The way we dress is important because it is the first impression someone will have of us. Dressing with excellence is an art. An excellent dresser doesn’t necessarily need a lot of money, but it does take putting some thought into it. If you just throw an outfit together haphazardly in a sloppy manner, that is the impression you will give to others. But if you put some creative thought into it, you can dress with excellence. And an important part of this is taking into account the occasion. You wouldn’t wear the same outfit for church on a Sunday that you would wear to the gym.
So let’s take some time to look at what scripture says about what a “Well Dressed Christian” would clothe themselves in. We find that answer in:
Colossians 3: 12-14 “Therefore as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourself with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues, put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”
When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, our being, our character, will begin to change to become more “CHRIST-LIKE”. As Christians, we must see ourselves as dead to the old sins and put them aside to… DISCARD THEM LIKE OLD RAGS! The Apostle Paul states that because the believer is risen with Christ, he is to put off the old man and put on the new man.
In other words, we are stripped naked of our past sins and cleansed of them, and we put on the renewed man. The old self is confined to the “closet of the past” with its former passions and desires, its pride and self-centeredness, and we are to put on or clothe ourselves with the new self.
As God’s chosen people we can dress up in new clothes. Each day as we awaken we can clothe ourselves with the most awesome attire. WE make a decision to put on these new clothes. Every day we can put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
The best part of this wardrobe is that it is available to all who trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We can all look and feel fabulous! However, you have to take care of your new clothes and take responsibility for how you present yourself.
The way we make that happen is to be SO FULL of these qualities that they can be seen on the outside.
How can we do this? By showing compassion to those in need, humbling ourselves daily, being kind to those who do us wrong, showing meekness by resisting the temptation to strike back, and by having patience with those who hurt or disappoint us. We are called to bear with one another by refusing to give up on each other and always forgiving each other.
And the final thing we put on each day, like a fabulous coat… over all these virtues, we put on love, as this binds all the virtues in perfect unity — the perfect outfit that never gets old.
Jesus himself taught us that the two greatest commandments are to love God and love one another. Without love, none of the other virtues can last, or we could say: the outfit is not complete.
In conclusion, we must be “best dressed” because we are ambassadors for Christ. We represent him. All of these virtues display the character of Christ. As we put on these virtues, we will be dressing ourselves with the “character of Christ”.