Therefore, if you have been raised with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Keep thinking about things above, not things on the earth, for you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. (Colossians 3:1-3 NET)
What happens inside your head when you read that? That and the rest of the same chapter make much of an otherworldly focus, yet so many who claim Christ are still hung up on changing human government. They tend to think of that “right hand of God” as just a couple of floors up, instead of a wholly different level of existence. They envision “raised with Christ” as slightly more intelligent.
They tend to think that the pinnacle of evangelism is beating down the doors of those who haven’t bought into their brand of gospel yet. They admire most the people with a big list of folks they converted. To them, spiritual depth means more knowledge, more effective in this life. They forget that Jesus considered the Cross about the most effective thing He did in this world. So they reshape the meaning of the Cross to the point it has completely lost its paradoxical significance.
Colossians 3 is not an encouragement to do things that bring more worldly success. If your behavior doesn’t invite oppression from worldly powers, you aren’t doing it right. If human governments don’t tend to crucifying you, you’ve come up short. You should not imagine that we have somehow come so far with civilization that the average Joe is going to be comfortable with someone who follows Christ. If you can’t be manipulated because you fight temptation, then you can’t be used by society. If you aren’t that different from society as a whole, you aren’t following Christ.
“Don’t be conformed to this world” means your world as it is today. The Pharisees thought they were doing it right, too.
