Changing
Your Wardrobe
Steve W. Reeves
INTRODUCTION:
A. The
first century town of Colossae was located in the Lycos river valley (what is
now
the western part of Turkey) along with the
towns of Laodicea and Hierapolis. In this
small town there was a church of Christ
that began as a result of the teaching done
by Epaphras (Colossians 1:7). It was not
long before the faith of these new Christians
began to be challenged by false teachers
who came from Greek and Jewish
backgrounds. When Paul, imprisoned in Rome,
heard of their faith, their love and the
challenges to their faith he wrote this
letter to emphasize the supremacy of Christ.
Later he would write a letter to the
Ephesians which is very similar in content to the
letter to the Colossians.
B. Do
you ever change your wardrobe? Most of us change our wardrobe with the
change of seasons. I have a few summer
weight suits with lighter fabric that I enjoy
wearing in the spring and summer. During
the fall and winter they hang in the back
of my closet because they would be
extremely uncomfortable. I also have a pair of
corduroy pants and sports coat that are
delightful to wear during the chill of winter
but would be horrendous in the sweltering
heat and humidity of an Arkansas summer.
1. Every spring and fall I change my
wardrobe.
2. In Colossians 3 Paul wrote about a
wardrobe change for Christians.
a. In vss. 1 he said, “If you have been
raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things
above, where Christ is, seated at
the right hand of God.”
b. The old man of sin is to be put to
death (“mortified” vs. 5) along with the deeds of
immorality, impurity, passion, evil
desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.
c. In verses 8-9 he said, “put them all
aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and
abusive speech from your mouth. 9 Do
not lie to one another, since you laid aside
the old self with its evil practices.”
C.
There is more about changing your wardrobe than “putting off” the old garments.
We
must “put on” new clothing.
1. The imagery of changing clothes to
signify a new life is found in Zachariah 3:1-7. .
a. Zachariah (6the century B.C.) had a
vision of the High Priest, Joshua, clothed in
filthy garments, standing before the
angel of the Lord. Satan is also in this vision
hurling accusations at Joshua.
b. Then the angel of the Lord commanded
that Joshua’s dirty clothes be taken off
and he be given new, clean clothes
and a clean turban for his head.
2. When you become a Christian this is what
happens. God takes your dirty clothes,
your righteousness that is like filthy
rags (Isaiah 64:6) and gives you an entirely new
wardrobe of righteousness tailored by
Christ.
D. Here
is Paul' description of our new wardrobe from Colossians 3:11-17. ”So,
as those
who have been chosen of God, holy and
beloved, put on a heart of compassion,
kindness, humility, gentleness and
patience; 13 bearing with one another, and
forgiving each other, whoever has a
complaint against anyone; just as the Lord
forgave you, so also should you. 14 Beyond
all these things put on love,
which is the
perfect bond of unity. 15 Let
the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed
you were called in one body; and be
thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell
within you, with all wisdom teaching and
admonishing one another with psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to
God.
17 Whatever you do in word
or deed, do all in the name of
the Lord Jesus, giving
thanks through Him to God the Father.”
D.
What does your new wardrobe look like?
I. A HEART OF COMPASSION – vs. 12.
A. The King James version used the phrase,
“bowels of mercy.”
1. For the Greek mind the seat of the
emotions was the bowels (stomach/intestines)
to signify the deepest part of our
being.
2. The word “compassion” means an
expression of pity. It’s the idea of being
moved tp action by someone’s need.
3. In Exodus 34:6 when God passed before
Moses we read, “Then the Lord passed
by in front of him and proclaimed,
“The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and
gracious, slow to anger, and abounding
in lovingkindness and truth.”
4. David responded to Nathan the
prophet’s story about the rich man who killed the
poor man’s lamb by saying, “He shall
repay four-fold because he showed no
compassion” (1 Samuel 12: 6).
5. When Jesus saw large crowds (Matthew
14:14) He had compassion on them.
B. Is it possible to be a faithful follower
of Jesus and not have compassion on people
who are less fortunate?
1. People who are poor, hungry, sick and
needy? Remember the standard to be
used at judgment according to
Matthew 25: 31ff?
2. People who are hurting from natural
disasters?
3. People who are victims of violence
and abuse?
4. The answer is “no.” Remember, there
is more to compassion than simply praying
or saying “bless their hearts” or “Go
in peace, be warmed and be filled (James
2:16).
II. KINDNESS – vs. 12.
A. When President George H.W. Bush was
inaugurated in 1989 he spoke of his
desire for our country to become a
“kinder and gentler” nation.
B. The word kindness (“chrestotes”) refers
to a generous act in behalf of another
person with no strings attached.
1. In 2 Samuel 9 David had assumed the
throne in Israel following the deaths of
Saul and Jonathan. Most kings of the
time would have ordered the immediate
death of any of Saul’s heirs so they
would not lay claim to the throne. David,
however, asked his servant if there
was any descendent of Saul to whom he
might show kindness for the sake of
his close friend Jonathan. There was a
descendent named Mephibosheth who,
according to 2 Sam. 4:4 had
been dropped by his nurse when he
was a small child and was lame in his feet.
David sent for Mephibosheth and
according to 2 Sam. 9:7, said, “Don’t be afraid
for I surely show you kindness for
the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore
to you all the land that belonged to
your grandfather Saul, and you will always
eat at my table.”
2. It troubles me that we are unkind to
one another in the church.
a. We pursue our own self-interests
more than looking to the interests of others.
b. We don’t speak to one another. We
speak harshly of one another. We talk
about people behind their backs.
We are suspicious of people. How we need
to be clothed with kindness.
III. HUMILITY – vs. 12
A. The first beatitude (Matthew 5:3) is,
“Blessed are those who are poor in spirit,” or
those who are humble.
1. In Matthew 20:26-28 when the
disciples were arguing about greatness in the
kingdom of Heaven Jesus rebuked them
and spoke of humility. “You know that
the rulers of the Gentiles lord it
over them, and their great men
exercise authority
over them. 26 It is
not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great
among you shall be your servant, 27 and
whoever wishes to be first among you
shall be your slave; 28 just
as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to
serve, and to give His life a ransom
for many.”
2. James said, “Humble yourselves in the
presence of the Lord, and He will exalt
you” (James 4:10).
B. The church is not about “I,” “me,” “my,”
or “mine.” That is not what Jesus is about.
Rather, the church is instructed, “Do
nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but
with humility of mind regard one another
as more important than yourselves. Do not
merely look out for your own personal
interests, but also for the interests of others.
(Philippians 2:3-4).
C. William Barclay prayed, “O Father, give
us the humility which realizes its
ignorance, admits its mistakes,
recognizes its need, welcomes advice, accepts
rebuke. Help us always to praise rather
than to criticize, to sympathize rather than
to discourage, to build rather than to
destroy, and to think of people at their best
rather than at their worst.”
IV. GENTLENESS – vs. 12.
A. We sometimes think of gentleness as
being weak or being a pushover. That is not
the meaning of this word.
1. Moses was described as being the
meekest of all of the men of the earth
(Numbers 12;3). Would anyone refer
to him as “weak?”
2. Jesus pronounced a blessing on the
gentle by saying they would inherit the earth
in Matthew 5:4).
B. Gentleness is the idea of restraint or
restrained power. A horse that has been
domesticated has not lost its power.
Rather, that power has been brought under
control. Roger Coker used to work with
horses at Camp Tahkodah. He reminded
me recently of a horse kept at the camp
that could only be ridden by one person.
The horse was a blond palomino. The rider
was Dr. George Benson. He knew how
to tame that animal. God’s spirit
provides a harness for our strength and power.
V. PATIENCE – vs. 12
A. What is patience? Let me give you some
definitions.
1.
"Patience is self-restraint which does not hastily retaliate
against a wrong."
2. "Patience is the ability to
accept delay or disappointment graciously."
3. "Patience is the powerful
attribute that enables a man or woman to remain
steadfast under strain and continue
pressing on.
B. There are many settings in which
patience is needed. Ironically, one of the
greatest is church.
1. Is there anybody here who gets on
your nerves? Is there anyone you disagree
with on a matter of opinion or
preference?
2. Is there anyone whose personality is
different from yours?
3. if you do not think we should be
patient with others what about God’s patience
with us (2 Peter 3:9)?
VI. FORGIVENESS – vs. 13
A. In verse 13 Paul said, “Bearing with one
another, and forgiving each other,
whoever has a complaint against anyone;
just as the Lord forgave you, so also
should you.”
B. Each of us has two accounts.
1. Accounts payable is our debt of sin.
We can never pay this debt in spite of our
best intentions and effort. We are
dependent on the blood of Jesus to take away
every debt on our spiritual ledger.
2. Accounts receivable is the debt
others owe us. God links these two accounts
and says unless we forgive those who
are indebted to us He will not forgive our
debts. See Matthew 6:14-15.
VII. LOVE – vs.14.
A. In verse 14 Paul wrote, “Beyond all
these things put on love, which is the perfect
bond of unity.”
1. Do you get the idea from Paul that
when we put on love many of these other
qualities will fall into place?
2. It is our love for God and for one
another that binds us together. “A common love
for each other, a common gift to the
Savior, a common bond holding us to the
Lord. A common strength when we’re
weary, a common hope for tomorrow, a
common joy in the truth of God’s
word.”
B. We know John 3:16, “For God so loved the
world…” How well do we know 1 John
3:16 – “We know love by
this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay
down our lives for the brethren.”
CONCLUSION:
A.
Notice the result of this new wardrobe as mentioned in verses 15-17. “Let the
peace
of Christ rule in your hearts, to which
indeed you were called in one body; and be
thankful. 16 Let the word
of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and
admonishing one another with psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs, singing with
thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 Whatever
you do in word or deed, do all in the
name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks
through Him to God the Father.
B. Tolstoy
said, “Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of
changing Himself.”
1. It is much easier to demand that others
change their course than to admit we need
to change ours.
2. Becoming a new creation through Christ
demands that we change and put on a
new wardrobe. Let’s help each other! 
