Extreme Makeover: Heart Edition - Himalayan Heights – May 11 Readings: Colossians 3:12 – Put on Humility

 Colossians 3:1-17 A Primer in Christian Living

All Scripture is God-breathed and useful, but there are some Scriptures that we can consider the Himalayan mountaintops of the Bible. In the next few months, we will be looking at a series of great texts that inspire and move us - the "Himalayan Heights" of God's Word.

Today's Reading:  Colossians 3:1-17

Colossians 3:1-17 is a step by step guide to Christian living. It is a series of 12 commands, each of which builds on the previous one, laying out how we should live as followers of Jesus Christ. Each day, read the entire 17 verses, then meditate on the verse or verses that are the focus passage.

12 Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience...

Phase 2: Out with the Old; In with the New
Step 6: Put on Humility

NOTES: When we take off the clothes of pride, of anger, malice, and slander, we replace them with clothes of humility. As there were five words describing the filthy clothes of pride, there are five words describing humility.

Through the Bible Readings: 2 Samuel 11-12, Luke 23:44–56, Psalm 59:14–17, Proverbs 12:23-24

If you wish to read through the Bible in a year, follow these readings. 

Devotional:   Extreme Makeover - Heart Edition 

For a while, I really got into those house flipping shows, where someone would purchase a beat-up, run-down old house and by the end of the episode, it would look brand new. The house would be gutted and all sorts of obstacles would be encountered as they reconstructed it.

That is what is going on in Colossians 3:5-14. The old run-down dwelling of the flesh, filled with rage, anger, malice, slander, and abusive speech is gutted and rebuilt with a new materials of compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. The old self responded to injury and aggravation with rage and anger, but the new response is compassion and kindness. The rundown flesh was motivated by malice but in the new building of Christ the motivation is humility. In the old building, we treat others with slander and abusive speech, but in the new building there is meekness and patience.

Each of these five words describing the new clothes of Christ (to switch back to our original metaphor) corresponds to one of the five "filthy clothes of pride" that we were ordered to put away in verse 8. 

Compassion means to be deeply moved by the suffering of others, especially by the effects of sin on others. We are not judgmental towards others, but recognize that they are deceived and enslaved. We hate the sin that destroys them and feel deep compassion on them because of the effects of sin. True compassion does not excuse sin, but it moves us deeply to share Christ and to shine his light in the darkness. 

Kindness is compassion in action. We do not treat others on the basis of how they treat us, or return evil for evil. We treat others on the basis of how Christ treated us. Jesus gave himself to meet our eternal needs. His kindness motivates ours. We live to meet the eternal and temporal needs of others. We are willing to be inconvenienced to serve others, even to sacrifice and suffer. We serve others regardless of how they have treated us or how they respond when we serve them. 

Humility is the key to everything. Pride tells us to put ourselves forward, to seek positions of honor and power. Christ humbled himself and served others. We are called to live in humility. That does not mean we have to belittle ourselves or act as if we have no value. Humility is seeing ourselves in the light of who God is and what he has done for us. 

In Philippians 2:3 we are commanded to "count others as more significant than ourselves." A humble person sees himself as a servant to others, as a pauper among the nobility. If Jesus, who deserves Heaven’s glory, served, why should we who deserved Hell’s torment do any less?

Humility is seeing God as he is, and seeing myself as I am in that light, then treating others on the basis of that truth!

 There is no English word that translates the Greek word "praus." We often use the word "meek." The meek inherit the earth. It refers to those who are kind and gentle, to a horse that had been broken to saddle, to a kind king or a judge who was not harsh. The Bible creates a whole new meaning. 

There are many facets to that meaning, but three key ideas should be mentioned. One who is meek is under God's control, like the horse who is broken to saddle. Meek does not mean wimpy, but it means under the Lordship of Christ. Second, a meek person is gentle, taking care not to injure others. A servant of Christ may rebuke sin, but will never seek to harm another with words or actions. Finally, a person who is meek is willing to endure hardships and suffering to be a blessing to others. 

That leads to our fifth word, patience. This word means to "suffer long" or to be slow to anger. Instead of responding with abusive speech and slander to provocation, in Christ we endure the wrongs that others do to us and we continue to show the love of Christ. 

Of course, none of this is possible without Christ and the work of the Spirit within. He empowers us to leave behind the old works and become all new. He is the master-builder who renovates our lives to become brand new in him. 

Father, create in me a clean heart. Renew me. Cleanse me.

Think and Pray:

If your life were a home makeover show, would you be the before or the after? Does your life exhibit more of the deeds of darkness or the five behaviors we outlined today?