Years ago, I worked in Children’s Ministry, and for a short season I helped lead worship – not because I sang well, but because I was willing to hop around to some awesome music videos. LOL. And the best part of these recordings were the hand motions that went with the lyrics.
When we learned the song, “Here I Am to Worship,” the gestures for the chorus increased our connection to God exponentially. I felt it. The kids felt it. It was so impactful that we took the song to our next women’s retreat.
And the same thing happened.
We. Were. Wrecked. The Holy Spirit settled over us, and we let loose – our hearts worshiping God deeply, sincerely. The motions for the phrase “here I am,” palms face up toward heaven, opened us to surrender ourselves to the Lord so that by the time we got to “You’re altogether lovely, altogether worthy, altogether wonderful to me,” we earnestly meant it.
Putting gestures to words created a pattern of connection. Paul does something similar throughout Colossians (and most of his letters), developing word clues to correlate the events of Jesus’ last days with what occurs when people come to know Christ. First, Jesus:
He died.
He was buried.
He rose from the dead.
He has been seated in heaven.
Then, with with the same imagery, Paul describes believers:
We died.
We were buried.
We were raised to life.
We have been seated with Christ in heaven.
Such illustrations wedge themselves into our minds, creating connections and reminders that we are already in Christ – because we’ve died like Him, been buried like Him… We are with Him. Of course, Paul also wants us to recognize that this life in Christ should change the way we live on earth.
Death to Life
Having defined the challenges of the church, Paul begins addressing specific issues plaguing the Colossians, namely strict rules imposed on them by those who want to elevate their own spiritual stature. It’s why Paul tells the believers, “Don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days. …Don’t let anyone condemn you by insisting on pious self-denial or the worship of angels” (Colossians 2:16, 18 NLT).
It’s also why Paul gets so graphic with them, saying, “You were circumcised by Christ” and “buried with him” (vv.11-12). Paul utilizes this strategy because the word-pictures are meant to trigger memories of the past – and forge new connections:
- Like the Hebrew people who said ‘yes’ to God, followers of Jesus agree to a circumcision – of the heart. (Romans 2:28-29)
- Like the Colossians, our ‘yes’ to Jesus is entering into an eternal covenant. (1 Corinthians 11:25)
- Like Jesus, who said ‘yes’ to the Father, we enter death. We’re buried – in Christ. (Romans 6:4)
In Christ, our old life is no more. Our sins get buried.
And all of this is good news – because in Christ, death to our old ways of living also means death to the “spiritual forces of this world” (Colossians 2:20). The bigger picture Paul is painting starts coming together. If death to old our life and sin and spiritual forces is true, then we don’t need to listen to anyone who tries to tell us there’s more we have to do to gain salvation and redemption, forgiveness and freedom (vv.20-22). And, we won’t cave-in to the temptation to strive in our own strength to attain spiritual greatness.
And we take a breath. Then we turn the page.
Seated With Him
Moving from chapter two to chapter three, the argument Paul has been constructing continues; its logic follows the pattern already begun. We died, having been “buried with Christ in baptism” (Colossians 2:12). And as we came up out of those baptismal waters, we were raised with Christ through faith and are now in Christ (v.12). And so, chapter three begins:
“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ”
Colosians 3:1 NIV
In the opening of chapter three, Paul’s logic says if these are established truths, then we have new status. We live from a high and exalted place: the throne room of heaven! The Greek word for ‘seated’ denotes that we’ve been placed ‘together’ with Christ in heaven, and it’s not of our own doing, nor by our own hand.
It’s also not in the future. The verbs indicate completed actions; therefore, Paul isn’t talking about ‘one day.’ He’s saying that it’s all true today because it’s already accomplished: “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6).
I’ve been wrestling for a few years now with the mystery of being here on earth while simultaneously sitting in heaven. If I’m honest, most days I don’t feel very heavenly or have a sense of being in an other-worldly place. Yet, I believe Scripture – so what are we to do?
Let’s recall that God – through Paul – told us that He wants us to have “the full riches of complete understanding” (Colossians 2:2). It’s important to note that Paul is not talking about worldly knowledge or understanding all things of God (ie: His ways, His thoughts). He’s talking about being filled with the Spirit to the brim so that we’ll have spiritual insight into who Jesus is.5 Because in Christ, we have everything we need.
So. When we don’t understand, when we feel discouraged, it’s time to lean-in to Jesus; in Him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Going back to the previous verse, Paul also said, “My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love” (v.2). In other words, our discouraged hearts prevent the fullness of Christ from entering. Disunity in the body of Christ blocks the fullness of Christ among us. Therefore, if we’re confused or divided or disheartened, we can check our hearts; we can guard our hearts from old habits, lies, and the enemy. And we make sure we’re rooted in Christ’s love — because being with Christ is where the hidden treasure of understanding lies.
While we may not always understand the ways of God, we can know that when we live from this position of being seated with Christ, we’re surrendering our independence and pride and discouraged hearts. And as a result, we live with fuller faith and truer hope — because we know Jesus. Fully.
And knowing Him means that dots will connect in our brains so that understanding will dawn. This week, for instance, I was rereading Colossians and noticed another pattern Paul utilizes. It moves from Christ to us:
- Christ in us == us in Christ
- Fullness of God in Christ == that same fullness in us
- Christ seated in the heavenlies == us seated there too
Suddenly, words I’ve been reading by scholars make more sense: “Our intimate link with Christ in His redemptive work makes us inseparable from Him, even now.”1 The light bulb goes on when I see just how united we are with Jesus! Sure, I’ve known we’re meant to ‘remain in Him;’ I just never saw it so deeply. Or so high up, spiritually speaking.
“Though it’s true that Christ is with us and within us while we’re on Earth, it also works in the other direction—we’re united with Christ, so much so that we are seated with Him in Heaven.”
Randy Alcorn1
Look Up
When believers take hold of this spiritual revelation, we are meant to do something with it. Paul didn’t throw all this truth at the Colossians so that they’d keep being confused by the worldly philosophies or exhausted by all the wild goose chases. No! He wanted them – and us – to claim our status as ‘one’ with Christ, raised with Christ, and seated with Christ. So we can live for Him!
It’s why Paul tells us to seek and set our minds on things above (Colossians 3:1-2).
- ‘Seeking’ is active – it’s a seeking-after, a striving-for.2 It’s choosing to realign our hearts with Christ’s.
- ‘Setting’ is to direct one’s mind actively,3 not just toward thoughts but also disposition and character.4
When we focus on our own methods for achieving holiness, we tend to put our energy into changing behaviors – like, don’t touch, don’t drink; read this, do that… Yet, when we do this, where is our focus? On things below. On things of earth.
Paul longs for us to see that when we shift our focus onto Christ, who is seated in heaven, we’re choosing to live with and from the One who has already “rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom” (Colossians 1:13).
“If we really grasp this truth, it will have a profound effect on our holiness” – because when we see ourselves as seated with Christ in Heaven, in the very presence of God, we are much less likely to worry or rage at our loved ones or doubt our Father’s love or…you fill in the blank.1
What Paul lays out for us is the great mystery of sanctification – that throughout our lives, what we focus on is what we do. Eugene Peterson so cleverly puts it:
“If you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.”
Colossians 3:1-2 MSG, emphasis mine
A life lived with Jesus in heaven is a life lived from victory! It’s living undistracted by what’s going on around us. It’s walking this world undeterred by the enemy’s attempts to disconnect us from Christ.6 It’s setting our minds on Jesus so that what we think impacts what we do – in the best, most heavenly and holy ways. It’s also aligning our hearts with Christ in such a way that we depend on Him rather than ourselves – and we find rest.
Living our lives connected with Christ and in Christ is so far beyond what this world offers that we’ll not only find power and satisfaction and joy, but we’ll continuously uncover hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge. We’ll be transformed. ‘Pursuing what Christ presides over’ and ‘seeing from His perspective’ help us to set our hearts and minds on things above. And, as we do, we’ll live like we’re from heaven. We’ll look like Jesus.
Heavenly Father, we are here to say that You are our God. Thank You for opening our eyes to see the beauty of your Son, of your love, of the cross and all it represents. Lord Jesus, You are King of all days, so highly exalted — glorious in heaven above. Humbly You came to the earth You created. All for love’s sake, You became poor. You’re lovely and worthy — too wonderful for us, for we’ll never know how much it cost to see our sin upon that cross. Jesus, we marvel at the way we are united with You by your Spirit — to the point that we dwell with You in heaven right now. What a mystery it is to think that we’ve died to our sins, to our old selves — that we’ve been buried with You and raised by You! And we’re so grateful. King Jesus, You are our Christ, the Risen One! You ride to end the battle that in eternity You’ve already won. We praise and pull it down! The victory in heaven is the same on earth — we live in and from this victory You’ve already won! Holy are You, Lord! Worthy are You, Lord! Holy Spirit, You are our connection to heaven, to Jesus. Help us to keep our minds set on things above! We choose to rest in You, following You for all our days. In Jesus’ name, amen.
(inspired by “Here I Am to Worship,” “King Jesus,” and Colossians 2)
To think-on the fact that we’re hidden in Christ — in heaven! — is a lot for our brains to process. Yet, Lent is a great time for this kind of reflection. What if instead of watching TV after dinner this week, we journal or read Scripture or listen to worship music — things that lift our eyes heavenward?!
“…let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith…” Hebrews 12:1-2 NLT
Resources: I love sharing with you the books, podcasts, articles, and anything else that has inspired, encouraged, or taught me. These are humble with no expectations.
- 1 – Randy Alcorn wrote an article about what it means to live hidden in Christ.
- 2 – Biblehub.com for the word zeteo.
- 3 – Biblehub.com for the word phroneo.
- 4 – Biblehub.com commentaries for Colossians 3:2
- 5 – On The Devoted Collective‘s platform, Aimee Walker posted a teaching video about knowledge and understanding as found in Colossians 2. It is soooo good. So informative. I wish I could link it here, but just know that her words have highly influence this paragraph and so many other things as we move through Colossians.
- 6 — Aimee Walker’s study on Colossians, Enough
- Did you notice I added “Here I Am to Worship” to our Hidden in Christ playlist? Here’s a video, very much like the one we used 20+ years ago, that teaches the hand motions! Then there’s the Brooke Ligertwood song, “King Jesus,” that has lyrics all about this high, heavenly place of Jesus. Try holding your palms face-up toward heaven as you sing along……..
For there is no other
Seated at the Father’s right hand
And You’re scarred with the proof of what You chose to lose
So grace was mine to gain
Our Christ the Risen One
The slain and worthy Lamb
You ride to end the battle
That in eternity You’ve already won
We praise and pull it down
The victory, the sound
Heaven on earth, the same - We have a second Lenten “Teacup Video” live! There’s something about unpacking these lofty yet deep things of God out loud. I hope you’ll tune in and speak up. You can find all of them on my Facebook Author Page and Instagram.
- This week another issue of The Abiding Life, Newsletter releases! I always love feedback, so let me know what you like and what you’re looking for. We’d also love your prayers as we continue to seek out the very best platforms for the newsletter. You can subscribe to it here!
Rhythms: As my newsletter’s title infers, we seek to develop an abiding life in this space — a place where we can get informed but also be transformed as we learn to abide in God’s presence throughout our days. I like to think that developing rhythms is what aids us in our desire to become more Christlike.
- Our rhythm this Lent is simply, and so importantly, WORSHIP. I love what Randy Alcorn says at the end of his article: “No wonder the devil is so intent on keeping us from grasping our standing in Christ—for if we see ourselves in Heaven with Christ, we’ll be drawn to worship and serve Him here and now, creating ripples in Heaven’s waters that will extend outward for all eternity.”1 Add to that Jen Pollock Michel’s words from Surprised by Paradox, “It’s a paradox—a predicament, even—that my story, that your story, could be a way of proclaiming the bigger, grander story of God. What a terrific surprise that worship can lift our eyes both upward and inward” (p.44). Amen!!! Let’s worship!
- You know I’m a music girl, and if you are too, tap into our playlist and worship with abandon, starting with Brooke’s “King Jesus” song and letting it roll to the end. Those last few songs wreck me in the best of ways!
- If, however, music is not your primary way to worship, try listening to Psalms or reading them aloud. I can recommend Emily P. Freeman’s app, “Quiet Collection,” as she has several Psalms recorded in her soothing, beautiful voice. Psalm 40 is a good one, as is 103. Well, so many are!
LET’S MAKE HEAVENLY, ETERNAL RIPPLES!
- Finally, as a community, let us not neglect sharing God’s story with others! And, don’t be shy to tell your God-stories, too.
- Lent is a great time to invite a friend to walk through this series with us. Share this site. We don’t want anyone walking through this life alone, lost, or over-burdened and without hope. We can all get ‘hidden’ in Christ together!
Featured Photo by Kaushik Panchal on Unsplash. “All the Bits and Pieces” photo by Aleksandra Sapozhnikova on Unsplash.
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