Colossians 3:12-17 –
12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him
Introduction
Christians are in Christ and so we must put on Christ, and especially those aspects of Christlikeness that foster unity and peace within the church. I’ve tried to explain that Paul’s perspective on putting on Christ is like the four legs of a chair in the sense that we need all four legs to be truly stable. In that way, putting on Christ means remembering who we are in Jesus (chosen, holy, and beloved—first leg), putting on the attitudes of Jesus (compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience—second leg), putting on the actions of Jesus when there is conflict among us (bearing with, forgiving, and loving one another—third leg), and, finally, this morning, we’ll consider the fourth leg (knowing how to do so as Christ commands and models).
When we put all of that together, we’ve seen that we will never be able to feel or do what Paul calls us to feel and do (put on Christ in our attitudes and actions), if we don’t first believe we are who Paul says we are (put on Christ in our identity). While that’s always the case, it’s particularly true in times of conflict within the church.
That’s where we’ve been.
All of that sounds well and good, doesn’t it Grace? For the most part, it all makes sense, right? And for the most part, most of you want all of that, don’t you?
But there’s an elephant-in-the-room question, isn’t there? How? How do we do that? How does it happen? I’m sure all of you have tried to do all of that in some measure, but I’m also sure that none of us are all the way there. So, what would God have us do?
In a very real way, I think that’s what vs.15-17 are all about—answering the question: How do we put on Christ in identity, attitude, and action when things are hard? In this last sermon on this passage, we’ll find the answer (which is the big idea of this sermon): We let the peace, Word, and name of Christ rule, dwell in, and compel us. The main takeaway is to do just as Paul says and purposefully yield to the Spirit’s work in these ways.
How to Put on Christ in Identity, Attitude, and Action (15-17)
Before we get to the three practical ways Paul commends to the church for putting on Christ, let’s first remember that only those who are already in Christ can put on Christ in a Colossians 3:12-17 kind of way. And we can only be in Christ by grace, through faith, in the sacrificial death and death-conquering resurrection of Jesus.
From beginning to end, the Christian life is dependent on the gospel of God in Jesus Christ. He is the promiser, the initiator, the accomplisher, the applier, the sustainer, the finisher, and the aim of it all. Every aspect of our life in Jesus is from Jesus, for Jesus, by Jesus, and to Jesus.
In that way, as we work our way through these practical aspects of putting on Christ, let us never forget that God provides all that He requires, that the grace that justifies also sanctifies, and that the means of obeying God are every bit as tied to the grace of God as the obedience itself.
Let the Peace of Christ Rule in Your Hearts (15)
With that, the first of the three practical ways Paul gives his readers to put on Christ is found in v.15.
15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body.
I read a book recently called “The Anxious Generation.” It was filled with alarming statistics. Among the most egregious, are the facts that in the past decade there’s been a 106% increase in self-reported anxiety in college students, a 121% increase in suicides among 10-14 year olds, and a 134% increase in diagnosed depression among 18-22 year olds. Even though, by nearly every measurable metric, we have the highest standard of living in the history of the post-Garden world, we are an exceedingly anxious people.
Given that, any offer of peace sounds great. But v.15 isn’t about just any offer of peace. It’s about the fullest, best, longest lasting, and most restful peace. It’s about the only true peace. It’s about the peace of Christ and the fact that it’s ours to receive.
So what is the peace of Christ? Embedded in this simple verse are two aspects of it.
The first aspect of the peace of Christ is contained in the words, “in your hearts.” It is personal, individual. Jesus himself spoke of it, promising it to His followers, just a few days before His crucifixion, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you…” (John 14:27). What kind of peace did Jesus leave and give? He immediately clarified by commanding, “Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
In other words, this first aspect of the peace of Christ is a lack of fear or troubled spirit. It is an inner sense that everything is truly OK because of who Jesus is and what His work on the cross accomplished for us. It is a deep-in-the-bones, Holy Spirit-birthed (John 14:26) kind of peace that cuts through every anxiety and grief for those whose trust is in Jesus. It is a kind of rest that comes only to those who know they have been made right with God by Jesus and that Jesus is continually working all things for their good.
It’s a kind of peace that remains even when you’re having trouble having kids, or your kids are having trouble, or you’re having trouble sending your kids off. The peace of Christ is such that it remains even when you get that diagnosis or prognosis. It remains in your heart even when you lose friends or a job or even your life for the sake of Christ. It’s the kind that holds fast even when there is conflict among Christians.
It’s a kind of peace that has been left and given by Jesus. We must merely “let” it take effect “in our hearts” by believing Jesus. O what a peace.
The second aspect of the peace of Christ is no less spectacular. It is contained in the words, “in one body.” It is a corporate kind of peace. And it is named and unpacked in passages like Ephesians 2:13-14, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility…”
This peace is the kind that reconciles people from every age, race, economic background, sex, intellect, and religious upbringing. It is the kind in which “there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free.” It is the kind that cuts through every difference and difficulty and every concern and conflict. It turns foes into friends and enemies into allies. It too was purchased by the blood and body of Christ. It is a kind of reconciliation that comes only to those who know they have been made right with one another by Jesus.
These two aspects of the peace of Christ fuel one another. When local churches are filled with people who have the peace of Christ in their hearts, it drives peace and harmony as a body. And as local churches are increasingly characterized by the corporate peace of Christ, it drives each individual toward a fuller inner peace.
In this way, Grace, each of us must let the peace of Christ “rule in our hearts”. We must trust in Jesus and rest in Him more. For the sake of the body, we must not be OK with being anxious and fearful. And in this way, collectively, we must let the peace of Christ “rule…in [our] body”. We must look past every earthly difference to the main and only essential thing we have in common: the supernatural oneness that was purchased by the blood of Jesus. For the sake of each member, don’t be OK with disunity and divisions among us.
I’ve seen this in several of you recently. Through significant relational and health trials, even in the death of loved ones, I’ve witnessed the peace of Christ in you. You grieved, but as one with a hope greater than the hardship. And that truly filled me with a greater sense of the peace of Christ. What Paul promises in principle, I’ve experienced with you in practice. Thanks be to God!
Verse 15 ends with a refrain that echoes in each of the “how-to” clauses. “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts… and be thankful.” In v.16, “with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” And in v.17, “giving thanks to God the Father through [Jesus].”
Grace, there’s no way of knowing the peace of Christ (or, as we’re about to see, allowing the word of Christ to dwell in us or doing everything in the name of Jesus) and not being filled with thanksgiving.
Let the Word of Christ Dwell in You Richly (16)
The second means of putting on Christ in nature, attitude, and action mentioned by Paul is found in the next verse, v.16. We are to let the peace of Christ rule in us and the Word of Christ dwell in us.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…
By the word of Christ, Paul is speaking of “the word of the truth, the gospel” (1:5). It is “the grace of God in truth” (1:6). It is “the knowledge of [God’s] will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding” (1:9). It is “the knowledge of God” (1:10). It is “the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints” (1:25-26). It is “all wisdom” (1:28). It is “full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery” (2:2). And, Paul wrote, it is “All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (2:3).
The “word of Christ” is all that Jesus means His followers to understand. It is all the teaching of Christ and all the inspired apostolic teaching about Christ.
Paul’s charge is to let that “dwell in you.”
Before we get to that, however, let’s reflect on three aspects of the nature of the word of Christ to help us make sense of why we would want it to dwell in us. The word of Christ is good, beautiful, and true.
The word of Christ is all and always good. Everything He’s ever said and all that’s been rightly said of Him is worthy of ultimate approval. It is all beneficial to all—His warnings and rebukes as much as His affirmations and promises. Not one aspect of the word of Christ is harmful for anyone who will receive it as Christ intends. It is, in the absolute and purest sense, good.
The goodness of the word of Christ is described in passages like 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness…”.
The word of Christ is good, and it is also beautiful. It is desirable above all. Psalm 119:129 captures this well, “Your testimonies are wonderful; therefore my soul keeps them.” Psalm 19 celebrates this as well, “The law of the Lord…the testimony of the Lord… 8 the precepts of the Lord…the commandment of the Lord…9 the rules of the Lord … [all different ways of describing the word of Christ, and all are] 10 More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.”
Rightly seen, the word of Christ is beautiful beyond measure. More than any other words—more than those of your spouse or child or best friend or favorite author or even an angel from the Lord—the word of Christ is wonderful to hear and heed.
The word of Christ is good, it is beautiful, and it is true. There is nothing false in the word of Christ, He is never wrong, and His word is the ultimate standard of truth.
As imperfect people, we might misread or misinterpret the word of Christ, but rightly read, as Jesus Himself said (in John 17:17), the word of Christ is not only true, it is Truth! Indeed, (Proverbs 30:5) “Every word of God proves true…”.
It will never lead us astray in anything it says. It is the ultimate authority for understanding all that exists, including God, ourselves, our relationships, our salvation, and every other matter it speaks to.
And for all those reasons, we rightly affirm in our doctrinal statement that the word of Christ ought to be “believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises.”
With those aspects of the word of Christ in mind, the most natural thing of all would be for us allow it to dwell in us; to remain alive in us; to take up permanent residence in us; to find a home in us; to shape us in every way; to be at the center of every aspect of our lives, both individually and as a church.
Paul adds a word that we don’t want to miss. We are to let the word of Christ “dwell in us richly”. But what does that mean?
Just as there are two aspects of the peace of Christ (personal and corporate), there are also two senses of the meaning of “richly” (quantity and quality).
First, we must take in lots of the word of Christ. It ought to be our main diet; certainly, more than any worldly word, but also more even than teaching about the word of Christ. To let it dwell in us richly, really does have a quantitative component to it. We cannot obey this command and spend five minutes a day rushing through it or half listening to it while we run errands. Five minutes is better than no minutes and half listening is better than no listening, but for its richness to give its full reward, we must move towards meditating on it day and night (Psalm 1:2). Read the Bible. Meditate on and memorize what you read. Let it “be [continually] on your heart. 7 …teach [it] diligently to your children, and …talk of [it] when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise” (Deuteronomy 6:6-7).
The second way in which Paul means his readers to overcome conflict among them, by putting on Christ, by allowing the word of Christ to dwell in them richly, is by properly treasuring the word of Christ. It’s not just that they must let a lot of Christ’s word dwell in them, but they must recognize it for the invaluable gift that it is.
As we saw in Psalm 19, the richness of the word of Christ is such that it is “More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine gold.”
This qualitative aspect of “riches” means knowing that to have the words of Christ is to have a treasure beyond measure. To let the word of Christ dwell in us richly is to treat it as the unparalleled gift that it is. It is for all who have it, riches beyond all other riches.
The word of Christ is all that Jesus means His followers to understand. It is good beautiful and true. We must let it dwell in us by taking it in continually and treasuring it thoroughly. But what does that mean, especially in the context of navigating conflict within our church? Helpfully, Paul explicitly names two specific ways to do so.
…teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs…
- Teaching and admonishing in all wisdom. When the word of Christ dwells in us richly as individuals, we will understand it well. We will know what it means and we will have the wisdom (“all wisdom”) to apply it well to our own lives. And when the church is filled with individuals in whom the word of Christ dwells individually, it will be the main and constant source of all our conversations.
Even more specifically, the word of Christ in content and application will be the subject of our teaching. It will be the source of our counsel. We will work hard to positively communicate and apply the word of Christ with each other. And, we will also be characterized by admonishing one another with the word of Christ. When the word of Christ dwells richly in us, it will grieve us to see those we love misunderstanding or failing to live consistently with it and so we will, with great grace and all wisdom, correct one another with it.
It is such a joy to hear this happen consistently at Grace. And it’s a joy to work together toward making biblical counseling even more a part of our fellowship. - Singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs together. Perhaps a bit counterintuitively, the second specific application of allowing the word of Christ to dwell in us richly is the charge to sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs as a part of our gathering.
I’ve heard people trying to articulate a precise distinction between psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. That usually seems tied to some kind of presupposition regarding the kinds of songs we ought to sing. Whether or not Paul has a sharp distinction between the three in mind, the point here almost certainly isn’t the distinction.
The point, rather, is that as we increasingly let Christ’s word dwells richly in us, singing will increasingly become our native language. Everyone who has the word of Christ and treasures it as they ought, is compelled to sing. We can’t not. It wells up in us and must find a way out.
On a practical level, this is why it’s so important to sing good songs. They must flow out of good, beautiful, and true expressions of the word of Christ. And this is why explicitly proclaiming the word of Christ takes up half of our service and explicitly singing the word of Christ takes up another a quarter of it.
I’m not good at singing, I don’t know how to read music, and I don’t understand the first thing about music theory, but the magic God has put into corporate singing is unmistakable. The unifying and reconciling power that God has embedded into singing the word of Christ together is something we’ve all experienced.
Once again, Paul ends this verse with a call to thankfulness. As the word of Christ dwells in us, we will teach and admonish one another with it, we will sing it together as a means of encouraging and strengthening one another, and we will do all of that “…with thankfulness in [our] hearts to God.
Just as is the case with the peace of Christ, how can we not be filled with thankfulness if the Word of Christ really does dwell in us richly?
Let the Name of Jesus Compel You Thoroughly (17)
How do we put on Christ in nature, attitude, and action? We do so by letting the peace of Christ rule us, the word of Christ abide in us, and the name of Christ compel us. That is, we do so by doing “whatever [we] do, in word or deed, [doing] everything in the name of the Lord Jesus…”
In the first two clauses (in v.15 and 16), the imperative (“let”) is explicit. Paul’s grammar shifts, but I think it’s right to say that it’s implied in this third and final clause. Let the peace of Christ rule, let the word of Christ dwell, and let the name of Jesus compel.
The simple heart of v.17 is that by placing our hope in Jesus we are acknowledging Jesus not only as Savior of the world, but also as preeminent over everything (1:15-20). That is, to be a Christian is to know for certain that all things belong to Jesus, that He is Lord of all, that we are His, and that all of that is very good.
It is also to acknowledge that everything we do, we do as His representatives; or, as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:20, as His “ambassadors.” To be a Christian, therefore, is to do everything in Jesus’ name. We can’t not do what we do in His name. The only question is whether we are doing it in a way that is consistent with and honors His name or that is inconsistent with and dishonors His name. In 1 Corinthians (10:31), Paul echoes this sentiment by commanding his readers to do whatever we do to the glory of His name.
Do you see the inescapabilty, necessity, and goodness of this, Grace Church? Do you see the power this is for putting on Christ? And do you see how it is filled with reconciling and unifying grace for the church?
Conversely, is it easy to see how the source of all conflict is disobeying this charge? Is it easy to see that the difficulty and division that comes to the church, comes because one or more of us are doing things in some name other than that of Jesus? Conflict comes when we do things in our own name or in the name of our preferred Christian teacher or in the name of Paul or Apollos or Cephas (1 Corinthians 1:13) or any name other than Jesus.
Grace, do you want to belong to a church that is unified and whole and healthy? Do you want your broken relationships among Christians to be reconciled and restored? If so, let every single word you choose and speak (or choose not to speak) be chosen to best display the name above all names. If so, let every single act you perform (or decide not to perform) be performed to best display the name of the Lord Jesus.
And, once again, do all of this while “giving thanks to God the Father through [Jesus]. How can we bear the name of Christ (Christian) and not be filled with thanks to God who loved the world in such as way as to give us Christ?
Conclusion
We’ve spent the past month and a half working through Colossians 3:5-17 and its charge to put off all that is opposed to Christ and put on all of Christ. We’ve seen that this is largely directed to end conflict and division and to maintain and restore peace among us for the glory of Christ.
Let us kill sin, therefore, Grace Church and put on Christ. Let us remember who we are in Jesus (chosen, holy, beloved), let us put on the attitude of Jesus (compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience), let us put on the actions of Jesus when there is conflict among us (bearing with, forgiving, and loving one another), and let us do all of this according to Jesus’ example and command (letting the peace, Word, and name of Christ rule, dwell in, and compel us).
What a gift from the Father this passage is. What help and hope we have in Christ. What power we’re given in the Spirit. Thanks be to God!