In our last post – Yeshua t shirt and Isaiah 61:10, we examined Isaiah’s prophecy about how God would redeem and clothe us with a garment of salvation. Today, we are grateful to God for fulfilling that promise through Yeshua, His beloved Son.
We also said that as believers, we should be eager to exhibit this glorious work of redemption by wearing imprinted Christian clothes like the Yeshua t shirt. However, when we compared Isaiah’s prophecy in Isaiah 61:10 with Paul’s exhortation in Colossians 3:12, we found out that physically demonstrating the garment of salvation God has clothed us with goes way beyond just wearing Christian t-shirts alone.
In Colossians 3:12, Paul instructed the church in Colossae to clothe themselves with God’s attributes (compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience). What does this mean, and how does it relate to Isaiah 61:10? Let’s settle that here!
What Does It Mean to Wear God’s Attributes?
As we all know, salvation is a gift of grace. Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.” Suppose you are unsure of what Paul is saying here. He went ahead and clarified it in verse 9, “Not of works, lest anyone should boast.”
So, when it comes to salvation from sin, there’s nothing on our part to do other than to receive what Yeshua has done by faith. I am sincerely grateful for the revelation of this truth through churches and Christian evangelism ministries in Israel like ours today. Like the Prophet Habakkuk prophesied in Habakkuk 2:14, the knowledge of the glory of the Lord is filling everywhere just as the waters cover the sea.
However, salvation is not the end-all in the Christian life. After salvation, God wants us to begin to walk with Him every day. Look at what Paul says in the Bible passage below:
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (II Corinthians 5:17)
Here, Paul is saying that when someone believes in Yeshua, God gives him a brand-new nature. Peter called that nature the “divine nature” in II Peter 2:14. This new life is the very nature that exists in God.
If you are as curious as I am, you want to know why God would go so far as to give us His very own nature. Couldn’t He have given us something else – maybe the nature of angels or something else?
God wanted us to be like Him. He always wanted us to be like Him – even before the world began. So when we believe in Yeshua, God makes us His children and seals us with His Spirit (Galatians 4:6-7; Romans 8:15; II Corinthians 2:12).
Because we now have God’s nature, God wants us to live out His attributes. As the Hear O Israel prayer says, we are to love and obey God in all that we do. That’s no longer difficult since we have the same nature! Paul explained this truth in Philippians 2:13, when he said, “For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.”
Living out God’s attributes is not an automatic lifestyle. We have a role to play in it. In Colossians 3:12, Paul tells us what to do.
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. (Colossians 3:12 – NIV)
We are to consciously clothe ourselves with godly attributes. God’s part is to provide us with the desire and ability to please Him (Philippians 2:13). The desire alone does not do the job. We must choose to walk in obedience through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. The big question now is how?
How Can We Wear God’s Attributes?
How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. (Psalm 119:9)
Taking heed to God’s Word is the only way to showcase God’s life in our daily living. Just as Joshua instructed the Israelites in Joshua 1:8, we are to read and meditate on the Word both day and night. And that takes us back to what we said about loving God in the article, The Hear O Israel Prayer and the Greatest Commandment. In that post, I emphasize the need to love God with all our hearts, all our souls, and all our strengths. One of the ways to obey this instruction is by reading and meditating on the Word of God. When we do these, God’s nature in us will effortlessly find expression through our lifestyle.
Final Thoughts
Beyond wearing Christian t-shirts, God wants us to clothe ourselves with His attributes. Our lifestyle must exhibit the nature of God in us. You see, we cannot afford to downplay this in our Christian walk. The more our lifestyle mirrors God to the unsaved, the easier it will be for us to communicate the Gospel to them. So in addition to wearing a Yeshua t shirt, let’s also wear God’s attributes everywhere we go.