Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, – Colossians 3:12
The term “teenager” was first coined in 1913, but did not find favor in common usage until the 1940s. It applied to you once upon a time. From World War II until today, teenagers have forged the paths of social norms in their dress codes (or lack thereof). As frilly dresses gave way to pleated plaid skirts, snug-fitting sweaters, white bobby socks, and loafers in the late 1940s, the teens of today are trending toward silver and metallic touches, with “silhouettes that make it look like you survived the apocalypse,” Teen Vogue says.
There is a “fashion” design that God has in mind for those who follow Him, teens and adults alike. He wants you to clothe yourself in His own attributes. Pastor and author Dirck Van Clief writes of “attributes of a Christian’s life, attributes we must ‘put on’ if we are to reflect and experience God’s design for us.”
You begin by remembering that you have been set apart by God for His unique purposes for you. Furthermore, He loves you and wants the best for you. In that position with Him, then, His design for you is to put on, just like a garment you put on this morning, attributes that make you look more like Him. Charles Spurgeon wrote, “This is what you have got to wear, even on the outside—to put it on; not to have a latent kindness in your heart and a degree of humbleness deep down in your soul if you could get at it; but you are to put it on. It is to be the very dress you wear. These are the sacred vestments of your daily priesthood. Put them on.”
Some of these attributes can be more challenging to wear than others. Perhaps you have difficulty regularly clothing yourself in patience, or maybe you are uncomfortable trying to wear humility. One pastor notably said, “Don’t put these off; put them on!” In 1974, John Molloy wrote a book titled Dress for Success. Keeping your “wardrobe“ modest and wearing just what God says is how you succeed in dressing for the Christian life. It is a supernatural wardrobe, but it is your spiritual uniform. It will never go out of fashion and is always beautiful.
Today’s Verse: Colossians 3:12
Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,
Recommended for further reading: Colossians 3:1-2, 12-17
3 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 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. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And 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 dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
