The Pulpit Commentary — Colossians — Section 187

the heavenly sphcro Obrist is the Llessctl and glorious Centn'. Ilc is, in a word, the things that are above. Ho is here mentioned with a local reforence. The time was when he was on earth and mingled with men. He was seen by the eleven disciples going up into heaven. He was seen by the dying Stephen standin~ on the ricrht hand of God. And we are to think of him as still stationed(" seated," it is here, and accord- ing to the usual conception) on the right hand of God. To him, then, must our beino now and ever tend. lie has gone into heaven to draw our desires and affections afte~ him and up toward him. We are to turn to him with our whole desire. "\Ve are to turn to him for all that we neen. Our spiritual life cannot be maintained without the things that are above in the shape of heavenly blessings descending on us, and we must turn to him for their bestowal (in regal manner, seeing that he occupies the sent of rule). We must turn to him with the whole a/Jecti(J11, of our being. For he is a Person (the Manifester of God, and Author of onr salvation), and is pronounced "the altogether lovely." And to be: powe1fully drawn toward him is the only way to be delivered from that in regard to which o.sceticism is pronounced ineffective, viz. the temptations of the flesh. Drawn toward him, we are drawn away from nil that should be below us, and we are drawn up to the things which are high. We have thus, though on earth, a great elevation for our being. And, in accordance with it, we should loolc hi_qh, even up to him who is seated on the right hand of God. 2. In its contrast with an earthu·ard direction. "Set your mind on the things that are above, not on the things that are upon the earth." '!'here is a word employed here with a slightly different meaning from "seek." The idea is that we are to be so drawn to the things that are above as that they are to occupy our thoughts. There is not only the sphere of the things that aro above, but there is the sphere of the things that arc upon the earth, to which also we are related. "\Ve are not to think of the latter with n sinfnl association. The things upon the earth have been made by God, and are, therefore, good in themselves. But they are evidently placed in a certain subordination. They are things upon the earth, in contrast with the things that are above. It is implied that they are not to be sought supremely, but (if they would be sought truly according to their nature and purpose) with a dne subordination and subservience to the things that are above. \Ve are not to allow them to occupy our thoughts. And the reason is obvious. 'l'bey cannot so fill up our being as to bring about our perfec- tion and happiness. De Quincey thus concludes his apostrophe to opium: "Thoa only givest these gifts to men; and thou hast the keys of Paradise, 0 just, subtle, and mighty opium I" But the opium-eater's Paradise easily changes into its opposite. '!'here is a fluctuation connected with all things that are upon the earth. .And we know that soon our whole earthly prospect will dissolve. 'l'hat is intended to tench us this lesson, that we are not to set our mind on earthly things. We are not to feel toward them as though they were essential to our being. llut, feeling them to be limited in quality :md duration, we are to set our mind on that which is unlimited in quality and duration. II. ITs BIDDEN NATURE. 1. We are dead to the ootwardness of the worldly life. " For yo died." There is a hiddenness connected with tho worldly life which is not to be spoken of. "My soul, come not thou into their secret." But the worldly lifo is chnrncteristicnlly a life in the outward. It iB a life within the sphero of the li\·c eenses. lt is a lifo of communion n.ud commerce with earthly things. It is n. life which has its 1·001s in the world. It is a life the highest ambition of which is to appear well to the world, and to continue to appear well. Now, ns Christians, we nro dead, so far as going after the outward is concerned. We occupy a different standpoint altogether. We are dead where men of the world are alive. And the course we have to take, in obedience to Christ, may even bring us into collision with tbo world. 2. It is a life liidden with Christ in God. "And your life is hid with Christ in God." (1) Jt is hidden from the world. We are in a position to comprehend the worldly life from our experience of what sin is. But the Christian life is beyond the compre- hension of men of the world, for they have had no experience of it. They have no affinities to it, and, therefore, it is an enigma to them, as nature nnd art are to tho~o who have no appreciation of the beautiful. They see the manifestations of the Christian life but they cannot appreciate the motives by which we aro actuated, the principles by ~hich we are guided. (2) It is partly hidden from ourselv~s. '!'here is a mystery  1'-'+ TIII~ EPISTLE TO THE COL08SIANS. [en. m. 1-25.