Does god care how we dress? Studying Modest Clothing

Does God care? 1 Timothy 2:9-10 Likewise, I want  women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments, but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness.

God cares how you dress

Our approach Three modesty issues Who should teach modesty? Does modesty in dress apply to men?

Modesty issues A nakedness issue A lust issue A heart issue

Modesty A Nakedness Issue

Modesty A Naked Issue Definitions “(a) completely unclothed; bare; nude; (b) uncovered; exposed: said of parts of the body.” Webster’s New World College Dictionary Hebrew (arom) - “nude, either partially or totally:- naked” Strong’s Definitions Totally – Genesis 2:25; Job 1:21 (cf. 1 Tim. 6:7) Partially – 1 Samuel 19:24; Isaiah 20:1-4 Job 1:21 – Naked used metaphorically. Came into the world with nothing and will leave with nothing.

Modesty A Naked Issue Naked Defined - Greek (gumnos) “unclad, without clothing…ill-clad…clad in the undergarment only” (Thayer) “unclad” – Mark 14:52 “ill-clad – Matthew 25:36, 38, 43 “clad in the undergarment only” – John 21:7 “stark naked…comparatively naked or ill- dressed…stripped of the upper garment” (Zodhiates) Strongs #1131

Modesty A Naked Issue Summary It’s shameful to be naked! English, Hebrew and Greek all define nakedness as completely unclothed or as partially clothed. It’s shameful to be naked! Isaiah 20:2-4; Revelation 3:18; 16:15

Modesty A Naked Issue Partially clothed but naked! Completely unclothed needs no further explanation, but not so with partially clothed! Since partially clothed is still considered naked, obviously more needs to be covered. What must be covered to prevent one from being considered naked?

Modesty A Naked Issue Consider Genesis 3 Vs. 7 – completely unclothed – naked Vs. 10 – partially clothed – naked Vs. 21 – clothed – not naked Divinely designed clothing! TWOT – “clothed” (labes, #3847) – “1) being clothed, 2) being clothed as a sign of rank, status, or character, and 3) poetic figures likening abstract qualities to clothing.” Zodhiates – “A verb meaning to wear, to dress, to put on clothing.”

Modesty A Naked Issue “loin coverings” “garments of skin” Genesis 3:7 “garments of skin” Genesis 3:21 Hebrew: hagora - “girdle, belt, loincloth” Greek (LXX): peridzoma - compound of “around” plus “life” Hebrew: kuttonet - “a tunic… generally with sleeves, coming down to knees, rarely to the ankles” Greek (LXX): chiton - garment covering shoulders to knees, or longer

Modesty A Naked Issue Original I.S.B.E. on “chiton” “resembled the Roman tunic, corresponding most nearly to our long shirt, reaching below the knee always, and, in case it was designed for dress occasions, reaching almost to the ground” (II:877). Later says chiton of peasantry was shorter like modern kamis or Syrian fellah which is to the knee.

Modesty A Naked Issue Cambridge Commentary “The word “coats” hardly represents the Hebrew so well as LXX χιτῶνας, and Lat. “tunicas,” cf. 2 Kings 1:8, Hebrews 11:37. The Heb. k’thôneth (= χιτῶν) was a kind of shirt without sleeves, reaching down to the knees.”

Modesty A Naked Issue Davis Dictionary of the Bible “It usually had short sleeves and reached nearly to the knees, though a longer form with sleeves of full length was in use.” Wilson’s O.T. Word Studies “a tunic, worn next the skin . . . generally with sleeves, to the knees, but seldom to the ankles, Gen.3:21.”

Modesty A Naked Issue Conclusion God intends for the majority of our bodies to be covered. If I am wearing clothing which exposes that which should be covered then that clothing is immodest and I am considered naked. To be clothed I must have a garment, at the very least, which covers from head to knees.

Modesty A Naked Issue Wearing modest clothing doesn’t mean one’s nakedness can’t be exposed. Priests properly clothed but “exposed” Exodus 20:26 Examples Modest blouse till bent over to pick up something Modest dress but catches wind easily Modest till on an elevated stage (concert, play) Modest dress when standing – immodest when seated. This is being shamefaced and prudent – you recognize what must be covered and how certain movements might “expose” your nakedness Wearing dresses which blow up easily on windy days, bending over to pick up something (hold blouse to keep from exposing chest), on an elevated stage (band performance, performing in play) make sure to cover nakedness

Modesty A Naked Issue Questions Does my clothing expose the parts of my body God desires to be covered? Am I aware of exposing parts of my body, when bending over, raising arms, crossing legs, etc? Should clothing be worn in which I run the risk of exposing what God intends to be covered?

Modesty A Lust Issue

Modesty A Lust Issue Consider: A woman may be modest from a nakedness standpoint, but her clothing may be sexually attractive clothing which promotes lust and thus be considered quite immodest! E.g. – Yoga pants, leggings worn as pants, form fitting shirts and dresses, tight or thin garments which reveal outline of or can visibly see one’s undergarments.

Modesty A Lust Issue “It’s our culture that teaches females to exploit their looks. It’s a Western notion that women, it doesn’t matter if they’re married or not, need to appear sexually attractive to other men in order to have self-worth. It’s a big part of the source of their power. Women don’t feel like true “women” unless other men find them sexually attractive. This is what fuels the age-defying make-up industry, plastic surgeons, and the fashion world. Men display their wealth, power and status while women display their appearance and sexual appeal. Many women find that it is the only thing they have going for them. A woman’s instinct for display is as strong as a man’s instinct to look.” Alan Auerbach, 7/24/06, General Psychology

Modesty A Lust Issue Men are visually stimulated! Men are more quickly led to lust than women over visual stimulation. Is this why Matthew 5:27-30 is addressed to men? Is this why women are told to dress in “modest apparel…(1 Timothy 2:9, 10)?”

Modesty A Lust Issue Men are visually stimulated! A woman can dress in a sexually attractive way which causes a man to struggle with lust. A woman, by her dress, could be laying down a stumbling-block for a man – Matthew 18:5-7 “But I’m not trying to do that!” That may be so, but…

Modesty A Lust Issue Excerpt from “The Male Factor: The Unwritten Rules, Misperceptions, and Secret Beliefs of Men in the Workplace” by Shaunti Feldhahn Copyright © 2009 by Veritas Enterprises. “Each of us — men or women — probably have individual quirks of our biological wiring that we’d rather not have: temptations, frustrations, impulses, desires. There are facets of our nature that we would love to be able to just turn off at times.”

Modesty A Lust Issue Excerpt from “The Male Factor: The Unwritten Rules, Misperceptions, and Secret Beliefs of Men in the Workplace” by Shaunti Feldhahn Copyright © 2009 by Veritas Enterprises. “The visual wiring men have presents a similar temptation that men say they often don’t want and wish they could turn off — especially in a business setting. Their visual nature is highly attuned to and predisposed to take in appealing images, including images of an appealing woman. And if that woman is dressing in a way that emphasizes her assets, that fact is not only noticed but often begins a train of thought that more men in business would rather not have.”

Modesty A Lust Issue Excerpt from “The Male Factor: The Unwritten Rules, Misperceptions, and Secret Beliefs of Men in the Workplace” by Shaunti Feldhahn Copyright © 2009 by Veritas Enterprises. “But their visual nature isn’t something that can be turned off. They must work to ignore it. In talking to men, I found most were incredibly puzzled as to why the woman wouldn’t want to avoid the situation. Why, the men wonder, is a professional woman dressing in a way that is likely to cause men to be distracted and miss some of what she’s saying? And the answer, of course, is that most women have no intention of causing that sort of distraction, and don’t realize that they are doing so.”

Modesty A Lust Issue Excerpt from “The Male Factor: The Unwritten Rules, Misperceptions, and Secret Beliefs of Men in the Workplace” by Shaunti Feldhahn Copyright © 2009 by Veritas Enterprises. “To test the difference in men’s and women’s perceptions in this area, I asked men what they would think if they saw a woman dressing in a way that emphasized or showed off her figure in some way, such as a low-cut top or a tight skirt. Then I asked white collar women who said they sometimes dressed in that way what was actually going through their minds. Here are the starkly differing results. Seventy-six percent of the men felt the woman wanted the men around her to look at her body. Yet only twenty-three percent of the women actually felt that way. In other words, three out of four women said that was not what they were thinking at all!”

Modesty A Lust Issue Conclusion Intention has nothing to do with sexually attractive clothing which creates lust! Women like to look good – 1 Tim. 2:9b; 1 Pet. 3:3 Men like to take a good look – Matthew 5:27-28 “A woman’s instinct for display is as strong as a man’s instinct to look.” Alan Auerbach, 7/24/06, General Psychology

How should a woman dress so as not to create lust?

Modesty A Lust Issue Make sure she has conquered the “nakedness issue!” Make sure she is covering what God desires! Make sure she follows NT principles regarding her adornment.

Modesty A Lust Issue 1 Timothy 2:9-10 Likewise, I want women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments, (10) but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness. NASB

Modesty A Lust Issue 1 Timothy 2:9-10 - “Women making a claim to godliness”: will not dress in such a way which creates a stumbling-block of lust for a man. will not stress the outward adornment of her body. will make sure her works (clothing) is consistent with her profession of godliness.

Modesty A Lust Issue 1 Timothy 2:9-10 Likewise, I want women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments, (10) but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness. NASB

Modesty A Lust Issue “The first thing then that the women are urged to pay attention to is their dress or apparel. There are three qualifiers mentioned before apparel: modestly, sensibly and seemly; these three terms are related and their meanings overlap in some ways.” UBS New Testament Handbook Series

Modesty A Lust Issue “proper clothing” (1st) “orderly, decent” Zodhiates “It describes one who disciplines himself and who may thus be regarded as genuinely moral and respectable.” Theological Dictionary of the New Testament “The virtue of the kósmios, however, is not only the propriety of his dress and demeanor, but of his inner life, uttering and expressing itself outwardly.” Zodhiates Strong's #2887

Modesty A Lust Issue Application Knowing that men are visual creatures, a woman will dress in such a way that is decent, morally respectable and a reflection of her inner desire to be godly and to help men in their desire to be godly.

Modesty A Lust Issue “modestly” (2nd) “an innate moral repugnance to a dishonorable act or fashion” Zodhiates “a word that means "moderate" or "reasonable" with the implication that the person is aware of what is best in a particular situation.” UBS “It is often said that aidous precedes and prevents the shameful act…” Trench Strong’s #127 Repugnant - extremely unpleasant or offensive

Modesty A Lust Issue Application Knowing that men are visual creatures, she will have such a moral repugnance to causing a man to struggle with lust that she will not push the limits of what is reasonable but will always dress in such a way that will prevent the creation of an opportunity for a shameful desire of lust to arise.

Modesty A Lust Issue “discreetly” (3rd) “having or displaying caution or self-restraint” “Sober-mindedness, moderation of desires, passions, or conduct” Zodhiates “it is that habitual inner self-government, with its constant rein on all the passions and desires, which would hinder the temptation to these from arising” Trench

Modesty A Lust Issue Application Knowing that men are visual creatures, she will always use self-restraint and her inner self- government to rein in her own passions regarding the desire to look good. She will always be cautious and sober-minded in choosing what to wear.

God cares how you dress It is imperative the issues of nakedness and lust be addressed and conquered!