The Garment of Christian Love

Colossians 3:12-17

Introduction

English Standard Version Psalm 104

O LORD my God, you are very great!

You are clothed with splendor and majesty,

2  covering yourself with light as with a garment,

stretching out the heavens like a tent.

3  He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters;

he makes the clouds his chariot;

he rides on the wings of the wind;

4  he makes his messengers winds,

his ministers a flaming fire.

5  He set the earth on its foundations,

so that it should never be moved.

6  You covered it with the deep as with a garment;

the waters stood above the mountains.

It strikes me from this Psalm that God is set apart by his garment: clothed in majesty and splendor and light. God sets apart the earth by its garments: the waters, the mountains, the canyons, the thunders, the rain, etc. When we come to our text in Colossians it becomes apparent that God has set apart the Church by its garments.

Read Colossians 3:12-17

Theme Statement: Christian love is the garment that distinguishes the Church from the world.

There are many accessory pieces to this garment of love that are found in our text: compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, and forgiveness. But the chief garment above all of these is love because love binds the entire outfit together in complete unity. Without Christian love none of the rest of the pieces fit or are even possible.

see Ephesians 4:3 - “…bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

see 1 Thessalonians 5:8-9 - “But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but to salvation...”

In a day when the world has hijacked the definition of love we have to ask and answer the question: What kind of love is this? It is distinctly Christian. (All of us need to wrestle with this). To be abundantly clear, this love is categorically not a love absent of the convictions of absolute truth. This love is not a love that is weak and amiable to any sin or sinful lifestyle. It is a love that is firmly rooted in the truth that Jesus demonstrated God’s love and witnessed of God’s holiness by actually dying because of sin, because of lies, because of alternative (sinful) lifestyles. In other words, the garment of love that we are called to put on is a radically different definition of love than the world promotes (a different garment altogether). The love of Jesus was not a demonstration of God’s acceptance of sin, but rather a radical and startling sacrifice for sin. The loving thing for believers and for the Church to do is to continue to stand on Biblical truth uncompromisingly and without apology, but to do so in ways that demonstrate the compassion and kindness of Christ while calling on one another, and the culture at large, to repent of sin and to follow Jesus.

The love of Christ…the love demonstrated by Christ in his humility and in his sacrificial death is the characteristic love that every Christian is to put on and for which every local church is to be distinguished. The unbelieving world ought to see the bold and brazen display of the sacrificial, self-denying, Christ-exalting, others-focused love that Jesus showed for us. When this kind of love is put on by each Christian in the church, the body of Christ will exhibit spiritual health, spiritual growth, spiritual maturity. The body will be nourished and nurtured, equipped and growing.

How is this love nurtured and displayed in our lives and in the local church?

The Garment of Christian Love is Preserved through Inner Peace (15).

Objectively we have peace with God

Peace = a calmness in the soul resting on the reality of having been reconciled to God through faith in Jesus.

Faith in Jesus has brought peace between us and God. Without Christ we were weak, ungodly, sinners, and enemies of God (Romans 5:6-10). Through faith in Christ we have been declared right with God and now have peace with God and access into his presence (Romans 5:1-2).

Subjectively we are now to be guided by God’s peace ruling in us.

Because we have peace with God we can now let the peace of God rule our hearts.

Rule = to be an umpire. Let the peace of God make the calls in your heart. MLB was one of the last sports leagues to go to instant replay. There’s talk in baseball of going to an electronic strike zone because it’s frustrating when human umpires make wrong calls. When God’s peace is ruling our hearts it never misses a call.

Having peace with God changes everything about the ability for the peace of God to rule the inner person. The gospel makes it possible for us to live with a peace that passes all understanding. Through our faith in Jesus, God the Father has already made the call - we are at peace with God - so now we are to reckon the rule of his peace over our hearts to be a reality

The peace of Christ ruling us will not make sense to the unbelieving world. That peace of Christ will be a testimony to all who witness our life of faith and trust and courage.

This means that changing seasons and the upheavals of life are an opportunity for the peace of Christ to witness through us and our responses.

When all is chaos outside of us the peace of God can make the calls in the heart thus bringing calmness, faith, boldness, and courage to the inner man. The peace of God makes the call in our thinking (no more stinking thinking), in our emotions/feelings (no runaway emotional meltdowns), in our desires, and in our decisions.

Peace makes the call in the midst of conflict.

Peace makes the call in the midst of the need to forgive others.

Peace makes the call when the future in the here-and-now is up in the air and in doubt.

Peace makes the call when the seasons of life are changing.

Peace makes the call when there’s fear and uncertainty about the present or the future.

Relationally, God’s peace through us is displayed in the local church.

“to which indeed you were called in one body.”

This is an individual reality that impacts the collective Church. Peace is to rule us relationally within the local church.

Love binds us in perfect harmony while preserves the love. When we consider this collectively as a church we can relate it to a symphony. When all of the instruments are on key and in perfect timing they make sweet music. But if even one instrument is off key or out of timing it distorts the whole symphony. It becomes noise. When even one person in the church is off key, not putting on love, then it distorts the witness of the rest. It throws the entire church out of harmony.

The peace of God ruling in us preserves the garment of love around us.

The Garment of Christian Love is Promoted through Rich Expressions of Truth (16).

Let the Word of Christ take up residence in your soul.

Let the Word of Christ make itself at home in your soul. Let it do so in an extravagant way. The word of Christ will decorate and adorn our souls in extravagant ways the more me yield our hearts to its abiding presence.

If you and I will get more and more familiar with the Word of Christ then the Word of Christ will get more and more familiar with us and more and more at home in us and it was transform us. How?

The Word will witness to our souls through teaching and admonishment with the wisdom of God.

Teaching - the positive download of truth into the human soul.

Admonishment - the corrective influence of truth that will change our thinking, our emotions, and our desires.

Wisdom - the combined impact of positive and corrective truth applied to daily decision making and living.

As we’ve gone through this year I have literally felt my soul shrinking away because of all of the noise coming from the world and from life circumstances and from being over-saturated by the opinions of people. I could sense all of it drowning out the voice of God…and I’ve been in the Word every day this year. If you’re anything like me you might need to consider stepping away from the daily news cycle and the overt opinions and voices of others that is constantly coming through social media and get into the Word. Too many opinions of men coupled with the negative cycle of news happening in our world causes a swamp in our souls. Drain THAT swamp by stepping away from it and fill your soul with the indwelling Word of Christ and let it richly adorn you.

When the Word of Christ makes a home and witnesses to our soul it will cause a ground swell of worship from the depths of our hearts.

Those rich expressions of truth dwelling at home in us will result in the loving expressions of adoration and praise to almighty God.

The Garment of Christian Love is Proclaimed through a Lifestyle Seeking God’s Glory (17).

Look at the great potential for witness.

In everything we do there is opportunity to show and share the riches of Christ’s love with those around us. I want to encourage us that we don’t have to reach everybody. Focus on those right around us and see the potential to share the love of Christ with them in tangible ways. “Lord, who’s day is it today that you want me to bless with your love?”

Remember the great purpose for doing it.

Whatever you decide to do or say to whomever you see to bless with Christ’s love, do it and say it for the glory of Jesus. Don’t do it or say it expecting them to bless you back. Just do it for Jesus. Just do it to love them, whether you think they deserve it or not.

Start with one or two a day and ask the Lord to intentionally show you what to do or say to minister the love of Christ to them. Before you know it, we’ll have a lifestyle of proclaiming Christ’s love for Christ’s glory.

The Garment of Christian Love is Pieced Together with a Thankful Spirit.

Did you notice that I skipped over a common theme in each of verses 15, 16, and 17? Look at it - “And be thankful” (v. 15). “…with thanksgiving in your hearts (v. 16). “…giving thanks to God the Father through him” (v. 17).

The peace of God ruling in us will bring a settled thanks. The Word of Christ at home in us will swell into rich expressions of heartfelt gratitude to God. A lifestyle of love will cause a spirit of rich gratitude to God for the ability to proclaim the gospel i word and deed.

A thankless spirit will serve to shrivel our soul and destroy the garment of Christian love amongst us.

Conclusion

We’re at that end of a difficult year and there’s no guarantee that 2021 is going to get easier. I just believe that this is the time to stop and take a deep breath and make some determinations, with God’s help, to renew the garment of Christian love in our hearts. Maybe, like me, you need to make some changes. Would you ask the Lord to show you what they might be?

Is the peace of God ruling your heart?

Is the Word of God at home in your soul, extravagantly residing?

Are you exhibiting a lifestyle of Christian love towards others for the glory of Jesus?

Is thanksgiving a mark of your heart?

Through the peace of God ruling, the Word of Christ dwelling, and a lifestyle of praise flowing with thanksgiving the love of Christ in us will flourish more and more.

May the love of Christ be preserved in you through God’s ruling peace. May the love of Christ be promoted in you by the indwelling Word. May the love of Christ come out of you through a lifestyle of praise and thankfulness to the One who loved us so completely and who continues to love us so forcefully.

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