“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.” Col. 3:12-15
Devotional Thought For The Day
What a great delight it would be if we could actualize these evangelical instructions of the apostle, given by the power and inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God. First, to truly remember that we are already “God’s chosen ones.” This means that we are even now “holy and beloved.” We are holy not because our own adherence to God’s law, but rather because “the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” [1 John 1:7] It disturbs us, our continuing struggle against sin, our will to do what is good and right and our inability to accomplish it. [Rom. 7:14-19] So we must ever and always begin with what God has done for us in Christ Jesus, humbly rejoicing in how He has forgiven us fully and completely through His suffering, death, and resurrection. Without knowing this it is impossible for us to forgive others in the same manner – or to contemplate putting on the other virtuous characteristics of genuinely Christian people.
If then we are “in Christ,” fully cognizant of just how a great a gift of clemency, mercy, and salvation we have been given, it is only natural that our hearts will become more compassionate – and we will want to be more compassionate and caring, we will work to put this on. Likewise, we are made kind, humble, meek, and patient by knowing the love and compassion that God has for us – and we are eager to grow more in reflecting God’s love in how we interact with others. Essential to this is the matter of “forgiving” one another. The one who knows God’s love in Christ Jesus is eager to forgive those against whom he has a “complaint.” Indeed, we are eager to forgive all offenses and sins just as the Lord has forgiven us, although our sinful nature compels us to hold grudges and to contemplate malicious vengeance. But in Christ we do not seek to follow the dictates of our sinful nature but rather to reflect the love that we have received from God. If we truly know His love, and live daily in His love, then we know that we cannot do otherwise to others.
This is the nature of love in this fallen world of sin, that it depends and relies completely upon ongoing and continuing forgiveness and mercy toward others. This is the only way that everything can be “bound together in perfect harmony.” This is not to say that we do not admonish one another – Christ urges this upon us as an obligation of love. [Matt. 18:15] Christ’s instructions also include our response when our brother “hears” us; we have gained our brother. When he repents we forgive him, as the Lord has forgiven us, and this love is what binds everything together in perfect harmony. In all of this we remember that we have sins of our own which require our Heavenly Father’s ongoing forgiveness and mercy – and if we act without compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forbearance, and forgiveness of others we are also rejecting the same for ourselves in our relationship with God. May the good Lord keep us from all such temptations to unbelief!
The “peace of Christ” is not an absence of sin or complete protection from the sin of others. Rather, the peace of Christ is found in God’s love for us, when the assurance of His gracious mercy and forgiveness resides in our hearts. The peace of Christ remains and rules in our hearts only when we exercise the same gracious mercy, forgiveness, and love to those around us. When His peace does not reign in our hearts then it leaves our hearts – for how we judge others is how we shall be judged. I suspect that all of us would prefer to have the kindness and compassion of God, His gracious mercy and forgiveness, rather than to be judged under the dynamics of the angry passions of our sinful nature. It is the same with others, and harmony, oneness, and unity can only be maintained among those who truly live in God’s love.
So let us pray God to grant actualization of this love in our hearts and minds, as we dwell in His perfect love for us. Let us work to “put on” these gifts worked by His love and His Spirit that we live always in love and in His peace – in one body. For this we will indeed be thankful!
Prayer For The Day
Dear Lord Jesus, it is an odd irony that we are fiercely indignant and angry at the sins of others, and yet not at our own sins. It is a terrible aspect of our fallen nature that we desire mercy from You but would deny it to others. Forgive us Lord, for our failure to grasp and internalize Your blessed grace and mercy, and to put on Your virtues in our relationships with others. Grant us renewal, strength, and power to grow in humble kindness and in compassion for others, and help us to truly forgive all others just as You have forgiven us. So grant us Your peace, and cause Your peace to rule our hearts. Amen.