Sometimes we look at a young adult (or even an older one), and realize that they will never achieve their goals and desires in life as long as they do not get their priorities straightened out. If we do not get our focus set on the goal, we become distracted and cannot accomplish what we wish for our lives. If we spend too much time frittering away on useless things, we cannot reach our goal. We need to be focused on what is important. That is what the Apostle Paul reminds us of in our Scripture passage from his letter to the Colossians.
Because of our union with Jesus Christ, we as believers have spiritually entered Jesus’ death and resurrection when we were saved, and are now alive with Him. Believers were united with Jesus in His death, where the penalty of our sins were paid, and spiritually we arose with Him in new life. All of the privileges and riches of the Kingdom of Heaven are at our disposal. Since we are risen with Jesus, our life belongs to the spiritual or heavenly realm. Thus we should not be overly concerned with worldly matters.
As Christians, we are empowered with every good and perfect gift from above, and are made to thrive on a higher plane than this earth. Our entire disposition should point towards the things of heaven. We should have as little desire for the things of this world as a dead person would. That doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t take proper care of the things we have, such as our house or belongings. It certainly doesn’t mean that we ignore our family. We can surely enjoy the natural beauty of the world. However, we should not fall prey to making the things of this world system our goals and priorities. Our real home is where Christ lives. Christians need to look at life from God’s perspective, and seek what He desires.
The things of this world are only temporal. They will not last for eternity. Just take a look at anything you own, and you can see that it is slowly falling apart or becoming outdated. We certainly see that with our houses and cars! It’s a constant chore to keep them up and maintained. All of our electronics seem to become outdated in a matter of a few quick months. Our jobs are never secure. We can be there one day and shown the door the next. The Apostle Paul tells us that these are not the things that we should be focusing all of our attention on. Instead, we need to focus our attention on what is eternal, on our life with Christ and the things of His kingdom. We need to put heaven’s priorities into daily practice and concentrate on the eternal rather than the temporal.
It has been said that too many Christians are living as if Jesus had not been raised from the dead. They have no joy, and show no fruits of the Spirit. That should not be the case, as we have been raised with Christ. The resurrection was not just something in the past. Because of the resurrection power of Jesus in our lives we can set our hearts on the things above, loosening our grip on earthly things. Jesus gives us the power to live for Him right now, and He gives us hope for the future. Jesus will return!
There is an old-time hymn by Johnson Oatman that speaks of seeking higher ground. He sings that his heart “has no desire to stay where doubts arise and fears dismay. Tho some may dwell where these about, my prayer, my aim, is higher ground.” He wanted to live above the world on heaven’s tableland. Like Paul, like the hymn writer, our prayer should be, “Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.”
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