A note from the desk of our Pastor:

“But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.”

Colossians 3:8

Good Morning Dearly Beloved,

To understand the command in Colossians 3:8 to ‘put off’ our old ways, we must look at the foundation the Apostle Paul lays immediately before it. The passage acts as a critical hinge: having established our new identity in Christ, the Apostle now insists that our daily conduct must match that reality. Because we are renewed, the behaviors listed in our study verse are not merely bad habits to be managed—they are remnants of an old life that are completely incompatible with our current status as God’s chosen, holy, and beloved people.

The Apostle lists five actions or sins in this verse that the disciple needs to remove from their life. The list is not in random order. First, the list moves from internal to external. Anger, wrath, and malice are things of the heart. They are responses to the stimuli around us. They also increase in severity. Anger is an immediate, short-lived response. Wrath is a more severe, longer-lasting anger. Malice, being the worst of all, is a state of being that desires the destruction of others. Blasphemy and filthy communication are outward expressions of the internal emotions. Blasphemy is an expression of anger towards God. Filthy communication is not about curse words, but rather about words spoken to injure and harm others or to divide the community. In other words, the expression of anger, wrath, and malice is the exact opposite of loving God and loving your neighbor.

The Apostle provides a call to action for the disciples. Disciples are told to ‘put off’ the sins listed in this verse. The Greek word, translated as ‘put off’ in this verse, means to remove old, soiled clothing. It implies a deliberate action on the part of the believer to remove from their lives the old way of thinking and behaving and to replace it with behaviors focused on following Jesus. Importantly, the Apostle in this passage and others like it never indicates it is a one-time action. This change is a continual behavior for the disciples.

The Apostle focuses, in this verse and in other writings, on sins that harm the community of believers. The sins listed in this verse begin with internal feelings, specifically those directed with animosity toward others. The emphasis of the Apostle’s writing was to encourage believers to come together as a community to support, comfort, and strengthen one another. Unity could not happen if negative emotions and actions divided the believers, or worse, pitted them against one another.

Our study verse this week is one that truly never loses its application. A reminder to set aside the old, sinful person and behave in a way that loves one another is necessary. We should remember these instructions in our daily discipleship.

Our Prayers are with you daily,

Brother Jeremiah