“Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering.”
Colossians 3:12 (NKJV)
You’ve probably seen the trend online where people say, “Get ready with me.” Or when someone posts what they wore for the day and captions it OOTD, outfit of the day. They show you their options, what they picked, sometimes where they’re going, and even ask for opinions along the way. We’ve created cute abbreviations for these things. GRWM. OOTD. Simple ways to share our daily choices and expressions. Some of these outfits are genuinely beautiful. Thoughtfully put together and intentional.
Similarly, our text today tells us how we are supposed to get ready too. It shows us the outfits a Christian should be clothed in on a daily basis. This is our own spiritual OOTD or GRWM.
OOTD: Christ
Paul lists a couple of things we are supposed to put on, and to me, they seem familiar. Like something we have seen in Galatians 5. These are qualities the Spirit produces in the life of a believer led by the Spirit and not the flesh, and this instruction from Paul sounds a lot like Romans 13:14:
“But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” -Romans 13:14 (NKJV)
When you look closely, everything Colossians 3:12–14 is telling us to put on is found in Christ. These are fruits that come from the Spirit of God. And we only have access to them because we are in Christ. So if you were to summarise what Colossians 3 is saying, it is indirectly saying the same thing Romans 13:14 says. Put on Jesus Christ.
When you put on Christ, you automatically put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forgiveness, and love.
Chosen, Holy, Beloved
And why is God asking you to put on Christ and make no provision for the flesh? Apart from the fact that the flesh profits nothing, it’s also because you are His own.
You are His elect.
You are holy.
You are beloved.
You are God’s elect, chosen by Him. Not because you were the most qualified, the strongest, or the most impressive. You were chosen out of His mercy. On your own, you don’t qualify. None of us do. We qualify because of the sacrifice of Jesus, His death and resurrection.
You are holy because the Holy Spirit lives on the inside of you and He has sanctified you and set you apart from this world. That means unholiness is no longer normal for you. Sin is no longer your natural environment.
And you are beloved. Loved. Accepted. Seen by God. That is why I will keep calling you “Beloved” in this devotional. You need to be reminded of the very fact that you are the Beloved of God. Knowing His love is the only thing that casts out fear.
Over the next few days, we’re going to look at each of these one after the other, what they actually mean, and how we consciously put them on.
As we begin this series, take time today to meditate on this identity.
You are chosen.
You are holy.
You are loved.
This is the foundation from which your spiritual OOTD flows.
Confession
I know who I am in Christ.
I am chosen by Your mercy.
I am holy because.
I am deeply loved by Abba.
I live from this identity.
I put on Christ daily and do not give room to the flesh.
My conduct reflects the life of Christ in me, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Bible Reading for Today
Colossians chapter 3
Shalom
