Our New Self, Hidden in Him

This morning I am reading out of Paul's letter to the Colossians 3:9-14 NIV:

[9] "Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices [10] and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. [11] Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

[12] Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. [13] Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. [14] And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."

This whole concept of being a new creation, a new man in Christ is hard for many of us to grasp.  Paul's foundational statement concerning this is found in Colossians 3:3 NIV:  "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God."  He is speaking of the spiritual reality. We have died with Christ, and been raised to life in Him, as a new creation, with a new self.  Some of us experience this radical change when we come to Christ, becoming a radically new person.  Others of us, not so much, but it is no less true for all of us.  When we unite ourselves to Christ, receiving His salvation which He purchased through His suffering and death, we become united with Him. Whether we feel this transaction or not, it is true for all of us who have come to Christ Jesus.

Paul understood that we also participate in making this spiritual reality a natural reality.  We can choose to embrace and encourage ourselves to live in this new reality.  We can put on a new self (the Greek here means to put on like clothes), clothing ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, forgiveness, patience and love.  We can pursue further renewal of our minds, of our self, as we pursue Him.  In doing so, we join in with the work our Savior is about in our lives.  He is renewing our new self in knowledge in the image of our creator (that is Christ Jesus).  In verse eleven, Paul says that Christ Jesus is us, and is in us all.  In other words, this renewing of self into His image is because we have joined ourselves fully to Him and He to us.  Our lives are so hidden in Christ that the Father when looking at us sees His Son Jesus.

In the same way, Paul is encouraging us to have the same attitude externally, to those around us.  His encouragement is that when people run into us, it is like running into Jesus.  The daily clothing ourselves in the good things listed above, enables us to become one with Christ Jesus, so that we exude from our lives, His.

Oh Lord, help me, for that is my desire, to become Like You, hidden in  You!