shame, and he sat down at the right
hand of God. We are to look to him for our
faith. No point, no sense in looking to ourselves for faith.
If we have faith we must receive it only from the Lord Jesus Christ.
He is the author of faith. and he is the finisher of our
fight our fight must begin with him, our fight must end with
him or our fight from beginning to end must continue with him
and as we look to him for our fight so we look to him also
for that repentance that repentance that is the hand made of the
forgiveness of sin if we know what it is to be forgiven we
must be those who are truly repentant and isn't the Lord Jesus Christ
exalted at God's right hand to give repentance that's what Peter
says to give repentance and the forgiveness of sin to Israel
all that's what he gives to his Israel that people that the father
gave to him in the eternal covenant He has ascended on high, he has
received gifts for men. These are the gifts that he bestows. That grace of repentance, that
true godly sorrowing over sin. And remember what repentance
is. It is such a fundamental change
of mind in a man. That's the basic meaning of the
word as we have it in the New Testament. One of those compound
words. The change of mind. Here is the
life now which turned around, which turned inside out, upside
down. It's a new life, it's a different
life. Where there is that repentance,
there is that dying to the world, that turning away from sin, and
that looking to God, that trusting in Christ. And the Lord Jesus
Christ is that one, of course, from whom and only from whom
we can receive the grace of repentance, the forgiveness of our sins. He is exalted at God's right
hand for that very purpose. Him hath God exalted with His
right hand to give repentance to Israel and the forgiveness
of sin. For we are to seek those things
which are of God, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of
God. Faith, repentance, but all of
our salvation. Paul at the end of 1 Corinthians
1 tells us of him, i.e. in Christ Jesus, who of God is
made unto us wisdom. and righteousness and sanctification
and redemption that as it is written he that glorieth let
him glory in the Lord he is made unto us all these things and
so what do we read back in chapter 2 and verse 10 ye are complete
in him is that friends what we desire is that what we seek after
that salvation that is all in Christ, that salvation that is
only in Christ. He is that one, you see, who
delivers his people from all the vain philosophies of this
sinful world. He delivers them from all the
traditions of men. He delivers them from all the
condemnings of that law of the Old Testament. Isn't that what
Paul goes on to say there in chapter 2? Verse 8, Beware lest
any man spoil you, he says through philosophy and vain deceit after
the tradition of men, after the rudiments or the elements of
the world and not after Christ. Verse 16, Let no man therefore
judge you in meat or in drink or in respect of an holy day,
or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath days, which are a shadow
of things to come, but the body is of Christ. Verse 20, he says, Wherefore,
if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why,
as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,
touch not, taste not, handle not, which all are to perish
with the using, after the commandments and doctrines of men, which things
have indeed a show of wisdom in will-worship and humility
and neglecting of the body, not in any honour to the satisfying
of the flesh. The believer is delivered from all of these things,
from all the ways of men, all the foolishness of men, all the
philosophies of men, all the traditions of men, all the legalities
of men. The believer sees all his salvation
to be in the Lord Jesus Christ and only in the Lord Jesus Christ
and that's what he seeks. Seek those things which are above where Christ sitteth on the right
hand of God. We look not at the things that
are seen, says Paul, but at the things which are not seen. for
the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which
are not seen are eternal. We desire to have dealings then
only with the Lord Jesus Christ. He is our all, and He is in all. And so as we are to be seeking
the things which are above, so He goes on to say, set your affection
on things which are above. Now, the word affection here
is really equivalent to the Hebrew word heart as we find it in the
Old Testament. And remember, the Hebrews as
an Eastern people are different to we of the West. We tend to associate the heart
only with the affections but they associate the heart with
much more than that it comprehends also the understanding and the
will it's that that is at the very center of a man's being
and so in the book of Proverbs we have those exhortations keep
thy heart with all diligence for out of it are the issues
of life My son, give me thy heart, and
let thine eyes observe my ways, says wisdom there in the book
of Proverbs. We are to think then not so much
just in terms of affection here, it's much more than that. It's
the totality of a man's being that has to be set on those things
above and not on those things which are of the earth. And it
tells us something, does it not, about the seeking. This seeking
that is spoken of in verse 1 must be wholehearted. Doesn't God
say in Jeremiah, you shall seek me and find me when you shall
search after me with all your heart. Where there is that truth
seeking, There is that setting of the heart, that determination. We are not to come and appear
before God with a divided heart. And God sees our hearts. All
things are naked and open to His view. There is nothing that
we can conceal from Him, nothing is hid from Him. he sees us through
and through and we are not to come with a heart that is divided
partly set on the things of the world and partly set on the things
of another world we are to be whole heartedly if we would find
him, that is the promise you shall seek me and find me when
you shall search after me with all your hearts how our hearts
then must be set set on things above not, on things of the earth. The people who are separated
from the ways of the world, whose affections don't run after the
things of this life. This is the believer's calling,
is it not? This is the way in which the
Christian is to conduct himself. Because he has died for this
world, he's dead. His life is hedged with Christ
in God, and so we must attend to the exhortation. O friends,
let us be those who not only embrace those exceeding great
and precious promises of the Gospel, but God grant that we
might also love all the holy precepts of this Gospel, if ye
then be risen with Christ. Seek those things which are above,
where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God, set your affection
on things above and not on things on the earth. Amen.