We are chosen, as we discussed before. Since we are chosen, we have responsibilities…but not as the world gives, as God gives. We are called to be merciful, kind, humble, etc. We cannot gauge the way we are to behave by the world. We can only look to the Lord. Here is what He said…
Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body, you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom He gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father. Colossians 3:12-17
Let the message about Christ in all its richness fill our lives. That is a powerful statement. Have you done this? Received the message of Christ in all its richness fill our lives. Do we even know what “in all its richness” means? I’m actually not sure. But I do want to find out.
Lord, Let the message about Christ in all its richness fill my life, in Jesus’ name Amen.
“Clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony”…I want to look at this portion next. Our world has worked overtime to attempt to define love, and they have failed miserably. The love the world describes isn’t love at all…it’s self-serving, manipulative, demanding…but when we remember 1 Corinthians 13…we know love is none of those things. In fact, it’s the opposite. Not only that, but love can disagree. Love stands on truth. Love doesn’t compromise with a lie. Honestly, when you look at it, the world has taken hate and put a mask on it and called it love. It’s an illusion. It’s a lie.
“And always be thankful”…this is the next portion I wanted to discuss. We must remain thankful. It’s not an option, it’s a standard. We have to learn gratitude as a knee-jerk response, not a begrudging action. Imagine how drastically your life would change if your first response was gratitude…not lack. What if you chose gratitude over never being satisfied…you see how transformational this would be? There is more than enough of everything for you…so you can always be thankful without attaching a further need to it. Just be thankful. Thankfulness is an act of trust…which attaches it to faith. Thankfulness is an act of faith. Let that sink in.
Finally, “Whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord”…do you do this?
This is really a convicting portion of scripture. I think we could probably all work harder to walk in this way. Today is a good day to begin!
Lord, help me to always live my life as if I know I am representing you. Forgive me for every time that I’ve fallen short in this area. Heighten my awareness of Whose I am. I adore You, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
365 Days in the Presence 