How does Colossians 3:5 define "earthly nature" in a Christian context? Text of Colossians 3:5 “Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry.” Immediate Literary Context Verses 1–4 command believers to “set your hearts on things above,” grounding identity in the risen Christ. Verse 5 then names what must be executed because it is incompatible with that identity. The vice-list moves from outward acts (porneia) to inward motives (pleonexia), showing that “earthly nature” encompasses both behavior and heart-orientation. Broader Biblical Parallels • Galatians 5:19-21 enumerates similar works of the flesh (sarx). • Ephesians 2:1-3 describes people as “dead in trespasses,” living “according to the prince of the power of the air.” • James 3:15 contrasts “earthly, unspiritual, demonic” wisdom with the wisdom from above. Collectively these passages define “earthly nature” as the complex of desires contrary to God’s character, rooted in the Fall (Genesis 3; Romans 5:12-19). Theological Definition Earthly nature = the inherited, corruption-bent disposition (Original Sin) that expresses itself through appetites and cognition, enslaving the whole person until regeneration (John 3:3-6; Titus 3:3-6). It is ethically “earthly” because it aligns with a creation subjected to futility (Romans 8:20) and stands under judgment (Colossians 3:6). Practical Implications for Sanctification 1. Mortification is intentional: “Put to death” (νεκρώσατε) is an aorist imperative calling for decisive action. 2. Mortification is comprehensive: every “member” used by sin—eyes (Matthew 5:28-29), mind (Romans 12:2), tongue (James 3:8)—must be surrendered. 3. Mortification is continual: though decisive, it requires ongoing vigilance (1 Corinthians 15:31). 4. Mortification is Spirit-enabled, not self-generated (Romans 8:13). Historical and Patristic Witness • Chrysostom: “He calls passions ‘members’ because they seem implanted, yet can be cut off.” • Augustine: “Not the substance but the vice of flesh is to be slain.” • Calvin: “To mortify is to eradicate the vices which are rooted in us, that the Spirit may reign.” Systematic Linkage: Anthropology and Hamartiology Humanity is created imago Dei (Genesis 1:27) yet now possessed of a sin nature (Romans 7:18). Earthly nature corresponds to the noetic, volitional, and affective corruption described in classical doctrine. Redemption replaces it with the “new self” (Colossians 3:10) being renewed in true knowledge. Contrast with the New Nature in Christ Earthly Nature: death-producing, idolatrous, self-centered. New Nature: life-giving, Christ-reflecting, God-centered. The resurrection power that raised Jesus (Romans 8:11) is the same power that enables believers to put the old to death and live the new. Conclusion In Christian theology, Colossians 3:5 defines “earthly nature” as the sum of sin-saturated desires, motives, and actions that attach believers to the fallen order. It is to be decisively executed, not managed, through union with the risen Christ and ongoing Spirit-enabled obedience—liberating the believer to glorify God, the chief end for which humanity was created. |
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