When He Appears

“When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.”

Colossians 3:4 · NKJV

Paul does not call Christ the source of your life or the improver of it. He calls Him your life.

That is why the verse just before says your life is hidden with Christ in God. What is hidden is safe, and what is joined cannot be pulled apart. Your future is being kept, not decided.

Many people raised in church dread the thought of that day. They picture a screen replaying every hidden moment while the whole universe watches, and they hope the good outweighs the bad. Paul describes something different. You appear with Him the way a bride appears with her groom, not alone and clutching a record. That day shows, in glory, a union settled long before it arrived.

Then you also will appear with Him. Not evaluated, not sorted, not hoping for a favorable outcome. With Him, in glory, because you were joined to Him, and that union is what the day will make visible.

Christ is your life. Whatever is ahead, you are in it with Him.

Go deeper: The Christian Hope: Resurrection and the End of Death →