365 Days of the Great Names of God, Day 281: Garment

Garment

“You have all put on Christ as a garment.” (Galatians 3:27 NEB)

"Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all. Therefore, God's chosen ones, holy and loved, put on heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, accepting one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a complaint against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so also you must [forgive]. Above all, [put on] love-the perfect bond of unity."(Colossians 3:11-14 CSB)

I love the "put ons" of Scripture.

"Put on" light (Romans 13:12).

"Put on" Jesus (Romans 13:14).

"Put on" a new self (Ephesians 4:24).

"Put on" the armor of God (Ephesians 6:13).

"Put on" compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience (Colossians 3:12).

"Put on" love (Colossians 3:14).

God's directive to "put on" these things calls for action and intentionality. We don't get dressed by accident. We choose what we're going to wear and then take action to "put on" the clothing we've picked out. (If you're a teenage girl, this can be a long process.)

Putting on our spiritual clothing—as if we are outfitting ourselves in Christ our Garment—must also be intentional. Getting dressed in Jesus can take some effort. It's easier to stay in the comfy pajamas of our old nature. Our arms get tangled in the sleeves of kindness. We have to strain to reach the back button of forgiveness. The zipper of compassion gets stuck.

And here's another thing about "putting on" our Garment: we can't expect to get dressed in His clothing one time and have our outfit stay fresh and crisp. Forgiveness, unity, humility, and all the rest get limp after we wear them for a while.

We also can't expect people to keep noticing what we're wearing—our external spiritual "clothing" that gives visibility to our internal spiritual salvation—if we keep wearing the same outfit day after day. If I put on light, it will probably catch someone's attention at first, but after a while, it will grow dim. They'll get used to seeing it. "Oh, she's wearing the same old thing. I've seen that before," they'll say. I'll need to put on fresh light that someone in the dark will notice.

Let's "put on" Christ as a garment, beloved. Let's make the decision to outfit ourselves in His nature. Sometimes, kindness will be scratchy. Sometimes, patience will feel too tight. Sometimes, unity won't fit quite right. Sometimes, we won't feel like wearing love.

But when we have put on the new clothing of Jesus over our old wardrobe of self, we have the hope—to God be the glory—of hearing someone say, "I love your new outfit. He looks great on you."