Hide & Seek Part II

Col. 3:1-3 says, “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on the things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

Did you know that if you are born again that you are now dead? That’s right, dead to your old man. You are dead to the old nature with all its sinful ways and desires. On the other hand, your spirit man is now alive unto God! Here’s even more good news. If your old man has died, you life is now hidden with Christ in God! You have been delivered and made secure in Him.

Eph. 2:5-6 tells us…“even when we were dead in trespasses, (He) made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,..”

If we are hidden with Christ that means we are also seated with Him! Glory to God! To have this awesome privilege should motivate us to live in a way that is pleasing to Him.

I had a lady tell me once how she was feeling so sad now that she had decided to follow the Lord. I thought that was a strange thing to say so I asked her what she meant by that. She replied, “Well I am sad because I know all the things that I am used to enjoying I have to give up. I know that the old me has to die, and I am grieving over my death.”

It was like she was feeling pain from being separated from sin and her old life. She knew that living for God was the right thing to do, but she really wasn’t ready to die to her old nature. Her statement had taken me by surprise and caused me to question if she was really ready to give her entire life over to God. She still loved her old nature.

We should have a funeral for the old man; but this funeral is not full of sadness and grieving, but full of joy and celebration! When we are delivered out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light, our earthly and sinful desires are replaced by the desire to live a pure and holy life that is pleasing to God.

This doesn’t mean we are instantly perfect when we are born again though. God, through His word and by His Holy Spirit, begins pruning out habits, desires and wrong thinking. He lovingly reveals to us the things that are not pleasing to Him. We continue to change, grow and mature until we get to heaven. When He reveals to us a part of our old nature that has not been pruned, we have to put it to death.

Notice that Colossians says in the third chapter “to keep seeking and to set your mind on the things above.” Remember that we are new creatures in Christ because our spirit is born again, not our mind. Our mind is to be renewed day by day and washed by the water of the word. In other words, we have to set our mind on the word of God in order to keep the old man under. We are brand new creatures in Christ. The old things have passed away and all things have become new.

If the “old things” keep showing up in our life more than the new, then we should check the setting of our mind! If I am in my home and it is really hot, even though I know I have a great air conditioning system, I check to see if the settings are correct. If it is set on 80 degrees, I know I am going to change the setting right away so I can cool off! In the same way, we keep our minds set with the word of God.

If we are hidden with Christ in God we are raised up and seated with Him in heavenly places. We are in a place of deliverance and security. Deliverance belongs to us not only from sin, but from all the plans of the enemy!

Psalm 32:7 says, “You are my hiding place. You shall preserve me from trouble: you shall compass about me with songs of deliverance.”

kimconnor@whwc.org