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

What or who does your life revolve around? I’ve heard it said you can tell what someone truly cares about by how they spend their time and their money. So, if you take a good hard look where does your time and money go? Do you spend all your time trying to make more money? Where does God fit into your life? Do you plug Him into a Sunday morning service and then forget about Him the rest of the week? Do you do a five-minute devotional in the morning and pay little attention to Him during the day? Is it obvious to those around you that you are devoted to Him? Trust me, if you love Him, it will show.

Pay careful attention to what Paul told the Colossians. He said if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above. This applies to those who are truly saved. If you experienced a false salvation based on emotion, you may have a hard time staying focused on Jesus.

Then Paul tells them to set their mind on things above. We have to be determined to focus on things above. The world has many distractions, but we must determine to keep our focus on God.

And then, if we have truly been saved, Paul says, “For you have died.” We must die to ourselves and our old ways of living. If you are still cold and callous and prideful, you may want to double-check your salvation. Once we die to ourselves and become new creatures in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), we want to focus on Him. We want to serve Him and others. We have a heart of kindness, compassion and humility (Colossians 3:12).

Then Paul says our life is hidden in Christ. What does this mean. Well, this has a beautiful meaning which John MacArthur describes as a three-fold meaning. First, it refers to us having a common spiritual life with God the Father and God the Son. Secondly, it refers to the fact that the world simply cannot understand the new life that has been brought to us through Jesus’s death and our acceptance of Him as our Savior. And lastly, it refers to our eternal security. In John 10:28 Jesus said, “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish-ever! No one will snatch them out of My hand.” We have God’s full protection having chosen to live in the shelter He provides (Psalm 91:1-2). He protects us from all spiritual enemies and warfare (Psalm 91, Ephesians 6:10-18). Hebrews 7:25 says, “Therefore He is always able to save those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede for them.” Jesus intercedes for us.

We also have access to all of God’s blessings. In 1 Peter 1:3-4 it says, “Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to His great mercy, He has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead into an inheritance that is imperishable, uncorrupted, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.”

My friend, if we surrender our lives to Christ and make Him our life, a wonderful life awaits us in heaven. But what’s even better is we can trust Him to take care of us down here.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God and all His righteousness and all these things will be provided for you.” Focus on Him. Make Him your life. When we do this, He takes care of all we need.

And for those you love in your life, you can give them no better gift than to teach them to surrender to Him, trust in Him and focus on Him. They learn by example.

Have a great day!