Colossians: Rooted and Built Up in ChristSample

Set Your Mind on the Things Above

Imagine you have been hiking all day, the sun is beginning to set, and you have finally reached the top of the mountain where you will make camp for the night. Looking back, you can see the windy, treacherous path you took to scale the mountain you now stand upon, and in front of you is a great expanse of lush green rolling hills.

In many ways, Colossians 3:1-4 is a lot like that mountaintop experience. These verses represent the climax of Paul's letter to the Colossian church. They point back to Colossians 2:8-23 where Paul details what followers of Jesus are not to do - namely, allow the world and its focus on earthly things to impress its agenda on them. But these verses also look forward to Colossians 3:5 - 4:6, where Paul transitions to how a follower of Jesus thinks and, as a result, lives as they seek union with Christ alone.

This union with Christ provides us, as His followers, with the strength, power, and endurance to live differently - to become like Him and consequently do what He did. (See Colossians 1:9-14)

But how do we move in the direction of becoming like Christ? According to Paul, this process requires "seeking and setting our minds on things above." Said another way, we fix our eyes on Jesus, get to know His ways, and allow Him to transform our minds by exchanging all the ways the world has shaped our thoughts and ideas.

One of the ways that Scripture encourages us to continue to live our lives in union with Christ, rooted and built up in him, is through the practice of meditating on God's Word. Joshua 1:8 records, "This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth; you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to act in accordance with all that is written in it." And we see a similar message in Psalm 1:1-2, which reads, "Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers, but their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night." In both cases, we are called to meditate on God's Word allowing it to take deep root in our soul so that our thoughts and ideas might be those of Christ leading us to "lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him." (Colossians 1:10)

As you go, consider your life. What is it that you are seeking? What kind of things is your mind set on? Are your thoughts and ideas focused on Christ, or have you become distracted by the ways of the world? Perhaps there is a verse or section of scripture that God is calling you to slow down and meditate on so that you might continue to be rooted and built up in Him.