With the advent of Jesus the invisible has become visible. God has come in the flesh. In Colossians 3 we are called to wear the clothes of Jesus. There is often a wide gulf from what we believe and how we live. Jesus saved his harshest criticism for those who were hypocritical in this way. The way you think is intimately related to the way you will and should live. Is it time for a spring-clean in your life? Do you have some old clothes in the wardrobe that need to go? It is time to put on the new clothes that you failed to wear when you got them. Here are four things to consider in these verses:-

1 – Look up (vs. 1-4)

We are to remember who we are. There is disagreement among people about capital punishment. In the Bible there is an execution that should not be stopped. Paul says that we should execute our old nature. Unless it dies, you won’t really learn how to live. The old nature fights against the new nature. God has given us new clothes and we hang them up and continue to wear the old clothes. We need look up to God in three ways:-

• Past – We were dead in our sins and God made us alive. God has caused our sins to die. The old clothes were sinful and unclean.
• Present – Our life is secure. God has given us a new nature. Live on the outside the change on the inside. Put on righteousness.
• Future – Things need to be measured against eternity. Be a daily Bible reader. Only union with Christ can break the cycle of sin. Therefore we need an “upward” focus in life.

2 – Let go (vs. 5-11)

There are two main areas of sin that Paul mentions that we need to let go of as Christians.

• Sex sins – God is not against sex. He created it. He is not embarrassed. Sex is within marriage anything else is sin. Sex is important but sex has limits. Outside those limits it becomes destructive. There are perverted forms of sex such as homosexuality and child abuse. These bring the wrath of God.
• Speech sins – Great damage can be caused by the tongue. Christian speech must be kind. Christian speech must be pure. Christian speech must be true. We repay hurtful words with a gentle response to turn away wrath.

3 – Live out (vs. 12-14)

Many Christians have two lists for their sins. They are the “respectable” and the “ashamed” sins. We may classify but Jesus died for both lists. It may not be easy but you can forgive as the Lord has forgiven you. We are to live our lives in the power of the Holy Spirit. We are to love the saints as they are like minded in Christ. We can learn from the fairy tale “The Emperor’s New Clothes” by Hans Christian Andersen. We are not to be foolish like the emperor and take off your old clothes and put nothing back on! The believer is to be clothed with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and above all, love.

4 – Love Christ (vs. 15-17)

To maintain perfect unity believers are to let the peace of Christ rule in their hearts. Genuine spirituality is found in having our lives transformed into the character of Christ. If believers are to be transformed into the character of Christ, then the word of Christ should find a home in our hearts. It should not come and go, show up occasionally, or be something we visit randomly like a holiday destination. Let the Word of Christ have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. It is the chief ministry of the Holy Spirit to make us more like Jesus Christ.

Categories: Colossians