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low things and high things

Colossians 3:1-17 (JDV)

Colossians 3:1 So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the high things, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Colossians 3:2 Set your minds on high things, not on things of the land.

Colossians 3:3 You see, you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

Colossians 3:4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Colossians 3:5 Therefore, consider dead your parts which are on the land: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desire, and greed, which is idolatry.

Colossians 3:6 Because of these, God’s wrath is coming,

Colossians 3:7 and you once walked in these things when you were living in them.

Colossians 3:8 But now, put away all these: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and filthy language from your mouth.

Colossians 3:9 Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old human with its practices

Colossians 3:10 and have put on the new self. You are being renewed in knowledge according to the image of your Creator.

Colossians 3:11 In Christ there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, [1] Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all.

Colossians 3:12 Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, devoted and dearly cared about [2], put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,

Colossians 3:13 bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive.

Colossians 3:14 Above all, put on care, which is the perfect bond of unity.

Colossians 3:15 And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also invited [3] in one body, rule your hearts. And be thankful.

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.

Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do, in word or in achievement, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

low things and high things

Paul’s flow of thought in this section of Colossians is wonderfully balanced. Yesterday’s text warned against the trap of human‑made religious traditions—practices that look spiritual but are actually hollow, temporary, and powerless to shape a holy life. Paul wanted the Colossians to stop chasing spiritual fads and to rest in the fullness they already possessed in Christ.

But Paul knows human nature. The moment he says, “You already have everything you need in Christ,” someone will hear, “Then I don’t need to grow.” Someone will assume that grace eliminates effort, or that holiness simply happens automatically. So today’s text answers that misunderstanding. Yes, Christ has done everything necessary for our salvation. Yes, we do not need to die for our sins—Jesus has already done that once for all. But the benefits of Christ in us must be cultivated, strengthened, and expressed. Grace is not opposed to effort; it is opposed to earning. Growth is not optional; it is the natural outworking of the life Christ has planted in us.

Paul describes this growth in two movements. First, we must put to death the “low things”—the patterns of the old humanity that distort our desires and damage our relationships. He names them plainly: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desire, greed, anger, wrath, malice, slander, filthy language, lies, ethnic superiority, and pride rooted in social or economic status. These are not small flaws; they are corrosive forces that must be crucified if Christ’s life is to flourish in us.

Second, we must seek the “high things”—the character traits of Christ embodied in daily life. Equality that refuses to divide the body. Compassion that sees suffering. Kindness that moves toward others. Humility that refuses to dominate. Gentleness that heals rather than harms. Patience that absorbs frustration. A willingness to bear with one another, forgive one another, care for one another. A commitment to peace, gratitude, Scripture, shared worship, and living everything in the name of the Lord Jesus. These are not abstract virtues; they are the lived texture of Christ’s kingdom.

Paul’s message is clear: we are complete in Christ, but we are not finished. The Spirit calls us to keep seeking the high things until Christ’s character becomes visible in our ordinary lives.

Lord, help us to die to the low things, and keep seeking the high things.

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[1] βάρβαρος = barbarian (using unintelligible words) Acts 28:2, 4; Romans 1:14; 1 Corinthians 14:11; Colossians 3:11.
[2] ἀγαπάω = care.
[3] καλέω = invite.