v1
"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God."
v1 comments
The first observation I'd like to make is concerning the word in the Greek that is translated here as "you have been raised." The word used here, suneigertheite, has a few implications worth noting. The first is that the word is a compound verb. In other words, it takes a preposition, in this case the preposition "with," and slaps it onto the beginning of the verb "to raise." So we end up with something like, "you were co-raised along with Christ." The passive voice is used here, also, which tells us that we, along with Christ, are the direct objects or recipients of the action of raising. This is important because it implies that Christ did not raise himself. He did not use any powers that he possessed in order to bring himself back to life. He was dead in all senses of the word. God the Father is the implied actor here. He is the one doing the raising. Christ was then glorified to the right hand of God. Paul is commanding the Colossians to seek out the things above since they have been raised along with Christ. Their minds should be focused on him now. The NIV translates the word zeite-oh as "set your hearts on." I think they may have taken some extra liberties there. The word for heart is not used anywhere in this verse. This Greek word is actually translated as "to seek." The Third Edition BDAG, basically a giant Lexicon that substitutes for exercise weights with its 1000+ pages, translates the word here in this verse as meaning, "to devote serious effort to realize one's desire or objective, to strive for, to aim at, try to obtain, desire or wish for." Essentially, Paul is telling the Colossians, and us, to commit ourselves without reserve to figuring out how things operate in heaven where Christ now sits.
v2
"Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things."
v2 comments
Paul is stressing this dichotomy between the created order and the kingdom of God above. He's using repetition to show how important it is that we change our paradigm of thinking so that our thoughts come from a mind that is focused heavenward rather than a mind focused on here o this earth.
v3
"For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God."
v3 comments
In the context of middle class Christian America, it's really hard to see the teleological implications embedded in this statement. The primitive church was highly focused on the second coming of Christ. They were in eager anticipation for his return. They referred to this second coming as a time when Christ will be revealed in all his glory. With this in mind, we can see why Paul didn't use a word like "re-located" or "transferred" to describe what happened to our life now that we've died. Our lives are now lived out of this new paradigm. We are living lives that have their source in heaven. This is actually something that John Wesley loved to preach. He preached about the life that we can live here and now according to the way things will be later. Dr. Clarence Bence (more commonly referred to as "Bud") wrote his dissertation on this very topic. It was entitled "John Wesley's Teleological Hermeneutic." Basically, Wesley had the end goals in mind when he lived his life here daily.
v4
"When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."
v4 comments
Since our life now resides with Christ in heaven, when he comes back we will experience glorification. The subjunctive mood is used here with the word phanerothei. This word means "to be manifested or made known." In Greek, literally the verse reads, "Whenever Christ returns (not that he may or may not return, but that he will return but we have no idea when that will be), we will be manifested with him in glory."
Closing Comments
Paul, in this passage, is very goal-oriented. He is thinking about the end and its implications for our lives now. This is also what Wesley was highly focused on. The holiness doctrine that stems from Wesley's pietist ideas is rooted in Wesley's teleology. It makes me want to shift my mind so that my thoughts stem from heart that has its home in heaven.
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