Live Who You Are

by Mark D. Roberts, Ph.D.
Senior Strategist
Fuller’s Max De Pree Center for Leadership

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Part 1: Live Who You Are: Introduction Life

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17

As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with 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 the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. 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.

Focus

Today we begin a new devotional series on Colossians 3:12-17. This passage speaks with amazing succinctness and relevance to our lives today. We’re encouraged to ask: Am I really living my life in Christ?

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

Today I’m beginning a short devotional series that will take us halfway through Lent. My devotions will be based on Colossians 3:12-17.

Why this passage? There are several reasons. First, Lent is a time in which many Christians take a good, long look at their lives and how they’re doing as followers of Jesus. Colossians 3:12-17 can serve as an inspired magnifying glass for this kind of scrutiny.

Second, this passage from Colossians offers one of the most relevant and succinct biblical pictures of what it means for us to live as Christians. At this moment, I can’t think of any other six verses in the Bible that summarize the Christian life more concisely, not to mention profoundly.

Third, recently I’ve had the opportunity to preach through this passage of Scripture with my church. We’re in between pastors right now, so I’ve been preaching several times. As I’ve shared with my congregation what I’ve been learning from Colossians 3:12-17, I’ve been struck by how much this text speaks to our needs at this time of history. In a time when we’re emerging from a pandemic (we hope!), when churches are rethinking their mission in a changing world, when cultural pressures tempt us to foster division in our congregations and communities, and when many of us aren’t quite sure what it means to be faithfully and distinctively Christian, we need to hear focused and fitting teaching of Colossians 3:12-17. I’d suggest that we need it now more than ever.

Tomorrow we’ll get into the passage itself, starting with verse 12, as you may have guessed. Today, I’d like to provide a bit of context for the passage.

The New Testament book we call “Colossians” is a letter from the Apostle Paul to “the saints and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ in Colossae” (1:2). Paul was not the one who planted the church in this city in Asia Minor (modern day Turkey). Rather, it appears that a colleague of Paul named Epaphras did the church-planting honors in Colossae (Colossians 1:7), perhaps also in the nearby cities of Laodicea and Hierapolis (4:12-13).

From what we read in Colossians, the Christians in that city were doing well overall. The gospel that came to them through Epaphras was “bearing fruit among [the Colossian believers] from the day [they] heard it and truly comprehended the grace of God” (Colossians 1:6). It does appear, however, that the Colossian Christians were being harassed by teachers who sought to “take [them] captive through philosophy and empty deceit” (2:8). These false teachers attempted to draw the Colossians away from focusing on the uniqueness, deity, and adequacy of Christ (2:4, 8-19, 2:-23). In particular, they were imposing upon Christians various Jewish ceremonial practices as well as other peculiar things, such as the “worship of angels” (2:18).

Paul responded to the false teaching in Colossae by underscoring the uniqueness and centrality of Christ, who alone is “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation” (Colossians 1:15). Christ alone is the one through whom God “was pleased to reconcile to himself all things” (1:20). Thus, those who “ have received Christ Jesus the Lord” should “continue to live your lives in him” (2:6).

Living in Christ involves seeking the things of Christ (Colossians 3:1). When we do this, we “put to death” the earthly, sinful parts of ourselves and our behavior (3:5-8). When we received the grace of God through Christ, we “stripped off the old self with its practices” and “clothed [ourselves] with the new self which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator” (3:9-10). It’s likely that the language of stripping off and putting on had its origin in the baptismal experience of the Christians in Colossae (and elsewhere; see 2:11-15). When people said “Yes” to the gospel, they took off their old identity and lifestyle so that they might clothe themselves with a new identity and way of living, one defined by their relationship with Christ.

This act of putting off and putting on happened decisively in the past when the Colossians first received God’s grace in Christ. But that wasn’t the end of the process of putting on. Those who believe in Jesus have more clothing to wear. Thus, Paul writes, “As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion. . . . Above all, clothe yourselves with love . . .” (Colossians 3:12, 14). What we find in Colossians 3:12-17 is our new wardrobe, which we are encouraged to put on as we seek to live with Christ as the center of our lives.

Before we begin our investigation of this rich passage from Colossians, let me invite you to do a couple of things. First, go ahead and read all of Colossians 3:12-17. Read it slowly, perhaps several times. See what strikes you, what you wonder about, what speaks to your life today. (I’m actually working on memorizing this passage. I want to be able to carry it around with me, so to speak. Perhaps you’ll join me.)

Second, use the following questions to reflect on where you are in your journey with Jesus. Be open to whatever the Spirit of God wants to make clear to you.

Reflect

In what ways is your life based upon and centered in Christ?

Are you ever tempted by teachings that move Christ out of the center?

As you think back to when you first became a Christian, did you experience any “putting off” and/or “putting on”? (Depending on your own faith journey, this may not really have happened, and that’s okay. I first accepted God’s grace in Christ when I was six years old. My first experience of “putting off” and “putting on” was rather limited.)

What in Colossians 3:12-17 strikes you today?

Act

Today’s “Act” suggestions can be found in the last two paragraphs of the devotion.

Pray

Gracious God, thank you for Paul’s letter to the Colossians. Thank you for its richness of wisdom and instruction.

Thank you, in particular, for Colossians 3, verses 12-17. These verses speak so simply yet profoundly. And they are amazingly relevant, given that they were written almost 2,000 years ago!

As we embark on this investigation of Colossians 3:12-17, may I be open to hearing what you want me to hear, Lord. May I truly live as one who has put off the old self and put on the new, and as one who is putting on even more of the new self, by your grace. Amen.

Part 2: Remember Who You Are

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

God’s relationship with you tells you who you are. You are chosen, holy, and beloved. The more you remember this, the more you define your identity by who you are in Christ, the more you’ll be ready to put on his “clothing” and live in his way.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

In the classic 1994 film The Lion King, Simba has failed to take his place in the circle of life. He is the rightful king of his land, but is hiding in shame, fearful of accepting his rightful sovereignty. A turning point in the movie comes when a vision of Simba’s deceased father, Mufasa, appears to Simba. Mufasa tells his son that he should become king. When Simba hesitates, Mufasa, sounding very much like James Earl Jones, says, “Remember who you are. You are my son and the one true king. Remember who you are.”

If the Apostle Paul had seen The Lion King, he might have quoted Mufasa when writing to the Colossians. As he begins his concise exhortation in chapter 3, verses 12-17, Paul says, “As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves . . . .” If the Colossians are to clothe themselves with a fully Christian way of living, first they need to remember who they are. They are God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved. When they remember who they are, then they will be ready to live who they are.

Who are they? And, by implication, who are we? Verse 12 discloses that we are “God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved.” First of all, we are people God has chosen. God wants to be in relationship with us. God wants us to participate in his work in the world. Though we enter into that relationship by receiving the gospel in faith, at a deeper level of reality God has chosen us. As it says in Ephesians 1:4, God “chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world.”

Second, we are holy. This does not mean we are perfect. Nor does it mean we are outrageously religious. Holiness, in the Bible, has to do with being set apart for God. We are holy because God has set us apart from what is common and ordinary so that we might be in relationship with God as well as engaged in God’s mission in the world. We see an illustration of such holiness in the Gospel of Mark, when Jesus “called to him those he wanted . . . . And he appointed twelve . . . to be with him, and to be sent out to proclaim the message” (Mark 3:13-14). Notice that the disciples are not only workers in Jesus’s kingdom mission. First of all, they are to “be with him.” Holiness involves being set apart for relationship with God and then for participation in God’s work.

Third, we are “beloved.” The Greek reads literally, “having been loved.” It’s clear that the agent of this love is God. Not only has God chosen us, not only has God set us apart, but also God has loved us in Christ. And God continues to love us. This love is not dependent on our being unusually lovable. We are not beloved by God because we have done such an amazing job of loving God first. Rather, God’s love, like God’s choosing, is an expression of God’s sovereign grace.

Even as Simba in The Lion King needed first to remember who he was before he accepted his destiny to be king, so we need to remember who we are before we put on the “clothing” of Christ. We don’t try to be good Christians in order to earn God’s favor. Rather, we live out who we are because God’s favor has been given to us through Christ.

It’s wonderful to be chosen, set apart, and loved. This is true, not just in our relationship with God, but in other relationships as well. I can still remember the relief and pride I felt when, as a boy, I was chosen to be on my first Little League baseball team. Many years later, I was moved when listening to a woman at a Laity Lodge retreat who had been set apart to represent the United States in the Olympics. As a pastor, I’ve heard many engaged couples share the joy of being loved by someone special. So, like I said, it’s wonderful to be chosen, set apart, and loved.

We tend to define our identity with reference to a variety of things. Many of us would define ourselves mainly by our work: “I am a teacher. I am a lawyer. I am a pastor.” Others would point to family relationships: “I am a mother. I am a daughter. I am a grandfather.” Still others of us would let our accomplishments tell us who we are: “I got straight A’s. I built a successful business. I am a decorated veteran.” Seeing ourselves in light of such things is not necessarily wrong, but if they give us our fundamental sense of self, then we have lost touch with what matters most. And what matters most of all is how God relates to us. God gives us our core identity.

According to Colossians 3:12 – and so many other passages of Scripture – you have been chosen and set apart by the God who loves you. In fact, God loves you with a unique love that will not let you go (Romans 8:37-39). God’s relationship with you tells you who you are: chosen, holy, and beloved. The more you remember this, the more you know who you are in Christ, the more you’ll be ready to put on his “clothing” and live in his way. In tomorrow’s devotion we’ll start examining the clothing and way of Christ. But, as we do, be sure to remember who you are. Remember who you are!

Reflect

How do you tend to define yourself? When you think about who you really are, what comes to mind?

When you hear that you are chosen, holy, and beloved by God, what do you think? What do you feel?

Which of these three – chosen, holy, beloved – do you find the most difficult to apply to yourself? Why?

Can you think of a time in your life when you felt deeply loved by God? What happened? What was this like for you?

Act

Talk with a wise friend or with your small group about the things in life that define you, that give you your core identity.

Pray

Gracious God, what an amazing thing! To think that I am chosen by you—more than this, I am set apart by you to know and serve you. More than this, I am beloved by you. You love me with a love that will never let me go. How marvelous! How wonderful!

Help me, dear Lord, to remember who I am to you. Help me to see myself this way, to define myself this way. May my identity be deeply connected to you and your relationship with me. Amen.

Part 3: Counter-Cultural Clothing

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

People loved by God are to act distinctively in the world. Scripture says we’re to “clothe ourselves” with “compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.” Those qualities won’t help you get giant numbers on Twitter or a highly competitive job. But they will help you be more like Jesus. And they will demonstrate the fact that your identity is based on the God who loves you more than you’ll ever fully know.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

I grew up as a straight-laced kid in a straight-laced family that attended a straight-laced church. I wore dress shoes to elementary school most of the time, unlike my friends who got to wear tennis shoes. My clothes were always neat and tidy, thanks to my mom. And when it came to church, I always wore a dress shirt with a nifty clip-on tie. I looked pretty much like all the other boys and men at church.

But in the late 60s, this began to change. Young adults by the thousands flocked to Hollywood. Known as Hippies, Street People, or Flower Children, they lived on the streets or in flop houses. They dressed in a strikingly counter-cultural way, featuring ragged bell-bottom jeans, tie-dyed shirts, and long, stringy hair. You might have expected my straight-laced church to discourage these street people from attending our services, given their outrageous clothing. But the opposite was true. The First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood reached out to the people in the streets, providing places for them to sleep, building a coffee house for them, and even welcoming them into our worship services. All of this I found quite amazing.

In his letter to the Colossians, the Apostle Paul told them to dress in a shocking counter-cultural way. No, he didn’t commend dirty Levis and flowery t-shirts. But he did tell the Colossian Christians: “clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience” (Colossians 3:12). We may read this instruction without wincing because it’s in the Bible and the Bible is so familiar. But it’s hard to overstate just how utterly counter-cultural these “items of clothing” were. In the first-century Greco-Roman world, nobody aspired to such things as compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. They wanted honor and acclamation. They sought power and personal advantage. It’s hard to imagine something less like the Roman Empire than Paul’s list of “clothing” in Colossians 3:12.

Unless, of course, you’re thinking about contemporary American culture. Yes, to be sure, there are plenty of moving counter-examples. But, for the most part, would you say that people in our day seek to live with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience? You’re not going to find these virtues in the mission statements of most companies. They’re not going to be featured in the platforms of either major political party. And you’re not going to find these qualities featured in the next superhero film (though one or two show up occasionally). If you put on your resumé that your strengths are compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, good luck getting a job!

Now, you may want to object and say, “Wait! I know somebody who fits this description.” Truly, there are such people. I’ve known a few myself. So, I’m not saying it’s impossible today to put on the moral clothing Paul commends in Colossians 3:12. But I am saying it goes counter to the tide of our culture, and therefore it won’t be easy.

I don’t have time here to investigate the meanings of each of the five words Paul uses in this verse. What you read in the NRSV is trustworthy. Other translations are quite similar:

compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience (NIV, CEB)

compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience (ESV)

compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline (Message).

So, without digging into the Greek originals here, you can get a good sense of what Scripture is telling us to put on.

Now comes the fun part . . . or, well, the hard part. Once we know what these words mean, more or less, it’s time to take a good, long look at ourselves. Are we wearing this counter-cultural clothing? Are we doing so at home? At work? In our community? In our public engagements? In the way we talk about those with whom we disagree? In our social media posts? In our hearts before the Lord?

As I think about my own life, I can see glimpses of hope. There are times when I am compassionate, and my compassion can sometimes lead to kindness. (Of course, there are other times, too.) But honestly, I struggle most with patience. I’m naturally impatient with just about everything and everyone, including myself—oh, and including God, too. My tendency to be impatient is certainly encouraged by the culture in which I live. So, if I’m going to learn to be patient, I’ll need the counter-cultural example of Jesus to inspire me, that’s for sure. And I’ll need the indwelling guidance of the Holy Spirit, not to mention a community of Christians seeking to put on the way of Jesus each day.

Reflect

When you read the list of attributes and behaviors you’re supposed to put on, how do you respond? What do you think? How do you feel?

Being as honest as you can be with yourself, which of the qualities on this list is something you’d consider an area of personal strength?

Conversely, which of these qualities would you consider to be a personal weakness?

Why do you think Paul began with such unexpected, counter-cultural qualities as compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience?

Act

Choose to intentionally do something tomorrow that is compassionate, kind, humble, meek, or patient.

Pray

Gracious God, it’s certainly true that your ways are not our ways. When I read the list of qualities in Colossians 3:12, I’m reminded of this fact.

The problem, Lord, is that your ways are not really my ways, either. I’m not naturally inclined to be compassionate, kind, humble, meek, and patient. I think you’ve helped me to grow in some of these, but I have such a long way to go.

So, I ask you to help me. May the model of Jesus inspire me. May your Word in Scripture teach me. May your Spirit empower me to live in the counter-cultural way of your kingdom. Amen.

Part 4: Put Up With Each Other

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

The Bible says we’re to put up with each other. This doesn’t mean we tolerate actual sin or true injustice. Rather, we’re to put up with each other when it comes to things that bug us, to matters of taste or preference, to behaviors that aren’t wrong, only bothersome. In a culture that prizes criticism and canceling, putting up with people will feel profoundly counter-cultural. But that’s what it means to treat others with kindness and patience.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

According to the New Revised Standard Version, as God’s special and beloved people we should “bear with one another” (Colossians 3:13). Now, I think we know basically what “bear with” means, but we don’t talk like this very often in ordinary speech. In my part of the world we say “put up with” rather than “bear with.” Just for fun, I checked Google’s Ngram Viewer (which counts word frequencies). “Put up with” is about four times more common than “bear with,” though “bear with” shows a slight recent uptick while “put up with” shows a slight decrease in usage. For even more fun, I checked the word “forbear,” which appears in the King James Version of Colossians 3:13 (“forbearing one another”). Around 1800 it was way more common than either “bear with” or “put up with.” But “forbear” has fallen steadily since then, and today is on the level with “bear with.”

You may wonder if this study of word usage has a point, or if I’m just enjoying my peculiar fondness for words. In fact, I do have a point. It seems to me that “bear with” makes what’s required of us seem rather archaic and unreal, perhaps even noble. Bearing with someone feels like the sort of thing they do on Downton Abbey. But putting up with? Now that’s altogether different. Putting up with people isn’t any fun at all. It can be unpleasant. It’s hard work that we don’t especially like to do.

Instead of “bear with,” the New Living Translation has “make allowance for each other’s faults.” But this, I think, misses the point. Faults, especially moral ones, are things needing forgiveness. That comes next in our passage. But I don’t believe Colossians 3:13 wants us to put up with people’s faults so much as their preferences, their peculiarities, their oddness—their behavior that isn’t wrong, but bothersome. If, for example, you’re wearing a shirt that I find to be ugly, that’s not really a fault on your part. It’s a matter of opinion or taste. Perhaps you like your shirt. Someone wearing what I believe to be an ugly shirt is something I need to bear with or, more commonly, put up with.

We’re not very good at this sort of thing, are we? Even if we appear to put up with things that others do that bug us, we tend to grumble about them to ourselves and gossip about them to others. Social media exacerbates the problem, encouraging us to criticize, condemn, or cancel anybody that we don’t like.

I’m sad to say that church members are often pretty bad at putting up with things. If they don’t like the style of music in worship, they’ll let you know. A friend of mine who always dressed appropriately when leading worship consistently heard from members of her church that her clothing was someone deficient. It was the wrong color or style or, well, you name it.

I’ll freely admit that putting up with folks is not my strong suit. I like what I like and dislike what I dislike. If you indulge in things I dislike, then I’m not naturally inclined to pretend it’s okay. I may not say anything to you, but my blood pressure will rise and my intolerance will blossom.

Yet, the Bible says we’re supposed to put up with each other. We’re supposed to tolerate in others the things that irk us. If folks in my church like worship music that isn’t my favorite, I need to find a way to be okay with that. And if some of my sisters and brothers have political opinions different from mine, that’s another occasion for putting up. Putting up isn’t only a matter of behavior, by the way. It’s a matter of the heart. I need to be okay with those who think, feel, and act in ways I don’t appreciate.

How in the world can this be possible? What will help me to put up with people? One answer comes from the verse in Colossians right before the command to “bear with” or “put up.” You’ll remember that verse 12 reads, “As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.” This verse reminds me that the people I need to put up with are God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved. Before I see the things about them that bug me, I need to see them as people special to the God who loves them as much as he loves me. That will get me moving in a “putting up with” direction.

Moreover, if people are perturbing me without sinning, then I have a perfect opportunity to clothe myself with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. In fact, these qualities are exactly what is required if we’re going to have to put up with people. In other words, putting up with is something that follows logically from the qualities mentioned in verse 12. This fact is somewhat obscured in the NRSV translation, which begins verse 13 with a new sentence: “and patience. Bear with one another . . . .” The Greek reads literally, “clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, putting up with one another and forgiving each other . . .” (Colossians 3:12-13).

I’ve admitted that I’m no fan of putting up with people. It takes hard spiritual and moral work for me to do this. But here’s something I find quite wonderful about the command to put up. It’s not just for me. It’s also for you. It’s for the people in my family, workplace, and church. Even as I’m supposed to put up with them, they’re supposed to put up with me. And this, I suggest, can be quite pleasing. To know that you’re loved and accepted in spite of the things about you that are odd or even unpleasant is very sweet, indeed.

So, if you weren’t all that pleased with me for beginning this devotion with obscure facts about words, I get it. My love of language is unusual, perhaps even bothersome to some folks. But the good news for me is that you should put up with me. I promise, by the way, that I won’t do this sort of thing every day. But I’m glad that you’ll be working on putting up with me by God’s grace. Thanks for this gift. And thanks be to God.

Reflect

Can you think of a time recently when you chose to put up with someone or something? What happened? What did you do?

What kinds of behaviors or preferences do you find particularly hard to put up with?

Have you ever experienced people putting up with your peculiarities? If so, what was that like for you?

Act

Be ready to put up with someone whose behavior isn’t to your liking. See if you can do this with grace and kindness, rather than resentment.

Pray

Gracious God, you know that it’s hard for me to put up with people, especially when it comes to things they do or think that really bothers me. So I take seriously the challenge found in the simple command, “bear with one another.” Help me, Lord, to do this. May I put up with folks at work and at home, in my neighborhood and my church. Teach me to treat them with patience and kindness. Give me a generous and understanding heart, Lord. Amen.

Part 5: Forgive Each Other

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

According to Colossians, when someone bugs us, we’re to put up with them. But when somebody actually sins against us, we’re to forgive. In fact, we’re to forgive others as the Lord has forgiven us. This can be a tall order sometimes, to be sure. The ability to forgive comes as we experience more deeply God’s forgiveness for ourselves. Plus, God’s Spirit helps us to forgive when we lack what is needed to do so. The more we know God’s grace for us, the more we’ll be able to give grace to others through forgiveness.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

In last Thursday’s devotion, we focused on the simple imperative found in Colossians 3:13 “Bear with one another,” or, as I prefer to say, “Put up with each other.” I explained that “putting up with” has to do with responding to things people do and say that are not actually wrong, but just displeasing to us. According to Colossians, we need to put up with things in others that we do not prefer or appreciate. This is one essential element of “putting on” the clothing of Christ as people chosen, holy, and beloved by God.

But what should we do when someone treats us in a way that is actually wrong? In this case, something more than putting up with is needed. That’s exactly what we find in Colossians 3:13, which reads, “Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.” The word “complaint” in this case assumes that the “complainer” has good reason to be offended. Someone has treated this person in a sinful way. Therefore, forgiveness is required, not forbearance.

The verb translated in verse 13 as “forgive” is charizomai in Greek. It’s closely related to the Greek word for grace, charis. Why should we forgive (charizomai) each other? According to Colossians, because the Lord has forgiven (charizomai) us. God has shown grace to us through Jesus Christ, forgiving us when we were not worthy. Similarly, we are to show grace to each other.

The connection here between forgiveness we receive from the Lord and forgiveness we give to others reminds me of a parable of Jesus. In Matthew 18:23-35, Jesus tells the story of a slave who owed a massive amount of money to his master. When the slave begged for mercy, the master forgave the huge debt. But then, when someone owed this slave a modest sum, the slave was unforgiving and threw the debtor in jail. The master, shocked by his slave’s lack of grace, handed him over to be punished. Jesus concludes, “So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart” (Matthew 18:35).

Now, it’s important to say that forgiveness does not necessarily erase the need for justice, restitution, and reconciliation. If a fellow Christian has robbed you, that person may very well serve time in jail and should endeavor to repay you. The mending of your relationship will take serious work. But your act of forgiveness is not dependent on that person’s effort to make things right. Rather, you forgive because you have been forgiven. The forgiveness you receive from the Lord supplies both your motivation for and your model of forgiving.

Forgiveness is in short supply these days. (So, for that matter, is repentance, but that’s a different story.) People who have been wronged often hang onto the offense and the pain, believing that these will protect them from future hurt. But, in fact, unforgiveness wounds the one who holds it, hardening our hearts and even turning us away from God’s grace. As Jesus says in Matthew 6:14-15, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” When we have hardened our hearts, we can’t receive the grace God wants to give us.

I’m not suggesting that forgiveness is easy, mind you. When someone has sinned against you in a way that is painful and damaging, forgiving is indeed difficult. But God helps us to forgive. God’s Spirit will stir within us, giving us a supernatural desire to give grace to the one who hurt us. Moreover, God will help us to know who we truly are as “chosen ones, holy and beloved” (Colossians 3:12). The more we recognize how much God cares for us, the more we have an intimate relationship with God, the more God’s love for us is poured into our hearts, the more we will be able to forgive even those whose offense can feel unforgivable.

I have written before about the case of Corrie ten Boom, a Dutch Christian woman who, along with her family, was imprisoned by the Nazis because they had been seeking to hide Jews from detention. Corrie witnessed the death of her beloved family members and, therefore, had an understandable hatred for the guards who treated them so terribly. Yet, after the war, when facing one of those guards, Corrie remembered how Christ had forgiven her and asked for help to forgive the guard. As she extended her hand to this man in obedience to God, she felt overwhelming love. Writing about this experience in her book, The Hiding Place, she says, “And so I discovered that it is not on our forgiveness any more than on our goodness that the world’s healing hinges, but on [Christ’s]. When He tells us to love our enemies, He gives, along with the command, the love itself” (p. 247).

If you’re struggling to forgive someone who has hurt you deeply, what I’m writing here might seem simplistic and insensitive. I get that. I know how hard it is sometimes to forgive. And, as a pastor, I’ve prayed with many who have wrestled with forgiving people who have wronged them greatly. I know that forgiveness is often a process that takes lots of time, healing, courage, and grace. Having said this, I do believe that we are called to forgive, even when it’s hard. Doing so unifies and strengthens the community of Christ, and it also allows us to live with greater freedom and joy as God’s chosen, holy, and beloved people.

Reflect

Why do you think forgiveness is so uncommon in our world today?

Can you remember a time in your life when you were able to forgive someone who hurt you significantly? What was that like? What helped you to forgive? What difference did this make in your life?

When have you felt in an experiential way the forgiveness you have in Christ? How did you feel? How did you respond?

Act

If you have someone you need to forgive, talk with the Lord about what you should do. Then follow the Spirit’s lead. If you don’t have anyone you need to forgive, pray for someone you know who struggles with unforgiveness.

Pray

Gracious God, thank you for the clarity of your guidance to us in Colossians 3. Thank you for instructing us to forgive each other. Thank you for showing us what forgiveness is all about through Christ.

Lord, you know that sometimes it’s very hard to forgive. Forgiveness can feel scary, even impossible, when we’ve been deeply wronged by someone. In times like these, we reach out to you for yet more of your grace. Help us to know how much we are loved and forgiven by you. In the security of that truth, give us the grace we need to forgive others.

In a time when forgiveness is so uncommon, may my church be a place in which forgiveness is generously given. And may I be on the forgiving side as well as on the side of those who receive forgiveness. In all of this, Lord, may you receive the glory. Amen.

Part 6: Clothe Yourselves with Love

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

As we seek to “clothe ourselves” with a way of life that imitates Jesus, we are to put on love, most of all. Love has divine power to bind all people together in grace-filled unity. It may be easy to love people we find lovable. But our calling as Christians is to love everyone, even and especially those we find difficult to love. Jesus not only instructs us to love in this way, but also models that kind of love.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

If you were reading Colossians 3:14 out of context and in Greek, you’d be confused. This verse reads, translating very literally, “Above all these things, love, which is the bond of perfection.” Where, you would wonder, is the verb? The answer to this question comes from verse 12, which supplies the main verb for verses 12-14. You’ll remember that Paul tells the Colossians: “clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.” The imperative, “clothe yourselves” carries all the way over into verse 14. When we come upon “love” without a verb, we understand that this is another garment we should put on, just like compassion, kindness, and so forth.

But love isn’t just like those other pieces of clothing. It is the most important one of all. “Above all,” Paul writes, “clothe yourselves with love.” More important than compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience is love. In fact, it “binds everything together in perfect harmony.”

That’s how the NRSV translates the Greek that reads, “which is the bond of perfection.” It’s certainly possible that Paul means to say love “binds everything together in perfect harmony.” But there is good reason to believe a different nuance is at work here. You’ll notice that the Greek doesn’t specify that which is being bound together perfectly by love. It could be that love unites all of the “garments” in this passage, all of the virtues we should put on. But I believe Paul wants us to understand that love binds together, not the virtues, but rather the people of God. This is made clear in the New Living Translation, which reads, “Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony” (Colossians 3:14, NLT).

The importance of unity and harmony among God’s people is found throughout Colossians 3:12-17. Together we are “God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved” (3:12). If we treat each other with “compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience” (3:12), surely this will help to unify the church. So will putting up with each other and forgiving each other (3:13). Then, looking beyond verse 14 with its emphasis on love, verse 15 commends choosing the way of peace because we have been “called in the one body” (3:15). So, the context of verse 14 supports the notion that love binds all Christians together in perfect harmony.

At least that’s the way it’s supposed to be. I expect all of us can testify to the fact that this truth is not always experienced among God’s people. The perfect harmony of which Paul speaks seems to be quite elusive, at least in my experience of church. We Christians are quite adept at fostering disunity—whether it has to do with essential theology, or with inessential things like musical styles, political viewpoints, or, these days, opinions about COVID-19. We’re quite good at not clothing ourselves with the kind of love that binds diverse Christians together in any sort of harmony, let alone perfect harmony.

It’s easy to love those we find lovable. It’s easy to love those with whom we agree. It’s easy to love people who are on our side. It’s much harder to love the other people, the ones we don’t especially like, the ones with whom we strongly disagree, the folk on the other side of culturally divisive issues. Yet the real test of our love will be our ability to extend genuine love to those we wouldn’t choose to love were we not seeking to follow Jesus together.

Recently I watched all the released episodes of The Chosen, a multi-season streamed series about the life of Jesus. I’ll admit I was initially wary of this show, expecting it to be unhistorical and/or cheesy. But I was quickly won over by the fact that the creators of The Chosen had clearly done their homework. The world they portrayed and the characters in it made sense to me as one who has spent a great deal of my life studying the New Testament and its cultural context.

One of the things I like about The Chosen – and this is a tiny spoiler – is its portrayal of the disciples of Jesus. In particular, I appreciate how The Chosen portrays disagreements among the disciples. Though they are united in their desire to follow Jesus, whom they are trying desperately to figure out, they often have a very difficult time getting along with each other. This makes perfect sense if you think about it. After all, Jesus called Matthew/Levi to follow him. He was one of the most hated people in his culture, a Jew who was a tax collector for Rome. At the same time, Jesus also called someone named Simon (not Simon Peter) who is identified in Acts 1:13 as “Simon the Zealot.” Zealots, in the time of Jesus, were basically Jewish extremists who used violence in the hope of casting Rome out of Judea. Most of Jesus’s disciples would have been naturally inclined to hate Matthew; Simon would have been inclined to kill him.

Yet, these people, so diverse and conflicted in many ways, we called together by Jesus, who instructed them to love each other. Moreover, Jesus demonstrated love, not only for those who followed him, but also for those who didn’t, even for those who opposed him and ultimately crucified him. That kind of love has never been easy. But it is the kind of love to which we are called as followers of Jesus. And it is the kind of love that binds everyone together in harmony—by God’s grace, perfect harmony.

Reflect

When have you seen people in your church exercise Christ-like love for others?

When you find it difficult to love a brother or sister in Christ, what do you do?

Can you think of someone you’re having a hard time loving right now? Why is this hard? What do you think God wants you to do?

Act

Choose to love someone this week, someone you would not ordinarily love.

Pray

Gracious God, thank you once again for the clarity and power of this passage from Colossians. It speaks to us in ways that are both encouraging and challenging. We need to hear this!

Help me, dear Lord, to clothe myself in love. Teach me to love others, especially those I have a hard time loving on my own. May I act in a loving way toward them no matter now I’m feeling. Yet, by your grace, may my heart be filled with you love for them.

Today I pray for my church, that we would truly and consistently clothe ourselves with love. May we love each other. May we love our neighbors. Most of all, may we grow in our love for you, dear Lord. Amen.

Part 7: Let the Peace of Christ Rule

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Christ’s death on the cross did more than provide an opportunity for individual salvation. It also paved the way for peace between divided and hostile peoples. The cross leads to reconciliation between humans and God and, crucially, between and among human beings. We who follow Jesus should let the cross-created peace of Jesus govern our actions. To this kind of peacemaking God calls us.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

One of God’s greatest gifts is inner peace, especially in times of trial or suffering. Along with millions of other Christians, I can testify to times in my life when I was deeply troubled. As I turned to God in prayer, opening my heart honestly, I felt exquisite and unexpected peace. This experience mirrored the promise we find in Philippians 4:6-7, “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” What a wonderful promise! Peace that surpasses understanding . . . what a wonderful gift!

At first glance, Colossians 3:15 seems to call us to that experience of inner peace: “And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body.” But that second phrase makes me wonder: How is personal, inner peace something to which we are called “in the one body”? Is it possible that Colossians 3:15 is calling us to another kind of peace, one equally wonderful, but not limited to our souls?

Yes, I believe it is possible, and not only possible, but likely. Let me explain why. First of all, in Scripture, God’s peace includes but is far more expansive than inner tranquility. It’s also much more than the absence of conflict. Biblical peace—shalom in Old Testament Hebrew, eirene in New Testament Greek, is life being ordered according to God’s masterplan. It is life as God intended from the beginning. Peace is deeply personal, to be sure, but also profoundly relational and social. As theologian Cornelius Plantinga observes, biblical peace is “the webbing together of God, humans, and all creation in justice, fulfillment, and delight.” It is “a rich state of affairs in which natural needs are satisfied and natural gifts fruitfully employed.” In a nutshell, according to Plantinga, peace is “the way things ought to be.” So, biblical peace is about wholeness, flourishing, and the abundant life. (See Cornelius Plantinga Jr., Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be: A Breviary of Sin, p. 10). This kind of peace is surely something to which we are “called in the one body.” It’s something we experience and contribute to as members of the body of Christ.

We see a profound discussion of this sort of peace in the second half of Ephesians 2. There, the death of Christ on the cross leads not only to personal salvation; it also brings about the ending of hostility between divided and hostile peoples. As we read in Ephesians 2:14-16:

For [Christ] is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups [Jews and Gentiles] into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it.

The peace of Christ, forged in the cross, is about reconciled relationships: yes, the relationship between us and God, but also and essentially the relationships among people.

This suggests that the “peace of Christ” in Colossians 3:15 refers mainly to relationships among the believers in Colossae. But, we might wonder, what about the “rule in your hearts” phrase? Doesn’t this point to the experience of inner peace? Not if we pay close attention to the meaning of the original language. Notice, for one thing, that Colossians does not say “Let the peace of Christ fill your hearts” or “Let the peace of Christ comfort your hearts” or something like this. Rather, it says, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.” This is the language of sovereignty, of governance. The peace of Christ is to exercise authority in our hearts.

This makes sense once we remember the meaning of “heart” in the biblical worldview. For us, the heart is the source or place of our emotions. The heart is where we feel. For the biblical writers, however, emotions were related to the heart, but the heart contained much more. The heart was the place within us where we chose, where we made decisions. The heart was the place where we exercised our will. The heart governs our speech and our behavior. It shapes how we live and who we are.

Given the biblical understanding of “peace” and “heart,” we can now see how we are called to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts, to which [peace] we were called in the one body. If something rules in our heart, then that something governs our choices. It guides our behavior. It shows us how to think, judge, and act. Therefore, when Colossians says we’re to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts, this means that our choices, values, and actions should be governed by the peace of Christ. We’re to act in light of the peace that comes from the cross of Christ. In particular, we’re to be people whose lives reflect Christ’s own commitment to peace and reconciliation.

What we read here about peace, therefore, is consistent with the emphasis in the previous verses of Colossians. As you recall, these verses called us to live who we are as God’s chosen, holy, and beloved people. We do this, in particular, through our relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We put up with things about them that bug us. We forgive them when they wrong us. And, above all, we act toward them in Christ-like love. Continuing this focus on relationships among believers, verse 15 adds, and I paraphrase, “Let the reconciling, cross-creating peace of Christ govern your moral choices. You were called to this sort of peace in the one, unified body of Christ.”

I know this devotion has had an ample amount of biblical interpretation. If we’re going to understand what’s going on with the peace of Christ in verse 15, we need this kind of investigation. But, once we have figured out what the verse means, we can begin to examine our own lives. Are we making our moral choices in light of Christ’s cross-creating peace? Are seeking to live according to the peace of Christ in our key relationships: in church and family, in our neighborhoods and our workplaces? In a day when conflict fills our culture, are we letting the peace of Christ rule in and over our hearts? Questions like these deserve careful, prayerful consideration.

Reflect

When you think about the reconciling power of the cross of Christ, how do you respond? What do you think? What do you feel? In order to answer these questions, you may wish to read Ephesians 2:11-22.

What might make it hard for you to let the peace of Christ govern your moral choices?

Can you think of a time when you chose to act toward someone with the peace of Christ? Perhaps this was a time when you were not feeling particularly loving or charitable, but you chose to act in light of Christ’s cross rather than your negative feelings. If you can think of such a time, reflect on what you learned from this experience.

Act

Choose to act toward someone this week in light of the cross of Christ and the peace it creates.

Pray

Gracious God, thank you for your gift of multifaceted peace. Thank you for the times your peace extinguishes conflict. Thank you for the ways your peace touches my heart in times of anxiety and fear. Thank you for making peace among peoples possible through the cross of Christ.

Lord, help me to let the peace of Christ rule in my heart today. May I make moral choices based on the peace that flows from the cross. Help me, Lord, to be a peacemaker whose actions both reflect your sacrifice and honor your sovereignty. Amen.

Part 8: Let the Word of Christ Dwell Richly

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

The foundation of the Christian life is God’s grace given through Christ. This grace is communicated through the good news as it is proclaimed, taught, and enacted. The gospel should live fully and freely in our Christian communities. We can help this happen as we remind each other of God’s love in Christ.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

Colossians 3:12-17 teaches us to live who we are as people chosen, holy, and beloved by God. We do this by “putting on the clothing of Christ,” being compassionate, kind, humble, meek, and patient (3:12), putting up with and forgiving each other (3:13), clothing ourselves with love (3:14), and letting the peace of Christ govern our hearts (3:15). Colossians 3:16 adds a new “garment” to our Christian wardrobe: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.”

Let’s unpack this imperative carefully. The phrase “word of Christ” could refer to the teachings that Jesus gave while he was on earth. But that’s probably not what it means here. Rather, in this passage, the word of Christ is the word about Christ, the message about what God has done in Christ for us and our salvation. The word of Christ is what we often call the gospel, the good news of God’s grace in Christ by which we are saved, redeemed, and restored.

Colossians 3:16 says we are to let the word of Christ—that is, the good news, dwell in us. The Greek verb translated here as “dwell” literally means “to make your home someplace.” We could translate this imperative, “Let the good news of Christ be at home in you.” The Message puts it wonderfully, “Let the Word of Christ – the Message – have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives.”

Before we finish our examination of “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,” we need to scrutinize the word “in.” That could mean “inside of each one of you individually.” Surely, the good news of Christ should be at home in each of us. But the Greek word translated here as “in” can also mean “among.” Thus, the first phrase of verse 16 could be translated, “Let the word of Christ dwell among you richly.” (That’s what the NIV does, by the way.) Given the context for this imperative, which has to do with the corporate life of the church, I think “among” is the more accurate translation. Yes, the word of Christ should live in each one of us individually. No question about this. But also and importantly, the good news should dwell among us in our life together in Christ.

Notice the word of Christ is to dwell among us “richly.” The indwelling of the gospel is not an insignificant or incidental part of our life together. Rather, the good news of Christ needs to fill our lives, our fellowship, our worship, our relationships, and our witness. As the Message puts it, the word of Christ should have the run of the house in our church.

How? How will this happen in the life of a Christian community? What can we do so that the word of Christ will have the run of the house, so to speak? There are many good answers to this question, but today we’re going to focus on one. Tomorrow we’ll examine another from the last part of Colossians 3:16.

In the original language of verse 16, there is one imperative (“let dwell”) followed by two supporting participial phrases (teaching/admonishing; singing to God). Thus, the first half of this verse could be translated in this way, “Let the word of Christ dwell among you richly by teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom.” Here’s one way to let the word of Christ dwell among us. We teach and admonish each other in all wisdom.

Teaching refers to a wide range of instruction. We can teach theological doctrine, practical living, spiritual disciplines, social ethics, and all sorts of other things found in Scripture. Admonishing is a more focused kind of communication. It involves helping a person who has gone off track get back on track.

Notice that we’re to teach and admonish each other “in all wisdom.” Whenever the New Testament mentions wisdom, we first think of Christ. As it says in Colossians 2:3, in Christ “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Christ, as the Word of God incarnate, is the ultimate embodiment and communication of God’s wisdom. Thus, whatever we teach and however we admonish, Christ must always be central. The word of Christ, the gospel, should pervade all of our teaching.

Now, when we let the word of Christ dwell richly among us in this way, when we teach and admonish each other in all wisdom, then the word of Christ will also dwell richly in our individual hearts and minds. The gospel will become more and more central to how we think, feel, act, and speak. Moreover, we will be equipped to teach and admonish others in light of the good news of God’s grace in Christ.

This kind of teaching doesn’t happen only in official church gatherings. And it isn’t done only by church officials (pastors, preachers, priests, etc.). All of us are exhorted to teach “one another.” Most of the time we will do this in conversations among friends and family, in small groups and ministry teams, as we remind each other of the good news of Christ. Ephesians 4:15 makes a similar point in slightly different language, “[S]peaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.” Who speaks the truth in love so that we grow up in Christ? We do, we, the members of Christ’s body.

If we do, then you do. Or you should, at any rate. If you are a member of Christ’s body, then you are called and empowered to be a speaker of the truth, a communicator of the gospel. By your words and deeds, you will help the word of Christ to dwell richly among your fellow Christians. As this happens, you will be living faithfully who you are in Christ.

Reflect

In your experience, what helps you to have the good news of God’s love in Christ alive in your soul?

Who are the people in your life who “teach and admonish you in all wisdom”?

Who are the people in your life who help you to remember God’s love for you?

In what contexts are you teaching and admonishing others in all wisdom?

Act

In the next few days, remind someone that God loves them.

Pray

Gracious God, thank you for the good news of your grace in Christ. Thank you for the truth of this good news. Thank you for those who have helped me to know and believe this news. Thank you for those who continue to remind me of your love for me.

Help me, Lord, to be one who helps the word of Christ to dwell richly in my Christian community. May I be available to teach and admonish others. May your wisdom, the wisdom of the gospel, fill my speaking and acting.

At the same time, may I be open to being taught and admonished by my sisters and brothers in Christ. Help me to hear your truth and to receive your guidance through them. Together, may we let the word of Christ dwell richly among us. Amen.

Part 9: The Word in Worshipful Singing

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

When we sing in worship, we are singing to God. We are offering our words, our bodies, and all that we are to the God who loves us through Jesus Christ. The more we focus on God as we worship, the more we’ll be free to offer to the Lord a “new song.” We’ll be less focused on whether we like the worship or not, and more focused on giving all that we are to God as we sing.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

Today, we continue our devotional examination of Colossians 3:12-17. Last Thursday, we began looking at verse 16, which reads, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God.” I explained that in this English translation (NRSV) we have three parallel imperative clauses (let dwell, teach/admonish, sing). In the Greek original, however, we actually have one main imperative (Let the word of Christ dwell) followed by two supporting participial phrases (teaching/admonishing each other, singing to God). What this means is we can let the word of Christ dwell richly among us by teaching and admonishing each other and by singing to God. In today’s devotion I will focus on the final clause: “Let the word of Christ dwell among you . . . by singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God.”

Last Thursday I explained that in Colossians 3:16 the word of Christ is the word about Christ, the message about what God has done in Christ for us and our salvation. The word of Christ is what we often call the gospel, the good news of God’s grace in Christ by which we are saved, redeemed, and restored. One way we let this good news dwell in and among us is by “teaching and admonishing one another.” That was the point of the previous devotion.

Another way we let the word of Christ dwell among us is by singing. From the very beginning, the church has celebrated God’s love in Christ in song. We continue to do this day after day, week after week, year after year. Much of the music we sing in corporate worship focuses on the good news, as indeed it should. This allows that news to dwell among us in our corporate worship and to live within each of us individually. The songs we sing together remain in our hearts when we are apart, reminding us of God’s love and grace through Christ. So many times in my life, when I’ve been facing a difficult challenge or disappointment, a song from worship will fill my mind and heart, bringing reassurance of God’s love for me.

Colossians 3:16 refers to singing “to God.” Paul is clearly thinking of music used in the context of worship, where God is the primary audience of our singing. Sometimes it’s easy to get confused about this because our worship spaces feel like theatres and what happens up front feels like a performance for us. While recognizing that we get something out of the worship experience, Colossians reminds us that our worship is mainly for God’s pleasure and glory. As Søren Kierkegaard explained, when we worship, we are the performers and God is the audience. This is true whether we’re gathered together with others or whether we’re praising God in our personal devotions.

Paul writes that we’re to sing “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” to God. As you might imagine, scholars have for centuries attempted to figure out exactly what these musical types are. Some propose that psalms are Old Testament psalms put to music. Hymns are songs that are composed and sung in the same way week after week. Spiritual songs, many believe, are spontaneous songs given by the Holy Spirit and sung only once in a worship setting. We can’t be sure, however, that these interpretations are right. What we do know for sure, however, is that Paul was encouraging the believers in Colossae to use a rich variety of music in their worship: not just psalms, not just hymns, not just spiritual songs, but all of the above.

I’m sad to say that Paul’s counsel has not been followed by millions of Christians throughout church history. Conflict over musical styles in worship has plagued the church for centuries. In my pastoral experience, disagreement over what kind of music to use in worship has been one of the most pervasive and divisive issues in the churches where I’ve served. So many people want in worship only the kind of music they prefer. I get this, of course. I’m glad when what we sing in worship resonates with my soul and musical tastes. I struggle when songs are new or different or too loud or not to my liking.

But I have tried to let the truth of Colossians 3:16 guide both my practice and my attitude. Four things from this verse seem crucial to me. First, we’re to be open to a wide variety of sung music in worship. If I insist on only my particular preferences, then I’m out of sync with biblical teaching.

Second, no matter the genres of our music in worship, the lyrics should consistently celebrate the “word of Christ,” that is, the gospel of God’s love in Jesus Christ. This doesn’t mean every song has to be only about the good news. But it should be a pervasive theme throughout all that we do in worship, including our singing.

Third, in our worship, we are to sing “to God.” Once we understand that God is the primary audience of our worship, we’ll be prepared to offer singing as one expression of worship. We’ll stop thinking of ourselves as the main audience for worship. Rather than being preoccupied with our own experiences in worship, we’ll focus on how we can give ourselves to God more fully. Arguments about musical styles in worship will diminish when our hearts yearn more for God to be worshiped than for us to be happy with the music.

Fourth, we’ll be freed from our angst over worship styles when we sing to God “with gratitude in our hearts.” I’ll have more to say about gratitude in an upcoming devotion. But, today, I want to underscore the importance of thankfulness as we worship. For one thing, our thanks will be centered in the good news of what God has done in Christ, in fulfillment of the primary imperative in Colossians 3:16, “Let the word of Christ dwell.” Moreover, if we pay attention to all the ways God has blessed us, if we allow our hearts to be filled with gratitude, then there will be little room in them for worrying about worship expressions that aren’t what we prefer. Thankfulness has a way of cleansing our hearts of self-preoccupation, even as it opens our hearts to praising God with a new song (Psalm 96:1, 98:1, etc.).

Reflect

How do you feel about varieties of music in worship? Have you found that your opinions about this have changed over the years?

When you’re in a worship service, how aware are you of God as the primary audience of worship? When you sing, do you intentionally sing “to God”? If so, why? If not, why not?

To what extent is your worship of God an expression of thanks? What helps you to be thankful as you worship?

Act

The next time you join a service of corporate worship, prepare yourself by reflecting on how God has blessed you so that you might be able to worship with a grateful heart.

Pray

Gracious God, how we thank you for the good news of your love for us in Christ. Thank you for the ways you remind us of this good news, through our teaching of each other, and as we sing to you in worship.

God, I confess that it’s easy for me to get caught up in myself when I’m in corporate worship. I can focus on what I’m thinking and feeling, whether I like the sermon or the songs. I find it easy to forget that worship is for you, for your glory and joy. Help me, I pray, to remember this. Help me to focus on you as I worship, whether with others or when I’m alone.

Give me an open heart when it comes to worship expressions that are what I prefer. May I be open to singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. But, most of all, may I sing, not for my pleasure, but for yours. Be glorified, Lord, as I sing to you. Amen.

Part 10: Everything . . . Everything!

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Scripture calls us to do everything in the name of Jesus, not just the “spiritual stuff,” not just the things we do at church, but everything. When we take seriously this calling, it transforms our lives. It offers new meaning and purpose. It allows us to worship God, not just in worship or our devotions, but in every part of life, in everything we do.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

Today we press on to the final verse in our passage from Colossians. It reads: “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” (Colossians 3:17, NRSV). This is a fine rendering of the Greek into English, though it’s a little less repetitive than the original. Translating the Greek more literally we get, “And everything, whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.” We have two “everythings” there, as well as two other phrases that mean more or less the same thing. Paul wants to be sure that we do everything, yes, everything, in the name of the Lord Jesus.

Before we talk about the implications of “everything,” we need to examine briefly what it means to do something “in the name of the Lord Jesus.” This doesn’t mean, by the way, that we are always saying the name of Jesus. You can act in the name of someone without mentioning their name.

So what does it mean to act in the name of someone? First of all, it means you’re operating under the authority of that person. It assumes that you don’t have the right, all by yourself, to do or say something. Rather, your authorization comes from another person. Second, to do something in the name of someone means to act for that person’s purposes. Consider, for example, the case of an ambassador of a country. The ambassador acts under the authority of their country. They are not a free agent. Moreover, the ambassador is charged with advancing the purposes of their country. They should not be seeking their own benefit or that of their friends, but rather the benefit of the country they represent. So, to act in the name of Jesus is to act under his authority and for his purposes.

Colossians 3:17 says, therefore, that we’re to do everything under the authority of Lord Jesus and for his kingdom’s purposes. Actually, as I noted earlier, the verse says we’re to do “everything, whatever we do, in word or deed, everything” under Jesus’s rule and for his benefit. Why, we may wonder, was Paul being so redundant here? Why not just one “everything”? Or a solitary “whatever we do”?

I expect Paul knew how easy it would be for the Colossians to do for Christ only those things they considered to be religious. In the first-century Roman world, people divided up their lives into different parts, with the worship of the gods as one part of life, but not its ordering principle. The Christians in Colossae might have assumed that they were to do “religious” things for Christ, but not everything. Paul, however, following in the Jewish tradition, knew that all of life was to be lived for God, every last bit.

Today, we also find it natural to divide our lives up into God’s part and our part, into the sacred and the secular. The Christian life is mostly about doing spiritual things: praying, studying the Bible, evangelizing, supporting the mission of the church, being a good parent, seeking justice, and so forth. Those are essential elements of our new life in Christ, to be sure. But they aren’t “everything, whatever you do, in word or deed, everything.” Colossians 3:17, along with the whole narrative of Scripture, challenges us to see all of life as sacred, all of life as the context in which we’re to speak and act for Christ. We live out our new life as Christians in every facet of our experience: at work and at play, in our families and among our friends, at church, and in the community.

For many of us, the idea of doing everything in life for the Lord is a new one. What if your work is what you might call “secular”? What if it’s ordinary work, not something you associate with the kingdom of God? If you relate to these “what if” questions, then Colossians 3:17 invites you into a whole new way of thinking, living, and working, one filled with deeper meaning and joy.

For example, consider the experience of a friend of mine. Travis had hoped to become a high school teacher when he was young. He saw this as a way to serve the Lord through his daily work. But when Travis got married in college and his wife became pregnant, he had to quit school to support his family. So he started a window-washing business. Travis, as it turned out, was an excellent window washer. His business thrived and he was able to support his family well. But he always felt frustrated by what seemed to him to be the superficial and “unspiritual” nature of his work. Like so many Christians, he divided up his life into the spiritual stuff (church, family) and the secular stuff (daily work). He feared that he had missed his calling to serve God in his daily work.

But then Travis became aware of Christian teaching that took the biblical worldview seriously. Verses like Colossians 3:17 showed him that God cares about everything we do. Every sort of work matters to God. Travis came to believe that he could serve the Lord even as a window washer. He lived out his discipleship in the way he treated his clients, in the fairness of his prices, in the excellence of his performance. By cleaning windows for people, he was effectively adding to the beauty of the world by letting them see clearly what was outside of their windows. His new understanding of God’s care for everything transformed Travis’s way of thinking about what he did during the week. It energized him, excited him, and gave him a new vision for his life. He was now eager to do everything, yes, everything, in the name of Jesus.

You might already be seeking to do everything in the name of Jesus. If so, wonderful. Keep it up! But the idea that you should do everything . . . yes, everything, in the name of the Lord might be new for you. It might also cause you to wonder how this will work out in your life. For many of us, the shift from thinking about doing “spiritual things” for Jesus to doing “everything” involves a major change in how you think, feel, and act. If you find yourself in this “major change” group, I’ll suggest some possible action steps below.

For all of us, the call of Scripture remains clear: “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.” By God’s grace, may you live this way today.

Reflect

Do you already think of your life as doing everything in the name of the Lord? If so, where did you get this idea? If not, why not?

Do you tend to divide your life up into sacred and secular portions, with the sacred as the part that God cares about? If so, where did this way of thinking come from? If not, why not?

Are there parts of your life that you find difficult to imagine as being “in the name of the Lord”? If so, what parts are these? Why is it difficult to see these are something God cares about?

Act

If the notion of doing everything in the name of Jesus is new for you, let me suggest some things you might do:

Read an excellent book on faith and work. I’d suggest three: Work Matters, by Tom Nelson; Every Good Endeavor, by Tim Keller; and Make Work Matter, by Michaela O’Donnell.
Keep on reading Life for Leaders. My fellow writers and I are consistently seeking to encourage a “do everything for the Lord” approach to life and faith.
Talk with your small group or other wise Christians about how they do “everything” in the name of the Lord. We have much to learn from each other here.
Begin each day by offering yourself to the Lord. Ask for his help as you seek to do everything in his name that day.

Pray

Gracious God, thank you for the challenging imperative of Colossians 3:17. I certainly need to be reminded to do everything, yes, everything in your name.

I confess, Lord, that it’s easy for me to segment my life into “your part” and “all the rest.” I do the “spiritual” things for you, but not the other things. Forgive me, Lord, for failing to see how much you care about all of life.

Help me, I pray, to do everything, yes, every single thing, in your name. My I live my whole life under your authority and for your purposes. And if I’m not sure what this really means for my life, help me to grow in my understanding.

Be glorified, I pray, in my life today, in all I do and say. Amen.

Part 11: Thanks, Thanks, and More Thanks

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Again and again, Scripture calls us to be thankful. Why is gratitude so important? There are many reasons. Gratitude reminds us of the sovereignty and grace of God. Thankfulness transforms us, helping us to be happier and healthier. It also binds our hearts to the gift of salvation through the cross of Christ. When we are thankful, we are inspired to live our whole lives for God, doing everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

If you have been reading my recent devotions on Colossians 3:12-17, you may have wondered why I keep skipping something. Though I’ve been working step by step through the passage, often word by word, I did not mention a phrase in verse 15: “And be thankful.” Nor did I address a similar phrase in verse 16: “and with gratitude in your hearts.” Now, in verse 17, it says that we’re to do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, “giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Am I going to skip this part about giving thanks again? Do I have something against being grateful? No and no. No, I’m not going to skip this final phrase in our passage. And no, I do not have anything against being grateful. The truth is I’ve been saving up my comments on thanksgiving until now.

It’s certainly worth noting that Paul emphasizes giving thanks, commending it three times in three consecutive verses. This makes me wonder why. What motivated Paul to tell us to be thankful three times in row?

I expect that Paul may well have understood the natural tendency of human beings not to be grateful. We so easily take for granted the good things that happen to us, assuming that we deserve them. Or, when bad things happen, we get wrapped up in complaining and fail to see anything for which to be grateful.

We see a splendid picture of ingratitude in one of my favorite scenes from 1993 movie Groundhog Day. Bill Murray plays the role of Phil Connors, a self-absorbed, obnoxious weatherman trapped in one day, Groundhog Day, which he lives over and over, thousands of times. At first, he takes advantage of this repetition in order to live purely for his own pleasure. But, over time, he uses his familiarity with the day as an opportunity to show kindness to others. He knows precisely what they need and when they’ll need it.

In one scene, Phil is running along a tree-lined street because he knows that at a particular moment a boy is going to fall from a tree. At just the right time Phil gets to the spot so he can catch the boy, who is completely unharmed. While holding the boy in his arms, Phil says, “What do you say? What do you say?” The boy says nothing. As the boy runs off, Phil complains, “You little brat. You have never thanked me.”

I wonder sometimes if that might be one of God’s favorite scenes too. How often do we fail to thank God for his goodness to us!

Paul may also have repeated the command to give thanks because he understood that gratitude reminds us of something essential: who is in charge. When we thank God for the good things that happen to us, we recognize that they are from the gracious hand of our sovereign God. We remember that, as James puts it, “Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17).

Gratitude is also crucial to our lives because it transforms us and our experience of life. Ungrateful people are inevitably dour and gloomy. They see life from a negative point of view. Grateful people, on the contrary, are usually joyful and positive. Though they don’t deny the pains of life, they emphasize what’s good and enjoy thanking God for these things. There is a mountain of academic research that shows how the exercise of gratitude helps us to be, not just happier, but healthier. Grateful people live better and help others to do the same.

Gratitude anchors us to the cross of Christ. The Greek work for gratitude is eucharistia. This word is the basis for the English word Eucharist, which is a common name for the Christian celebration of communion. When we reflect on God’s many gifts to us, inevitably we come to the cross. We remember God’s gift of abundant, eternal life through Christ. Thus our gratitude, our eucharistia, binds us to the cross, to what we remember and celebrate in the Eucharist.

Finally, gratitude inspires us to “do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Colossians 3:17). We could be motivated to live our lives for God out of fear. Or we could be moved by basic obedience to God’s command. But when we take seriously what God has done for us in Christ, when we overflow with gratitude to God for his grace, then we are inspired to live fully for God, not out of fear or obligation, but out of joy and thanksgiving. We want to do everything in the name of the Lord as a way of expressing our deepest thanks to God for all of God’s gifts to us.

Reflect

What helps you to be grateful?

What keeps you from feeling and/or expressing gratitude?

As you think about your life today, for what are you most grateful? (You can give more than one answer here.)

Act

In the next couple of days, set aside some time, at least ten minutes, to focus on gratitude. Thank God for the good gifts God has showered upon you.

Pray

Gracious God, how good you are to me!

Forgive me when I forget this, when I get caught up in complaining, or when I simply assume that I am entitled to good things. Forgive me when I take your gifts for granted and fail to thank you for them.

Help me, I pray, to see your goodness plainly. Help me to acknowledge your grace, to thank you for all you have done for me. Even in difficult times, may I see your blessings and acknowledge them to you.

Most of all, God, thank you for the gift of Jesus Christ, for his life, ministry, death, and resurrection. Thank you for saving me through his death on the cross. May I live each day with gratitude, doing everything for you because you have given everything to me. Amen.

Part 12: Live Who You Are . . . Thankfully

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

We can live with gratitude even in difficult times. Why? Because God has chosen us, set us apart for God’s purposes, and loved us with a love that will never let us go. We are thankful, not because life is filled with pleasure and free of pain; rather, we are thankful because of what God has done for us through Christ. The more we live in light of this reality, the more we’ll be able to live each day with gratitude.

Today’s devotion is part of the series Live Who You Are.

Devotion

Today I am wrapping up the devotional series called “Live Who You Are.” As you know, it has been based on Colossians 3:12-17, an extraordinary passage that helps us live in daily life who we are as God’s special people. In yesterday’s devotion, I focused on the last phrase of our text, “giving thanks to God the Father through [Christ]” (3:17). Today, I will connect this closing phrase to the opening one, “As God’s chosen ones, holy, and beloved” (3:12).

I have noted before that this passage bases our life as Christians, not on the things we must do to earn God’s favor, but on the fact that God has already shown us his favor through Christ. Before Paul lays out how we should live, he addresses us as “God’s chosen ones, holy, and beloved.” God has chosen us, even as he once chose Israel, to be his special people. We are holy, that is, set apart by God for a relationship with God and for his purposes. And we are beloved, loved by God with a love that will never let us go. God has saved us, not on the basis of anything we have done, but as an expression of God’s own love and grace.

Because of who we are in Christ, we are to live each day as God’s special people. We do so by putting on the clothing of Christ: compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. We put up with and, as needed, forgive each other. Above all, we are to clothe ourselves with love. Then, we’re to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts and the word of Christ dwell richly among us by teaching each other and singing to God. No matter what we do, we’re to do everything under the authority of Jesus and for his purposes. As we do this, we will be filled with gratitude, giving thanks to God for all of God’s goodness to us.

The emphasis on gratitude in the closing verses of our passage connects back to the opening phrase. Why do we live with consistent thanksgiving? Because of what God has done for us in Christ. Because of who we are in Christ. To be sure, we are thankful for the daily gifts of God. But, most of all, we are grateful because God has chosen us, because God has set us apart, and because God loves us.

The more we attend to who we are as God’s special people, the more we will be motivated to live who we are. Plus, the more we will live with gratitude. Grateful hearts will also be open hearts, hearts ready to receive even more of God’s grace each day.

The picture of the Christian life in Colossians 3:12-17 is not one dominated by musts and shoulds, by rules and regulations. Yes, there are things we are to do and ways we are to live. But these things and ways are responses to God’s grace. Thus, we live thankfully, expressing our gratitude, not only in words, but also in actions that glorify God.

What we see in Colossians 3:12-17 reinforces something Paul wrote in the second chapter of this letter: “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:6-7). We are to live who we are in Christ. As we do this, we won’t be just a little bit grateful. Rather, we will abound in thanksgiving.

Notice that such abundance is not the result of everything being great in life. The Apostle Paul and the Christians in Colossae experienced plenty of challenges, disappointments, and afflictions. In fact, scholars call Colossians one of the “prison epistles” because it, along with Philippians, Ephesians, and Philemon, was written while Paul was imprisoned for his faith. In Colossians 1:24, Paul speaks of “rejoicing in [his] sufferings,” alluding to what he was experiencing as a prisoner. In 4:18 he asks the Colossians to remember his “chains.”

For Paul, gratitude was not a result of an easy life, a life filled with pleasure and free of pain. Rather, gratitude is a response to God’s grace, which touches us even when life is hard. Most of all, our thanks to God comes as a response to what God has done for us in Christ: choosing us, setting us apart, and loving us. Thus, when we live who we are as “God’s chosen ones, holy, and beloved,” we will live gratefully, doing everything in the name of the Lord Jesus and, in everything, “giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Reflect

Would you say that you live gratefully, at least most of the time? If so, why? If not, why not?

Can you think of someone you know who lives gratefully? If so, how does this person’s gratitude make a difference in how they live? Why are they grateful?

What helps you to reflect on who you are in Christ?

Act

Set aside some time in the next couple of days to reflect on who you are in Christ: chosen, holy, and beloved.

Pray

Gracious God, thank you for choosing us to be your people. Thank you for setting us apart for you and your purposes. Thank you for loving us with fierce and everlasting love.

Help me, Lord, to live who I am in Christ. As I go about the routine of my day, may I continually remember that I am special to you. And may this fact shape how I act and speak.

In every part of life and in all that I do, may I be grateful, remembering your love and grace. May I live who I am today! Amen.

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Devotional Series / Live Who You Are

Live Who You Are

Live Who You Are

Table of Contents

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Part 1: Live Who You Are: Introduction Life

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 2: Remember Who You Are

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 3: Counter-Cultural Clothing

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 4: Put Up With Each Other

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 5: Forgive Each Other

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 6: Clothe Yourselves with Love

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 7: Let the Peace of Christ Rule

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 8: Let the Word of Christ Dwell Richly

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 9: The Word in Worshipful Singing

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 10: Everything . . . Everything!

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion

Reflect

Act

Pray

Part 11: Thanks, Thanks, and More Thanks

Scripture – Colossians 3:12-17 (NRSV)

Focus

Devotion