While attending school many years ago, a
professor made this statement, “If your heart is right, your dress is right.”
The university had a very conservative dress code policy that intentionally ripped against the
fabric of current fashion. The standard had more of a shock value of being
perceived as residents of Little House on the Prairie rather than a spiritual statement
of being “distinctively Christian” in the twentieth century. I agreed with the
professor if he was referring to the student's compliance with the school’s dress code because we were required
to sign off on maintaining appropriate attire as a student of the university, which by the way,
was far easier on the men than the women.
I didn’t agree with some of
the standards or the philosophy behind those standards, but in order to get what
I wanted from that school, I had to obey the rules because I agreed to abide,
not agreed to agree. For instance, even though I was a Vietnam Era Vet, I couldn’t
live off campus because I was not 25! I could die for my country, but I couldn’t
live in an apartment on my own while going to school because I was considered
too young! The only way around it was to get married, a poor reason to marry, right? Anyway, I learned in the military
that you did a lot of things you didn’t like to do because it became necessary
in order to accomplish the mission objective. My education at this ultra-conservative university was the
mission that God had sent me on, my Divine deployment.
When my professor made that statement,
“If your heart is right your dress is right,” he was referring to the school’s
dress code as some kind of universal standard that should embrace Christianity in general and not be limited to a local institution! I liked the principle, but not how it was being applied or the inferences drawn from it. It was nothing short of arrogance and usurpation of biblical authority for a school to claim to be the standard for all Christians in what is the proper attire for a believer which leads to the faulty reasoning that the rightness of your heart can be seen in what you wear (cf. 1 Sam 16:7 or John the Baptist's apparel). It was
very disappointing that a brilliant Bible educator could be so narrow-minded
and biased on how Christians ought to dress.
At the time I was dumb as a rock concerning the Bible, but I always thought that appropriate apparel was dictated by pomp and circumstance. For instance, it would be odd for someone to attend a funeral wearing a Hawaiian shirt, bright shorts, and sandals. Maybe that would be okay in some tropical island funeral but surely not in the hills of Tennessee. So, there could be a provincial or cultural influence in determining appropriate apparel here or there.
Like the military, the school had every right to define and enforce whatever dress code they deemed was appropriate for its students, but once a soldier or student was no longer under their authority, the regulations of that institution no longer applied to the individual. There were spiritual leaders at my school who wanted to go beyond that limitation by redefining Christlikeness to include its dress code for living the spiritual life! If they wanted to dress the way they do was fine with me as long as they didn't try to force it upon me beyond its walls as some kind of reflection of spirituality. That could be construed as legalism, imposing personal preferences on others under the pretense of a moral mandate from Yahweh. Legalism emphasizes keeping over seeking, outer over inner, and style over substance. I appreciated the fact that the school had standards that seem in short supply among other schools of higher learning today. The problem to me was in the arrogance of overreaching, the usurpation of authority beyond its walls.
At the time I was dumb as a rock concerning the Bible, but I always thought that appropriate apparel was dictated by pomp and circumstance. For instance, it would be odd for someone to attend a funeral wearing a Hawaiian shirt, bright shorts, and sandals. Maybe that would be okay in some tropical island funeral but surely not in the hills of Tennessee. So, there could be a provincial or cultural influence in determining appropriate apparel here or there.
Like the military, the school had every right to define and enforce whatever dress code they deemed was appropriate for its students, but once a soldier or student was no longer under their authority, the regulations of that institution no longer applied to the individual. There were spiritual leaders at my school who wanted to go beyond that limitation by redefining Christlikeness to include its dress code for living the spiritual life! If they wanted to dress the way they do was fine with me as long as they didn't try to force it upon me beyond its walls as some kind of reflection of spirituality. That could be construed as legalism, imposing personal preferences on others under the pretense of a moral mandate from Yahweh. Legalism emphasizes keeping over seeking, outer over inner, and style over substance. I appreciated the fact that the school had standards that seem in short supply among other schools of higher learning today. The problem to me was in the arrogance of overreaching, the usurpation of authority beyond its walls.
Determining appropriate apparel can quickly descend into the crevasse of relativity and opinion. Should the miniskirt return, some will not see a problem wearing it to church; I do. If it is okay for women to wear sandals to church, why cannot men? What about wearing blue jeans to a church service? Shorts and t-shirts for men or women? Slacks for women? Tank tops? Low-cut tops? The “what-about” is endless! The hang nail with letting people decide on their own about appropriate apparel without some kind of dress code expectations for church services is that common sense is rather uncommon, and if you press too hard they leave the church for another more relaxed atmosphere.
Even attempting to coordinate a standard in a non-offensive way is dicey; invariably there is a snag, “Who died and elected you the boss? You don’t pay my bills?” And who is going to define “appropriate” anyway? According to “whom?” "How dare you judge me!" This sounds a lot like behavior during the time of the Judges (Jdg 21:25). If this problem surfaces in the church, God only knows the extent of it outside the church. Aren’t we supposed to be on our best behavior at church anyway dressed in our Sunday best? Little old-fashioned in thinking that way nowadays, isn’t it? We are in desperate need of wisdom from above in addressing those in the congregation that are “dressing up” for church or more accurately, “dressing down.”
Even when we bring God into the
equation, we still want to finagle with whatever is formulated. Throw out some verses to the masses to
show biblical authority on some new but necessary ecclesiastical legislation on what is
acceptable attire, and allow self-righteousness to police the area. I say that because that is what it usually turns into, some Pharisaical practice or enforcement;
you know that superficial form of righteousness by which we judge others? Since
we are all outer-appearance-prone in judging others (1 Sam 16:7), the problem
of a dress code in the church is a
tendency to become self-righteous which is much easier than Christlikeness, a going downstream versus going upstream kind of thing. Next thing you know our self-righteousness is turning those people away who may really need to hear the Gospel. The doors of the church are open but the doors of our hearts are closed.
Also, there is so much cultural pressure
placed upon women in keeping up with the latest fashion designs to avoid
looking out of style or out of place, desiring to be accepted or admired. Once
I sat in the commons area of our church and observed several women giving other
women the once-over. It was actually a carnal behavior of social grazing for self-edification of the ego that looked for greener
pasture or other women with faults and less attractive features, consuming all the negative data gleaned for personal gratification! The facial expressions were hard
to disguise the mental ingestion. Men do the same thing comparing and evaluating one another. If you don't believe that happens, why are there cliques in the church? Like body parts attract to like body parts, ignoring the concept of the body of Christ and all its members working together or how about getting together for His glory!
Who wants to stick out like a sore thumb anyway? God isn’t calling us to all look like John the Baptist (Mk 1:6). I can wear the same pants for years, but not my wife! With that statement I am sure to hear the quotation from out of the Law of Moses (Deut 22:5). But what if the current style was a little too risqué or revealing? “Houston, we got a problem.” But I don’t want my wife wearing a burlap bag with the latest tennis shoes either. We are in trouble should we ever see ruler measurements built into the door jams at the entrance of a church. "Door #4 hem alert! Security detected a low-cut blouse at door #6! Ask door #3 to leave the premises for a wardrobe malfunction!"
Who wants to stick out like a sore thumb anyway? God isn’t calling us to all look like John the Baptist (Mk 1:6). I can wear the same pants for years, but not my wife! With that statement I am sure to hear the quotation from out of the Law of Moses (Deut 22:5). But what if the current style was a little too risqué or revealing? “Houston, we got a problem.” But I don’t want my wife wearing a burlap bag with the latest tennis shoes either. We are in trouble should we ever see ruler measurements built into the door jams at the entrance of a church. "Door #4 hem alert! Security detected a low-cut blouse at door #6! Ask door #3 to leave the premises for a wardrobe malfunction!"
And you know what? We should not dismiss
motive in the priesthood of the believer in what clothes we wear and when. Why
do we wear what we wear anyway? Are we trolling the opposite sex or seeking attention,
like driving some exotic car around town to be seen? Is it a pride thing? I
think clothes also affect our attitude, too. This may sound weird, but I feel more comfortable in relaxed
clothing than when I am dressed to “kill!” Are some doing an overkill on the modest clothing angle and for what reason?
I guess I should throw out a couple of verses at
this juncture on godliness and adornment (Rom 13:14; 1 Cor 6:19-20; 1 Tim 2:9; 1
Pet 3:3-4), but you might dismiss these easily like water on a duck’s back by
ignoring them altogether or by saying to yourself, “That’s your interpretation!” I get
that all the time in everything I write even though I may be right on target
biblically, or I liked to think that I am; I try very hard to be anyway! So let me simply refer to James, the Lord’s
half-brother, by taking a different tack in not trying to convince you to consider what you wear or changing your clothes, per se, but asking you to consider seeking wisdom from God in this matter even if you think you don't have a problem in this area of clothing or outer apparel.
Jas 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of
God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to
him.
Jas 1:6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting,
for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
Jas 1:7 For let not that man suppose that he will
receive anything from the Lord;
Jas 1:8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all
his ways.
Allow me to offer this simple prayer.
Allow me to offer this simple prayer.
“Lord, I want to be wise in what
clothes I wear, but more importantly to be clothed in Christ’s righteousness at
all times. Help me with the renewing of my mind by the Word of God on a daily
basis (Rom 12:2). Give me the wisdom from the truth of Your Word and from above
so that I can with greater confidence dress in a way that is pleasing to You and
not to others. Patient and prayerful may I be an example to those who
perhaps are making choices not befitting a child of the King. May my clothing always
be pleasing to you spiritually and physically all the days of my life remaining for your
glory, in the name of Jesus. Amen.”
Appropriate apparel for the believer
will always be Christlikeness. If you
and I make that our hearts desire to seek wisdom from above rather than earthly
wisdom, our outer garments, the fabric of faith, will be right before Him no matter where we go (Rom
12:1, 2). “Keep your heart” (the seat of the intellect, the emotions, and the will),
beloved, “with all diligence, for out of it spring
the issues of life” (Prov 4:23); these make for the best dressed
Christians. <><
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