Believers, being renewed in the image of their Creator and sharing equal standing before Christ, must completely abandon former destructive behaviors—especially deceptive speech—which undermine unity in God’s family.

A father, wanting to teach his young son about the impact of anger, gave him a bag of nails and instructed him to hammer a nail into the wooden post outside their back door every time he lost his temper. On the first day, the boy hammered 37 nails into the post.

Over the following weeks, as he learned to control his temper, the number of nails gradually decreased until he went a whole day without losing his temper. Pleased with his son’s progress, the father gave him a new task: for each day he maintained control of his temper, he could remove one nail from the post.

After many weeks, the boy removed the final nail and proudly showed his father the nail-free post. Taking his son’s hand, the father looked at the post and said, “You’ve done well, my son, but look at the holes that remain. The post will never be the same. When you act in anger, you leave scars just like these. No matter how many times you say ‘I’m sorry,’ the wound remains.”

Jon Bloom, in his article “Fill Your Mouth With Life Not Death,” writes:

“People die because of something said. Tongues can be weapons of mass destruction, launching holocausts and wars. Tongues can also be the death of marriages, families, friendships, churches, careers, hopes, understanding, reputations, missionary efforts, and governments. But people also live because of something said. The tongue can be ‘a tree of life’ (Proverbs 15:4). Tongues reconcile peoples and make peace. ‘Blessed are the peacemakers’ (Matthew 5:9). Tongues can make marriages sweet, families strong, and churches healthy. Tongues can give hope to the despairing, advance understanding, and spread the gospel.”

In our study of Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we examine chapter three, verses eight through eleven:

“But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.”
Colossians 3:8-11

This passage reveals that believers, being renewed in the image of their Creator and sharing equal standing before Christ, must completely abandon former destructive behaviors—especially deceptive speech—which undermine unity in God’s family. There are three essential truths that must be integrated into our lives to live out our new identity in Christ.

Experiencing Our New Life (8-9a)

Paul transitions to a second list of behaviors that believers must abandon—things we must take off from our Christian walk. His command in verse 8 is unequivocal: “But now you must put them all away.” This is not a suggestion or an option to consider; it carries the full weight of apostolic authority on behalf of Christ.

The immediacy of this command is emphasized by the word “now.” This is not something to contemplate or gradually implement—it demands immediate action, like a mother shouting “stop!” to a child about to run into traffic. The command is also personal, directing each believer to take individual responsibility for their Christian experience and walk with God.

This command follows a logical progression from verse 3: “For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” When we place our faith in Jesus for salvation, we become new creations in Christ. In that union with Christ, we died with Him—our old nature put to death. When Christ rose from the dead, we too were resurrected, not to walk in the old way but in newness of life.

Paul reminds the Colossians in verse 7 of their former life: “In these you too once walked, when you were living in them.” He refers to their previous behaviors—sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness (which is idolatry). These activities and thought patterns belonged to their former life, when they were idol worshippers in Colossae, participating in pagan temple practices.

Now, because of our position in Christ, Paul exhorts believers to put off both the heart attitudes and corresponding actions of the flesh. He lists six specific things to put away, using the metaphor of removing a garment: three sins of the heart and three sins of the mouth.

Examining The Sins of the Heart

1. Anger

The first sin Paul addresses is anger—not as a momentary emotion, but as an enduring attitude of settled anger, the nursing of wrath over a prolonged period. This represents a disposition of the spirit rather than an eruption of emotion. It manifests as a long, prolonged inner burning of bitterness in our hearts, often leading to planned retaliation rather than impulsive action, poisoning relationships over time.

This kind of anger particularly damages the Christian community because it maintains divisions and prevents reconciliation. One might deny being angry while simultaneously refusing to engage with certain individuals or situations. When someone’s name is mentioned, or a particular circumstance arises, those old feelings of hurt and angst surface immediately. This subtle form of anger often hides behind statements like, “I’m not angry, but I want nothing to do with that person.”

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