You In Christ

Galatians 3:26-29

All who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. (Galatians 3:27)

PERKIN WARBECK POSITIONED himself in the late 1400s as the Duke of York, a son of the deceased King Edward IV and rightful heir to the English throne. He dressed the part, spoke the language, and had coins minted in his name. Many believed him, and he gained somewhat of a following until King Henry VII declared him to be an impostor. Warbeck was never quite able to pull off his alternate identity and eventually confessed to being a Fleming unrelated to the royal family.

Followers of Jesus also dress the part of royalty, speak the royal language, and have some currency in God’s Kingdom. The difference between us and Warbeck, of course, is that we are not illegitimate pretenders at all. We have been given an invitation to adopt the identity of Jesus and a promise that we will be accepted in his name. We have to conform to a standard that’s different from the one we grew up with, to be sure, and it may take some time to learn our role. But it remains an open invitation, and we have every right to step into an entirely new self and enjoy royal privileges.

Paul often referred to this image of putting on new clothes to look and act like Jesus (Romans 13:14; Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10, 12). Like learning a new culture, we wear Jesus’ identity until it fits, until we become acclimatized to our spiritual environment. When you wear him like a new set of clothes, he has the effect of changing you both internally and externally. Your inner and outer environments are transformed, and the change is palpable. You live and move in him, as though you are trying on a new persona or playing a part, but the role is permanent, not temporary. Over time, it fits, and sometimes you hardly know how to distinguish between Jesus and the new you. You are growing into the image of another, fully accepted as part of the royal family, and equipped to influence the world around you.

{Jesus, my past behaviors and attitudes have made you an odd fit at times, but you are always able to grow me into your image. Alter me to fit my new clothes, and enable me to wear them well. Amen.