Yesterday we read many references in the New Testament to the truth that Christ is seated at the right hand of God (Day 17).
Today we’re moving to the portion of our Colossians 3:1-4 Timeline that directs us to take action in the Present: set your hearts on things above.
Colossians & the Unposted Life:
Learning to Live Hidden (Day 18/Week 5)
Colossians 3:1-4 (NIV84):
1″Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, SET YOUR HEARTS ON THINGS ABOVE, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
2″Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
3″For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
4″When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.”
Set Your Heart on the Eternal
Since we have been raised with Christ (as we saw on Day 3), we are directed to set our hearts, to take action with regard to our priorities.
We are to set our hearts on things above; that is, to prioritize the heavenly over the earthly, the unseen over what is seen, the eternal over the temporal.
Paul makes it clear where above is located — “where Christ is seated at the right hand of God” (Day 17).
Jesus spoke to His disciples about the priority of things eternal:
“29 And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. 30 For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 But seek His kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. 32 Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also,”
(Luke 12:29-34, NIV).
Do not:
- set your heart on what you will eat or drink (temporal things);
- worry about what you will eat or drink (temporal things);
- run after what the pagan world runs after (temporal things).
Why?
- Your Heavenly Father knows that you need them (temporal things).
Do not be afraid. Why? Your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom (eternity).
Do:
- seek His kingdom (the eternal);
- sell your possessions & give to the poor (temporal things);
- provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out (eternal moneybags);
- provide a treasure for yourselves in heaven that can’t be stolen (eternal treasure).
Why?
- Your heart — your thoughts and feelings (Strong’s #2588) — will be in the same place as your treasure.
Set My Heart on Your Word
We have a choice each day to set our hearts on eternal things or earthly things. This is different than choosing either eternal things or earthly things — Jesus and Paul are not telling us to pick one or the other, rather to give preference to one over the other. In our humanity, if we do not actively choose to prioritize the eternal, spiritual, kingdom-of-God things, we will have our hearts set on the things of this world by default. As the prophet Jeremiah wrote,
“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”
(Jer. 17:9, NIV).
One choice that makes prioritizing the kingdom of God come more easily is the choice to hear, read, study, memorize, and meditate on Scripture:
“I have chosen the way of faithfulness;
(Psalm 119:30, NIV).
I have set my heart on your laws,”
As David wrote,
“The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes,”
(Psalm 19:8, NIV).
The next choice is to apply Scripture to your everyday, every-season, every-moment life.
“My heart is set on keeping your decrees to the very end,”
(Psalm 119:112, NIV).
Set Our Hearts at Rest
“19 This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in His presence:
20 If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything.
21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God
22 and receive from Him anything we ask, because we keep His commands and do what pleases Him.
23 And this is His command: to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as He commanded us.
24 The one who keeps God’s commands lives in Him, and He in them. And this is how we know that He lives in us: We know it by the Spirit He gave us,”
(I John 3:19-24, NIV).
Setting our hearts is a daily choice that requires intentional action. A good place to start is in the spiritual discipline of “getting a grip” on God’s Word as in the hand illustrations above.
To live with “hearts at rest” in God’s presence, hearts that don’t need to be “reset” to things eternal quite as often, requires application of the Word and obedience to His commands. I don’t know about you, but having a “heart at rest” sounds very appealing to me right now! Let’s pray together.
Day 18 PRAYER:
Father God in heaven,
Thank You for the gift of eternal life through the sacrifice of Your One & Only Son, Jesus Christ!
You have called us to set our hearts on things above, on eternal things.
Help us, through the work of Your Spirit in our lives, to make the choice to prioritize the things of God over the things of man.
Help us choose to make Scripture a higher priority in our lives; enable us to apply Your Word and obey Your commands.
“May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer,” (Psalm 19:14, NIV).
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.