The Pulpit Commentary — Colossians — Section 195

'l'hat must indicate (1) a living life, such a life as Ezekiel portmys, " I will open your graves, and give you a new heart, a heart of flesh;" and (2) an elevated life. No more of the carth......earthy, no more grave-clothes, sepulchre, and earth-worms, bnt such beauty and activity and blessedness as belong to the scenes of Christ's forty days' risen life. II. THE DUTY OF THE HIGHER LIFE. The duty is twofold, and the way of obeying is twofold also. 1. 'l'he twofold duty of the higher life. (1) The withdrawal of chief concern from inferior things. "Set not your affections," etc. Does not this mean, cease to entwine your affections round the things of time, cease to concentrate your energies on the things of this world? So far we have only the negative aspect of dnty; but, there is: (2) 'l'hc fixing of chief interest on superior things. They arc twice spoken of here as" things above;" and may they not-denote what is above socia,ly, intellec- t-ually, spiritually? 2. The twofold method of attaining the performance of this duty. (1) "Seek the things that are above." Let the hi 6her things be the object of pursuit. What higher things? Plato would have said, "The true, the beautiful, the good." Most modem Christians, meaning the same, would have said, "Heaven." And Paul, meaning the same, would have said, "Christ." For surely Christ is heaven and heaven is Christ. Well, therefore, does Bishop Pearson urge, "Rise to Christ with the wings of your meditation and in the chariot of your affections." (2) " Set your affections on things that are above," Not only seek heaven, but think heaven; not only think heaven, but love heaven. Our life cannot rise into I\ higher realm of itself any more than a bar of iron can lift itself. Both have capacity of response, Christ is the magnet to uplift our natures. Love him, and the love of him lifts up. III. THE DESTINY OF THE HIGHER LIFE. In the fourth verse we have the onwanl aspect of the higher life, 1. There is to be a complete manifestation of this higher life. Paul has said now it is "hid," then it will be unveiled; now it is buried, then it will be "risen." Because of misunderstandings, and misconceptions, and harsh judgments of others, the "higher life" is now often hid; then all will be explained, interpreter!, rectified. Because now that life is so often in itself distorted, confused, it is partially "hid;" then in ease and naturalness and grace it will gloriously "appear." 2. 1'he perfect revelation of this life will be in perfect m1ion with (Jhrist. (1) How? Because he is the Origin and Sustenance, the Life of man's own inner higher life. (2) When'? No calendar can fix the date. It will be the time of his appearing; and that will be to the ages ns his incarnation was-" the fulness of the times." (3) What? The glory we shall have will be his glory. That is the glory of purity, simplicity, victory, sacri- fice, love. The paragraph we have thus considered names Christ four times. Our model is Christ's death; our strength is Christ's risen life; our heaven is Christ's glory ; our hope is Christ's coming. "Yea, thro' life, death, thro' sorrow nnd thro' sinning He ehe.11 suffice me, for he he.th sufficed • Christ is the End, for Christ was the Beginning; Christ the Beginning, for the End is Christ," U. R. T. Vere, li-11.-Death to evil. 'l'he centml thought around which the strange and striking ideas of these sentences gather is" Death to evil." St. P,rnl e:,;horts us to put evil to death, to make n corpse of it. Here we have truly "More janua vitro." \Ve inquire- !. IN WHAT THIS DEATH CONSISTS. "Put to death your members which are upon the earth." The meaning seems to be the same as Christ's command, "If thine eye offend thee, pluck it out," etc. Neither Christ's nor Paul's injunction can mean hack, hew, maim, the limbs and organs of the body. For that is contradicted by such other teaching as" Yield your members as the instruments of righteousness;" aud such disablina of limbs aud organs would be useless, for the dumb can be profane, and tho blind h~stful, and the crippled dishonest. "Out of the heart proceeds evil." TI.to fiaure in the injunction of our te:,;t may be that which the whole context suggests, n~mely, put these members to death, so far as evil practices are concerned; be as dead to them. Or the figure may have reference to that which describes the entire sinful chara.cter as "the old man "-an olu man having limbs, organs, etc., here calle,I member$.  192 THE EPISTLE TO THE COLOSSIANS. [ml. JJI. 1-25.