Having a great time with this series on Warning Signs for Christians! Love the comments and insight from all of YOU! You can read Part 1 here and Part 2 Lethargy & Rebellion here. What nuggets of wisdom you have shared! Please join in again today for our study of Modesty. This one is rather long so it stands alone. Feel free to join in the discussion in the comment section!
Modesty
“Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; but let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands: even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement.” 1 Peter 3:3-6.
You may be surprised at how the Bible describes modesty. It is not just what we wear on the outside, although that is important, and we will talk about it here, but it is more than that.
Peter is instructing godly Christian ladies, and men, to adorn themselves with a meek and a quiet spirit. The first paragraph is addressed to both sexes. He also admonishes us that in order to submit to authority we must have a spirit of humility.
No matter how we dress, if we have pride in our heart, our “modesty” and disapproval of others who do not dress as we do, will show that we obviously misunderstand what modesty is all about.
“In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with braided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; but (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.” 1 Timothy 2:9 NKJV.
We cannot be handed a list of rules to run to every time we go to get dressed.
It has to be in our heart. What is our motive? Who are we dressing to please? Whose eye are we trying to catch?
“Modesty is a way of thinking that is characterized by humility and purity, and results in appropriate actions.” ~ Michelle Brock
“Strength and honor are her clothing; She shall rejoice in time to come.” Proverbs 31:25 NKJV.
When we walk with the Lord, it is Him we are trying to please; we now walk in “…newness of life”.
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17.
Does it matter what we wear? Sure it does. Is it more important than what is on the inside? Absolutely not. We have seen plenty that looked good on the outside but their inside was plenty rotten. But still, what is on the inside will come through and resonate on the outside and if we are wanting to represent our Lord, we will dress to please Him.
The word “modest” means something different to everyone, but the bottom line is not to distract or attract. The Greek word meant seemly, decently and in order. Merriam- Webster describes it as “…the quality of behaving and especially dressing in ways that do not attract sexual attention.”
But it all goes back to who are you dressing to please? Who are you trying to attract?
Or, better yet, who are you trying to distract?
A man, or woman, should never have to be uncomfortable when talking with you.
There is nothing wrong with holiness! It is not old fashioned. It is godly, Biblical and pleasing to our Lord.
There is a trend moving back toward modesty, not only in America but around the world! Many are even bold about it and excited to speak out. There are more selections of modest clothing and even several new companies around the world of modest bathing suits!
There is also nothing wrong with looking nice, dressing nice and being well put together. We should look our best, whatever our best may be. I love clothes, I love new clothes! I love the latest styles as long as they do not compromise my walk with the Lord.
Again, to each of us it means something different, but to our Lord it means one thing: not attracting the opposite sex, especially if they are not your spouse, by wearing clothing that is suggestive and distracting.
You can dress outside your box but INSIDE HIS BOOK!
I am ready for your comments, please join in the discussion! Monday we continue our series as we enter the serious subject of Pornography, Fornication, Lust and Adultery. Stay tuned!
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Hello sweet Natalie! I miss you! So happy you stopped by the blog today…made me so glad to see your name. Love you too and I hope to see you. ♥
hey this is Natalie shutes and this was great! This helped me understand why we where skirts and things a little better. Thank you and hope to see you soon.
Culture has sometime over ridden the Word of God and often we put culture above the Word of God. One article I read said that the root word for culture is cult. The author’s point was it is not culture that dictates how a Christian lives and walks, but the Word of God. I have missionary friends in South Africa and they all said that once the people come to the understanding of what biblical modesty is they change, gladly and cover up. They realized their culture was not based in Scripture, but in traditions of man. They become modest in heart, soul and dress.
The tradition of my family was in long dresses all the time, but as the 50’s began the spiral down to immodest dress, we young ones ignored the traditions of family and went with the culture of modern times, to the shame of my great aunts. They constantly tried to have us see the way they dressed was to honor God, but us young ones were part of a “new” wave of the modern world and we embraced it all too willingly.
The way we dress does reflect our hearts, a lot more than we want to believe, but I know the longer I serve God the longer my hem lines became, the higher my collars and the looser my clothing became. My daughter and I use to embellish our clothes a lot to pretty them up. But now I am not able to sew and my daughter is too busy taking care of the home and her parents to sew. We are more content with the plainness of our dress than I ever thought I would be as it is the peace in our soul in relationship to God that works outwardly. To Him be the glory.
I agree Joan, what is in the heart will shine on the outside! You summed it up beautifully friend. Thank you for stopping by! Blessings to you…♥
I think that the most important part of modesty is the heart. Are we dressing a certain way to flaunt our beauty, get attention, or are we simply unaware? Or, are we dressing in a way that reflects our love of Christ and wanting to honor Him? I agree that in different cultures the “dress code” is different and that is most likely because of the culture’s view on what is sexually suggestive. Here in America, the breast is not only thought of as a way to feed our babies, it is also thought of as a sexual part of us. However, in other cultures, a breast is simply a breast, you know? However, uncovering a different part of the body would be considered immodest or immoral. So, to sum up what I’m thinking, modesty is a matter of the heart with respect to the culture in which we live.
Blessings, Joan
Hello dear Ellen! We do need to love ourselves too…and it has to come from within. Having our hearts right before the Lord…dear Jesus cleanse ME!!
Love you and hope you are doing well. Miss our talks!! ♥
Ooh…I love that! Classy! You said a lot in a few words friend! Thank you so much for stopping by! God bless you and please come back, you are most welcome! ♥
Hi Cindy! I am also thrilled to see the turning tide toward modesty and it is the young women that are leading the pack! God bless them! They are realizing that LESS is MORE…meaning revealing LESS is MORE attractive to men, MORE pleasing to God, and brings MORE confidence to self.
I am hoping Mia comes back today, she is one of my favorite bloggers! She is a missionary to her country there in South Africa so she knows all about the people. My question to her is do they change their mode of dress, do they “cover up more” when they become a Christian? Now I am curious! I know that any videos I have seen from missionaries that have come through our churches they show church services and the ladies are not “exposed”, even though you might see that on the outside. They are always dressed modestly and godly.
Help, Mia! 🙂 We are curious! And yes, we love good discussion! Thanks Cindy!
Hi Nanette,
This is a very interesting discussion, indeed! I have seen many “Modesty” blogs written by young women and it makes my heart glad to see them. Their ‘standard’ may be a little different from mine, but they are aware of the fact that the status quo (where just anything goes) is simply not pleasing to God.
I was reading Mia’s comment and thought I might comment on it. There comes a time when God’s word rises above any one culture. In God’s eyes there is no culture, we are all the same, don’t you think? His laws and love are not different for different races or cultures.
Good discussion!
Hugs, Cindy
This can be a touchy one- yikes! I do think the social climate today is much more tolerant of risque` dressing. It takes the old saying “Less is Best” to a whole different level, lol! But seriously, the whole retail industry and media do shove “Sex Sells” down our throats, and no body seems to really oppose it and the effects trickle down everywhere. Different cultures do have different standards, but they don’t do it to demean their bodies or rituals/celebrations. It has been passed down, not contrived to sell, sell, sell.
It is EVERYWHERE!
Nannette you’re right- it has to come from within. Wanting to have a pleasing spirit to honor our Lord, and having respect for ourselves is soo important! He loves us all so very much! We need to love ourselves too.
Thank you for this post and for this series. In these times, we need to hear and HEED these warnings!! Sometimes people don’t want to talk about these things, but we must start the dialogues sometime, somewhere. Thanks for being that place, and guiding those (me!) who need it!
You are appreciated!
Blessings to you friend!! ♡
Loved this! The word “modesty” gets thrown around often and unfortunately young people associate modesty with homeliness. However, a new trend is arising, calling modesty “classy.” Regardless of what term our society prefers to use, one thing is certain – a new creature in Christ will become more modest as he/she grows in the Lord. Great discussion!
Thank you for stopping by Crystin! I too am thankful for grace and mercy. Thankful the Lord gives us personal convictions…if HE gives them to us, no one can take them away! So happy to have you as a new friend, you are most welcome here. ♥
We do generally think of the outside Sharon…but I am trying to think INSIDE as well. I want my heart to be right then I know the outside will be okay too. Blessings friend! ♥
It’s not immodest for them even as a Christian. You are to cover your loins only. Uncovering your loins is considered immodest.
I found it very interesting that when I hear the word *modesty* I think of outside adornment. But you’re so right, modesty has everything to do with the inner spirit. I have a feeling that if we are aligned correctly with the Holy Spirit on the inside, our outer person, including the clothing we wear, will also reflect proper modesty.
GOD BLESS!
God bless you!
As a new convert, I had a hard time dealing with the standards of Holiness in my Church. When I prayed and sought God’s face on why, He revealed to me my insecurities. (This is a personal thing, not anything I am implying against any other lady, we are all different). I clung to makeup and provocative clothing because I needed the attention from others to make me feel beautiful. A question I would ask my HUSBAND as I got ready was ‘If you were some random dude on the street would you check me out?’ That was my baseline for if I looked good enough. Golly! I am so glad for the Blood of Jesus. So thankful for His grace and mercies! Thankful for deliverance!
So true Mia…I should have mentioned that dear friend. Different cultures do have varying standards of dress to be sure. What is acceptable in one culture would not necessarily be acceptable in another as your example proves. And I am curious when those in that culture come to know the Lord if they change their manner of dress at all? Interesting! And if not, what would modesty mean to them? Thanks for the discussion!!
Thank you for taking the time to comment Joanne. This post could be endless! But I tried to keep it simple. Actually it was about twice this long and I cut it down 🙂 bottom line is our hearts! Blessings!
Very wise and worthwhile words!
Dear Nannette
The dress code as far as modesty is concerned differ from country to country and also from the on ethnic group to the next. In South Africa is totally acceptable for young Xhosa and Zulu teenage girls to walk around bare breasted during their ceremonies and rituals. But the inside beauty can only come when our Lord has filled our heart with the fruit of His peaceful and quiet spirit! I hope you are better, my friend!
Blessings XX
Mia