The one life we share with Christ is also a resurrected life. Nothing, including death, can suppress it. Furthermore, in resurrection there are no tears. Suppose a sister begins to cry when she is criticized for the way she cleaned a room in the meeting hall. Is this the resurrected life? Certainly not! In the resurrected life there is no place for weeping. But if this sister lives a resurrected life while she is cleaning in the meeting hall, she will not be troubled if someone criticizes her work. This is another difference between the resurrected life and the natural life.
If our natural life has not been dealt with, our service in the church will not last long. If we serve in the natural life, we shall be easily offended, and eventually we shall stop serving. But if our life in serving is a life that is crucified and resurrected, nothing will be able to defeat it.
Furthermore, the life Christ has is a life hidden in God. As we have pointed out, only the divine life can be hidden in God. I appreciate this word hidden (3:3). The life Christ has is not a showy life; it is a hidden life. If you serve by this life, you will not want to be seen by others. On the contrary, you will prefer to serve in secret. Our natural life is the very opposite of this, for it is fond of making a show. Today’s religion appeals to this element in the natural life. For example, it is a common practice in raising funds to give public credit to those who donate large amounts, whereas little or no mention is made of those who donate a small amount. Religion nourishes the natural life, but in the church the natural life is put to death.
Whatever we do in the church should be done by a life hidden in God. In Matthew 6 the Lord Jesus speaks of doing things in secret, not before men (vv. 1-6, 16-18). Even in presenting our offering to the Lord, we should be hidden. In all that we do we should live a hidden life, a life hidden with Christ in God.
Let us now consider the matter of having one living with Christ. It seems that there is no indication of this in 3:1-4. The word living is not even used. But Paul does tell us to seek the things which are above and to set our mind on them. This refers to our living. Seeking the things above and setting our mind on them are matters of our living. We are not to live in an earthly way or in a worldly way. Instead, we should live in a heavenly way, seek the things which are above, and set our mind on them.
At this point we need to see that the Lord Jesus has two types of ministries, His ministry on earth before His resurrection and His ministry in heaven. When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He carried on a tremendous ministry and did a great deal. In the course of this ministry, He accomplished redemption for us. According to Hebrews 1:3, having finished His ministry on earth, the Lord sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. Although His earthly ministry has been completed, His ministry in heaven is still going on.
Christ today is ministering in a higher and more extensive way. As the High Priest, He intercedes for us and cares for all the churches, transmitting into them the heavenly supply. Christ is more busy now than when He was on earth. On earth He cared mainly for His disciples. But in heaven He is caring for a great many churches and for millions of saints. Not only does He intercede for us as the High Priest, but He ministers on our behalf as the heavenly Minister. Furthermore, according to Revelation 5, He as the heavenly Administrator is executing God’s universal government. He is the Lamb with seven eyes carrying out God’s administration. As the High Priest He intercedes; as the heavenly Minister, He ministers; as the Redeemer with the seven eyes of God, He administers the government of God for the accomplishment of God’s purpose. These are the things above on which we are to set our mind.