Setting Our Minds on the Things Above—Lectionary Reflection for Easter Sunday, Year A (Colossians 3:1-4)

Colossians 3:1-4 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

3 So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth, ³ for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.

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With the return of spring comes the arrival of Holy Week, capped by Easter. Six years ago, most churches were closed with services offered online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which would last long after Easter’s arrival. Today, we celebrate Easter while the United States is at war with Iran, gas prices are on the rise, and lines at airports continue to grow because of a stalemate about government funding. So, while we often treat Easter as a joyous holiday, the joy is tempered by the realities of life. That said, Easter is not a seasonal holiday centered on current realities, but rather a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. With his resurrection comes the promise that death has met its match. Humanity sought to snuff out the life of the one whom John proclaims as the Word of God made Flesh (Jn. 1:14), but God vindicated him by raising him from the dead. With his resurrection comes the promise of our resurrection, such that death has lost its sting (1 Cor. 15:50-57).

The lectionary readings (RCL) for Easter Sunday (Year A) provide several alternatives for each reading, including the Second Reading. One of the readings comes from Acts 10:34-43, which is Peter’s message to Cornelius’ household. In that message, Peter declares that while Jesus was put to death by hanging him from a tree, God raised him on the third day, an event that Peter claims to be a witness to. The reading from Acts is also offered as a possible First Reading (along with Jeremiah 31:1-6). I have chosen to reflect on the message found in the Letter to the Colossians. While attributed to Paul, some scholars question his authorship. Whether Paul wrote this letter or not, the focus of this brief passage is on the resurrection and ascension of Jesus. As we ponder this brief reading from Colossians, what we find is a reminder that this letter offers us a vision of the Cosmic Christ. We see this vision spelled out in a hymn found in the first chapter of the letter. It is worth considering this hymn before looking more closely at the reading from chapter 3.

¹⁵ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, ¹⁶ for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. ¹⁷ He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. ¹⁸ He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. ¹⁹ For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, ²⁰ and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross (Col. 1:15-20).

According to the author of the letter, who for the remainder of this reflection will be known as Paul, the one we celebrate on Easter is none other than “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation,” who is also the head of the body, the church, and the one in whom God reconciles all things through the blood of the cross.  Thus, the one we celebrate on Easter has a cosmic existence.

                Paul speaks to us as those who have been raised with Christ. That is, those who share in the promise of the resurrection. To the ones he addresses in the letter, he tells them to “seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” You might say that Paul is encouraging us to be heavenly-minded. However, in this case, being heavenly-minded does not mean ignoring earthly realities. There are some Christians who claim that because they believe in Jesus, they don’t have to worry about things like climate change. Jesus didn’t say anything about it, so why worry? Jesus did speak about loving our neighbors and caring for those in need, so perhaps dealing with climate change would fall under that category? For the author of the Colossian letter, in one sense, resurrection has already occurred in baptism, so we should live accordingly. With that in mind, Jerry Sumney offers this word about “the things above.”

Colossians affirms that seeking “things above” is appropriate for believers. In fact, it constitutes an aspect of participating in the resurrection life. But Colossians radically redefines this pursuit. Seeking “the things above” is an ethical mandate that embodies being “raised with” Christ, not following regulations that try to attain superior spiritual experiences or spiritual superiority. Colossians completely reorients the meaning of seeking “the things above” by basing the exhortation on the believers’ already-received participation in Christ’s resurrection. [Sumney, Colossians (The New Testament Library) (WJK, Kindle p. 176)].  

                If we connect this statement with our Easter observance, then Paul is reminding us that death did not achieve victory on Good Friday. So, set your mind on where Christ dwells (things above) rather than on earthly things. The message here reminds us that our identity as Christians is rooted in Christ’s resurrection (and ascension). The passage has a sense of realized eschatology, such that the resurrection life has already begun. Think of what Paul says about baptism in verse 12 of the previous chapter (Col. 2:12), as in Romans 6, where he speaks of followers of Jesus being buried with Christ in baptism and then raised with him to new life (Rom. 6:1-4). So, as I read this passage, what I see is a word about identity. While baptism isn’t mentioned in chapter 3, it is assumed from what is said in chapter 2. Thus, they are connected. We have died to the old life in Christ and have been raised to new life in Christ, so we should live accordingly. Christ should be our guide since he is the one whom God has glorified. Another way of putting this is to think in terms of orienting our lives around the ways of God, who is revealed to us in the person of Jesus, who is, according to Colossians 1, the “image of the invisible God.”

                Our reading ends with Paul declaring that “when Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.” However, Paul isn’t finished with his message. In verses 5 and following, he addresses the behaviors that reflect earthly concerns, behaviors such as fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, the last of which he connects with idolatry. So much for the fictional Gordon Gekko’s motto of “greed is good,” though that does seem to be a behavior celebrated by many. Other behaviors and attitudes that Paul speaks of here include anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language. Might these also be behaviors that mark many in our own day, including people of importance (especially that last behavior mentioned—abusive language)? These are the kinds of behaviors Paul connects to the old life that his readers once embraced, behaviors that they have died to by identifying themselves with Christ’s death (Col. 3:5-11).  

                On this Easter morning, even as the world seems in disarray, where Easter’s glories seem to be lost in the grayness of our times, might we lift our eyes to the heavenly realm and declare our allegiance to the Cosmic Christ, the one whom God has raised from the dead so that we might share in his resurrection. As we do this, let us acknowledge that this is not a world-denying message, such that by giving our allegiance to Christ, we deny responsibility for this world. Rather, it is a world-transforming message, inviting us to live differently because we have given our allegiance to the one through whom we have been reconciled.

So, as we celebrate the glory of God, revealed in the resurrection of Jesus, let us sing:

Christ is risen! Shout hosanna! Celebrate this day of days.

Christ is risen! Hush in wonder; all creation is amazed.

In the desert all surrounding, see, a spreading tree has grown.

Healing leaves of grace abounding bring a taste of love unknown.

                                                                Brian Wren (Chalice Hymnal, 222)