“Keep thinking about things above, not things on the earth, for you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:2-3 NET).
One of the more famous incidents involving the Old Testament nation of Israel concerned a woman named Rahab. Rahab lived within the ancient city of Jericho, the first military target for the people of Israel as they entered the land of Canaan. The inhabitants of Jericho responded to the threat posed by the advancing Israelites by sealing the entry points into the city to prevent anyone from entering or leaving (Joshua 6:1).
However, two Israelite spies had already penetrated the city and established a residence within Rahab’s home. Unfortunately for them, it wasn’t long before the authorities arrived…
“…someone informed the king of Jericho that two Israelis who were suspected of being spies had arrived in the city that evening. He dispatched a police squadron to Rahab’s home, demanding that she surrender them. ‘They are spies,’ he explained. ‘They have been sent by the Israeli leaders to discover the best way to attack us.’
But she had hidden them, so she told the officer in charge, ‘The men were here earlier, but I didn’t know they were spies. They left the city at dusk as the city gates were about to close, and I don’t know where they went. If you hurry, you can probably catch up with them!’ But actually she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them beneath piles of flax that were drying there” (Joshua 2:2-6 TLB).
So what does this have to do with the passage from Colossians quoted above? Well, much like the spies who were safely hidden from certain death within the confines of Rahab’s home, Colossians 3:3 tells us “…[as far as this world is concerned] you have died, and your [new, real] life is hidden with Christ in God” (AMP) (see 1 John 2:17). One commentary builds upon this idea with the following question and answer: “What does it mean that a believer’s life is ‘hidden with Christ’? Hidden means ‘concealed and safe.’ This is not only a future hope but an accomplished fact right now.” (1)
Jesus also offered the following encouragement for whose lives are “…hidden with Christ in God”…
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand” (John 10:27-29 NLT).
(1) Life Application Study Bible [Colossians 3:3] Copyright © 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1996, 2004 by Tyndale House Publishers Inc., all rights reserved.