In this session, we will explore another fundamental of life, wear, as in putting on clothes.

We put on clothes since Adam and Eve's fall, to cover from the shame of nakedness.

We put on clothes for protection: it keeps us warm, and offers a layer of protection from the sun, and from abrasions and cuts.

We put on additional things like armour, to protect us in war, or a hard hat and work boots in construction.

We put on clothes that expresses ourselves, and we convey a visual message of our identity through our fashion.

A uniform shows our identity to a corporation like a company, school or service.

Most people wonder and worry about what to wear as fashion changes all the time, and we may have a desire to dress well or in labels of famous designers, to reflect our self-worth, hoping that people will respect us more.

This is common.

But now, as believers of Jesus, and being born again, our minds must be renewed.  In Matthew 6: 25-34

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
 

Dear friends, do you worry about what to eat or drink?  Do you worry about what to wear?  Today, we hear what Jesus has told us about these.  May his words stay with us.  That all these things that we need, like food and drinks and clothes, are important.  But they should not be the motivation or purpose, of our lives.  Rather Jesus tells us that we should be seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and the all these things that we need (the food we eat, the water that we drink, and the clothes that we wear) and worry about, will be given to us as well.

Is not that wonderful news?  Focus on what is important and all these lesser things that we need which are necessities of our lives, Jesus had promised that he will give unto us.

In Ephesians 4:22-24,

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
If we listen to what the Apostle Paul taught us in these verses, he is telling us that instead of clothes, we should rather think about spiritual clothes.  What are we putting on spiritually?  In these verses he told us to remember that we should constantly put off our old self.  Our old self is the self that is corrupted by deceitful desires, and we have to do this constantly, like changing our clothes.

This is as we know how often does our old self come back.  In our Christian lives, time and time again, we revert to our former self just like putting on our old clothes again, while we are being corrupted by our sinful desires.

We have always to be mindful, to put on our new self, which is to be made new in the attitudes of our minds.  To put on our new self, which is created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.  That is what we should rather be focused on.
Dear friends, let us not worry about what we wear, but being born again.  We should focus instead, on putting off our old self, and putting on the new self, that reflects God in true righteousness and holiness.

Let us shed off the Caterpillar, and become the Butterfly.

Who is the best model of the Butterfly?  Our Lord Jesus Christ!

Let us always remember and meditate upon Romans 13:14

Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.

Let us pray.

Father God, we thank you that because of the sacrifice of your only Son, Jesus Christ, you have enabled us to be reconciled to you and to be in communion with you in your holiness.  We can put on the new self which is like you in true righteousness and holiness.  Father, we pray that you will help us to be mindful of this, to keep remembering to put off our old self and put on our new self which is created in your image.  Help us , O God! We pray this in the mighty of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen!

(Song: e.g. Change my Heart O God)

I hope you have been blessed.  See you at the next session!