Imaged in Him

"Because of these, the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience. You also once walked in those, when you lived in them; but now you also put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and shameful speaking out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old man with his doings, and have put on the new man who is being renewed in knowledge after the image of his Creator, where there cannot be Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Sythian, bondservant freeman; but Christ is all, and in all." Colossians 3:6-11NHEB

The emphasis in this passage is not the sinful behavior, even though we all are intimately acquainted with each thing listed. The emphasis here is on our new position which does not include this type of behavior toward others. "...Seeing that you have put off the old man with his doings, and have put on the new man who is being renewed in knowledge after the image of his Creator..." The key to our behavior is a true concept of our identity in Christ.

So often, we attempt to correct our behavior (and the behavior of others) with some form of behavior modification. This only works for a period of time. That period of time is useful if during it, much more than behavior modification is happening. The actions are never the real problem. The "being" is. We behave out of our internal person. We act lovingly or unlovingly to others because that's how we are inside. In this passage, the Holy Spirit is underlining for us that we have (past tense) purposely "put off" or turned away from, these types of behaviors, because we "have put on," literally we have purposely rejected and laid aside the motivations of these behaviors and have in Christ accepted the new person in us (done when we accepted Him into our beings). Now our life expression is motivated and controlled by a mind that is being renewed in the knowledge like the one who has Created us in Christ.

Now our personal and spiritual identity has changed; our DNA in our internal person is being made into the image of God Himself. In this family, all worldly differences in status or circumstance are gone. All is in Christ.

How do we allow our thinking to be renewed so our life expressions will be one of love and compassion toward others - who like us, struggle with the "old" way too much? Our answer is time with our Lord in and through the Word; accepting what He has said as our truth. When we begin to meditate on what He has clearly done for us and who He has clearly created us to be, then we become empowered to express our life in Him. Oh it is decisively our life expression - just in Him. So much to embrace. Lord, thank you. Your grace is really too good to be true, yet it is so deeply true, true, true. Thank you.