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#4 Who Can I Count On?
God's Special People
Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and
dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness
and patience . . . And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all
together in perfect unity.
(Colossians 3:12-14)
We are all accustomed to
speaking of the Jews as God's chosen people. It's scriptural. But there's
something especially fascinating about what Paul says concerning the church
here. It's hidden just under the surface: ". . . God's chosen people, holy and
dearly loved." All those expressions are picked straight out of Deuteronomy
7:6-8, where they apply to Israel.
The New Testament calls the church "the Israel of God"
(Galatians 6:16). Many of the things that applied to Israel as a chosen people -
holy and specially loved by God - now apply to the church. Why? Because just as
God wanted a people, a community, which was readily identified with him in Old
Testament days, so he wanted a people, a community, which is readily
identifiable with him now. That new community is the church.
Christians must understand that they are called to relate,
not only to Christ, but to a community of believers. God doesn't just want
individuals running around the place; he wants a clearly distinguishable,
distinctive people - dearly loved, set apart, chosen to be his people. That is
why an individual Christian should always be identified with a specific
community of believers. We are not only to model our Christianity individually;
we are to model it corporately as a people of God.
These people of God are to demonstrate unique behavior.
Community behavior in the church is not like community behavior outside the
church. Community behavior in the church is characterized by Christian graces.
Paul says believers are to be "clothed" with them, which suggests the need to
put out some effort. Notice the sorts of things that Christians are to be
clothed with: "compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." These
are nearly the same thing listed in the "Fruit of the Spirit" passage in
Galatians 5. Christian graces blossom in our lives as the Holy Spirit works in
through us and as we make an effort to cooperate with him.
Am I characterized by compassion and kindness, humility,
gentleness, and patience? By nature I know I'm not. Enough people have told me
so. And yet the Spirit of God is working on the old man.
Once in a while, do you get a glimmer of progress in this
area? I profoundly hope so. I hope all of us can he honest and say, "Yes, I am
lacking in compassion. I'm not very kind. I'm not very humble, either. I thought
I was. I got all humbled and then I got proud of it."
Maybe we can look at ourselves and say, "This is what I am,
but by the grace of God changes are taking place. I'm working on it. I'm
troubled and concerned about it. I want to be part of a community characterized
by these things. I know it's going to take the work of the Spirit in my life and
my cooperative effort with him."
What binds all these things together? What keeps them
functioning as they ought? "Over all these virtues," writes Paul, "put on love,
which bind them all together in perfect unity."
What does it mean to you to be called "God's
chosen people, holy and dearly loved"?
Lord, thank you for giving me compassion,
kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience to put on. Please help me to
remember to clothe myself in them, Amen
~Stuart Briscoe~
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