The Word Says:
“Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.”
Verse Thoughts:
There is a reason that Paul is calling those that are born of the Spirit to keep their hearts and minds focussed on heavenly things and not on earthy pursuits and interests. It is because we have been raised up into a new life in Christ because we are Christ’s spiritual seed, because we have become a brand new creation, and because we have exchanged our former earthly residency for a glorious new citizenship which is reserved for us in heaven.
Christ was resurrected from the dead 2000 years ago, and because you and I would one day also trust in the Lord Jesus as our Saviour, we ALSO were raised into newness of life at that time, just like all those who down through the centuries would one day trust in Him as their Saviour. We, who are His ‘spiritual seed’ so to speak, were ‘in Christ’ when He was raised from the dead, and so we also were raised with Him on that day.
When Christ rose from the dead, we too were raised up at the same time into a new life, as a new creation in Christ. You see before the creation of the world, the omnipotent God foreknew which men and women, down through the centuries, would choose to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. And so although there was a point in time when, having heard the gospel of grace, we trusted Jesus as Saviour and were born again into His new life. God foreknew that we would one day make that freewill choice!
Since we have been raised to a new life in Christ and since, by God’s grace, we have been clothed in Christ’s righteousness, given the free gift of eternal life, been showered with every spiritual blessing, received a heavenly inheritance, and been seated with Christ in heavenly places, we are called to set our heart and mind on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honour at God’s right hand. And the astonishing thing is that because we are in Christ by virtue of our faith in Him, we too are seated in heavenly places, for we are in Christ.
It is for this reason that we are called to keep our minds on things that are above, and not to be influenced by the things of the earth. We are to live by trusting in Jesus and not by trusting in our own abilities. We are to find our sufficiency in Christ, knowing that in this world we will have tribulation, but Christ has overcome the world and we have a priceless inheritance, a beautiful inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade away. An inheritance that is kept in heaven, especially for you.