Putting on the New Self: Colossians 3
This chapter instructs us to step it up. Yes, we are saved, we are born of the Spirit (v3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory). But what now?
The chapter title in the English Standard Version (ESV) is "Putting on the New Self." It tells us that yes we have a New Self, but that we must put it on - we must take action, as "God's Chosen Ones, Holy and Beloved..." (v12)
Verse 5 tells us to PUT to death our previous ungodly ways. WE must take the action to eliminate these ways.
5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming. 7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.
Verse 12 then tells us what we are to PUT on, in place of that which is gone. WE must take the action to clothe ourselves in this new way of being.
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.
And (I really like this one, as a singer-songwriter) scripture instructs us to sing! Open our mouths! Teach, correct, sing, praise!
6 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.
Again, assuming we are taking action, Paul, in this letter to the church in Colossae:
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.
A life in Christ is an active one - above all, acting in LOVE. As Christ Himself said, and as Paul instructed, the greatest of these is Love (Matthew 22:36-40; 1 Corinthians 13:13). It says in this chapter that Love binds together (v14) all these other instructions - in other words, Love is the springboard that propels us into the action required, and Love is the glue that will hold it all together once the task is underway. After all, God IS Love (1 John 4:7-10).
Read through this convicting, compelling chapter for instructions and details on how activate our New Selves.