Skip to main content

SET YOUR AFFECTION ON HEAVEN

 

Colossians 3:2-17

Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.(KJV)

Luke 10:20

Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven" (KJV).

"|When we make self fulfillment our goal in life, it will be impossible to worship God and give him all the glory.’’

 In our lives nowadays there are so many things that easily distract us. We want wealth, nice cars, nice clothes, big houses, a good life and prosperity. We want to know what’s hot in the entertainment world, the newest movies, the latest music, and the most current fashion. We want to keep abreast with the news, the gossip of the town and sports, to the extent that we forget the real reason why we are here. We worry about life and livelihood so much that we forget the source of life itself: that’s God.

 Paul reminds in this text that we do not belong here for “our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ”. This is the outlook a christian ought to have: one of detachment from material things. Our "dreams" or goals in life should not be those of worldly wealth, personal achievement, power and pride. It should be about our character. The world is passing way. "Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness..?" - 2 Peter 3:11.
 "What kind of person ought we be?" When Jesus comes, it won’t matter how rich, healthy, wealthy or prosperous you are. Only one thing will count: your spiritual  standing. Are you right with God? Is your name written in the Lamb’s book of life?

 How Do We Make Heaven Our Focus?

Paul Tells us to consider ourselves dead to earthly things. To be dead, means to have no affection for, desire for or attachment to earthly things. The Holy Spirit within us destroys the works of evil, the lusts of the flesh, so that we are able to despise earthly things, and to desire those that are heavenly. Our character should be more important than our achievements.

 

  1. Despise the Things of This Earth – We cannot set our minds both on heavenly and earthly things equally. Mathew 6:24 -34 says, "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other". We must "kill" the flesh so that the spirit may live. The Bible tells us to "mortify your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry" (Colossians 3:5). If we esteem earthly things we will set our minds on them instead of setting our minds on Heavenly things. 
  1. Invest your time and Resources in Heavenly Work – Our hearts will constantly stay where our treasure is. We also are likely to invest out treasure where our affection is. Matthew 6:19-21 says “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
  2. Hate the Things that may separate you from God – Sin is u.  Sin is in our nature, but the Holy Spirit is at our disposal at any time to help us overcome. We should be ready to cut links with anything or anyone who severs our relationship with God. Luke 14:26 says that If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.”
  3. Guard your heart – Jeremiah 17:9 says, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?"(KJV) Satan has a tendency of placing evil desires in our hearts. When we allow the enemy to plant a seed of sin in our hearts, then he has us where he wants us: in opposition to God.  The Bible says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life” (Proverbs 4:23, KJV). The Bible also tells us that our hearts are desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9). We should not be inclined to do everything our hearts tell us. 

In the book of Colossians, Paul reminds us that we have everything we need when we have Christ. He is all-sufficient, He is the head over all, He is supreme, He is greater than any other power or authority. Because of this, as Christ followers, we have His Spirit within us to equip and empower us to walk in freedom and light.

We cannot attain what we have not aimed at. We cannot be with Christ if that is not our overarching aim in life. We shouldn’t focus on things on the earth - Wealth, honor, pleasure. Our affections should not be fixed on houses and lands; on scenes of fashion and gaiety; on low and debasing enjoyments. Instead, set your affections on things above!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THE GREAT APOSTACY, IS IT FINALLY HERE?

The Bible predicts that the second coming of Jesus Christ will be preceded by the "falling away" of Christians according to 2nd Thessalonians 2:1-3. Many people have struggled to understand what this really means. I have heard certain people even claiming that this falling away can be understood to mean the "rapture of the church". Yet others claim that the falling away refers to a mass apostasy. Which is which? In this article, we shall endevour to shed some light on this subject and hopefully bring some fresh perspectives on this often neglected subject. We tend to talk about the end times as if it were marked by one event only: the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is actually not so. The end times is characterized by a lot of events, most of which must happen before the appearing of our Lord in the clouds; the great tribulation, apostasy, the appearing of the man of sin.. The signs that the return of our Lord is near are an everyday phenomenon. We watch the ...
Post a Comment
Read more

WHY I'M SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING LEAVING THE ANGLICAN CHURCH

 The Anglican denomination is one of the biggest in Kenya along with Roman Catholic Church and Seventh Day Adventist Church. I was raised an Anglican, baptized as an infant and confirmed at age twelve. I hardly ever attended the Anglican church though in my childhood and early teens and ea was congregating with the Seventh Day Adventists through the latter part of my primary education and all through my secondary and university education.It is not until I graduated from college that I started attending the Anglican Church, drawn mainly by their youth targeted programmes, strong congregational ties and a tradition of orderliness and structure.  The Anglican church of Kenya has undergone a subtle but profound change over the years. It has been so slow and discreet and has escaped the notice of many congregants. But many people will confess that the Anglican church as it is today is not anything like it used to be in the 90s and early 2000s. The worship is more charismatic and ev...
Post a Comment
Read more

SEVEN REASONS WHY THE PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE VIEW CANNOT POSSIBLY BE RIGHT

They say that facts are stubborn. And there is no place where they are more so than in Christian eschatology, where - despite the plain reading of scripture and long-held beliefs - people are apt to distort the word of God for their own gains. Nonetheless, there are seven facts that present an insurmountable challenge to the doctrine of pre-tribulation rapture . In case you've never heard about it, the pre-tribulation rapture is a relatively new "christian" doctrine that teaches that Jesus Christ will come in two phases in the end times. The first of those appearances is called "the rapture of the church" where Christians will be caught up in the air to meet Jesus in and accompany Him to Heaven. The second one, it is said, is the proper "second coming" where Jesus Christ comes to establish his reign on earth for a thousand years. It is a very popular doctrine, I must admit, not least because of the amount of publicity it has been accorded by the "...
Post a Comment
Read more