Putting on New Clothes – Colossians 3:5-10
We regularly experience moments in our lives where our expectations for our own maturity and growth do not match reality. In Colossians 3:5-10, Paul challenges our disappointment with a vision for growth that is about learning to grow into the clothes we’ve already been given.
“My life is not where I thought it would be.”
Our expectations do not always line up with reality.
Why haven’t I experienced true and lasting transformation in my life?
Summary of Colossians
This letter is written to a young church: The Apostle Paul writes this letter from prison to a young church in the city of Colossae that they may grow in “maturity to Christ” (1:28), despite the cultural pressures that they were experiencing.
Christ began a new Kingdom: The foundation for resisting cultural pressure is recognizing we have been saved from ourselves and are now citizens of a new Kingdom– established in Christ. (1:13;1:15-20;3:1)
Spiritual maturity is learning to live in that new Kingdom: Paul believes that learning to live in the Kingdom of Jesus transforms every aspect of our lives.
In verse 5, he outlines the first list, sins of desire. He says: “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you:[a] sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”
In verse 8, he outlines the second list, sins against community. He says, “But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.”
Dos and Don’ts
In a letter, Paul writes for the purpose of growing the Colossians' spiritual maturity, this is the first instance of a has dos and don'ts list.
Paul knew something that we often forget: rules don’t compel people to act, stories do.
This is why Pauls spends the first two Chapters of Colossians rooting us, placing us in the story of Jesus.
Putting to Death Sin
“[T]o put something to death you must cut off its lines of supply- every Christian has the responsibility before God to investigate the lifelines of whatever sins are defeating him personally and to cut them off without pity- Better that than have them eventually destroy you…One cannot always prevent angry or hateful thoughts from springing into one’s head, but they should be dealt with firmly before they turn into words. It is not ‘healthy’, as is sometimes supposed, to allow such thoughts to find expression. It is certainly healthy to recognize and face up to one’s own anger or frustration, and to search for proper and creative ways of dealing with it. But words do not merely convey information or let off steam. They change situations and relationships, often irrevocably. They can wound as well as heal. Like wild plants blown by the wind, hateful words can scatter their seeds far and wide, giving birth to more anger wherever they land.” – N.T. Wright
Paul ends these lists with a summative statement. He says in v. 9 and 10;
“9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self[c] with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”
Sins as Lies
“You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” – John 8:44
“our fight with the devil is first and foremost a fight to take back control of our minds from their captivity to lie and liberate them with the weapon of truth.” – John Mark Comer
Clothing Metaphor
The idea of clothing is commonly associated with resurrection. When Lazarus is resurrected, Jesus instructs the people to unbind him, to rid him of his burial clothes. When Jesus is resurrected, he leaves his burial clothes behind.
“The very first tear he made was so deep that I thought it had gone right into my heart. And when he began pulling the skin off, it hurt worse than anything I’ve ever felt. The only thing that made me able to bear it was just the pleasure of feeling the stuff peel off.” – CS Lewis
1. We live in the already but not yet.
Paul in v. 1 of Chapter three says if you then have been raised with Christ in the past tense. Then in v. 10, he says our new self is being renewed in knowledge present tense.
“As people our souls are tethered to [the story or kingdom of Jesus] like a rubber band and the further we get from that story the more tension we feel. And being that we live in the between there are constantly things that belong to death pulling us from that kingdom citizenship.” –Ashley Anderson
Part of the reason transformation is difficult is because although we have been clothed in new clothes we still live in a world filled with old clothes. We are in the already but not yet.
2. Transformation does not feel achievable is because we focus too much on our old clothes.
Paul goes on later in vv. 12-14 to say don’t focus on the old clothes, but focus on the new ones.
We need to focus more on our new clothes and not on our old ones
3. Transformation feels difficult because we lack the long view.
Malcolm Gladwell’s 2008 book, Outliers: The Story of Success explains that in order to become an expert in anything you have to spend at least 10,000 hours practicing a particular skill. That equates to 20 hours a week for 10 years.
SPIRITUAL PRACTICE |
What would it look like to apply the 10,000 hour rule to our spiritual formation? Could it be that this transition from old to new clothes is something that happens over a lifetime and not simply a day, a week, a month, or a year?
“As I write this [chapter], I just came off a pretty rough week. A few interpersonal things had me really stressed out and by the time my Sabbath rolled around I was really feeling it. I’ve had an adulthood-long struggle with anxiety, that while better than it’s ever been, still rears its ugly head on a regular basis. And in that moment of discouragement, when I was literally thinking, Will I ever mature past anxiety’s hold on my soul? I felt the Spirit remind me to take the long view.
Here’s John Mark and peace in his twenties…. Not much to look at. A very anxious young man with a tortured sensitivity.
Here’s John Mark and peace in his thirties… Better but still a long way to go.
Forties… Wow, I see a noticeable uptick. But still a lot of road ahead
But by the time I’m in my sixties? Deep shalom, friends, deep shalom. Come what may, my soul is at peace with God.
So with that vision of my future self in mind, I go about the rest of my day. I am practicing the Way of Jesus as best I can and playing the long game. As my father frequently said, take the long view.” – John Mark Comer
What would it look like to establish a vision for our new lives in Jesus?
