If God has really done a great work in you, that ought to bring results. Right?
This is the argument that the apostle Paul makes in Colossians 3.
He begins the chapter with a thought-provoking statement:
“If then you have been raised with Christ” (Col. 3:1a).
Now, Paul is not putting this forward hypothetically or as something merely within the realm of possibility.
He does not doubt the position of the believers in Colossae, nor would he doubt ours today. Rather, using a specific construction in the original Greek, the apostle puts forward this claim that he believes to be true in order to make the reader think.
It is like he is saying, “If this is true…” (to which the reader ponders, “Well, yes, that is true…”) “…then let this also be true.”
If it is true, or you could also say, “since it is true” that you have been raised with Christ, then this must change something in how we live.
Firstly, the Christian ought to:
“seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God” (Col. 3:1b).
If it is true that the believer has been taken out of the domain of darkness and transferred into the Kingdom of God’s Beloved Son (see Col. 1:13) then that same person ought to live as a representative of the heavenly kingdom they are now a part of!
Following the first command, the apostle issues a second:
“Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Col. 3:2).
The believer’s disposition is to be characterized by a heavenward focus. We recognize that there is more to life than meets the eye and we know that we have a destiny in glory. With these wonderful theological truths in mind, our lives ought to be transformed to fit this new mold.
If we have put off the old man, that is Adam, and have put on the new man, that is Christ, then our lives will only be logically shaped by our new identity that is in Christ.
Beyond a focus on the heavenly, we also put to death the earthly works of the flesh: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, covetousness, anger, wrath, malice, slander, obscene talk, and lying (Col. 3:5-9).
Instead, we put on the qualities of heaven: compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forgiveness, love, and peace (Col. 3:12-15).
In everything we do, we glorify Jesus:
“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Col. 3:17).
If I am raised with Christ and my identity is in Christ, then certainly all the good that characterizes my present life is due Christ. It is done in His name, for His glory, and done with thanksgiving to the Father who has qualified us to have a share in the inheritance of the saints in light (Col. 1:12).
If we have been raised to newness of life, there will be some proof in the pudding.
This chapter then functions as a rubric for Christian living that is rooted in our new identity in Christ. Remember, the apostle began this letter by unraveling some of the glories of our salvation and it is only in light of that heavenly position in Christ that we are able to walk in newness of life.
Will we fix our eyes on heaven today and what living as a citizen of heaven looks like? This is our new identity whether we realize it or not and whether we feel like it or not.
If we are in Christ, the earthly ought to be put to death so that we might reflect the heavenly—for this is who we truly are.