Put Your Clothes On

As we look at our world today, it would seem that it’s just gone crazy. Children walking into elementary schools shooting children and teachers; the police waiting an hour to go in, despite the cries for help and pleas to do something. Allowing procedure to supersede human life. Wars being started just because someone in power decided they wanted more, because of greed.

There are still instances of unprovoked police shooting and killing unarmed citizens for minor or no offense. Parents are abandoning or mistreating their children, children are mistreating their parents, spouses are mistreating each other. Drugs are rampant in our streets; people are dying daily. In a ten-year period from 1999 - 2019 nearly 841,000 people died from drug overdose.

Human trafficking is commonplace, and the victims are being victimized yet again as they are placed under arrest and must now not only overcome the fact they were treated as property to be bought and sold and used anyway the person wanted to abuse them, they must also deal with a criminal record if they’re ever fortunate enough to break free.

Children as young as eight years old are seeing suicide as their only option.

It’s time the church, and I mean the people of God, be a safe haven, not a judgement zone. We talk about putting on the armor of God, but there are some things we need to put on before we get to the armor. Church, it’s time the people of God get clothed.

Col 3:12-15 NLT - 12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

For a title this morning, “Put Your Clothes On”.

The book of Colossians is a letter written by the Apostle Paul to the people at Colosse. We know this for sure because he states it in chapter one, verse one.

Colosse, a once leading town, it was a happening place before Paul’s day, but now it was a second-rate market town. It was no longer the place that had the hustle and bustle of being a major thorough fare of trade. The towns near it had outgrown it.

But what Colosse did now have was a town of converted Christians. The church there was founded by a man named Epaphras. Epaphras was converted by Paul during Paul’s three-year ministry at Ephesus. Once Epaphras was converted, he carried the gospel message back to Colosse and a church was started. Which was great, it’s exactly what we are all called to do, spread the gospel message of Christ.

But how many know with the good, Satan will always try to mix in some bad? And this was no exception. In this young church, there were heresies being introduced. So what is heresy? Heresy is an opinion that is contrary to the Word and will of God.

It’s adding requirements to salvation or conditions on living a life that is pleasing to God. So, any stipulation, requisite, or demand in any form a person, a church, or denomination says you must do to be saved, and it’s not what God asked of us, is a kind of heresy. In Colosse, there were those adding things like dietary restrictions, circumcision, festivals, angel worship, and even the strict observance of some traditions.

So, to combat this, Epaphras pays a visit to Paul in Rome to tell him what’s going on, which leads Paul to write this letter to the Colossians. Paul is letting the saints at Colosse know what’s true concerning being like Christ, he’s letting them know that Christ is all and that He is in all, regardless of their heritage, status, ethnicity, or any other identifying factor.

So as we come to this portion of Paul’s letter, it is very clear he is speaking to the saints of God saying, “Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves,”. You were chosen by God, before the foundation of the world, you were chosen even before you were saved, it was not by happenstance, you weren’t an afterthought, you were not a mistake. You are here on purpose, for a purpose, you’re here to be the holy people God loves.

Paul goes on to say you must clothe yourself. When you think about clothing yourself, you typically think about getting dressed, you think about the clothes you put on your body.

The clothes you have on are the generally the first thing people are going to notice about you. People look at your clothes and begin to form opinions about you based on what you’re wearing.

Some focus on labels. The question you hear over and over on the red carpet of award shows is, “Who are you wearing?”

People will make decisions and assumptions based on how you clothe yourself.

Some will assign social status.

Some will assign worth.

Some will decide whether or not you have good hygiene, if you’re poor, or neat or messy, based on the condition of your clothes.

o Are they clean?

o Are they wrinkled or ironed?

o Are they tattered?

o Are they torn? (Although nowadays torn is a style)

o Are they in style?

But these clothes deal with your outward appearance. Paul is addressing a different type of clothing, Paul is speaking of your character, he’s talking about your inward nature, and he gives a list of character traits you need to clothe yourself in. It’s time for God’s people to get dressed; church, it’s time to put your clothes on.

Paul says since God chose you, you must, it’s not a choice, you must clothe yourself with these inward traits. Let’s get clothed.

The first thing you need to clothe yourself with is

1. Tenderhearted mercy - are you compassionate to your sister or brother when they’re in distress, when they’re sick, when they’re grieving? Can you show mercy when they mess up, and not make them feel worse when they realize they’ve made a mistake? When you see the atrocities of war or a life senselessly taken, do you just turn the channel or does it cause you to hurt to the point of not just wanting to, but of actually doing something.

Maybe you can’t go overseas, maybe you can’t join the military, maybe you can’t join the police force, but you can do something, even if it’s to fast and pray at your house. Not everyone has the ability, to march, protest, or give money, but everyone can pray. Put on some…

2. Kindness - do you show kindness to everyone, or do you have your favorites? Are you kind only to those who are kind to you? Are you mean and spiteful, vowing and dishing out vengeance as you see fit? Are you kinder to some animals than you are to humans? Not that we shouldn’t be kind to animals, but have you seen people who can show kindness to a kitten or puppy, but won’t comfort a person? Isn’t a person worth at least that?

To show kindness is free, it could be as simple as a hug, a listening ear, a word of encouragement, or making a casserole. Next the church needs to put on some…

3. Humility - are you humble, or do you lift yourself up, thinking you deserve certain things or special treatment. Do you think more highly of yourself than you ought to, thinking rules and laws don’t apply to you? That you can interpret them the way you want, to fit what you want to do.

Would others describe you as humble or have you declared yourself to be humble? By the way, if you declare it yourself are you really humble? Is it practicing humility if you have the ability to do something, but you make sure others know what you did? Is it truly humility, if you have to make sure you get the credit? Things that make you go hmmm? And now we need some…

4. Gentleness - when you interact with others do you say please and thank you, do you speak softly, are you considerate of their feelings and experiences? Or are you loud, rude, demanding and abrasive? Can you empathize with what they’re going through? And finally…

5. Patience - are you patient with others, how about with your spouse, your significant other, your children or your parents? Or are you a dictator, are you irritable and unwilling to wait? If someone doesn’t understand, do you take the time to calmly explain or do you give the heavy sigh and eye roll? Do you make the other person feel like they’re less than, stupid, or dense?

When you are God’s chosen people there are character traits you are to exhibit and ways you are to interact with others, all others, beginning at your house. If you were being graded, what would your grade be so far?

There’s more, the first list Paul gives is how you are to behave, they are attributes you should display at all times toward others. Then Paul addresses how Christians are to respond to the way others treat them. He starts by saying…

1. Make allowance for each other’s faults - you’re not perfect, you don’t get everything right all the time, you don’t say the right thing all the time, so don’t expect others to either. Everyone has faults. Don’t try to pull the splinter from someone else’s eye when you have a log in your own eye. And the point is not to determine who has the splinter and who has the log. The point is, don’t be so quick to point out and condemn someone else’s faults and not acknowledge that you have some of your own. When you pray, start by asking for forgiveness and change in yourself, before you ask the Lord to forgive and change someone else.

2. Then it’s your turn to, “Forgive anyone who offends you”. Chances are, someone will at some point in time offend you, hurt your feelings, or say or do something mean to you. When you are offended, leave room for an apology. On the other hand, if you are the offender, when you are aware that you’ve offended or hurt someone, apologize, ask for forgiveness and be sincere about it. Don’t apologize just to get it over and get on with it. An insincere apology can be just as hurtful as the original offense, and then don’t repeat that offense. Then give them time, it may take a little bit for them to work through what happened.

People may not remember what you did, they may not remember what you said, but they will remember how you made them feel, whether it was good or bad. You should also try to remember how what you did, made them feel and if you don’t know, ask them.

3. And third, remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must, there’s that word again, you must forgive others. Everyone needs forgiveness, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Forgiveness does not mean that you necessarily allow that person who betrayed you back into your inner circle, it just means you refuse to feed the feelings. You stop replaying and reliving the offense.

Instead set you thoughts on, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

But here’s a question to be answered by the offender, are you looking for forgiveness? Do you care? Are you sorry? Do you have compassion, is it in you to show kindness and gentleness and patience? You answered that question about yourself, would others answer the same way you did, would they agree with your assessment of yourself?

What are your expectations? How high have you set the bar for others? Now, on the other hand how low do you think it should be for you?

The standard; is Jesus, not Joe or Sam or Susie or Betty. Jesus is the bar we should all be striving for. That’s what this Christian walk is all about. Christ said be ye holy as I am holy. Those are the clothes we must put on, if those are not the clothes you’re wearing, it’s time to change your clothes.

Finally, Paul says, “…above all, clothe yourselves with love”. And what does love look like?

Love is patient;

love is kind;

love bears all things,

love believes all things,

love hopes all things,

love endures all things.

love rejoices in the truth

What’s not love?

love is not envious

love is not boastful

love is not arrogant or rude

It does not insist on its own way

it is not irritable

it keeps no record of wrongs

it does not rejoice in wrongdoing

And most importantly, true love, the God kind of love; never ends.

That kind of love will bind us all together in perfect harmony. Like beautiful voices coming together to sing a song, perfectly on key or instruments each playing their part, not one trying to overpower the other, but complementing each other to create a melodious sound.

True love is recognizable, it can be seen in a touch or a look, it can be felt in a hug and heard in words, not just what words are spoken, but how they’re spoken.

And when you have that kind of love, when you can give that kind of love, then you can “let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts.”

When you can love like that, that’s when you can be members of one body, because as members of one body, we are called to live in peace. We can be a cohesive unit, all moving in the same direction with the same goal in mind.

When you can love like Christ, you don’t hold on to what coulda, shoulda, woulda been done and who done what to whom.

When you love like Christ, you won’t do things to hurt others.

When you love like Christ, you can reach out to console the hurting and give to those in need. Pray, and God will allow you to discern the truly needy from those trying to scam you. But here’s the thing, if you’re led to give, once it’s out of your hands, you’ve done what the Lord required of you, now what the receiver does with what they were given is completely on them.

When you give, give with a cheerful heart and trust that God will get the glory from what you’ve given. When you give don’t try to control the gift, don’t put stipulations on it, you never know what the receiver has been praying to God for and your gift could be the answer to what they’ve been praying for. When it leaves your hands trust that it will be used for God’s purpose.

And finally, always be thankful.

If you woke up this morning, thank God.

If the lights are on at your house, thank God.

If your children are well, thank God.

If you have a portion of your health and strength, thank God.

If you have a job, thank God.

If you have clothes on your back and shoes on your feet, thank God

If you’re sitting here in the sanctuary, hearing this message, thank God.

If you’re hearing this message online, thank God.

If you had a mother on this side of glory to wish a happy Mother’s Day, thank God.

If you have a father on this side of glory to wish a happy Father’s Day to when next Sunday comes, thank God.

If you know that God loved you so much that He gave his only begotten Son to die on a cross for your sins, you need to thank God.

Thank him for his goodness

Thank him for his mercy

Thank him for his grace

Thank him for his loving kindness

Thank him for his tender mercies

Thank him for salvation

Thank him for everlasting life

And know this, if we had ten thousand tongues, with a thanks on each one, it wouldn’t be enough for all he’s done for us, for all he’s been to us, for all he has done, is doing and will do through us.

So let Christ’s message fill your life. Tell somebody about the love Jesus gave with no strings attached. He gave so we could receive everything we could ask or think and even more.

Tell them that God knows what we need, even before we ask, but we are to ask him anyway and guess what, he’ll give it to you according to the plan he set for your life, and you can’t even imagine the fullness of his plan.

But when I think of the goodness of Jesus and all that he’s done for me, my soul cries out HALLELUJAH, thank God for saving me. Because when I was lost with no hope of finding my way. He was a lamp unto my feet and light unto my path, illuminating the way I should go. And even when the way seemed dark, he took my hand and spoke ever so softly and sweetly to let me know everything was going to be better than OK, that before he was through,

What he was doing was going to cause me to make His praise glorious.

What he was doing was going to cause me to shout for joy.

What he was doing was going to cause me to dance.

What he was doing was going to cause me to sing.

So when you’re feeling lost, when you’re feeling alone, when you’re feeling unloved, when you’re feeling rejected, just know that Holy Spirit is your Comforter and He will wrap you in his arms and let you know, it’s already getting better, it’s already getting easier, God’s already moving on your behalf.

He’s already worked it out for you.

He’s already victorious and so are you.

He’s already won the war.

You may lose a few battles, but at the end of the day, when all is said and done, we win. We can rejoice because we win. You don’t have to wait till the battle is over, you can shout now.

Activate your faith and watch the Lord work it out on your behalf. Stand on your faith and see the power of the Lord come down in your favor. Sometimes the battle is not yours to fight, sometimes the battle is the Lord’s, and He doesn’t need your help, He doesn’t need your input. He has already overcome, He has already conquered death, hell, and the grave, there’s nobody greater, nobody stronger. He’s more than enough.

God made the first move, now it’s your turn. If you’ve never accepted Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, today is the day and now is the time.

The heretics then were trying to put their wants, desires, and requirements on salvation, and it’s no different today, but the Scripture simply says this,

“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with the heart, leading to righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, leading to salvation.”

There is a war that’s raging, and you must choose a side. If you’re ready to join the winning side, pray with me

God, I confess that I am a sinner, please forgive me. Jesus, I believe you are the Son of God and that you died for my sins and rose from the dead. I ask you to come into my heart and be Lord of my life. In Your name I pray, amen.

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Are you a chosen child of God? Then it’s time to put your clothes on, release the old and become a new creation in Christ.