“…that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings…” “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. (2) Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit — the things of the Spirit. (6) For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” [Phil.3:10; Col.3:1-2; Ro.8:5-6]
ce the world celebrated Christ’s Resurrection Day at the end of March this year, I want to give it specific acknowledgement here in April. And, what we see from our chosen texts actually demonstrates that through the resurrection of our wonderful Lord we for whom Christ died become the recipients of His eternally gracious blessings throughout our entire walk through this sinful fallen world!
First of all, the Philippian text declares that learning to know Christ is tantamount to both: getting to know the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings. This reflects Eph.1:19-20 which describes…what is the exceeding greatness of His power to usward who believe according to the working of His mighty Power (20) which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places…”. So, we owe the genuineness of our faith and of our true believing in the Lord Jesus Christ to His true and real resurrection from the dead as well as His ascension back into heavenly glory! In fact, we who are truly His have been spiritually quickened and “raised up together, (with Him) and made to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” [Eph.2:6] How wonderful is that!?
The Col.3 text, also, descriptively puts all the true children of God with Christ in His resurrection and His ascension. It poses a rather rhetorical question about that fact that includes the way the child of God should think while they are still here in this sinful and fallen world. It suggests that if we have been risen with Christ, we, therefore, should (lit.) set our minds on things above where He is and from where He rules! He is seated there on His sovereign throne of ruling authority over us and over all things! Think about that! Meditate on that almighty and victorious reality!
The Rom.8 text goes another step further with this and declares that this way of spiritually thinking is critical to our being a true child of God. It is even a common way of thinking among all who have truly been made alive in, and by, the Spirit of Christ! One is either in the flesh, or in the Spirit. If one is in the flesh, then they are spiritually dead; if they are in the Spirit, then they are spiritually alive and in a position of peace with God. This is because the mind of the flesh is enmity with God and not subject to the law of God and neither, indeed, can it be! However, the mind of the Spirit is the mind of Christ, our Substitute, and because of His eternally accomplished and completely finished atonement — He has wrought peace with God for us.
For Christ’s Glory Only!
John Carpenter
