Text: Colossians 3:1-2: "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above... Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."
What are the things that you are seeking in life? What are the things that you are most interested in, that you like to think about and talk about the most, and that you care the most about?
Ask different people these questions and you get different answers. The hungry people of the world might say, "Food." The homeless refugees of the world might say, "A home." The people out of work might say, "A job." People in war-torn sections of the world might say, "Peace." Early teen-agers might say, "My sixteenth birthday and a driver's license." Some boys and even men might say, "Girls." Some girls and even women might say, "Boys" or "Men." A politician might speak in terms of being elected to office. Many might talk in terms of their business interests. As we grow older we tend to think a little more in terms of security.
We were all born with a nature that tends to be interested in and to seek the things of this world, the things pertaining to earthly life. All of us know something through personal experience of how easy it is to become interested in and wrapped up in the things of this present world.
Thus, the Apostle Paul is giving us and all who name the Name of Christ some much-needed counsel and advice when he says, "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."
In this passage of Scripture, the Apostle Paul reminds Christians not only of the nature they were born with and of the goals and desires they once had before they met Christ; he also brings to their attention the fact that now, if they are truly Christians, they should have new goals, new affections, and a new life with Christ and in Christ.
In 2 Corinthians 5:17, he says plainly that if any person is in Christ, he is a new creature: "old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
This is not to say, of course, that if a person is a Christian, there is no longer to be any concern about food and clothing and shelter and friends and loved ones and home and marriage, the needful things pertaining to the earthly life. It is to say, rather, that a person who has found a new life in Christ compared to the old life under the control of the carnal nature; a kingdom eternal as compared with the kingdoms of this world; new treasures, those in heaven as compared with those of earth; and who has a new vision of things beyond time and beyond this earth; and who is to live forever in a city whose Builder and Maker is God - that such a person now has higher goals and more worthy things to seek and to love than the passing things of time and thus should seek those things which are above and set his or her affection upon them.
It is understandable that a person who has no hope beyond this earthly life, who considers this earth to be the center of the universe, who considers the things material to be the only real things in life, and who looks upon the grave as the end of life, should fail to see the wisdom of the admonition of Scripture and think it the course of wisdom to seek primarily the things of this world.
Yet, a Christian has a hope beyond the earthly life, and the Scriptures make it abundantly clear why it is not wise to get too wrapped up and too much in love with the things of this world.
For one thing, the things of earth are temporal. Eventually they will all pass away.
We read in 2 Peter 3:10ff that "the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up."
The Psalmist long centuries before had set forth this truth. He spoke of God as having laid the foundations of the earth and brought the heavens into being. Then he said, "They shall perish...all of them shall wax old like a garment..." (Psalm 102:25ff).
Isaiah referred to the time when "all the host of heaven" - the sun, the moon, the stars, the planets - "shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree." (Isaiah 34:4ff). He said further that "the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner." (Isaiah 51:6).
Jesus, Himself, in the sermon on the Mount, referred to the passing of heaven and earth, and, in Matthew 24:35, stated plainly, "Heaven and earth shall pass away..."
How would you like to be able to look into the future and see how things will be in a perhaps far-distant age? Jesus let John do just that when John was in exile on the Isle of Patmos in the long ago. John says that among other things he saw, he saw "a new heaven and a new earth." Had he stopped there and had I been permitted to talk with him, I think one of the questions I might have raised might have been, "But John, how about the old heaven and the old earth? How about Davie County and Mocksville and Redland Road and Timber Ridge where Bethlehem Methodist Church once stood? Did you see them in that vision of the future?" "No, Donald. I didn't see any of those places. 'The first heaven and the first earth were passed away.'"
We are well-warned not to get too wrapped up in the things of this present earth, for this present earth is temporal. Eventually it will pass away. When the scientists of our day talk more and more about the possible destruction of the earth, they are talking about something that the Scriptures centuries ago referred to as a certain future event.
If all that we have is the things of earth, we have nothing of permanent value.
Not only is the earth itself eventually going to pass away, but even if we lay hold upon the riches and treasures of this world, they are prone to get away from us.
In referring to those who seek the riches of this world, the writer of Proverbs raises the question, "Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches," he adds, "certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle..." (Proverbs 23:5).
Jesus, Himself, warns us against laying up for ourselves treasures on earth, "where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:" (Matthew 6:19).
Things of earth are slippery things, and can get away from us through many different channels.
A young friend of mine some years ago finished college, became a schoolteacher, and then moved into a better income bracket by becoming a truck driver. He remained single for a number of years, bought a house, and began to accumulate some money. You may remember the little jingle, "When I was single, my pockets would jingle..." Well, his pockets began to jingle with money, or perhaps began to whisper as he folded his bills of silent money. Rather than putting his money into a savings account, he got interested in old money - he became a coin collector. He went out for coin-collecting in a big way and attended and even helped sponsor old coin shows and that sort of thing. He invested thousands and thousands of dollars in old coins, and, I suppose, had one of the finest and most valuable collections of old coins in his area of the state. Then, one day when he came home from one of his trucking trips, he found that his house had been broken into, and all of his coins were gone. He told me that the very first thought that came to his mind when he saw what had happened was the words of Jesus: "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:..." He hadn't listened to Jesus' counsel, and now his treasures were gone.
There are many windows through which earthly treasures may fly out of our lives: inflation, recessions or depressions, thieves, accidents, bad business ventures, errors of judgment, poor crop weather, errors in financial transactions, sickness, loss of health, high taxes. The treasures of earth may be here today and gone tomorrow.
Or, even if we secure the things of earth and they do not slip away from us, they may lose their appeal to us.
Little children beg for and clamor for toys and playthings, but before long lose interest in them and discard them.
The older child may have lost interest in the teddy bear, the toys and playthings of an earlier day but now may prize a bicycle, a pony, a basketball or a hi-fi set.
In time interest in these things go as they are replaced with cars, boats, dating, jobs, houses and other things.
But interest soon wanes in a car and it must be traded for a newer model. Interest in a new boat may not even last out the season. People grow weary with their jobs and seek other jobs more interesting and more exciting. A house that once was the center of attention becomes commonplace and inadequate even before it is paid for. And some people who, when they got married, thought that heaven had come to earth and that bliss was theirs forever, find even marriage to the one of their own choice losing its appeal and head for the divorce courts.
Redd Foxx is not one of my favorite television characters. Given a choice, I far prefer an educational, high quality show like the Beverly Hillbillies or The Little Rascals to one he is in. Yet, there stands out in my mind an interview Barbara Walters had with him back in 1977. The interview took place in one of the four magnificent houses that he owned, one that had a swimming pool, a recreation room and a private theater as well as many other down-to-earth necessities of life. Instead of closets for his suits and clothing, he had hallways of suits - more than some clothing stores. He told her he owned thirteen cars and had three other houses in addition to the one in which the interview took place.
Barbara asked him what all of that wealth meant to him. He replied: "Nothing! Absolutely nothing!"
As a small boy, I once heard a preacher say in effect that there was nothing here on earth so attractive that it would not in time lose its appeal to an individual. To myself I said, "I don't believe it!" Who could ever get tired of going swimming in the creek? Who could ever get tired of going frog-gigging? Who could ever get tired of riding the old mule? Who could ever get tired of riding a bicycle if only he had one? But I did, and you do or you will if you live long enough!
Just as little children get tired of their toys and lose interest in them, so too, do those of us who are older get tired of our "toys", even though they may be much more expensive and may even cost thousands of dollars, and lose interest in them.
The writer of Ecclesiastes spoke words of truth and wisdom when he said that "He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase..." (5:10)
Doesn't it seem a little foolish for us to set our affection on things of the earth and make them the central concern of our lives when in time, even if we secure them, they will lose their appeal to us? The things of earth are like that.
Further, even if the things of earth were eternal, and even if the earth were going to endure forever, and even if earthly things would never lose their appeal to us, yet we, ourselves, are not going to remain here on earth very long at the most. Time is running out for all of us, from the oldest to the youngest, from the weakest to the strongest, from the one in the poorest of health to the one in the best of health.
"Time like an ever-flowing stream,
Bears all its sons (and daughters) away..."
We may be so young that a normal life-span may seem almost like eternity to us, but the oldest person whose body lies in the cemetery was once just as young as any of us are.
We may be so healthy that we cannot even imagine what it is like to be sick, but eventually the time will come when health will fail and what was once the most healthy body on earth will return to dust as it was and from whence it came.
We may dislike the thoughts of leaving this earth so much that it makes us nervous to be around an undertaker and we wouldn't be caught dead in a lawyer's office having a will drawn up, but the time will come when some of our loved ones will wish that we had made a will and when, perhaps, the lawyers and the bankers will be glad that we didn't.
It is appointed unto all of us once to die.
We may be like the fellow who said he wished he knew where he would be when his death came so that he could stay away from that place, but even that wouldn't help for long. One way or another, at one time or another, in one place or another, we are going to leave this earth.
This being so, we ought to pay heed to the fact put so clearly in 1 Timothy 6:1: "...we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out."
Why, then, should we spend our lives in seeking those things that we gather only to leave behind, and in loving those things from which we will be forever separated?
Let us listen carefully, then, to the wonderful counsel God's Word gives us: "If ye then be risen with Christ," (if you really are a Christian, if you really have become a new person in Christ, if you really are among that number who are on their way to Heaven), "seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."
What are some of the things above which we ought to seek? What are some of the things above which we ought to be interested in and ought to set our affection upon?
Well, if this earth is not our home,
if we are but passing through;
if here we have no continuing city;
if we are but pilgrims here;
then, it seems to me that we ought to be very much interested in a place where we can settle down, unpack and feel at home and, better than that, actually be at home.
Just this past week I was talking with a lady who said that during the twenty-three years, I think it was, that she was married to a minister, she and her family moved twenty-two times.
She said that she and her children felt like gypsies, never really feeling at home anywhere they were, knowing that they would have to be moving on again before long; but then when they finally did settle down in a community and became a part of it with no expectation of ever having to move on again so far as this earthly life is concerned, what a wonderful feeling it brought.
As Christians who are citizens of a kingdom which is not of this world, we are pilgrims here on earth, but we are not orphans. If we are risen with Christ, walking in the Light and travelling the pathway of faith, we are on a journey that will bring us home at last. Our destination is our Father's house. It is the city whose Builder and Maker is God. It is the place that Jesus has prepared or is preparing for us. It is not just a little cabin stuck somewhere way off yonder in a corner of Glory-Land. It is a place in our Father's house that we are journeying to.
"Up to the bountiful Giver of Life...
Up to the dwelling where cometh no strife...
Up to the city where falleth no night...
Up where the Saviour's Own Face is the Light...
Up to the beautiful mansions above...(where we shall be)
Safe in the arms of His infinite Love...
God's children are gathering home."
"Set your affections on things above..." One of the things above is our Father's house, the everlasting kingdom, the eternal city. Don't you think we ought to be seeking it, interested in it, and travelling towards it? I do.
What else is there above that we ought to be seeking and very much interested in? If we are God's children, there is an inheritance above waiting for us to come into possession of.
In Romans 8, Paul says that if we are the children of God, then we are heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ. Not that God is going to die, as someone usually does here before children come into their inheritance, but that it is God's good pleasure to give His children the kingdom.
It thrills my soul just to read the way Peter puts it in his first epistle: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again to a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed at the last time."
God has an inheritance for His children that is incorruptible, that is undefiled, and that fadeth not away, and it is reserved in heaven - nobody else is going to slip in and get it before His children get there. No lawyers will break the will and get it into the hands of those for whom it is not intended. No government is going to take it away through inheritance taxes. If God has work for you to do here that will take a long time, don't get nervous and uneasy, thinking your inheritance will wilt or be misplaced or be claimed by someone else.
It won't wilt. It won't fade. It won't pass away. Nobody else can get his hands on it. If you are a child of God, it has been reserved for you and it will be there when you get there.
You may say, "Oh, but I'm afraid I haven't earned it. I'm afraid I don't deserve it!" If you are risen with Christ, if you are one of God's children, don't worry about that. An inheritance is not something you earn or perhaps even deserve. It's a gift and it comes because you are a member of the family as a general rule, not because of how hard you work or how much you deserve it.
God has an inheritance waiting above for His children. Don't you think you ought to be interested in it? Don't you think its worth seeking?
What else is there above that we ought to be seeking and interested in? If you are a Christian, you ought to have some treasures above.
Jesus told the rich young ruler how to have some treasures in heaven, and it seems that the rich young ruler preferred to have his treasures here on earth.
Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, tells us to lay up for ourselves treasures in Heaven, and He said that where our treasure is, there will our heart be also. If our treasures are here on earth, our heart, our affections are going to be set on things of earth; if our treasures are in heaven, then our affections are going to be set on things above.
We ought to have some treasures above. Do we?
The story is told of a worldly-minded man who was very sad as he approached the end of his earthly life. A Christian acquaintance of his, however, who was also nearing the end of his earthly journey at the same time was in peace and happy. Someone asked the worldly-minded man why he was so depressed and sad, why he could not have more of the attitude of his Christian acquaintance. "I could, if I were in his shoes," he replied, "but you see, I am leaving my treasures behind while he is going to his."
Where are my treasures? Where are your treasures? We ought to have some above. We ought to be daily doing as Jesus said and laying up for ourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.
What else is there above that we should be seeking and that we should set our affections upon? Well, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are above. Enoch, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel are above. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and the Apostle Paul are above. The redeemed of all of the ages who have finished their earthly course are above. Everyone of us ought to have some friends and loved ones who are now above, whom we should be looking forward to meeting some glad morning.
Sometime ago I heard Reverend Jimmy Gibson tell of an experience he had some years ago. He and Dr. Troxler were preaching in a camp meeting and Clay Milby was the song leader. One day Dr. Troxler failed to show up, and Jimmy said he went to his room to check on him. He knocked on his door. No one came to open it. He got a key and unlocked it and found Dr. Troxler lying unconscious in a pool of blood, having had a severe hemorrhage. He secured medical help, and they cleaned Dr. Troxler up and then made him as comfortable in bed as they could. All through the day Jimmy and Clay Milby were in and out of the room checking on him and Dr. Troxler's wife sat with him. He remained unconscious all through the day and evening. Along about midnight, as Jimmy and Clay Milby and Mrs. Troxler sat there waiting, Dr. Troxler roused up. He sat up in bed, looked at them, and a sweet smile came on his face. Then, he slowly lay back down, relaxed and his spirit went home to God. Mrs. Troxler, with tears running down her cheeks, said, "Daddy, we've served the Lord together for forty years, and if you are crossing over, I'll meet you on the other shore." And as she wept and waved her handkerchief to Dr. Troxler as his spirit departed, Clay Milby began to sing that wonderful old hymn, "I will meet you in the morning, just inside the Eastern Gate," and it seemed as if the room was filled with the very Presence of the Lord.
Whenever I hear that old song sung, it makes the chills run up and down my spine and the goose bumps pop out - not just because it is such a beautiful song, but also because I have a lot of dear friends and a lot of loved ones who are already on the other shore whom I expect to meet again when my days on earth are over. Perhaps some of them will even be waiting for me just inside the Eastern Gate or whichever gate it is that the Lord permits me to enter.
My Grandfather Harwood used to say to me, "Donald, I have a lot more of my friends waiting for me on the other shore than I will have to leave behind when my time to go comes."
Surely we all do have some dear friends and loved ones above who are now members of the great Church Triumphant. Don't you think we ought to be concerned about doing those things and travelling that pathway that leads to a glad reunion with them when we leave this earth?
Our Father's house is above. Our inheritance is above. We should have some treasures above. Many of our friends and loved ones are now above.
And GOD, OUR HEAVENLY FATHER, IS ABOVE! He Who loved us enough to give His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life, is above.
JESUS, OUR SAVIOUR AND LORD, IS ABOVE! He Who came into this world and showed us how to live, Who took upon Himself on Calvary's cross the guilt of all our sins, Who died and was buried in Joseph's tomb and Who rose from the grave, took death captive, ascended into Heaven and is now at the right hand of God the Father: Jesus our Saviour and Lord is now above.
The angels are above. The holy beings who cry out, "Holy, Holy, Holy!" around the great Throne of God are above.
And, when the trumpet of the Lord shall sound and time shall be no more and the morning breaks eternal, bright and fair, we, too, by faith in Christ and through grace divine, can be a part of that great multitude above who gather around the throne and sing, "All hail the power of Jesus' Name; let angels prostrate fall; bring forth the royal diadem, and crown Him Lord of all!" and then, in humble adoration and grateful appreciation, cast their crowns before Him Who is the King of kings, and the Lord of lords, forever and forever! Amen!
Why, then, should we make our chief concern the things of time, when there are so many, many things of greater importance and eternal value that we could be concentrating upon?
"If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God." Let us pray...