“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.”

Mark Twain once said, “Clothes makes the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society .” Whether clothes make a person or a person make their clothes, clothes does say a lot about a person. After exhorting the church at Colosse to pull off their former garments associated with their unredeemed lifestyle, Paul exhorted them to put on the new garments associated with their new lifestyle in Jesus Christ!

A new man needs new garments and he needs to wear garments that fit the occasion. Blue jeans would be inappropriate attire for a black tie affair. Just as we are taught to dress for the occasion in the earthen realm, Paul exhorts us to dress for the occasion in the spiritual realm. Paul employs the new garment metaphor for the new virtues that Christians ought to model now that they have been born again. The evidence of the new birth is seen in how fellow Christians behave towards one another and others in any given situation.

Paul calls for Christians to dress for the occasion. If the occasion calls for compassion, kindness, humility, patience, forgiveness, love or peace then they are to dress appropriately. Paul is not advocating that Christians dress for occasion occasionally but he is calling Christians to dress for the occasion perpetually. These virtues are to be worn anywhere at anytime. Wearing these virtues reflect the virtues of Jesus Christ

In other words, Paul is exhorting Christians to dress up like Jesus Christ. Wearing these Christian virtues results in peace among  the household of faith. When you are aggravated by other brothers and sisters in Christ, does your character fit the occasion? Better yet are dressed like Jesus Christ?

God, help me to dress for the occasion and model the virtues of Jesus Christ anywhere and at anytime under any circumstance, Amen!

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