In yesterday’s instalment, I looked at the so-called Colossian heresy. Paul urged the Colossians to avoid weird ideas and stick the what we might call orthodox Christianity.

Now, in Colossians 3, he moves on to some encouragement on the sort of lives the Colossians should live. In short, he urges them to “set your hearts on things above”.

Here are three big themes from the chapter.

1. Look towards God

If we are Christ-centred in our lives, how we think and act will change. Paul says:

For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.

Well, we haven’t physically died, so what does that mean? Well, it’s a flick back to his statement in Colossians 2:20 (NIV):

Since you died with Christ to the elemental spiritual forces of this world, why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules…?

Though baptism or confirmation, we may have signified that we have died to our old way of living. There are lots of things that people will encourage us to do, fun things in their own way – though counter-productive – but as Christians we should remember turn our eyes towards Jesus.

The second part of that phrase “your life is now hidden with Christ in God” raises two questions. Firstly, what does it mean to be “hidden”? And, secondly, what’s the significance of the unusual phrase with “with Christ in God”?

On the first question, David E. Garland in The Biblical Theology Study Bible suggests that hidden refers to a Christian’s true status remaining “concealed to others who do not have Christian insight”.

On the second, F.F. Bruce acknowledges that the phrase “in God” is unusual in Paul’s writing. But he seems to suggest that this is some extra clarity being offered. He says:

So the life of believers is hidden “in Christ” because they died with him and have been raised with him: it is hidden “in God” because Christ himself has his being in God and therefore those who belong to him have their being there too.

2. Avoid immorality

There’s a lot of things that people have to turn their backs on as Christians, and Paul urges people to give up the likes of “anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language”.

He tells his readers that they “used to walk” in the ways of the earth, but not they need to avoid immorality because they have a “new self, which is being renewed in the knowledge in the image of its Creator”.

3. Be thankful

What did worship in the early church look like? Well, we get a glimpse in verses 15 to 17. Paul talks of being thankful. He says “the message of Christ [should] dwell among you richly” and he encourages them to use “psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts”.