God gives us two wardrobes.
One is the wardrobe of royalty. It is how those who are part of the King's household should dress: As those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience...(Colossians 3:12ff). This is what we are to wear when we are connecting and interacting with others in the family of believers.
The other is the garb of a warrior. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil... (Ephesians 6:11ff). This outfit is truth, righteousness, faith, peace. This is what we are to wear when we are facing the enemy of our souls.
God gives us both wardrobes to fit perfectly for each occasion. But sometimes we wear the wrong outfit. Sometimes when interacting with our brothers and sisters in Christ we try to show off our righteousness, assert our truth and glory in our faith. Then when we come in contact with sin in our lives we indulge ourselves with an abundance of kindness and patience or we make peace with the devil rather than standing firm against him.
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Interesting. Thanks for opening my eyes to those deeper messages and challenges, Carol.
ReplyDeleteLinda
Very well put, Carol. I have never thought about our spiritual wardrobes this way... and how we too often wear the wrong thing for the occasion. Convicting... and helpful.
ReplyDeleteI was reminded of this post again this morning when I ran across a surprise in Isaiah 59:17. Did you know that God also wears (at least a portion of) the armor of God?
ReplyDelete"He put on righteousness as his breastplate,
and the helmet of salvation on his head..."
I'm still pondering what this means and how it should change my perception of putting on armor myself. One realization for me is that I've always pictured the Ephesians call as a defensive move... but the Isaiah passage is making me reconsider. Maybe it should be more of an offensive move...
Thanks for this, Melody. Not sure I've noted that before. On a parallel topic, take a look at the April 28 post.
ReplyDelete