The Passage:
Colossians 3:12-17 – The Christian Life
12Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, 13bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive. 14Above all, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. 15And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also called in one body, rule your hearts. And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Introduction: Suit Illustration
In 2005, an actor by the name of Christian Bale portrayed the role of Bruce Wayne. In this movie, Bruce Wayne approached a member of his father’s cooperation about something called a Nomex Survival Suit. This suit was a $300,000 prototype for advanced infantry. It was designed to stop a knife, deflect a bullet, and even regulate and mask the wearer’s body temperature. The suit’s design made it ideal for advanced infantry. Unfortunately, the cost of production was so high that it was never put into production.
Bruce Wayne decided to “borrow” this suit. He painted it black and embossed a bat emblem on the chest, to which his male butler Alfred asked, “Why bats Master Wayne?” Bruce replied, “Bats frighten me. It’s time my enemies shared my dread.” Because of the suit’s design, it could stop a knife, deflect a bullet, it would even protect Bruce Wayne’s identity while he wore it, but most importantly, it became the icon of Gotham City’s superhero, Batman.
Without his suit, Bruce Wayne could go about Gotham City without anyone realizing he was Batman. When he put on the suit, he became someone the criminals feared because that was the suit’s design.
Today, we’re going to be talking about a different design, a design God has for His people. In this passage, Paul talks about attributes of a Christian’s life, attributes we must “put on” if we are to reflect and experience God’s design for us. That’s the tile of our message today: Experiencing God’s Design
Our passage today comes from the book of Colossians 3:12-17, but before we get into our passage today, let me briefly give some background information about our passage.
The book of Colossians is one of the many books in the New Testament written by the Apostle Paul. Many of these books (also called Epistles) are letters addressed to a specific person or persons for a specific reason. This particular letter was written to a group of believers in the city of Colossae, a church that Paul did not found but had a positive relationship with.
In this letter, Paul addresses an issue that had risen within the people of the church in Colossae, specifically the rise of false teachers attempting to diminish the authority of God and the truth about Jesus, and one can read about that in chapters 1-2 of Colossians. Paul goes to great lengths to combat these false teachings with the truths of the gospel. In our passage today, Paul reminds the church of these truths by detailing what followers of Jesus should look like.
(read Colossians 3:12-17, then pray)
As we study this passage, we’re going to look at three truths about God’s design for His people; three truths we need to remember if we are to experience God’s design. The first truth is this: we need to remember that we are, Chosen By God.
Point I: Chosen by God. (v. 12-13)
Paul begins this passage with the reminder that those who follow after Jesus are truly God’s chosen people. Paul tells them that they are, “…God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved”.
The word “holy” means to be “set apart” by God and for His purposes. I remember growing up, my friends and I would often play something that resembled sports, which would usually require the division of teams of some sort. We would agree on who the team captains should be, and they would then individually select their team mates. There were people who were inevitably chosen first, and those who were unfortunately chosen last (for one reason or another). This is what comes to mind when I think about being chosen by God.
This brings up an interesting question for us: if God were choosing teams, why would He choose me; why would He choose any of us? Paul actually answers this question in a different letter. In 2 Timothy 1:9, Pauls says,
“…(God) has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace.”
God doesn’t choose people based on their own merit. He chooses based on his purpose and grace. Earlier in his letter to the Colossians, Paul reminds them who they were before God called them and set them apart. He says in Colossians 1:21-22,
“21Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds as expressed in your evil actions. 22But now he has reconciled you by his physical body through his death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before him — ”
What could possibly motivate God to do something this outlandish; to send His own Son Jesus to die for the sins of people who are hostile and evil, so they in turn could be blameless and faultless before God; as if they had done nothing wrong? We find the answer to this completely reasonable question at the beginning of our passage today. In Colossians 3:12, Paul tells us we are “…holy and dearly loved” by God.
Paul wants the church to remember that, while we were at one time, separated from God, Jesus died for us so we could experience the fullness of God’s love. This is the truth of the Gospel; this is God’s design for us. Being set apart by God means that our lives take on a whole new look, one that is drastically different from the world around us. We are no longer defined by our hostility and evil actions. We are now defined by the love God has for us, which leads us to the second truth we see in this passage: as God’s chosen ones, we are Bound by love.
Point 2: Bound by love. (v. 14-15)
If our life takes on a whole new look because we are bound by love, what does this look like? Let’s take a look back at our passage. In verse 12-13, Pauls tells us to,
“…put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, 13bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive.”
This is quite a laundry list of attributes, and we would be lying to ourselves if we said putting these attributes into practice is easy. “As God’s chosen people,” who are “holy and dearly loved”, we are to be: compassionate, kind, humble, gentle, patient, bearing with one another, and forgiving one another? On any given day, we all may struggle to reflect even one of these attributes, let alone all of them.
I’m reminded of an old, obscure movie quote, “if fishing were easy, it would be called ‘catching’, and everybody would do it.” The same can be said about “putting on” these attributes; if it was easy to love one another, everybody would be doing it. Unfortunately, we are broken individuals who battle with sin in our daily lives. We’re going to make mistakes, we’re going to get on each other’s nerves, and we’re inevitably going to cause hurt/grief in somebody’s life. This is why Paul teaches us to bear with each other, and to forgive each other.
In the event we’re tempted to think we have to put on these attributes in our own strength, Paul gives us a very encouraging promise. In Philippians 2:13, he says,
“For it is God who is working in you both to will and to work according to his good purpose.”
God hasn’t set us apart to live according to our own strength. When Jesus reconciled us and made us blameless before the Father, He began a process we call “sanctification”. This means that, although we are not yet perfect, God is working in and through us so we would live the life for which He set us apart. It is only by the strength of God working in us that we can be compassionate, kind, humble, gentle, patient, and forgiving. This is what it looks like to be set apart; this is what it looks like for God’s people to be bound in love. And when we persist in this, Paul shows us what we can expect. He says in verse 14-15,
“Above all, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. 15And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also called in one body, rule your hearts. And be thankful.”
When we put on love, we experience unity among God’s people, and peace through Jesus that rules our hearts. We must remember that it is only by the work of Jesus that we can stand before the Father blameless and faultless, and it’s because of Jesus that God works in us to accomplish His good purposes. This truth is the foundation, the root of God’s design. Which leads us to the third and final truth of our passage; as people chosen by God and bound by love, we must be Rooted in truth.
Point 3: Rooted in truth. (v. 16-17)
Roots serve a unique function for plants. If water and nutrients are to be found in the soil, the roots will absorb, transfer, and/or store this food for the plant. Additionally, roots provide stability for the plant. Without water, nutrients, or proper soil, the plant will eventually wither and die. So also, a church rooted in anything but the truth of the Gospel will eventually wither and die. This is not God’s design for His people. Infact, the book of Psalm 1:2-3, we are told for those who meditate on God’s word and delight in the Lord’s instruction, they are,
“…like a tree planted beside flowing streams… (they) produce fruit… and (their) leaf does not wither. Whatever (they do) prospers.”
Paul wants us to be rooted in the one thing that will never fail us: the truth found in Jesus. Let’s look at verse 16 in our passage. Paul says,
“Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.”
This one verse has so many facets, I will simply say: Paul wants us to know the truth and express the truth. He tells us to teach each other, admonish each other. Before we become over zealous admonishing one another, we need to also remember that Paul instructed us to be compassionate, kind, humble, gentle, patient, and forgiving with each other.
Paul goes on to tell us to sing with each other, and to express all these things with wisdom and gratitude in our hearts. One of my favorite things to hear is a person/people singing and praising God like they don’t care who’s listening. This should be our attitude in worship; to sing with gratitude in our hearts because of what Jesus has done for us, and to celebrate the love we receive from God and express to one another.
Paul concludes this passage with one final statement. He says in verse 17,
“And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
God’s design for us is to be set apart, and through this, God wants us to be totally committed to Him in everything we do. This verse encourages us to experience God’s design with complete surrender and thankfulness.
Paul writes this letter so we might experience God’s design, and that design is simple; God wants us to know His love, express His love, and be unified in His love. And this leads us to our bottom line: Experiencing God’s design leads to love and unity.
Bottom Line: Experiencing God’s design leads to love and unity.
As God’s chosen people, who are holy and dearly loved, God would have us know His love for us, be changed by that love, and express that to those around us, especially to our brothers and sisters in Christ. Paul has spoken in specific detail about what the life of one set apart by God should look like. However, Jesus teaches His disciples with remarkable specificity on this matter. In John 13:35, Jesus says,
“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Church, if we aim to be people who follow after Jesus, we put on love because this is what shows us to be truly set apart by God. So, challenge yourself this week in the following ways.
Weekly Challenge(s):
- Focus on two attributes of love.
- Focus on being: compassionate, kind, humble, gentle, patient.
- Focus on being forgiving.
- Is there someone in your life you need to forgive?
- Is there someone in your life from whom you need forgiveness?
- Ask God to transform you.
- We need to recognize our need for God to change us.
- Paul tells us in Romans 12:1-2 to,
- “…present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship. 2Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.”
- Allow Paul’s closing statement to be your ultimate goal:
- “…whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
Closing:
Being set apart by God is a life-long process, and one that requires our trust in the hope that Jesus has made us blameless before the Father.
(Gospel presentation)
(closing prayer)
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