Colossians 3:7 tells believers that the sinful patterns they once lived in were their normal way of life before they came to Christ. Paul is reminding the Colossian church that they used to walk in these things, meaning they lived inside them and let them shape daily choices. The verse is a turning point in a longer argument, and it makes more sense once you see what Paul is contrasting with it.
You also once walked in those, when you lived in them…
Colossians 3:7 (WEB)
What Colossians 3:7 Means
The phrase “you also once walked in those” uses the common biblical picture of walking to describe a whole way of living. Walking is not a single step but a steady pace, so Paul is saying that these behaviors once set the rhythm of the Colossians’ lives. The word “once” marks a clear before and after, a past period that is over.
The phrase “when you lived in them” adds that these sins were not occasional slips but the environment they inhabited. The verse points back to the list in verses 5 and 6, which names sexual immorality, impurity, evil desire, and greed. Paul is not denying that these things were real or serious. He is describing where the believers used to live and reminding them that they have left that place.
What the verse does not do is claim that Christians never struggle again. Paul will go on to tell them to put these things to death, which assumes the struggle continues. The promise here is about identity and direction: life in Christ is no longer defined by those patterns.
The Context of Colossians 3:7
Colossians is a letter traditionally attributed to the apostle Paul, written to a congregation in Colossae, a town in the Lycus Valley of what is now western Turkey. Paul had not personally founded this church, and he writes to address a particular concern: some teaching was pressing believers toward rules and spiritual practices that drew attention away from Christ. The letter’s central theme is that Christ is supreme and that believers are complete in him.
The verses just before this one, Colossians 3:4 and 3:5, speak of Christ as our life and call believers to put to death the earthly desires that belong to the old way of living. Verse 7 sits between that command and the one that follows in verse 8, where Paul says “but now you also put them all away.” The word “but” in verse 8 depends on verse 7: the past tense of walking leads to the present reality of putting these things away. Reading the verse in that flow shows that Paul’s purpose is to encourage change based on what has already happened in Christ.
Key Phrases in Colossians 3:7
Romans 6:4
We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.
(WEB)
Paul uses the image of baptism to explain that believers have been raised to a new life. Like Colossians 3:7, it shows that the old way of living has been left behind, and it gives the reason why believers now walk differently.
2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new.
(WEB)
This verse says that anyone in Christ is a new creation, with the old things passing away. It echoes the contrast in Colossians 3:7 between the former way of life and the new identity that belongs to those who belong to Christ.
A Short Prayer From Colossians 3:7
Father, thank you that the way I used to live is not the way I have to live now. Some of the patterns from my past still feel familiar, and I confess that I sometimes walk back toward them without thinking. Remind me of who I am in Christ when old habits call to me. Help me to see my past as a place I have left, not a home I must return to. Give me the courage to choose a different path today, one shaped by your grace. Amen.
