Be different

Categories: god

Tags: God, Christianity, Jesus, Christ, Advent

Date: 18 December 2012 09:58:23

Blogging through Advent 14

Be different

Colossians 3:12-17

It has been said that religion is a list of things you can't do. That stop you having fun. The list in the previous blog whilst still being of the "do not" type were anything but, they were all things which prevent you from getting on with people. And now we come to the positive bit:
12 Put on therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, a heart of compassion, kindness, lowliness, humility, and perseverance; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, if any man has a complaint against any; even as Christ forgave you, so you also do. 14 Above all these things, walk in love, which is the bond of perfection. 15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your heart to the Lord. 17 Whatever you do, in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father, through him.
This could be subtitled How to get on with people. People who show compassion, kindness, humility etc. are the ones we tend to trust. These are the things we have to put on because these are the things that the new life in Christ are all about. It isn't about fretting if we are not like this naturally either. The passage says, "Let the peace of God rule in your hearts. We don't start from stressing ourselves out because we are not good enough. We start from resting in the God who can make us good enough, and who has already started making us good enough. This is the nature of Christ, and as we allow Christ to make us more like him this is what we become like.