Colossians 3:12-17
12: 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.
Paul had just spoken of evil behavior, heart attitudes and speech which they had laid aside in the old man, and here he described the new man’s heart and speech. As the chosen, or elect, of God—ones who have responded to His call through the preaching of the gospel—Paul told the Colossians what this new man they had put on looked like. He said to put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness—things which he called the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23.
Above all these things they were to put on love—the perfect bond of unity. Love is the thing which bonds the saints together perfectly. Love is what enables us to live with each other, in the Lord, in peace and joy, without the old man taking control. The love which Jesus gave us—sacrificing His life for ungrateful sinners—is the ultimate example of this kind of love.
Paul told them to let the peace of God rule—let His peace be the umpire, call the shots, and make the decisions--in their hearts. His peace must rule in our hearts so that our words and actions are sincere, not hypocritical (Matthew 15:8, 18-20). Our calling is to live in peace in one body—the body of Christ. We are to be thankful to be a part of it—of His body. We are to be thankful for His Word which called us into this body.
We are to let this Word—the Word of Christ—dwell richly within us. We give it permission, allowing it to be planted within us and grow to produce all the fruit of the Spirit, including love and peace within the body of Christ. This Word, with all wisdom, teaches and admonishes us. We are to receive it ourselves and share it with one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. True worship springs from a proper understanding of the Word of Christ. As we converse the Word with one another we share in the worship together.
Finally, Paul said whatever they did or said, to do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to the Father. If what we are doing, or what we are saying, is not something we can do in the name of the Lord we might want to reconsider if we should be doing it at all. If we can’t give thanks to the Father for what we are participating in, we might want to take another look at what we are involved in.
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.
***
Paul had just spoken of evil behavior, heart attitudes and speech which they had laid aside in the old man, and here he described the new man’s heart and speech. As the chosen, or elect, of God—ones who have responded to His call through the preaching of the gospel—Paul told the Colossians what this new man they had put on looked like. He said to put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness—things which he called the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23.
Above all these things they were to put on love—the perfect bond of unity. Love is the thing which bonds the saints together perfectly. Love is what enables us to live with each other, in the Lord, in peace and joy, without the old man taking control. The love which Jesus gave us—sacrificing His life for ungrateful sinners—is the ultimate example of this kind of love.
Paul told them to let the peace of God rule—let His peace be the umpire, call the shots, and make the decisions--in their hearts. His peace must rule in our hearts so that our words and actions are sincere, not hypocritical (Matthew 15:8, 18-20). Our calling is to live in peace in one body—the body of Christ. We are to be thankful to be a part of it—of His body. We are to be thankful for His Word which called us into this body.
We are to let this Word—the Word of Christ—dwell richly within us. We give it permission, allowing it to be planted within us and grow to produce all the fruit of the Spirit, including love and peace within the body of Christ. This Word, with all wisdom, teaches and admonishes us. We are to receive it ourselves and share it with one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. True worship springs from a proper understanding of the Word of Christ. As we converse the Word with one another we share in the worship together.
Finally, Paul said whatever they did or said, to do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to the Father. If what we are doing, or what we are saying, is not something we can do in the name of the Lord we might want to reconsider if we should be doing it at all. If we can’t give thanks to the Father for what we are participating in, we might want to take another look at what we are involved in.
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