"For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory." Although resurrection is a future event, those who have been redeemed by Christ have died to their own self and have taken on a new identity in Christ. This new identity is now “hidden with Christ in God.” “Hidden” in this context means to protect, preserve, or keep secure in the sense that one might hide something valuable to keep it safe. Thus, the individual identities of the redeemed of Christ are safe with Him. Jesus guards our identity; He knows who each of His redeemed are and He is saving a place for each of us in heaven. The place we call heaven is an assurance that our new identity in Christ is sustained by God so we may obtain full possession of it when we are resurrected. So resurrection life is at work in you now! We live life in the present as those who are on their way to heaven. As each day passes our lives grow more blessed as we draw nearer to the One Who is the source of our new life and new identity. Therefore, you should
"set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth" (vs. 2).
