New Clothes
"You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." Galatians 3:26-27
"You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." Galatians 3:26-27
I still remember the year and the feeling. 1984, beginning of the school year, and I was sportin' some superfly charcoal gray parachute pants, with this smokin' no collar, layered, lay open break dance shirt. First day of school, new clothes, feelin' good. I remember wanting to wear those clothes the moment my mom bought them for me about two weeks before school ever started. I tried them on about 30 times, and even broke out some sweet skills on the dance floor (which happened to be my kitchen floor) while trying them on. Man, it's funny, because right now I can go to that place and remember the smell, the look, and even the songs I used to love at that time.
New clothes make a serious impression on us, don't they? Paul says that for those of us that have been baptized into Christ (another way of saying that we have identified with Christ and experienced union with Him), Christ has given us new clothes. What kind of clothes are they? From what era? I mean, I already have my share of Def Leppard memorabilia, you might say, and I really don't need any more airbrush t-shirts from Six Flags that have an arrow pointing sideways and reading "I'm with Stupid." Well, these are not clothes from the closet. They're better. They are Jesus.
Paul tells us that when we experience union with Christ, it is like He clothes us with Himself. The greek word used for clothed is the word enduo and it means to cover over or to sink into. He literally covers us. We are covered in His righteousness, His grace, His freedom, His mercy, His wisdom, His love. And, don't miss this, we are also covered by His sinlessness. His perfection is what clothes us, and though we are not perfect in a practical sense, we have been made positionally perfect before God ONLY through the covering of His Son, our Savior, the Lord Jesus.
I was 19 years old when I got those new clothes from Jesus. I will never forget it. I can still remember the smells, the looks, the places, and the people. And these clothes are, and always will be, in style. Good thing too.......because my Members Only jacket is starting to get a little tattered.
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