So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory. (Colossians 3:1-4)

We had just moved into a brand new house that my folks had built for us in the country. I was the oldest of three boys. We had a special section in the new house for our bathroom and 2 bedrooms. It was cut off from the rest of the house — if you have three boys, you know why this is important. I was the oldest, so I was given a bedroom for myself. That, however, did not keep my younger brothers out of my stuff.

We had only lived in our house a few weeks when I felt a need to hide certain of my valuables from my pesky younger brothers. I found a great place! Just outside my room was the return air intake. It was a box built into the wall with a grill that opened up to the hallway with the back of the box sharing the wall with my bedroom closet.

I carefully found where the studs in the wall were located, took a knife and carefully cut, all the way through the wall, three sides of a square. This left the bottom side of the square uncut. Then, when both brothers were gone, I took the grate off the return air and scored the backside of the sheet rock on the bottom side of the square — something I had seen the workers do when building the house — and then punched the top of the square gently till the sheetrock gave way, hanging only by the cardboard at the bottom of the square. It was like a hidden door into the return air box. It was just big enough to hide all my valuables — baseball cards, loose change, some key plastic army men, and my shooter marbles — in a gray metal lock box. I used a couple of toothpicks to wedge the hidden door shut.

My hiding place worked beautifully. My valuables remained untouched by the grimy hands of my pesky brothers. I don't believe my mother found my hiding place till right before we moved away. My treasures were secure.

But why share such a story?

The eternal part of us is joined to Jesus.
Jesus has a hiding place for the valuable, eternal part of us. When we, in faith, were baptized into Christ (Colossians 2:12), our lives were joined to him. We were raised up to live a new life for the Lord. The part of us that is alive forever is "hidden with Christ in God" — as God's precious treasures, the eternal part of us is joined to Jesus and nothing Satan can do can steal us from this hiding place. (Romans 8:32-39; Philippians 1:19-23) So our lives, as God's priceless treasures, are hidden away with Christ in a secure place. We live here in eager expectation of the day our Lord Jesus Christ returns in glory, a glory we will share.

We are God's treasure: we were ransomed at a high price; the cost was his Son's death.

We are God's hidden and precious valuables: the living part of us is securely hidden away with Christ at God's glorious side.

We are God's treasure: glory awaits!