Raised with Christ
Colossians 3:1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.
We are the triumphant church, we are the resurrected church, we are now risen with Christ and seated with Him in heavenly places and our life is now hidden with Christ in God.
The Word says in Psalm 16:11 that at God’s right hand are pleasures forevermore. We are seated right there, in Christ, where every true pleasure is to be found in Him.
Out of His pleasure, God created us. He created us from pleasure, for pleasure, but since the fall, we go about each day looking for pleasure, seeking pleasure in all the wrong places.
God does not deny us pleasure, He wants us to have a full, abundant, pleasurable, and blessed life, but that is only found in Him. We are to consider those things which are above not dwelling on mere earthly things that will never satisfy. (Col 3:2).
What an invitation to seek true pleasure which is only found in Christ alone.
Colossians 3:4 goes on to say, “When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.” Peter, James and John experienced Jesus in His glorified body. When we appear with Christ in glory it will be like that day on the mountain top (Mat 17:1), but we can have these mountain top experiences with Him today.
We need these mountain top experiences where we encounter God’s pleasure, His goodness, hidden in the person of Jesus. These are precious encounters with Him, but we're not to make shelters there and remain. We're to go out from there in the knowledge of our identity, our power, and our authority.
Colossians 3 goes on to describe the things we are to do with our new found identity. Put off the things on earth - anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language - and put on the pleasures of heaven, the pleasures where Christ is.
Verses 12-14 go on to talk about putting on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering, forgiving as Christ forgave us. These are the pleasures that are available at His right hand.
We need to firstly clothe ourselves with these pleasures from Him to us, to put on His tender mercy and kindness towards us, so we can give what we are receiving from Him to the world around us.
And finally, putting on the bond of perfection that binds our relationships together in perfect unity. This unity is not just keeping a family together under one roof, but perfectly together, nothing broken and with everything working in harmony. Put on His love. Oh what pleasures are at His right hand forever more.