Colossians 3:14
And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
Paul has been using the metaphor of putting on a garment, but for us in the 21st century it would be better to think of it as a complete outfit for a special occasion. Now, to complete this 1st century Christian ensemble, Paul adds the ultimate finishing touch. A detail that is so critical that if you get it wrong, the entire effort falls apart. You can have all the right elements, each one beautiful and important in and of itself, but without this final thing…it just doesn’t work. You cannot achieve perfection. There will always be “something missing.”
For Christians…that final element is always love.
Compassion. Kindness. Humility. Meekness. Patience. Forbearance. Forgiveness. They paint a beautiful picture, but it’s a picture that is incomplete without Love. Plato said, “But two things cannot be held together without a third; they must have some bond of union. And the fairest bond is that which most completely fuses and is fused into the things which are bound.” This is such a powerful thought. In Paul’s context, LOVE is that “fairest bond” Plato speaks of. It fuses all of these traits together into one perfect unit while at the same time infusing itself into each one individually.
In 1 Corinthians 13 Paul expounds on the various meanings and applications of love, but in verse 7 he captures what we are pursuing today. “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” There is an “everywhere” and “everything” quality to the love we encounter when it emanates from our Father and empowers us through the Holy Spirit. The universe is made up of atoms—they are the building blocks of literally everything—but yet, there is a mysterious “force” that holds them together which scientists have yet to identify.
The “force” that holds the Christian life together is agape love. We could spend days studying the rich meaning of agape, but ultimately it is an unconditional, sacrificial love and biblically refers to a love that God is, that God shows, and that God enables in His children. Unconditional and Sacrificial. Get those words deep into your heart and mind as they are what binds all of the other Christian attributes “in perfect harmony.” Love is what can make us the perfect outfit.
