I Will Clothe Thee With Change of Raiment
The sermon emphasizes the importance of living a life of holiness, which is made possible by the imparted graces of Jesus Christ.
A.B. Simpson emphasizes that the Christian life is a manifestation of the grace of Jesus Christ, urging believers to 'put on' the Lord Jesus and His righteousness. He highlights that qualities such as mercy, kindness, and love are not inherent but are gifts from Jesus, as Paul instructs the Colossians to embody these traits. Simpson reflects on Paul's journey, noting that even after years of faith, Paul considered everything a loss compared to knowing Christ. The sermon calls for believers to be clothed in Christ's righteousness and to align their hearts with His love. Ultimately, it is a reminder of the transformative power of Christ in our lives.
Text
For Paul every exercise of the Christian life was simply the grace of Jesus Christ imparted to him and lived out by him. To be holy meant to put on the Lord Jesus and all the robes of His perfect righteousness which Paul describes so often in his beautiful letters. Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, he says to the Colossians, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long suffering and above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfectness (Colossians 3:12). None of these things is regarded as an intrinsic quality in us.
Rather, they are all imparted graces from the hand of Jesus.
And even in the later years of life, and after the mature experience of a quarter of a century, we find Paul exclaiming, I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but refuse, that I may win Christ, and be found in him (Philippians 3:8-9). Lord, enable us today to go out, clothed in Thy robes of perfect rightness, and with our hearts in adjustment with Thy perfect love.
Sermon Outline
- The Christian Life is a Life of Grace
- The exercise of the Christian life is the grace of Jesus Christ imparted and lived out
- This grace is not an intrinsic quality, but an imparted gift
Key Quotes
“Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long suffering and above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfectness” — A.B. Simpson
“I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but refuse, that I may win Christ, and be found in him” — A.B. Simpson
Application Points
- We should strive to put on the Lord Jesus and all the robes of His perfect righteousness in our daily lives
- We should count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord
- We should seek to be found in Christ and have our hearts in adjustment with His perfect love