For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
Paul uses familiar imagery here. Everyone knows clothes cover. Clothes also protect against the elements, cold and heat.
And certain clothes are needed for different occasions. What one wears to work in the field would not be suitable dress before a King.
What is the proper spiritual attire necessary to come before God and be pleasing to Him? There is only one answer – Jesus!
Anyone who comes to Jesus is covered! To be covered by Jesus means that nothing else is needed to be fully dressed before God. Without Jesus, even our best efforts at keeping God's commands leave our sins uncovered.
Paul is continuing to refute the idea that keeping parts of the Law of Moses could add anything to one’s standing before God. To be covered by Jesus’ life and death is the only way to be properly dressed before The King!
Paul reminds his readers of how they came to be clothed with Jesus. At the point their faith in Jesus led them to be baptized, they were clothed with Christ! Faith came alive and they became Sons of God by faith!
Their right standing with God did not come through any human effort. Believing is not a work. It is trusting in Jesus.
Being baptized is not a work. It is something to which one submits. In fact, it is a passive act, something that one allows another to do to him.
When faith leads one to submit to Jesus through the act of baptism in water, Jesus gives the Holy Spirit. Then with the help of the Holy Spirit a student of Jesus can actually become more like the Teacher in heart and life. It is being clothed with Jesus that matters.
If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
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