If you have been a Christian
for very long, you are probably already familiar with the Armor of God found in
Ephesians 6. But, do you know about the
clothes you are supposed to have on UNDER the armor???
Colossians 3:12-14 - Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy
and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness,
humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and
forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as
the Lord forgave you. And
over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in
perfect unity.
Things to think about:
· Wardrobe
Malfunction
o
In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve did a pretty poor job of
getting dressed.
o
God made better clothes for them and He’s designed a heavenly
fashion for us too.
· What’s in
season this year?
o
Compassion
o
Kindness
o
Humility
o
Gentleness
o
Patience
o
Love
· Why are we
getting all dressed up anyway?
o
So we can be more like the Designer
§ Forgive as
the Lord forgave you
§ Bear with one
another
· Why are these
articles of clothing needed for us to be in harmony with one another
o
These are the same qualities God lavishes on us in our weakness
o
Which of these qualities can be a little itchy or chafing at
times?
· The armor in
Ephesians is to protect against external enemy forces.
o
Our clothing here is to keep us together internally and not war
with one another.
§ The armor is
hard, these articles are soft and gentle
o
Our fight is with the forces of evil, not fellow believers who
will inevitably stumble or not meet our expectations in some way.
§ Of course,
this is true of us as well; we have let someone down or offended and are in
need of others forgiving us.
· Above all,
put on love (not guilt or obligation)
o
This isn’t a costume to pretend you’re something you’re not
o
The sincerity that can only be motivated by love must be the
overriding basis for our actions
o
Otherwise, our “good works” are really just filthy rags
Dress for Success!
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