The world does a good job of convincing us that we are not that bad. The world shows us the truly depraved and compares us to them to make us feel better about our own failings. But comparing man to man does not justify anyone because none are righteous:
As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." "Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit." "The poison of vipers is on their lips." "Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness." "Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know." "There is no fear of God before their eyes." Romans 3: 10-18
When looking at our key verses we see the design God has for us. John urges us as the chosen people of God to clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Further, God is imploring us to forgive each other as God has forgiven us. Lastly, we are to also put on (clothe) love which is "over all these virtues"; binding them together in perfect unity. That is the power love holds. But why does John refer to the virtues God desires from us as things we need to clothe ourselves in?
First of all, clothes are something that we must put on. We do not naturally have these virtues. The true nature of man is not to be compassionate and kind. Man is not humble or gentle by nature and we are quite impatient. Let's look at the disciples themselves who spent all of their time walking with Jesus. The Gospel of Luke tells of a Samaritan town that did not welcome Jesus. Here was the kind and compassionate response of the disciples:
When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, "Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?" Luke 9: 54
There's the picture of Christian compassion and kindness. What about humility from the disciples? The same chapter shows us:
An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest. Luke 9: 46
Who would be the greatest. Christian humility on display. The sad truth is that it is not human nature to inherently display these virtues so God is petitioning us to clothe ourselves in them. The second great truth we can take from this language is that God expects us to exhibit these virtues for all to see. That is why the term "clothe" is used. What you are clothed in is what everyone will see. It is what you wear. As God's chosen people it is important that the world sees our humility and patience. It is crucial that they see our kindness, gentleness and compassion. Why? Because that is contrary to how the world is. The world is harsh and unforgiving. It is cruel not kind. It lacks compassion. As God's chosen people we need to provide an alternative to the world for people who are walking in darkness. They should see believers wearing these virtues and thus they should want them for themselves.
