The Need for Modesty in an Increasingly Immodest World

Introduction

This sermon is quite personal. I recall how that with all diligence I without hesitation will advise my young sisters in Christ whenever I perceive that they are on the path to immodesty with regards to their dressing. I always try to address this in its infancy because;

1. The world in which we find ourselves has come to normalize the things which scripture has condemned. This has become so true to the extent that even a well-meaning Christian can become oblivious to the fact that his/her adornment may not be pleasing to the Lord.
2. It usually begins with a very thin margin between modesty and immodesty such that it can be quite difficult to tell if the dressing in question is immodest or not.
3. While this thin margin is being tested, the well trained conscience of our dear sisters begin to break down and overtime they become more immodest as their now poorly trained conscience tells them there is nothing wrong with it and that it was normal. It gets to the point where they do not blush, neither are they ashamed. (Jeremiah 6:15)

A Growing Difficulty in Addressing Immodesty

Recently however, I was faced with difficulty addressing the same concern when I saw these seemingly benign signs of immodesty sprouting in the life of one dear sister whom I have come to adore very much for her Christian values. I took note of the different occasions and rather increasing frequency with which this was becoming apparent and decided to address it and to do it rather quickly. For the very first time, I couldn’t bring myself to address this growing concern. For the space of 3 weeks, I contemplated within myself how best to handle this delicate concern.
On another occasion during a meeting, I asked a Christian brother if the way our sisters were dressed was a matter of concern that needed to be addressed. We both concluded that it was a matter of concern but then because of how these things have become normalized in the world, it is becoming increasingly difficult to address issues concerning this subject. So we never addressed that issue.

Purpose of This Exhortation

Even though I will try to provide you with a glimpse of what the Lord calls immodest apparel, the exhortation today is not to tell you about what attire is modest and which is not. I’m not going to draw the line on what height of skirt is modest or immodest:

1. I want to rather admonish the young men among us on why it is important to continuously guide our dear sisters on the increasing need for modesty in an increasingly immodest world.
2. I want to exhort the young men on the need to form strong pillars and shields that will support and protect the conscience of our dear sisters against deterioration by reminding them of the difference between what the world adores and what God requires of them as women who profess Godliness.
3. I also want to admonish our beloved sisters on the importance of modesty and of how much damage immodest dressing can cause in our lives, in the lives of our Christian brothers and in the lives of our children, in the church and ultimately, in our quest for eternal life in the presence of God.

Biblical Instruction on Modesty

In 1 Timothy 2: 9-10, the Spirit through Paul admonishes,

“In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; But with good works, which is proper for women professing Godliness”.

In the above passage, we have God clearly giving instructions to Christian women that they should “adorn themselves in modest apparel…” but who defines modesty? The world or God? Is it our culture? Who determines that one apparel is immodest and the other is not? Is it parents, friends, who…?

God Does Not Leave His Commands Undefined

Brethren, God does not command us to do something and leaves it to us to determine what that thing is. God did not command us to be saved by Christ and left us oblivious of how we are to do that, on the contrary, He taught us to hear the word, believe the word, repent, confess Christ Jesus, be baptized into Christ and live faithfully to the end, then He will give us the crown of life. Will God do any less when He commands us to be adorned in modest apparel? When He commands us to live a life that is worthy of our calling? Let’s take a glimpse at what a modest apparel looks like in the sight of God.

Lessons from the Garden of Eden

When Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden tree, “the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons” (Genesis 3:7). The Hebrew word translated aprons here refers to loin-coverings or loin-cloth. A loin-cloth is an apparel that covers the waist and the private parts.

Adam and Eve were in this apparel when they rightly told God they were naked based on the knowledge they got from eating the forbidden tree. When later God came into the garden, “…God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.” (Genesis 3:9-10).

There are 2 points worth noting:

1. With the knowledge they acquired from eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, Adam and Eve knew they were naked and hid themselves even though they were wearing loin-coverings.
2. God did not say that they were lying. On the contrary, God acknowledge that truth: that they were naked indeed, so “Unto Adam also and his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins and clothed them.” (Genesis 3:21)

The Hebrew word translated “coats” is “kethôneth, kûttôneth”. From its root word, this is a long shirt-like garment that covers from the shoulder.

Instruction from the Priesthood

To throw more light on decent apparel, let’s take a look at God’s instruction to Moses concerning the adornment of Aaron and his sons.

“And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an ephod, and a robe, and a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle: …” (Exodus 28:4)

When you continue reading, you will realize that in addition to all of the above, Moses is commanded “And thou shalt make them linen breaches to cover their nakedness; from the loins even unto the thighs they shall reach:”

Unlike the aprons/loin-coverings Adam and Eve used to cover their waist and private parts, the linen breaches reached from the waist to the thighs (NB: not half of the thighs). This is the apparel they are to wear when they come to the tabernacle or approach the alter (Exodus 28:43).

Regardless of the above, God instructs them saying, “Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon”. (Exodus 20:26)

Situational Modesty

We can learn from the above that an apparently modest apparel can become immodest in a given situation. Eg: A modest skirt that reaches to the knee can become immodest when climbing stairs as our nakedness is discovered by the one following from below. Likewise, when a person bends at the waist to pick an object or do something otherwise.
A Christian would perhaps hold her skirt to the skin while she climbs up the stairs or better still wear a skirt that reaches to the leg that her nakedness will not be discovered as she ascends the stairs.

If the priest upon wearing the robe, coat, ephod and broidered coat, in addition to the breaches which covers from the waist to the thigh… If upon wearing all these, God says their nakedness will be discovered if they go to the alter by stairs, then why would a christian who wants to profess Godliness wear anything less decent? Or more importantly, why would a Christian want to test such boundaries?

Kindly also read Isaiah 47:2-3.

Why Modesty Matters

This issue of decent and modest dressing has long since existed. It is not usually an easy topic of discussion because of the concern of offence and the hurting of a loved one. But what love is there to behold if we are unable to exhort one another unto good works and perfection, unto a life that is worthy of the vocation wherewith we have been called?
Let us now consider these 4 reasons why we should earnestly seek to be modest in our dressing.

1. It leads to the downfall of your Christian brothers

Do you remember what Christ said about lust and adultery?

“But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart” (Matt 5:28).

Then Paul makes us understand that “no adulterer will inherit the kingdom of God”.
Why would you want to adorn yourself in an apparel that will cause the destruction of your brother’s soul?
When a Christian sister dresses indecently, some brethren are drawn away by lust, causing them to sin against the Lord by committing adultery with her in their heart. Worse still, some go on to commit adultery in the flesh, dishonoring their own body (and the sister’s) and sinning against the Lord. This has consequently led to the destruction of many Christians, many homes, many wonderful relationships, unwanted pregnancies, abortions, …, etc.

2. It destroys the Christian sister

About 3 years ago, while admonishing one sister, she said something like, “ah Br Kekeli, but I didn’t ask them to lust after me, they decided to look. It is their problem, how is that my fault?”.

That is true you didn’t ask them to, but it is also true that God does not stop there. Yes, God will punish the one committing adultery in his heart, but what about the person by whom the temptation came?

This is what Jesus has to say, “It is impossible but that offences (temptations) will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea…” (Luke 17:1-2).

The Lord here says, “woe”. Beloved, it is a dangerous thing to fall in the hands of the living God. It is not something any of us should desire. Let us therefor not allow our apparel to put us on the wrong side of God’s wrath. Moreover, if it does not profess Godliness, then why adorn yourself as such?

Gentlemen, let us be kind enough to draw our sister’s attention to any type of adornment that is unworthy of God, they probably are just ignorant of the depth of such ungodliness.

3. Self-Deception

God placed us in this world and instructs us to not be conformed to it. Now that immorality and immodesty have come to abound in the world so much to the measure of “the norm”, some of our friends in the world tend to be people who adorn themselves immodestly.
Let us remember that the instruction of the Lord to not be conformed to the world still stands. The Lord wants us to reconcile such friends back to Himself, he wants us to be the salt that seasons them and the light that guides their path to Christ.

The Lord knowing the danger associated with these relationships, warns us ahead of time that we “be not be deceived, evil companionship corrupts good habits” (1 Corinthians 15: 33).

The problem with us Christians is that we tend to remind ourselves of how that our friends bad or immodest life will not be able to corrupt us. You see, that is exactly what Paul was talking about: the very time we think highly of ourselves that we cannot be corrupted by our friends or companion, that is the very beginning of our fall, so he admonishes us to “not be deceived”.

Another passage tells us to “Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12).

If we will however accept that truth that we are liable to corruption, then we might just be vigilant enough to recognize it early when we are falling short, and also be more willing to accept exhortation from another Christian fellow who might recognize this corruption creeping into our lives.

Final Exhortation

Last thing I’d like to say: modest dressing should not be limited to the gathering of saints, but should be a part of our lives wherever we find ourselves as our life as Christians transcend the gathering together as saints. Let us lighten the darkness with our light.
Beloved, find the good way and walk therein, Amen.

Br Valentine K. Dzah