Colossians 3:1-4

1Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
2Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
3For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
4When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

Last study we looked specifically at the heresies which the Colossian church faced, and the answers to these heresies found in Christ and His finished work. This study we are blessed to look at these four short verses which contain incredible truths.

1Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

This language is similar to chapter 2 where through baptism the believers are buried and raised up with Christ.

Colossians 2 [NASB]
11and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ;
12having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.
13When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,
14having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

If the believer has been granted these great privileges through the death and resurrection of Christ, then naturally it follows that they should continue to seek the things pertaining to Christ. Hendriksen in his commentary on Colossians states “the verb ‘seek’ implies persevering effort; hence the rendering, “Be constantly seeking,” is not incorrect. This seeking, moreover, is more than a seeking to discover. It is a seeking to obtain... The emphasis, though, is not on the seeking but on the object sought. A precise rendering would be, “the things that are above be constantly seeking.””

Our hearts and minds have been bought by the precious blood of Christ, and so we should be constantly seeking the things where Christ is. Our Saviour is not only the spotless Lamb of God, but He has been exalted to the right hand of God.

Christ Himself made this claim before Caiaphas, the high priest, referencing Psalm 110.

Matthew 26 [NASB]
63But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, "I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God."
64Jesus said to him, "You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN."
65Then the high priest tore his robes and said, "He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy;

Psalm 110 [NASB]
1The LORD says to my Lord: "Sit at My right hand Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet."

What an encouragement it should be to us to know who Christ is, what honour He has been bestowed, and what He has done for us when we were raised up with Him.

Ephesians 1 [NASB]
3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
4just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him...

For this reason we are told to keep seeking the things above where Christ is.

2Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.

The idea behind this verse is that we are to ponder and yearn for these things above. Paul is giving the Colossian believers very practical teaching, this admonition is the answer to all their temptations which they are faced with. Some of the things which are in view here are listed later in chapter 3.

Colossians 3:12-16 [NASB]
...compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing ... forgiving ... love... peace of Christ ... thankful...

If we compare these things with the alternatives of ‘self-made religion’ offered in chapter 2 it becomes clear that if these Christ-like virtues fill our hearts and minds then they shall be of great value against fleshly indulgence.

Colossians 2 [NASB]
23These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.

As Christians we can have assurance that we will receive these things because of the truths in verse 1 - we have already been raised from the dead with Christ, and this same Christ has been bestowed power and authority at the right hand of God.

We are however often tempted to set our minds on the things of earth. Peter walked on water, but began to sink when he looked away from Christ and looked to the wind and the storm around him (Matthew 14:22-32). I so often am dismayed when I am setting my mind on my circumstances and not on Christ. As Meredith shared last week, as Christian we can choose joy in Christ because we can rejoice IN THE LORD. It is in Him that we have these great and magnificent promises.

1 John 2 [NASB]
15Do not love the world nor the things in the world If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
16For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.
17The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

How incredible it is when we see who Christ is and what He has done that we still need to be exhorted to set our minds on Him! May the Lord help us.

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

Paul repeats here the language of death. We are dead, buried and raised with Christ.

Galatians 6 [NASB]
14But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

These things on earth which we once sought after with our whole being have been crucified to us in Christ. As Matthew Henry states “If we are dead to the earth, and have renounced it as our happiness, it is absurd for us to set our affections upon it and seek it. We should be like a dead thing to it, unmoved and unaffected towards it”.

As the earth is dead to us we are likewise made alive to a new world – Christ. Paul constantly speaks in this way in his epistles.

Galatians 2 [NASB]
20"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Philippians 1 [NASB]
21For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Christ is now the “principle and end of the Christian’s life” (Matthew Henry). By hidden we understand that our lives are safe in Him. Our lives are also hidden as He is from this present world. The world did not understand Him and does not now see Him as He is – likewise the believer.

1 John 3 [NASB]
1See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
2Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.

What a hope we have laid up in Christ!

4When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

Our hope is not only for now, but for the future at His second coming. When Christ appears we will be like Him, and so we will be revealed with Him in glory! If we have been raised up with Christ, all of this is our hope. If our life is now hid with Christ it will then be revealed in Him also. Praise the Lord!

Matthew Henry concludes “Do we look for such a happiness, and should we not set our affections upon that world, and live above this? What is there here to make us fond of it? What is there not there to draw our hearts to it? Our head is there, our home is there, our treasure is there, and we hope to be there forever.”

What great things Christ has done for us. He is the Only and All-Sufficient Saviour. He is our hope, our life, our joy.

God bless.

Choosing Joy

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend a Christian conference promoting life and families. As I have recalled the many sessions held throughout the weekend, covering everything from Haitian adoptions to euthanasia to embryology, one small point mentioned in passing by one of the speakers has stood out to me beyond any other. The woman being interviewed, Mrs. Michelle Duggar, mother to nineteen children, emphasized the importance of choosing joy even when we don't feel like it. She recounted how, during one especially trying season, she would go around her home singing, "The Joy of the Lord Is My Strength" to remind herself of this important truth.

As followers of Christ, we have an inner joy and peace that the world cannot understand, but sometimes in the day to day tasks we can lose sight of our primary purpose and get so easily caught up in the menial tasks of the day. While I should not put on a fake front, I also should not adopt a spirit of negativity in the midst of my many responsibilities. Lately, as I juggle serving my family at home through housework, cooking, and running one of our businesses, homeschooling two of my siblings, trying to "finish strong" as a daughter and sister in my final few months in my family's home, and attempting to be a sweet fiancée to my gracious soon-to-be husband, all the while planning a wedding, I have consistently found myself in an overwhelmed state more often than not. I have felt tremendously guilty that I am not using the final months at home to their fullest.

Mrs. Duggar's words on choosing to be joyful rang true in my heart and have been a source of comfort to me. As I pondered her words of admonition, I decided to study more scriptures on choosing to be joyful, which I have included here with the hope that they may be encouragement to others as well:

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

"Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days." Psalm 90:14

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" Philippians 4:4

"But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you." Psalm 5:11

"Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him." Psalm 33:1

"Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." Romans 5:3-4

"Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!" Psalm 32:11-12

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior." Habakkuk 3:18

"I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete." John 15:11

"...For this day is holy to our Lord. And be not grieved and depressed, for the joy of the Lord is your strength and stronghold." Nehemiah 8:10

"This is the day which the Lord has brought about; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

Many blessings for a joyful new week!

Generational Curses Affect Christians - True or False?

I have come across quite a few women lately who believe that generational curses affect Christians today, and that these curses need to be dealt with before change can occur. But is this true?

All too often, well-meaning believers simply take on board what they are taught. In an ideal world that would be commendable, but in a fallen world, where our old nature still exerts itself, we need to be careful. We should refer EVERYTHING to Scripture because that is what Jesus did. In Matthew 4:6-10, for example, He answered three times with the words, “It is written…”
Another example is that of certain Jews at Berea. When Paul spoke to them about Jesus Christ they did not believe him without “checking the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11). And apparently they did find sufficient proof because many of them believed.

Talk of generational curses has become quite commonplace among certain Christian groups. The two big questions are, “Does this concept have biblical validity for members of the body of Christ?" And, "Can we find New Testament evidence for such terminology and practice?” This little study will help you find out for yourself. It is designed to lead sincere Christians into truth by searching Scripture for themselves.

When we search Scripture we cannot simply take a Bible text and apply it to every situation throughout all of history. We need to read the Bible contextually, i.e. place what we read into its immediate (chapter), surrounding (book) and overall (whole Bible) context. Today’s Christians need to be especially careful because many current teachings are not consistent with Bible truth in this contextual sense. In the case of generational curses, for example, we cannot automatically transport Old Testament references into today’s church context. We need to check both Old and New Testaments for occurrences of this concept and then make contextual comparisons.

If you want to find out for yourself, get out a concordance and do a word study. For those of you who don’t know what a concordance is, it’s a reference work that lists every English word of a specific Bible translation. Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance is particularly helpful because it also lists the original Greek or Hebrew words and has a dictionary. If you don’t have one, you can use a free online version at www.biblestudytools.com/concordances/strongs-exhaustive-concordance/ (this site hosts a variety of helpful study tools).

Prove to yourself that the New Testament does not mention generational curses or sins being visited on following generations! Look up the word ‘curse’ in all it’s forms in a concordance, and you will see that the New Testament does not support this erroneous teaching one bit! Romans 12:1-2 tells us that we are to renew our minds according to Scripture (not according to teachings and traditions of men). When you have done your own study, compare your findings with the following:

Exodus 20:5 and 34:7 - the curse was pronounced as part of the 10 commandments. Note: the curse is God’s response to idolatry.

Nu.14:18 and Deut. 5:98 refer to the same situation. The sins of the fathers are visited on their children to the 3rd & 4th generation.

Deut. 24:16 and other texts state that fathers are NOT to be put to death for their children and visa versa. This context refers to ‘sins unto death’, not idolatry in particular.

Jer. 31:27-34 also refers to the suffering of children for their fathers’ deeds, yet Jeremiah promises that this will change under the New Covenant!

The New Testament contains no references whatsoever regarding generational curses or sins being visited on following generations.

Such a concept is totally inconceivable in regard to the church (Christ's body) because the Bible clearly states that all believers receive the righteousness of Christ and are pronounced ‘not guilty’ in a judicial sense when they come to faith and are born again. At this time ALL of their sins are washed away and they embark on an extended journey from spiritual infanthood to adulthood. Along the way they are conformed to the image of Christ by the Holy Spirit (although never perfectly so) and are also chastised by God when necessary (for their benefit, learning, and guidance – see Hebrews). But they are never cursed, nor do they inherit a curse.

Think about it logically: if generational curses were still in operation today, based on the Scriptures we read and the New Testament principles that affect believers, these curses could only affect idolatrous non-believers, with the result that their following 3-4 generations would be prevented from becoming believers. However, we know this is not true! Even severe idolaters have become Christians, and so have their sons and daughters. One such person, for example, a Hindu Avatar and the son of an Avatar, became a Christian and wrote Death of a Guru, a very interesting book.

Always search Scripture IN CONTEXT so that you won't be deceived.

Many blessings, Margaret