March 7
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PUT ON LOVE AND COMPASSION
12 So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so must you do also. 14 In addition to all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. – Colossians 3:12-14
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Paul specifically explains what a believer is in verse 12. He says that they are those who have been chosen by God and who are pure and loved so much by the Father. In the other half of the verse, Paul calls the Colossian believers to put on a compassionate heart that exhibits kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer says that “We must learn to regard people less in the light of what they do or omit to do, and more in the light of what they suffer.” Sadly, in our world today, most people get their value from what they do. It is frowned upon by society if you are not as productive and earning enough money as others. There is a constant compulsion to be doing something or else, they won’t be accepted by others. As Dietrich states in his quote, it is more important to focus on how much one has suffered rather than how much one has achieved. Why is that? Suffering is the gauge of the depth of a person. The more they have been pained, the more they learn to endure. In James 1:2-4, we are advised to count it joy when we have suffering because we learn endurance and eventually grow our faith. Compassion will make us see the heart of people. It brings us to another level of understanding someone else. As the law of love says, we must love one another as we love ourselves.
In verse 13, Paul commands us to bear with one another, in other words, we need to be encouraging and supporting each other especially in times of hardships and troubles. The other part of this verse is about forgiving one another as God has granted us forgiveness. It is a shame that many people don’t easily give forgiveness. It is the key to love. Without it, no relationships will thrive. Without forgiveness, one paves the way to bitterness and eventually leads to destruction.
In verse 14, Paul tells the Colossian believers to put on love, meaning, to wear and exercise it at all times because it bonds and unifies the people who puts it on. The love that we are asked to put on is the same love that the Lord has for us: unconditional.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it very important to put on love and compassion?