Colossians Chapter 3: The “Bond Of Perfectness”

Col 3:12  Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; 

Col 3:13  Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. 

Col 3:14  And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. 

Col 3:15  And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. 

Oftentimes when buying clothes, shoes, or shopping for anything that we will ‘adorn,’ we want to ‘try it on,’ and not only see if it fits, but that ‘we fit it.’ And when both meet our standards, and when we think that others will also view our purchase something that they too wished they owned, or that it really compliments us, when asked by the store clerk, ‘how do you like it?’ we say; ‘perfect, I love it.’ Our Father’s Love and Word is designed to be “put on,” and just as Colossians chapter 3 teaches, putting on the “new man” is the first step in being the godly perfect Son and Daughter that God designed we would be in Christ. And we are given to ‘adorn’ something designed to never “cast off,” or only wear certain times, but to always adorn as an ‘image’ of the One who has saved us, and now desires to sanctify us by His Word.

Col 3:8  But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. 

Col 3:9  Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; 

Col 3:10  And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: 

Col 3:11  Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all. 

Therefore, we are exhorted in Colossians chapter 3 to “put off,” and “put on” throughout the chapter, but this is also done throughout all of Paul’s epistles as well. And verses 1-4 are given to teach the Saints who they are in the sight of God, and how they ought to view themselves in Christ as being not ‘just justified’ unto eternal life, but that they are “risen with Christ,” and are “dead,” and that their “life is hid with Christ in God.” And so, Paul says “mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth,” but this can only be done by the Godly provision given unto us by our Father. He not only provided His Son for our salvation from the debt and penalty of sin against us, but we also have been given the ‘salvation’ from all those things mentioned in verse 5, and verse 8.

Col 3:3  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 

Col 3:4  When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. 

Col 3:5  Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: 

Moreover, being who God called us to be consists of the Saints ‘mortifying their members,’ and ‘putting off’ those things of this earth. But this first begins with what Paul says in verses 1 and 2. And that they must renew their minds about this world, they must learn to “seek those things which are above,” and learn to ‘set their affection on things above.’ This is the first ‘component’ to the “bond of perfectness.” And when Paul says, “and above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness,” Paul is saying that “charity” is the ‘capstone’ element of godliness that makes the perfecting of the Saints “bond.” And being a “perfect” son is what our Father desires, but we must first operate upon the renewed mind, and “put off” our “affection” for the things of this world, and then “put on” the Word, and then the Saint ought to ‘walk in charity.’ And when this is done, they will be able to “let the word of Christ” to “dwell richly” in them “in all wisdom.”

Col 3:1  If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 

Col 3:2  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 

Col 3:3  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 

Finally, the “bond of perfectness” refers to the Godly components of perfectness for the Saints who desire to be what God called them to be in their “vocation” as a “perfect man” as per Ephesians chapter 4:12-14. And this is why we see Paul give the ‘step by step’ instruction here in chapter 3, because once these godly things are done by the Saint, “perfectness” will be “bond” in the sight of our Father. And by being ‘clothed’ with the “perfect” identity, the son will be able to do all that is mentioned in the verses below, and most importantly, that we “be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.”

Col 3:15  And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. 

Col 3:16  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 

Col 3:17  And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. 

Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 

Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 

Eph 4:14  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 

Rod Jones