You took off your former way of life, the old self that is corrupted by deceitful desires; you are being renewed in the spirit of your minds; you put on the new self, the one created according to God’s likeness in righteousness and purity of the truth.     Ephesians 4:22-24 HCSB

If you were to go into your closet right now, would you find clothes hanging in there with price tags on them? I don’t mean clothes you bought in the last week or two. I mean clothes that you bought months ago and still haven’t worn? You saw it in the store. It looked good. It was your favorite color and your favorite style. Or maybe someone else bought it for you and you really don’t care for it. Either way, you just hung it in the closet and forgot about it.

This is why I often cringe when I see people being baptized. They stand in the baptistry with the preacher bringing them down under the water to signify the death of their former self. They rise to signify their new spiritual birth and Christ’s rising from the dead. It signifies their sins being washed away. Sadly, that is sometimes the last time they are seen in church. When you see them out in public, you can’t distinguish from their old self and their new self. They look exactly the same. They do the same things. They say the same things. They treat people the same way.

They accepted the free gift that Christ offered, but then they put it away in the closet. Our Scripture passage tells us that when we commit to Christ, we take off our old former way of living. We get rid of our corrupt ways of thinking. We talk differently. We think differently. We treat others differently.

1 Peter 5:5 speaks of clothing ourselves with humility toward one another because God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Our clothing is what we wear on the outside. It’s what people see. When we clothe ourselves in humility, it’s obvious to those around us that we are different. It’s obvious to others when we are walking with Christ. Friends and family members that see us regularly can always tell when we have new clothes. It’s obvious.

But old clothes are sometimes the most comfortable clothes, aren’t they? This is why even though we have that nice new outfit in the closet, we opt for those old jeans and that old sweater. We choose the old shoes over the new ones because they are stretched out and comfortable. Don’t we treat our sin the same way? We grow comfortable in it. We have become accustomed to it; we just can’t throw it away. Even though it has become ragged and worn or is wearing us out, we still cling to it.

I lived that way for many years. I had old sinful habits that I just couldn’t throw away. I couldn’t imagine my life without them. As I began to grow spiritually, my sinful habits began to get too tight. They no longer fit. They just wouldn’t stretch anymore. I cried out to God. He removed them from my life. He showed me how life would be better without them. He showed me that I could trust in Him.

I pulled the tags off of those new clothes. I would like to say that I now wear them proudly, but I must say that I wear them humbly. I am grateful to God for providing them for me. I did not clothe myself in humility. God’s Holy Spirit helped to do that. He has taught me and continues to teach me to imitate Christ. I am still a work in progress.

If you have accepted Christ as your savior, but are still clothing yourself in pride, anger, or bitterness you are missing out. Accept the humility, kindness, love and patience that God freely gives. Let others see that you are clothes in humility. Let them see Christ in you.

When we have clothes hanging in our closets with price tags still on them, we have one of two choices. We can wear them, or we can throw them out. If you have accepted the free gift of salvation and then tucked it away in a dark closet, bring it out in the open. Wear it with love and patience and kindness. Let others see the love you have found in Christ. Let them know that you are more than willing to share with them how they too can be dressed in the same clothes that you are now wearing.

Have a great day!