“That’s Still Sin” Week #1 : Immodest Dress

Welcome to “That’s Still Sin” Week on the blog. This week’s posts are meant to take five issues that are called sinful in the Bible, but that rarely get discussed as such anymore. Today, we begin this series of posts with immodest dress.

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We live in a sex-saturated society. It is difficult to drive down the road or walk down the corridor of a mall without seeing that sex sells. As the walls of sexuality erode, so has as the amount of clothing many people wear. In warm weather, it’s less clothing. In colder weather, it’s more clothing, but let’s see how tight it can be.

Will your clothes pins hold modest or immodest clothing?

In 1 Timothy 2:9, Paul taught that women were to adorn themselves in modest apparel. The word “modest” in that verse does not just mean to cover up. It really means that which is seemly or well-ordered. In fact, the Greek word is the word from which we get our term “cosmetic.” Any woman who puts on cosmetics realizes the need for their makeup to be well-ordered.

But the command is not just to make sure we have on enough clothing, it is to be sure we are wearing appropriate clothing. Being immodest could mean that we are over-dressed, or that we are dressed just to gain attention to ourselves. Maybe the best definition of immodesty is that it is dressing in such a way as to bring undue attention to ourselves. In our modern society, we are told, “If you’ve got it, flaunt it.” I’d like to thank our world for perfectly defining immodesty with that phrase.

Is this a problem among Christians? Very much so, and it isn’t just teenage girls who often wear that which is immodest. Men wear clothes that make sure they new “guns” are on full display. The middle-aged lady who has been working out buys some new, tight clothes to be sure people see her new shape.

Sadly, these describe some of what is worn, not just out in the neighborhood or for a day of shopping, but even to worship!

“But you can’t find modest clothing anymore.” That is simply not true. The truth is that we are not looking for modest clothing because we are too proud of our physical selves.

Immodesty in our dress is still sinful, and Christians need to stand firm against the rising tide of immodesty, or we will be swept away by it. If we are going to preach and teach that our soul is what is most important, then we need to dress that message, too.

QUESTION: What are some of your best tips for shopping and selecting modest clothing?

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Photo credit: Simon on creative commons

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