The apostle Paul writes to the Colossians: 'you died.' Since the recipients of his letter were alive at that time, it is clear that the apostle was referring to a different kind of death. Death always concerns the body, yet from the perspective of biblical teaching, the material body is not the only body we have. On the external level, we are a body animated by the spirit. Man 'became a living soul' when 'the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life' (Gen. 2:7). Therefore, in material terms, the soul (living being) = spirit (life force) + body. However, man is not only a body that lives and moves, but also, if not primarily, a spiritual dimension – who we are, what values we hold, how we behave in different situations. The New Testament refers to this aspect of humanity as the 'spiritual man' (1 Cor. 2:15) or the 'inner man' (Rom. 7:22). The spiritual man, like the 'natural man' (1 Cor. 2:14), also comprises both spirit and body: the spirit of the mind (Eph. 4:23) and the body of character. Identifying character with the body stems from the fact that character consists of behavior scripts literally encoded in our body (in the nervous system); automatic reactions that are triggered in response to a given stimulus.
The problem is that these automatic reactions, developed without the involvement of faith in an environment distant from God, will often lead to the breaking of God’s law. All that which the apostle Paul calls 'acts of the flesh' — 'adultery, fornication, uncleanness, debauchery; (20) idolatry, sorcery, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and the like' — is contrary to the Spirit of God. 'I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God' (Gal. 5:19-21; Rom. 7:14-25). So what must happen — the natural man must die; he must be nailed to the cross 'with Him' (Christ) and 'buried with Him through baptism into death' (Rom. 6:1-6). An essential starting point for making this change is 'repentance from dead works and faith in God' (Heb. 6:1). The Greek word metanoia, translated as 'repentance,' means 'a change of mind.' For a person who shows faith in God, that is, a conviction of His existence and the divine inspiration of the Bible, the next step will be 'a change of mind,' that is, re-evaluating their previous way of acting.
The decision to change itself must be accompanied by action. The body is an automatic system that does not accept explanations; 'the person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them because they are discerned spiritually' (by the Spirit of the mind; 1 Cor. 2:14). However, it can be trained for change through practice. James writes: 'Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. (23) Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror (24) and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. (25) But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it — not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it — they will be blessed in what they do' (James 1:22-25). The Bible is a mirror in which all our imperfections are revealed plainly. However, the desire for change must be accompanied not only by 'gazing' at its content and contemplating it in theory, but also by acting in practice. He who is a 'doer of the work will be blessed in his actions.' In this way, the 'body of sin' (Romans 6:6) will be destroyed, and in its place, the Body of Christ — character in the image of our Savior — will be formed.
Earlier I wrote that repentance leads to the death of the 'old man.' Similarly, what takes place through conversion is our resurrection. Water baptism symbolically shows this change through immersion (the laying to the grave of the 'body of sin') and the subsequent emergence (rising from the dead). It is important to emphasize that 'you have risen with Christ' (Col. 3:1). The new character is the result of us looking into the mirror of Christ's perfection. It is in His image that we are being transformed (Rom. 8:29). The New Testament adopts a twofold perspective to describe this situation. We read that Christ is in us (Col. 1:27), and therefore the fruit of the Spirit, which was abundant in Him, has become present in us. On the other hand, we have been found in Christ - we have been 'baptized into one body' (1 Cor. 12:12,13) - if our character has begun to 'fit' this universal pattern revealed in our Lord. This second perspective is taken by Paul in the discussed Colossians 3:1-4, writing that 'your life is hidden with Christ in God.' This hiding is partly the result of the fact that 'The spiritual person judges all things, yet is himself evaluated [understood] by no one'; especially by those who think in the flesh (1 Cor. 2:15).
On the other hand, in God lies our hope for future life. "But when Christ, who is our life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory" (Col. 3:4). Jesus promises: "I will come back and take you to be with me, that you also may be where I am" (Jn. 14:3). Accordingly, the apostle Peter writes that God "has given us new birth [through resurrection from the dead] to a living hope ... to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you" (1 Pt. 1:3-4). In 2 Pt. 1:4, the apostle explicitly says that we are to become "partakers of the divine nature." This is a great perspective beyond anything that a human could aspire to. It is important to emphasize Peter's words that 'we are born to a living hope.' Thus, our hope becomes real — but not yet guaranteed — through rebirth in Christ (as members of His Body). This is so because birth of the spirit is only the beginning of a new important stage in the Christian life; a stage in which Paul encourages participation in Colossians 3:1-2: 'If then 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 things that are above, not on things that are on earth.'
Being born of the Spirit makes us barely infants in Christ. An infant, indeed, has a formed body that allows independent functioning, just as those born of the Spirit have a formed character. Yet at the beginning, they only take in the most basic nourishment in the form of milk. That is why Peter encourages believers to 'desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby' (1 Pet. 2:2). Eternal infancy is not the calling of the Church. Sometimes one can hear the view that it is enough to be a good person to achieve salvation. Those who preach it may not even be aware that they are advocating eternal infancy, because that is exactly the stage the newborn Christian is at. Meanwhile, God offers His people not only milk, but "a feast of rich foods, a feast of aged wine, of rich foods full of marrow, of well-aged wine, pure and clear" (Isa. 25:6). And He not only offers it, but actually expects us to take part (Mt. 22:1-14). This is because "all your children shall be taught by the LORD" (Isa. 54:13). From a mature person, not only a developed body but also a developed mind is expected.
Therefore, let us read Ephesians 4:11-16 - "And he gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, and still others as pastors and teachers, (12) to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, (13) until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, to become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. (14) Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful scheming. (15) Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. (16) From him, the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work." All the mentioned types of ministry in the community were established by God to serve the growth of the 'knowledge of the Son of God,' and consequently, the attainment of the 'mature fullness of Christ' in believers. We are to be 'filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding' (Col. 1:9). Not to be content with only milk, but to seek 'solid food' suitable 'for the mature' (Heb. 5:11-14).
Why growth in truth is so important - because there is a reason why we are to appear in glory with the Lord (Col. 3:4). The victors of the present calling will be part of the administration of the future kingdom. Together with Christ, they will exercise authority and, together with Him, judge - elevate to perfection - the resurrected humanity. "For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. (20) For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope; (21) that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the glorious freedom of the children of God" (Rom. 8:19-21). Christ returns in order to 'renew all things' (Acts 3:21), and His saints come with Him for the same purpose. Those who will sit with the Lord on the thrones of glory are naturally expected to reach the highest level of development — not only in character but also in mind, through the knowledge of the 'width, length, depth, and height' of the truth (Eph. 3:18). Therefore, since we have died with Christ, let us not remain halfway, but let us move forward in thinking about what is above, so that we may be considered worthy to appear with the Lord when the time comes to take His royal authority over the whole earth (Col. 3:1-4).