What Shall I Wear Today?

What clothing we wear is very important. We all want to clothe or attire ourselves appropriately and look our best everyday. If we do, we feel that we look well and good and we go through the day with joy and confidence that others will welcome our presence.

The Lord Jesus wore a special attire unusually nice that the soldiers scrambled to possess and own it when he was crucified. This eloquently shows that Jesus cares about what we wear. He is our example in everything, even in our clothes. But He is more concerned about what we “put on” spiritually.

Colossians 3 lists some of the spiritual “clothings” or virtues or characteristics with which we should put on or clothe ourselves every day.

The Apostle Paul said:

“Since God chose you to be the holy people whom he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. You must make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is LOVE. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony”. (Col. 3:12-14 NLT).

What is this so-called love? The Apostle Paul attempted to define love in the following manner:

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude. It is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres (or endures).

Love never fails. x x x

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. Follow the way of love xxx” (1 Cor. 13:4-8; vs. 13; 14:1 NIV)

Have you ever come across someone who never failed you? The reason is genuine or true LOVE!

On the matter of protection because of love, I have a very recent experience. After our fellowship at the Royal Mandaya Hotel in Davao City, Philippines, last Saturday, my Chevrolet Korean small car would not start. Not even the faintest sound of the engine or horn. The battery was completely “dead”.

I called for my nephew-driver, George, who brought along a battery. The engine revived, and I instructed him to bring the car to my client’s rebuilding and assembly plant for complete “diagnosis” of its defect, on the following day, Sunday, because the plant of my client opens on Sundays, the owner being a Seventh Day Adventist member, and it has a special diagnostic machine for the purpose.

At about 9:00 on Sunday morning, I tried to check through telephone from my client what was the “diagnosis” on the defect of the car. The Secretary answered that my car was not brought to their plant yet. So I checked by cellphone my nephew’s whereabouts.

It was the wife who answered who said my nephew “forgot” or left his cellphone because he was hurrying to leave early to go to the plant of my client which is about 20 kilometers away from their house. It was already about 9:30 a.m., when I called again my client to check whether my nephew already arrived. The answer was negative. I was told that anyone needing check-up or repair will pass through their office because a job order is needed. I requested her anyway to go inside the plant again in case the protocol was not followed simply because I am their lawyer. The feedback was still negative!

Suspecting that the car must have stopped somewhere along the way due to its unexplained defect, I requested the driver of Atty. Susan, my daughter, bringing with him her Montero to check along the way from Davao City to the plant of my client where my car stopped, but he had to pass by the house of my nephew to get his cellphone for easier contact purposes. Lo and behold, I was told that my nephew was asleep!

I discovered that the wife of my nephew made a cover-up story to protect him! I surmised that the wife fervently loves her husband, so she told a lie, similar to what Rahab, the harlot, have done to protect the two spies sent to Jericho preparatory to the Israelite’s conquest of the promised land. Significantly, the genealogy related by Matthew in Matthew 1:5 shows that Rahab became the ancestor of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The car was brought to the plant that same morning and in a matter of minutes, I received a feedback from my nephew that after a thorough check-up by the use of the special machine from Korea, the defect was only the battery. Praise God!

When my nephew handed to me the car, I told him, “You better give a gift to your wife for shielding (or protecting) you in telling me a lie that you have left earlier although the truth was that you were still asleep”. “As a prize for her fervent love and loyalty to you” I told him, “give the rice cooker” (which I got from another client) as gift to her. In addition, I gave her a cash gift for their Christmas celebration. His wife and family, I am sure, had a Merry Christmas! Instead of reprimanding the wife, the gifts speak volumes of my Christlike love for her and her family circle. Praise God!

The signs of LOVE are: mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience and forgiveness which should be our spiritual clothing every moment of the day. May I add, but not dogmatically, because of LOVE, some people have to tell a lie to protect someone for a good purpose, just like in the case of Rahab.

When we wear these spiritual clothings, we will deal properly with situations that arise, our human relationship will be strengthened, and we will have the good feeling that comes with knowing we are pleasing our fellowmen and more importantly the Lord God/Jesus Christ who is God incarnate (or in person or God in the flesh), in whom we have our being and the only Savior of our soul.