“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
Appearances can be deceiving.
When Jesus walked the roads of Galilee, there was little about His appearance that suggested He was the eternal Son of God. He grew tired. He became hungry. He was rejected by many, abandoned by His friends, arrested, beaten, and crucified.
If you judged only by what you could see, you would never conclude that this was the King of kings who held all authority in heaven and on earth.
His glory was hidden beneath suffering and humility.
The same is true, in many ways, for His people.
Paul writes,
“You have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
From the world’s perspective, Christians do not always look especially blessed. They get sick. They lose jobs. They struggle with temptation. They bury loved ones. Many live ordinary lives without wealth, influence, or recognition. They still wrestle daily with their sinful nature and long for the day when that battle will finally end.
If you judged only by what you could see, you might wonder where Christ’s victory is.
Paul says it is hidden.
The deepest reality of your life cannot be seen with human eyes. Your sins have been forgiven, but forgiveness is invisible. You don’t have a forgiveness bar on a heads-up display. You have died and been raised with Christ, but that new life is hidden beneath an ordinary human life that still bears the marks of a fallen world.
Yet hidden does not mean uncertain.
Notice where your life is hidden.
It is hidden with Christ.
The Christ who once humbled Himself to the point of death has now been raised, ascended into heaven, and seated at the right hand of the Father. He reigns over all things. Nothing can threaten His kingdom. Nothing can overturn His victory.
And your life is hidden with Him.
There is no safer place for your life to be.
This is why Christians live by faith rather than by sight. We do not judge God’s love by our circumstances or His faithfulness by how easy life becomes. We trust His promises even when they remain unseen. We set our minds on things that are above.
One day, what is now hidden will be revealed. The very next verse says,
“When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”
Until that day, we continue to live in hope.
Not because we can already see the fullness of what God has done. but because the One in whom our life is hidden has already conquered sin, death, and the grave.
Let’s pray…
Lord Jesus,
When I look only at what I can see, it is easy to become discouraged. I still struggle with sin. I experience suffering, disappointment, and weakness. At times, it is difficult to see the new life You have given me.
Yet You have promised that my life is hidden with You. Strengthen my faith to trust Your promises more than my circumstances. Keep my eyes fixed on You, reigning at the Father’s right hand, knowing that there is no safer place for my life to be.
Help me to live each day in confident hope until the day You appear in glory and all that is now hidden is revealed.
Amen.
As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:
After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
