Brrr… there’s a chill in the air. It’s time to find my old coat. Often when I put
on a coat, I think of long ago when I put on Christ in obedient faith. I wanted to be in
him. I wanted Jesus to surround me, so I put him on in baptism. “For as many of you
as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27).

 
Putting him on was not complicated. Thankfully, it didn’t require an act of
Congress or the intelligence of a rocket scientist – this preteen was able to understand
the simplicity and importance of putting on Christ.

 
However, as the years unfolded, I soon came to realize that just as easily as one
can put on Christ, one can take him off. He’s just as removable as a winter coat. In
fact, Satan is ever at work to entice all Christians to take Jesus off. He tries to
convince us of the practicality of wearing Jesus when it suits us. When we want to
satisfy our desires or feed our pride, we conveniently take him off for awhile. He tries
to persuade us that Jesus is cumbersome, out of date or doesn’t fit anymore, and we
should shop for something new.

 
Truth is, Jesus is a perfect fit for anyone who chooses him. He’s never out of
date, but has clothed willing souls for nearly two thousand years. He’s not
cumbersome or heavy (Matthew 11:29-30). We could shop the world over, but being
clothed with Jesus is the only way to have eternal life (John 14:6).

 
The world in which we live is a spiritually cold, sinful place. The only way to
survive is to be clothed at all times with Jesus, surrounded by the warmth of His love.
Today’s verse: “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord. My soul shall be joyful in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation. He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels”
Isaiah 61:10.

–Teresa Hampton