A Devotional Bible Study Reflecting on Colossians 3:1
Colossians 3:1 stands at one of the great turning points in Paul’s letter to the Colossians: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” In a single sentence, Paul gathers together the mystery of salvation, the resurrection of Jesus, the believer’s union with Christ, the direction of Christian desire, and the present reign of the risen Lord. He does not begin by telling Christians what they must accomplish. He begins by reminding them of what God has already accomplished in Christ. Christian living grows out of Christian identity. The call to seek the things above rests upon the astonishing declaration that those who belong to Christ have already been raised with Him.
The word “since” is crucial. Paul is not describing a possibility that Christians might eventually attain if they become sufficiently spiritual. He is describing a reality that has already taken place. Earlier in Colossians, Paul writes that believers have been buried with Christ in baptism and raised with Him through faith in the powerful working of God who raised Jesus from the dead. The resurrection of Christ is therefore not merely an event Christians believe happened to Jesus. It is an event into which Christians have been incorporated. Through union with Christ, His story becomes the defining story of His people.
This is one of the deepest themes in Paul’s theology. Salvation is not simply receiving benefits from Christ while remaining spiritually separate from Him. Salvation means being joined to Christ. Christians are described as being “in Christ,” and Christ is said to dwell in them. His death becomes their death to the old dominion of sin, and His resurrection becomes the source and pattern of their new life. Christianity is therefore more than moral improvement. The gospel does not merely make bad people somewhat better. God brings people who were spiritually dead into the life of His risen Son.
Paul says, “you have been raised with Christ.” Resurrection language is deliberately dramatic because salvation is dramatic. Humanity’s deepest problem cannot be solved merely by education, discipline, legislation, prosperity, or personal determination. These things may have legitimate value, but none of them can raise the dead. The gospel announces that God has acted where humanity was powerless. The same God who raised Jesus bodily from the grave brings those united to Christ into resurrection life.
This means that eternal life is not merely something Christians receive after death. Eternal life has already begun. The final resurrection of the body still lies ahead, but the life of the coming age has entered the present through Christ and the Holy Spirit. Christians live between resurrection begun and resurrection completed. They have been raised with Christ, yet they still await the redemption of their bodies. They belong to the new creation while continuing to live within a world marked by the brokenness of the old creation.
This creates the distinctive tension of Christian existence. Believers still experience temptation, weakness, grief, disappointment, aging, suffering, and death. Yet none of these realities has the authority to define their ultimate identity. Their deepest identity is located in Christ. The resurrection declares that sin and death do not have the final word. What happened to Jesus reveals the destiny of everyone united to Him.
Because believers have been raised with Christ, Paul says, “set your hearts on things above.” Some translations simply say, “seek the things above.” The language describes active desire and purposeful pursuit. Paul is not calling Christians to occasional religious thoughts. He is describing a fundamental reorientation of life.
Every human life is organized around something that is being sought. People seek security, recognition, pleasure, achievement, comfort, influence, wealth, approval, knowledge, relationships, or countless combinations of these things. The question is rarely whether a person is seeking something. The question is what has become worthy of that pursuit.
The gospel redirects desire. Christianity does not eliminate desire; it transforms it. God does not call His people into a colorless existence in which they cease to care deeply about anything. He teaches them to desire what corresponds to the life they have received in Christ. Resurrection creates a new center of gravity.
The “things above” must not be misunderstood as an invitation to escape earthly responsibilities. Paul is not teaching Christians to become detached from ordinary life. The rest of Colossians 3 makes this impossible. Paul immediately applies resurrection life to truthfulness, forgiveness, compassion, humility, patience, love, marriage, family relationships, work, worship, gratitude, and community. Seeking things above actually changes how Christians live below.
The distinction is therefore not primarily between physical things and spiritual things. Paul is contrasting two realms of existence: life governed by the fallen order and life governed by Christ. “Above” means the sphere where Christ reigns. To seek the things above is to seek the character, purposes, priorities, and kingdom of the risen Christ.
This is why Paul immediately explains where “above” is: “where Christ is.”
Christ Himself is the center.
The Christian life is not ultimately about becoming fascinated with heaven as a location. It is about becoming increasingly centered upon the One who reigns there. Heaven matters because Christ is there. The believer’s hope is not simply that suffering will end or that eternal happiness will begin. Christian hope is profoundly personal: believers will be with Christ.
The risen Jesus is not merely an inspiring figure from the past. He is alive now. Colossians 3:1 directs the church toward a present reality: “where Christ is.” The Jesus who was crucified has risen, ascended, and reigns. The Christian faith therefore rests not simply upon remembering what Jesus once did but upon trusting the living Lord who continues to rule.
This transforms the way Christians understand the present moment. The world may appear chaotic. Political powers rise and fall. Economies fluctuate. cultures change. Institutions weaken. Human plans fail. Violence erupts. Disease spreads. Generations come and go. Yet above the instability of history stands the unchanging reality proclaimed by the gospel: Christ is risen and Christ reigns.
Paul says that Christ is “seated at the right hand of God.” This language echoes Psalm 110:1 and carries the imagery of royal authority. To sit at the right hand of God is to occupy the place of honor, victory, and rule. Jesus is not waiting nervously to discover how history will turn out. The crucified and risen Christ reigns.
The One seated upon the throne is the One who wore the crown of thorns.
This reveals something extraordinary about the character of divine authority. The reigning Christ is the crucified Christ. The power at the heart of reality is therefore not selfish domination but self-giving love. Jesus conquers through the cross. He defeats evil by bearing it. He triumphs over death by entering death and emerging victorious.
Seeking the things above consequently means learning to live according to the pattern of the King who reigns above. His kingdom is characterized by holiness, mercy, truth, justice, humility, forgiveness, faithfulness, generosity, and love. These qualities are not merely ethical decorations added to Christian belief. They are manifestations of resurrection life.
This gives Christian ethics a distinctive foundation. Paul does not say, “Behave properly so that God might raise you with Christ.” He says, in effect, “Because you have been raised with Christ, live according to the reality of that resurrection.”
Grace comes before obedience.
Identity comes before instruction.
Resurrection comes before transformation.
Christian obedience is therefore not an attempt to purchase God’s acceptance. It is the unfolding consequence of having received life in Christ. Believers pursue holiness because they belong to the Holy One. They forgive because they have been forgiven. They love because they have been loved. They practice generosity because they have received grace. They reject falsehood because they belong to the One who is truth. They turn away from sin because sin belongs to the old existence from which Christ has delivered them.
This does not mean spiritual growth happens automatically. Paul still commands believers to seek. Grace does not eliminate effort; it transforms the reason for effort. Christians do not struggle toward resurrection life. They struggle from resurrection life.
That distinction changes everything.
When spiritual disciplines become attempts to prove worthiness, they easily produce pride or despair. Success produces pride because people imagine they have earned something from God. Failure produces despair because they imagine they have lost their standing before Him. The gospel dismantles both responses. The foundation is Christ, not human performance.
Prayer, Scripture reading, worship, fasting, generosity, service, fellowship, and obedience become ways of directing attention toward the reality already given in Christ. They are not ladders by which humanity climbs into heaven. They are practices through which the people of God learn to live according to heaven’s reign.
The command to seek the things above also speaks powerfully to the problem of distraction. Modern life offers an almost endless stream of things competing for attention. News, entertainment, advertisements, social media, political controversy, possessions, work, ambition, and personal anxieties can occupy enormous amounts of mental and emotional space. None of these things is necessarily evil in itself, but anything can become spiritually controlling when it dominates attention.
Attention shapes affection, and affection shapes action.
What people repeatedly contemplate gradually influences what they love. What they love influences what they pursue. What they pursue eventually shapes the character of their lives. Paul therefore calls Christians to intentional spiritual orientation. Seeking Christ requires refusing to allow the loudest voices of the surrounding culture to determine what matters most.
This does not require withdrawing from the world. Christians are called to participate faithfully in families, workplaces, neighborhoods, communities, and societies. But they participate as people whose ultimate allegiance lies elsewhere. Their values are shaped by Christ’s kingdom rather than merely by the assumptions of their age.
Seeking things above changes the meaning of success. The world may define success through accumulation, visibility, influence, status, or achievement. Christ measures faithfulness differently. A quiet act of mercy may carry greater kingdom significance than public recognition. Forgiving someone may be a greater victory than defeating an opponent. Serving unnoticed may reveal more of Christ than receiving applause. Remaining faithful in suffering may testify more powerfully to resurrection hope than enjoying uninterrupted prosperity.
Colossians 3:1 therefore challenges believers to examine the direction of desire. What occupies the imagination? What produces the greatest anxiety? What determines personal worth? What is pursued most passionately? What loss seems unbearable? What achievement seems necessary for life to feel meaningful?
These questions can reveal where the heart has placed its treasure.
The gospel continually calls the heart back to Christ. This return is not a single event but a lifelong rhythm of discipleship. Again and again, believers discover that earthly concerns have become ultimate concerns. Again and again, Scripture redirects attention toward the risen Lord.
The resurrection also changes how suffering is understood. If believers have been raised with Christ, present suffering cannot be the final chapter of their story. Christianity never requires pretending that suffering is insignificant. Jesus Himself wept, grieved, suffered, and died. The gospel takes pain seriously enough to proclaim resurrection rather than mere optimism.
Christian hope is not the vague conviction that circumstances will probably improve. It is confidence rooted in an accomplished event: God raised Jesus from the dead.
Because Christ has risen, suffering has an expiration date.
Because Christ has risen, death has lost its ultimate authority.
Because Christ has risen, faithfulness is never wasted.
Because Christ has risen, love is stronger than the grave.
Because Christ has risen, the future belongs to God.
This resurrection perspective also frees Christians from the desperate need to preserve everything they possess. Earthly life is filled with things that cannot be kept permanently. Bodies age. possessions deteriorate. careers end. achievements are forgotten. institutions change. relationships are altered by time and death. Human beings cannot build permanent security from temporary materials.
Colossians 3:1 directs attention toward what cannot be shaken. Christ is seated at God’s right hand. His kingdom cannot collapse. His resurrection cannot be reversed. His promises cannot decay. His love cannot expire. His life cannot be conquered by death.
Practical Christian living therefore involves repeatedly ordering temporary things beneath eternal things. Work matters, but it is not Lord. Money matters, but it is not Lord. family matters profoundly, but family is not Lord. health matters, but it is not Lord. political life matters, but no political power is Lord. reputation may matter, but human approval is not Lord.
Jesus Christ is Lord.
This confession creates freedom. When Christ occupies the highest place, everything else can occupy its proper place. Good things can be enjoyed without being worshiped. Difficult things can be endured without becoming ultimate. Loss can be grieved without destroying hope. Success can be received without becoming identity.
Seeking things above is therefore not neglecting life on earth. It is finally learning how to live on earth rightly.
The person who seeks Christ can become more patient because every inconvenience does not have to be treated as a catastrophe. Such a person can become more generous because possessions no longer provide ultimate security. Forgiveness becomes possible because personal vindication is entrusted to God. Humility becomes possible because identity no longer depends upon superiority. Courage becomes possible because even death cannot separate believers from the risen Christ.
The church itself is meant to become a visible community of this resurrection reality. Christians gathered together should demonstrate what life looks like when Christ rather than the values of the fallen world determines identity. Divisions rooted in status, ethnicity, wealth, social standing, or achievement are challenged by the deeper reality that believers share one life in Christ.
This is why the verses that follow Colossians 3:1 move toward the formation of a community marked by compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, love, peace, gratitude, worship, and mutual instruction. Resurrection produces a people. The life above becomes visible below through the body of Christ.
The practical question of Colossians 3:1 is therefore not merely, “Do Christians think about heaven?” The deeper question is, “Does the reign of the risen Christ shape the actual pattern of Christian life?”
It should shape the way money is used.
It should shape speech.
It should shape relationships.
It should shape responses to enemies.
It should shape ambitions.
It should shape entertainment choices.
It should shape attitudes toward power.
It should shape treatment of the vulnerable.
It should shape work.
It should shape worship.
It should shape the use of time.
It should shape the response to suffering and death.
Every dimension of life comes beneath the lordship of the One seated at God’s right hand.
There is also profound encouragement in the fact that Paul does not say believers must raise themselves. God has already acted. Christ has already conquered. Resurrection life has already been given. The Christian’s calling is to live increasingly in agreement with that reality.
Spiritual transformation therefore begins again and again by looking to Christ. Not merely looking inward to measure progress. Not constantly comparing one life with another. Not anxiously wondering whether enough has been accomplished. The decisive reality stands outside human performance: Christ has died, Christ has risen, and Christ reigns.
The believer’s life is anchored there.
Colossians 3:1 ultimately presents Christianity as resurrection-shaped existence. The church lives in the present world while drawing its life from the risen Christ. Christians walk upon the earth while belonging to the kingdom of heaven. They experience the weakness of mortal existence while carrying within them the life of the age to come.
To seek the things above is to allow this future reality to invade the present. Every act of forgiveness anticipates the reconciled creation. Every act of generosity anticipates the abundance of God’s kingdom. Every pursuit of justice anticipates the righteous reign of Christ. Every act of love anticipates the world in which love will no longer be opposed by hatred. Every faithful endurance of suffering declares that death and pain will not have the final word.
The Christian life is therefore lived facing the risen Christ.
He is above, but He is not absent.
He reigns, and His Spirit is present with His people.
He has been raised, and those who belong to Him have been raised with Him.
He has begun the new creation, and one day He will bring it to completion.
Until that day, Colossians 3:1 gives the church both its identity and its direction: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above.”
The Christian does not seek the things above in order to escape the earth but in order to live faithfully upon it. The heart turns toward Christ so that the life may increasingly resemble Christ. The mind is oriented toward His kingdom so that hands, words, relationships, possessions, ambitions, and choices may become instruments of that kingdom.
The risen Christ is not simply waiting at the end of the Christian journey. He is the living reality from whom the journey receives its meaning. He is the source of resurrection life, the object of Christian desire, the King seated at the right hand of God, and the destiny toward which all creation is moving.
Therefore the church seeks what is above because Christ is above. It lives differently because Christ is risen. It hopes because death has been defeated. It loves because the crucified One reigns. And it moves through this passing world with its deepest allegiance fixed upon the everlasting kingdom of the risen Lord.
The command of Colossians 3:1 is ultimately an invitation to live according to what is already true: those who belong to Christ have been raised with Him. Their old existence no longer possesses the final claim upon them. Their future has already begun. Their King already reigns. Their life is being drawn toward the world that resurrection has opened.
So the church seeks Christ above and reveals Christ below, living each ordinary day in the extraordinary reality that resurrection has begun and that, in the risen Lord, all things are being made new.
