Well Dressed

People can put a lot of importance on how to dress for church. Some prefer attending a church that emphasizes a more casual attire. Others feel strongly about wearing their Sunday best. Other than modesty, a specific dress code will not contribute to becoming a church that impacts the world. But what will make a difference is putting on the virtues of Christ.  

"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." (Colossians 3:12-17)

Christ’s Redeeming Grace
Notice that before Paul lays out the virtues that we are to put on, he refers to what makes it possible, namely who we are and what we possess in Christ. He writes, “Put on then…” (Col. 3:12a). The word "then" after "put on" advises us that what follows in verse 12 is the consequence of what came before. The previous verses describe who we are in Christ because of His redeeming grace. What comes after, further describes how our inward identity in Christ should impact our outward behavior. He writes: "Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved,..” (Col. 3:12).

First of all, as believers we are God’s chosen ones. God chose us/you for a redemptive and eternal purpose. God didn’t choose you because you were worthy. On the contrary, we are all sinners deserving of Judgment. God chose you in Christ. He chose you not because of your accomplishments, but because of what Christ accomplished on the cross on your behalf. Furthermore, He didn’t just choose you for no apparent reason. He chose you according to the counsel of His will (Eph. 1:11). He chose you in Christ for a purpose, namely to live for the praise of His glorious grace.      

Secondly, in addition to being God’s chosen in Christ, Paul writes that we are holy. We’ve been chosen in Christ to be holy (Ephesian 1:3-4). To be holy means to be set apart from the world for God. We’ve been set apart to seek and to set our minds on things above, not on the things of the earth (Col. 3:1-2). The things above, where Christ is, among other things, are the virtues of Christ.  

Thirdly, Paul describes who we are, in Christ as "beloved." Beloved means that we are the special objects of God’s love. Paul describes our position in Christ before laying out these relational virtues because killing our personal and relational sins and putting on the virtues of Christ toward others, especially people that are hard to love, is not easy. But you will be much more inclined to do so when you remember how God chose you, set you apart, and loved you when you were not very lovely. Someone once said, “I’ve given God a million reasons not to love me, none of them has changed his mind.”

After describing our identity in Christ as chosen, holy, and beloved, Paul lays out the virtues of Christ that we are to put on:

1. The first virtue is a compassionate heart. The literal meaning of the Greek word is "bowels of mercies/sympathy." People in bible times would use their internal organs to describe their emotions and feelings. We still do today. 

For example, we may say, “When my supervisor told me I was being laid off, it felt like a punch in the gut/stomach. Your stomach will tell you when you’re hungry. It will speak to you and maybe even feel pain. To have a compassionate heart or bowels of sympathies means that we feel the hurt, pain and needs of others as we would our own. 

2. The second virtue, which goes along with compassion, is kindness. Kindness is the action that flows from a heart filled with compassion or sympathy. It’s a gracious act that communicates in a tangible way that you care.  

3. The third virtue is humility. Although Jesus had all power and authority, He humbled Himself in His incarnation. God became flesh not to be served, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).  Similarly, we are to put on a humility of mind that regards others as more significant than ourselves and looks out for the interest of others and not just our own. 

Pride kills relationships. Humility, on the other hand, is the essential virtue to the health, happiness and harmony of all relationships.     

4. The fourth virtue is meekness. Some see meekness as a weakness. But it’s far from that. The great heroes of the faith, like Moses, who were great leaders, were known for their meekness. Meekness is not weakness. It’s strength under control.  “It’s not spinelessness, but rather the willingness to suffer injury instead of inflicting it.” -John Macarthur   

5. The fifth virtue is patience. The word for patience has also been translated as "long-suffering." It’s the willingness to endure with the aggravating behavior of another without losing your mind or flying off the handle. 

6. The sixth virtue, which is very closely related to patience, is forbearance (bearing with one another). Patience is the negative side, while forbearance is the positive side. To bear with another is more than enduring or restraining yourself; it means to uphold, come alongside and support another person.  

7. The seventh virtue is forgiveness, which is to characterize the community of faith. Jesus likened sin to a debt (Matt. 18:23-35). Therefore, it’s helpful to think of forgiveness as the cancelling of a debt. When you forgive someone, you’re saying, he/she doesn’t owe me anymore. In other words, we don’t keep holding it over the person’s head. On the contrary, we are to treat him as though it never happened. 

Now what make us willing to forgive in this way? Paul answers this question when he writes, “as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive” (v.13). The way that Jesus forgave us is both the example that we look too and the motivation to do likewise.   
  
8. The final, but chief virtue that we are to put on is love. “Love is the most important moral quality in the believer’s life, for it is the very glue that produces unity in the church. Believers will never enjoy mutual fellowship through compassion, kindness, humility, [meekness], or patience; they will not bear with each other or forgive each other unless they love one another. In fact, the way to sum up the commands of 3:12-13 is to say, “Love one another.” To try to practice the virtues of 3:12-13 apart from love is legalism. They must flow from love, which in turn is a fruit of the Spirit-filled life (Gal. 5:22)." - John Macarthur      

Christ’s Ruling Peace
In addition to the redeeming grace of God from which His virtues flow, Paul also speaks of the ruling peace of Christ. He continues, “And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful” (Colossians 3:15).

The peace of Christ that is to rule our hearts, should flow out and rule in our relationships. It’s important to note that the bible speaks of two kinds of peace, the peace of God (Phil. 4:6-7) and peace with God (Rom. 5:1). When a sinner makes peace with God through the blood of Jesus, he is reconciled to God. He enters into a loving relational bond with God. And through this love relationship, he can experience the peace of Christ, which He gives through the Holy Spirit, which speaks of an inner sense of calm and security.

However, when our decisions don’t align with God’s will and heart, we will lose that inner peace. Sin grieves the Spirit of God, and disrupts His securing peace. For this reason, Paul exhorts believers to let the peace of Christ rule in their hearts. In other words, the peace of Christ is to be a controlling factor in all the decisions that we make in our lives.

This is not only an individual blessing to enjoy, but also a relational blessing, as Paul says, “to which indeed you were called in one body” (v.15). In other words, the ruling peace of Christ in our hearts calls and motivates us to live in relational peace with other believers in one body. When we know the peace of God, it will give us the security and motivation we need to practice the virtues of Christ, which enable us to live in peace with one another.

Christ’s Renewing Word
Furthermore, Paul writes: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (Colossians 3:16). To live out the word, we must live in the word. And more than that, the word of God must live in us.

Notice that Paul admonishes believers to, “let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…” (Col. 3:16). The word "dwell" speaks of living in the Scriptures so that the Scriptures live in you. Where you dwell or live is the place you keep coming back to every day. It’s the place where you can truly be at home and feel comfortable. You’re familiar with your home. It’s your place of refuge and rest. What should be true when you are dwelling in your home should be true of how you are to dwell in the word of Christ and the Word dwelling in you. It not where you visit; it’s where you live.

The word is to permeate every area of our lives. The word of God is not a visitor in your life. It’s at home in you. There is no room, no place, no relationship where the word of Christ is not preeminent. Is this true of you? When it is true, when the word of Christ is dwelling richly in you, it will overflow in a life of worship, which not only blesses you but those around you (Colossians 3:16). What’s more, when we are living in the word so that it lives in us, so that the glories of Christ grip our hearts, it will spill over in songs of worship, praise, and thanksgiving (v.16).

Remember we become what we worship. What we worship is what we live for. To practice the virtues of Christ we must live in the Word of Christ so that together we might live out the word of Christ in worship.  

May Christ’s redeeming grace, ruling peace, and renewing Word, shape us and motivate us every day to become in practice who we are in our position in Christ; chosen, holy and beloved to the glory of His name.  

In your service,
Pastor Marco