I have
a tendency to make myself a nice hot cup of coffee, get busy doing something, and
then by the time I get back to it, it is ice cold. Today I found myself
thinking about that hot cup of coffee and how much I was looking forward to it
before I got distracted and forgot about it. I will confess that my spiritual
life has been much like that cup of coffee lately. I wake up with every intention
of enjoying my time with Jesus, of sitting down to pray and study my bible, and
to just be filled with the cup of His grace. But, instead of sitting down and
drinking Him in, I set Him aside until that burst of passion I started with
ends up being ice cold.
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Unfortunately
for me, I realized that this pouring hot and setting down until it grows cold
is more and more of a pattern for my spiritual life than it should be. I am a
very passionate person, I always have been. I feel a lot. I don’t always like
that about me, but when it comes to Jesus, there is nothing I desire to be more
passion about than Him and His Word. Yet, there I am, pouring out a hot cup of
spiritual coffee only to set it aside to chase after the distractions of my
life. Not to mention that I am really getting tired of wasting all these
delicious cups of coffee!
“If
you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ
is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above,
not on things that are on earth.” Colossians 3:1-2 ESV
I heard
these verses in church yesterday and they have camped out in my heart ever
since. If I have been raised with Christ? What does Paul mean by being raised
with Christ and what does it have to do with my cold cups of spiritual coffee?
First thing I think we need to understand is that to be raised with Christ
means that we have received the new life that was given to us the moment we
believed. We are new creations, we are no longer walking in the ways of the
world, but we have been raised up from the futile ways of life before Christ.
We have a new and blessed life that is fully dedicated to God, for God and with
God. It is because of this new life that we now have a desire to seek those
things that are above.
What
things are above? What things are we to be seeking? “And you will seek Me and
find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13 NKJV) The
Lord wants us to seek Him. The definition used in both these passages for seek
means to keep on seeking. It implies someone who keeps putting one foot in
front of the other and keeps on walking. I needed this reminder today. I needed
the reminder that God has not moved, He has not gone anywhere. He is always and
forever above, where He has always been, and where He will always be.
We must
fight through the distractions and the discouragement. We must fight through
the feelings of hopelessness and believe that when we seek Him, when we keep
putting one foot in front of the other, we will find Him. So many times I give
up so easily. I let the first distraction take me into the next one. I pour the
coffee, take a sip and forget to keep picking up the cup until it is finished.
Keep putting one foot in front of the other and keep seeking. If you get
distracted turn around and come back. If you get discouraged, look up to the
things above, where Christ is. You are no longer bound to the things of this
world, you are bound to Him.
Paul
also tells us that we must set our minds on things above. When you set your
mind to something you make a determined effort to do it. You strive to
accomplish it. A few weeks ago I was determined to ride my bike 20 miles. I set
out every day to accomplish it. I didn’t succeed right away. I got to 18 miles
one day, and 19 miles the next. But then, it happened. One day I was so
determined that nothing was going to stand in my way that I just kept riding. I
didn’t focus on the current miles; I just kept peddling and focusing on the
path before me. Before I knew it I looked down and I had accomplished 20 miles,
in fact I went over 20 miles! To set our minds on things above means that we
make a determined effort everyday to follow the Lord our God with all our
hearts, souls, minds and strength.
“Put
to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity,
passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these
the wrath of God is coming. In these you too once walked, when you were living
in them. But now you must put them all away; anger, wrath, malice, slander, and
obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have
put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self which is
being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.” Colossians 3:5-10
ESV
We will
never be able to fully set our minds on those things which are above if we are
still holding onto these things below. Our fleshly passions, desires and wants
keep our minds focused
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“For
to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is
life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it
does not submit to God’s law; indeed it cannot.” Romans 8:6-7 ESV
Until
we fully and completely put to death everything in our lives that distracts us
from the One who is above, we will continue to struggle with cold coffee. We
will continue to wax cold spiritually, and we will continue to waste the
precious gift of Jesus Christ that we have been given. You may be thinking to
yourself that as long as you are in this body of flesh there will always be
that struggle. You may be thinking that it is all well and good for the person
who does not have to work in the world, or who can stay at home and focus on
the Lord all the time. But for those of us who have to be in the world the
distractions of life are not that easy to put to death.
“Here
there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian,
slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.” (Colossians 3:11) Every single
person, no matter their race, their title, their station in life, their career
or status in the world has to make the choice to either put to death those
things in our lives that pull us away from Him who is above, or choose to
continue in them and in the things that are below. We have to make a choice to
either go all in for Jesus, or just not go at all. We will never reach our full
potential in Christ if we do not let Him renew us in knowledge according to His
image. (Colossians 3:10)
When I
am focused on things of this earth, the things that my flesh likes to focus on,
my heart is not in submission to God’s law. Everything that goes into our eyes affects
our hearts. Everything that we allow into our hearts affects our hearts. What
we allow in is what we are submitting to. What we allow into our minds, ears,
and eyes is what we are choosing to submit to.
“For
you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” Colossians 3:3
Our
lives have been hidden in Christ. What we do, say, think, and all that
encompass our days has a direct effect on Christ because we are hidden in Him.
We are laid up in heaven under the safe keeping of our Father. We are under His
protection and His care in Christ. Where is Christ? He is seated at the right hand
of God. My life is seated at the right hand of God because my life is hidden
away for safe keeping in Jesus Christ my Lord. Everything that takes place in
my life here below is also taking place in Christ above.
What I
do, think, feel, see, hear, and taste- all of my life- every aspect of this
life below is reflecting in the life of Christ above. What we do matters. What
we say, matters. What we allow our eyes to fix upon matters. What we allow our
ears to listen to matters. Our lives are reflected in Christ who is seated
above. I don’t know about you, but this really makes me want to repent of so
much in my life that I allow into my heart. The television shows I watch, some
of the music I listen to, some of the posts I read on social media.
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I
believe that this is why Paul is urging us to put to death all these things of
the earth that are hostile towards God. You are constantly before His throne. There
is not a single moment of your life that is not reflected in heaven. In our
work, our homes, in the secret corners of our lives where we think no one is
watching, God is there, and it is all clearly seen in heaven.
I have
been praying for the Lord to rekindle the fire of my heart for Him again. I
have been praying for His passion to ignite my heart for His word again. But I
am the one who has set the cup of His Word aside, and let it grow cold. I know
there are areas of my life that I need to put to death once and for all. I need
to put to death those things that allow my heart to be hostile towards God,
such as sexual immorality on television, movies, music, etc. The things of this
world will continue to turn our spiritual lives cold if we continue to let them
into our lives. If you are feeling cold, distant, discouraged, may I encourage
you today to examine those things below that may be taking your heart from the
One who is above. Your life is hidden in Christ, it is not your own. Everything
and I truly believe God means everything- is clearly seen and open before Him,
because we are clearly seen and open before Him.(Hebrews 4:13) Paul tells us in verse 17 of Colossians 3 that
“whatever we do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,”
because everything is already done in Him. Amen?
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