A Life Hidden with Christ in God
10/13 Reading Portions: 1 Kings 16; Colossians 3; Ezekiel 46; Psalm 102
Online Bible Audio/Readings Links (ESV)
10/13 Reading Portions: 1 Kings 16; Colossians 3; Ezekiel 46; Psalm 102
Colossians 3:3
For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
DIED
While the grammar in the original Greek indicates past tense, interestingly, the KJV renders a curious present tense to the verb: “For ye are dead.” The present tense rendering is true in the overall gospel context, as we are “crucified with Christ” (Gal 2:20, emphasis added) and we “are dead to sin” (Rom 6:2, emphasis added); because, in the case of all three portions, we are alive in Christ and alive to Christ (1 Pet 2:24). Our Christian lives do not depict some walking dead existence like zombies. It is vibrant and active in Christ. But the life you and I possess in Christ, is hidden with Christ in God. It is curious and elusive to the unbeliever unless our gracious and merciful Lord reveals the resurrected life to the reprobate soul. Because we have died with Christ, our crucified lives with Christ looks like death to the unregenerate person. Our active demise is life in Christ, whereas we have put…
…to death… what is earthly in [us]: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Colossians 3:5
These earthly evils are those things the worldly unbelievers view as life. These earthly evils are also what our corrupt flesh feeds upon. This is why we must put those earthly lusts to death, and determine to, in place of them, “put on… compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience” (Col 3:12), as well as “love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony” (Col 3:13). In other words, we are to put on the Lord Jesus Christ, who is Love, because…
God is love. 1 John 4:8
Of course! Jesus holds all things together (Col 1:17), why wouldn’t He be the uniting Truth in whom these blessed attributes consist? Hallelujah! What a binding Savior!
The life that’s hid with Christ in God
Is active in this deed:
To put to death all earthly sins,
Upon which our flesh feeds.