Put On Christ: Part I

Colossians 3:12-14

Read

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.

Colossians 3:12-14

Explain

Have you ever thought about the significance of clothing? What someone wears or does not wear for that matter, can tell you a lot about them. Yesterday, Cheyanne and I were walking in Sam’s Club, and we passed a pair of white New Balances. Cheyanne told me that when she is pregnant, the first thing she will do is buy me white New Balance shoes and tube socks. It is funny to think of all the little nuances and intricacies of clothes. Organizations also make a big deal of what people wear. The United States military, for example, has a dress code that is all symbolic and well thought out. Nothing is random. For example, every United States Marine since 1868 has worn the eagle, the globe, and the anchor. Officers and Noncommissioned officers wear the famous blood stripe on their dress uniforms as a reminder of those who have paid the ultimate price in service to the corps. This is all symbolism, and it is significant.

As we come to our passage, Paul has started this section by telling us that if we are new creatures in Christ, we must remove, put off, and mortify our sinful desires. We must put them off. Colossians 3:5-9

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming. In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices

We put them off. We have died to these things, and they are no longer becoming to us. We once walked in this way, but now we must put them all away. Emphasis on all. Now Paul tells us what we must put on. We must put on the garment of godliness. These are descriptors of Christian character, namely, because they describe the character of Christ himself.

“Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved.” The first descriptor Paul gives is not how we view each other, but how God views us. God’s chosen ones, some translations say elect, it’s the same word. Don’t freak out about that word; it’s a biblical word. It’s a reminder that we did not choose God, but that God chose us. He is the sole author of our salvation.

“Holy and beloved.” These are two small words, but they are of great significance. Why must the Christian character be different? Because God has made us holy, this word simply means “set apart.” We look different because we are different. God has reached down into our hearts and made us alive. Our character looks different from the world, because we are no longer of the world. Notice, beloved, it is easy in all of the metaphors of clothing to lose sight of the fact that this is not some sterile dress code handed down from some office manager, but this is the expectation from the king to his children. God expects Christian character to be a certain way because he loves us as children.

What then is this garment of godliness? What does it look like?

“Compassionate hearts” or literally in the Greek, bowels of mercy. This might sound strange to us, but this is an idiom. In Western philosophy, we have chosen the heart as the symbol of affection. It is the seat of emotions. The Jews chose the stomach. You can kind of understand this. Your heart does not really feel anything. It might beat faster or slower, but you have had emotional experiences where your stomach has dropped. I think it is interesting that the first character trait that Paul mentions is compassionate hearts, because this is not always what I think of when I think of Christian virtues. But maybe it should be. Some translations use the word “pity.” We don’t like this word, but I think it gets closer to the point. This compassion is when you see someone else’s suffering, sorrow, or sadness and feel some of their pain. We should not be ashamed of that word at all; that is pride in us. For was it not Christ, who was in our sin and our shame, and he had compassion on us. His heart wrenched, his stomach turned so much that he became resolved to take action to redeem us. He entered into our suffering that he might alleviate our pain and despair.

“Kindness,” this is a small word, but a revolutionary idea. One puritan defined this as, “turning our face of goodwill towards all.” I should not have to define this term; we all instinctively know what this means. I can also tell you that kindness is powerful. Worldly wisdom looks down upon kindness as foolishness. It views kindness as simple and weak. But the gospel teaches us that if it were not for Christ’s kindness towards those who wished him ill will, there would be no hope at all for us. I don’t know about you, but as a pastor, a few things bring me more joy than watching our people be kind. There are a few things that can turn a sad countenance into a smile more than kindness. Do not underestimate the power of a smile. As the proverbs say, “a kind word turns away wrath.” This is a common grace in the life of the church. I cannot tell you how many times I have had a bad week, and I walk into Redemption Church and am greeted by our people, and all my sorrow dissolves in their kindness.

“Humility.” This is the opposite of our nature. Paul has spent time in chapter two talking about those who are arrogant and puffed up with knowledge. This is a strange dress to those around us. Worldly wisdom is proud. It is all about what it can accomplish on its own. The powerful boast their power and their pomp. This is not the character of Christ. He is humble and meek. He is low-minded. Though he was the sovereign of the universe, he did not think highly of himself, though he could have. There is no greater model for the Christian than King Jesus in this. He exemplifies humility. And a warning to you, there is no worse Christian than one filled with pride and arrogance. Christians who refuse to remove their pride are a danger to others and a danger to the church. This is not easy to put to death, but we must be people of humility. This is not a false humility, either, that thinks less than reality. This is not a call to ignore yourself, but to know thyself. Know your strengths, use them for the glory of God, don’t boast in them or trust in them. But also, know your weaknesses. As my favorite Scottish preacher says, “You nor the beggar can write your name as innocent before God. We all must take up the cry, “God be merciful to me a sinner.”

“meekness and patience.” These are two traits that are misunderstood. Meekness is a difficult word to translate. We equate meekness with weakness. Bob Knight, the famous basketball coach, once said, “The meek may inherit the earth, but they rarely get rebounds (Sam Storms Colossians). Meekness, gentleness, is not a lack of strength, but the presence of strength restrained and under control. No one mistakes a meek horse as weak, but its spirit is gentle and reserved. In the same way, no one has ever been more meek than Christ Jesus. Yet, you would be foolish to call him weak. Patience, or longsuffering, deals with our response to hurt. Long-suffering is in the name. How long can you suffer and be patient? We naturally want to repay evil for evil. We naturally want to harm those who harm us, but if you have any experience with those things, revenge never satisfies. It is easy to respond blow for blow, but much more difficult to suffer well with Christ. This leads to our next verse.

Apply

Meditate upon the Character of Christ

Paul gives believers these commands because they are first qualities of Christ. This is how the world recognizes Christ in the life of the believer. We take on his character and his virtues. Of course, we are robed in his righteousness, but this is the application of the Christian life. What does the world see when they look at you? This starts with meditating upon the person of the Lord Jesus. Think about his kindness, his compassion, his mercy, his meekness. We will never walk away from the mirror of Christ unchanged.

Be Kind

This is easier said than done. I once worked a job as a ditch digger. The concept was very easy. I was handed a shovel and told to go dig ditches. The concept was easy; the reality was very difficult. So it is with these virtues of Christ. We know kindness when we see it. Yet, it is a scarcity in our lives. We know the right thing to do or say, yet our flesh gets the better of us. Pray that the Lord would grow you in kindness.

Pray

Lord of Compassion, teach us to walk in your way. Remind us of the great kindness you have shown us that flows from your own love for your people. Remind us that we do not deserve the compassion we have been shown, and that we should show compassion on those around us who are equally unworthy of our love and mercy. Teach us to put on compassionate hearts, kindness, and forbearance.

We pray that when the world sees us, they will see Christ reflected in our speech, deeds, and lives. Give us grace for the day. Amen.