Colossians 3:12-15 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.
These 4 verses pack a punch and speak to many different aspects of our lives! First, if you are chosen by God (a believer in Jesus Christ) then you are called holy and beloved. I wonder if we really act like we are? It’s a great question. If we believe that we are, then it should really change everything in our lives. We are to put on (the Greek definition of “put on” is to sink into or clothe oneself with) compassionate hearts. While you’re operating with a heart of compassion toward people (all people, by the way, not just the ones we like), be kind, be humble, be meek, be patient, bear with one another. That means don’t be so quick to get angry when someone doesn’t do what you want :/ And not only that…if we do have a complaint against someone else…forgive each other. God, through Jesus, has made a way for us to be forgiven, so then we must also forgive. And in addition to all of these things we are to put on love. Sink into love. Clothe ourselves with love. It binds everything together in perfect harmony. Then let the peace of Christ rule in your heart. We were called to live in peace as a body of believers. But, we can’t experience peace unless we let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts. And lastly? Be thankful. Whew! I think Paul covers pretty much everything about how we should conduct ourselves in those 4 verses. Of course, we could break each one of those down and study until the day we die. The Bible is rich. There has never been a more intellectually-stimulating or heart-changing or life-altering book ever assembled on this planet. God’s word is alive and active and it changes us. We can never get to the bottom of the depth of each chapter and each book. What do these truths mean to you today? How can you start to put on some of these things? The book of Lamentations in the Old Testament tells us that God’s mercies are new every morning. Tomorrow is a new day. When you get dressed, don’t forget to put these things on…you just might make a difference in someone else’s life! Go God’s way today and every day; He sure does love you!