Colossians 3:5 - Meaning and Application

The apostle urges the Colossians to put sin to death, because sin is the great obstacle to seeking the things above. Since it is our duty to set our hearts on heavenly things, it is also our duty to put to death the earthly parts of us, the things that pull us toward the world. By “put to death,” he means to weaken and control sinful habits of mind that once ruled them in their Gentile life. He speaks of these sins as weeds, pests, or even an enemy soldier, things that must be fought down before they spread and cause harm.

By “your members which are upon the earth,” he means either the body, which belongs to this earthly life, or the corrupt desires of the mind that drag us toward earthly things. These are like the “body of death” Paul speaks of in (Romans 7:24), the burden of sin that clings to fallen people. He then names some of these sins. First are the sins of the flesh, such as fornication, uncleanness, lustful passion, and evil desire, all the different ways bodily appetite and impurity show themselves. These were especially marked in their former life, and they are completely out of step with the Christian life and the hope of heaven.

Next he speaks of love of the world: covetousness, which is idolatry. Covetousness means an unfair craving for present possessions and outward comforts, a craving that values them too highly and pursues them too eagerly. It also keeps a person from using them rightly, and it fills the heart with anxious fear when they are lost and with deep sorrow when they are taken away. Covetousness is spiritual idolatry, because it gives to wealth and worldly things the love and honor that belong to God alone. It is more serious and more offensive to God than many people realize. It is striking that among the many sins recorded of God’s people in Scripture, there is no clear case of a good man being charged with covetousness.

Paul then shows why these sins must be put to death (Colossians 3:6-7). One reason is that if we do not kill them, they will destroy us. Because of these sins, the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience (Colossians 3:6). By nature, we are all, to some degree, children of disobedience, not merely disobedient at times, but under sin’s power and inclined to rebel against God. The wicked are estranged from birth, going astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies (Psalm 58:3). And if we are children of disobedience, we are also children of wrath, meaning we stand under God’s righteous judgment (Ephesians 2:3). The sins Paul names were part of their old pagan and idol-worshiping life, and even then they brought God’s judgments on them.

Another reason to turn from these sins is that they have already lived in us: “In which you also walked some time, when you lived in them” (Colossians 3:7). The fact that we have once lived in sin is a strong reason to leave it behind now. We have walked in crooked paths already, so let us not walk in them again. If I have done wrong, I will do so no more (Job 34:32). The time past of our life may be enough to have done the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lust, drunkenness, and other such sins (1 Peter 4:3).

Some understand Paul to mean, “when you lived among people who did such things.” If so, the point is still the same: it is hard to live among people who do evil and not become involved with them. It is like walking through mud and not getting dirty. So we should keep away from the paths of evil-doers.