What would Jesus wear? It’s a question about your spiritual closet
By Dean Collins
Perhaps you can identify with my wardrobe problem. You have a shirt or sweater, maybe a certain ball cap for a guy, that is old but is really comfortable. Whatever the item you have in your mind now, you know is a bit tired looking. It’s likely faded and frayed, but about every week you pull it out and wear it. You just can’t part with a favorite that is familiar and comfortable.
My wife and my daughters have influenced my wardrobe, and when I follow their advice I’m usually pretty good in appearance. But if I try and pull out certain items and mix them, my appearance might bring an odd look or comment. I think the apostle Paul suggested a similar problem we can experience in our spiritual wardrobe.
Choosing every day
No, I’m unaware of and would probably run from some designer Christian clothing line. But every day we have a choice of what we will put on as we interact with others at home or work, socially, recreationally, and at church. It’s either the old self or the new self. And there’s a noticeable difference.
Before we came to Jesus the old self dominated. We tended to make decisions on our own and often just to please ourselves. And if we can be honest with ourselves, we’ll admit some of that old self was not so good. It was selfish, a bit greedy in a variety of areas. It followed the culture in most ways.
But when we met Jesus and saw the contrast of our sinful nature compared to his purity, we were convicted by his love and grace and made a decision to follow him, allowing a wonderful transformation to occur. Paul described this new self as one that reflects God’s original intention. As believers, we are transformed into the likeness of God, which means we are to live a righteous and holy life.
To accomplish the work God has entrusted us with, we must choose the right wardrobe. We can’t keep going back to the old tired and poor-fitting ways of life.
Get rid of the old
Here is a snapshot of the two garments.
Old self:
Deceitful, corrupt speech, bitterness, anger, slander, nosy, and noisy
New self:
Put in an honest day’s work
Build others up with our words and actions
Practice grace
Be kind to each other both in and out of the church and at home as well
Forgive others the way Jesus forgives us
Be loving and tenderhearted to others
It starts with the mind. We must make a choice to surrender ourselves to the mind of Christ and be renewed by his Spirit, or else we will reach for the old and familiar ways of living. In Romans 12 Paul had a similar emphasis. We present our bodies to Christ daily and we renew our minds by the daily transformation of God’s Spirit. When we start right in our thinking, we will grab the proper wardrobe for the day.
Sooner or later we simply have to throw away the stuff in the closet that doesn’t look like anything Jesus would wear.
Your time with God’s Word
Ephesians 4:20-26, 28-32; Romans 12:1-2, 9-21 ESV
Photo by Becca McHaffie on Unsplash
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