Appropriateness

There are lots of factors that determine whether clothing is appropriate or not. Certainly one factor is gender. Another factor is age; we should dress according to our age. It isn’t fair for a Christian mother in her mid 40’s to expect her teenage daughter to wear the same style she wears. Teenagers don’t want to dress like middle aged people! And on the other hand, it is equally inappropriate for an older woman to dress like a teenager. It is unbecoming, unflattering, and usually laughable. We’ve all heard the expression, “act our age.” Well, we should dress our age too!

Our dress should also be appropriate to the occasion. The occasion dictates what type of clothing is appropriate. Joseph got cleaned up and dressed up to see the King (Gen.41:14). His prison clothing would have been inappropriate to wear in the presence of the king. Different occasions often demands different apparel. It would be quite inappropriate (not to mention dangerous) to wear long pants swimming. It would be inappropriate (and can be immodest) to wear a dress while riding a bike. Swimming apparel would seem out of place if worn in the office. Clothing that is perfectly acceptable for a meal at McDonalds may not be appropriate for a meal at the Tavern of the Green. Clothing worn while weeding the garden is not appropriate for a wedding. Clothing worn for yard work is not appropriate for church. Dress appropriately for the occasion. That is not a radical idea. It’s just good, old fashioned, common sense.

Dress should be also appropriate to one’s means. The clothing worn by Queen Elizabeth might seem flashy and would turns heads where you and I live, but not among royalty. Wearing a $5000.00 necklace is commonplace in the circles in which she travels. One would not expect the queen of England to shop for her clothes at Walmart. Wealthy people who wear expensive clothing (gold, silver, silk, velvet, etc.) should NOT be condemned by people with less means. To do so is to judge unrighteously. The Bible does not condemn expensive jewelry (Cf. Gen. 24:46; Ezek. 16:7-13). The clothing of royalty might appear to be a waste of money to us commoners. But we American commoners should remember that the clothing we wear would appear to be extravagant to those who live in the Sudan! Dress according to your means and your station in life. Young married couples on limited budgets would do well to learn to dress according to their means. It is possible for a woman to spend BEYOND her means in trying to dress like the stars, or like Queen Elizabeth. That’s wrong!  Dressing beyond one’s means is poor stewardship, and is usually a manifestation of pride and selfishness. Women who are “shopaholics” can easily drain the family budget and cause friction at home. Dress should be appropriate to our means.

Culture 

A Christian should dress according to the cultural norms of the country in which he resides. This was the principle the apostle Paul practiced wherever he went (I Cor. 9:20-21). The huge variations in clothing that exist from one culture to another sometimes causes difficulties for believers around the world. Some styles which seems shocking and out of place in one culture may seem quite normal in another culture.

Some years ago a missionary couple from India visited our home, and they were going to share their ministry with the church. The lady did not speak any English, and she was experiencing a bit of a culture shock on her first visit to the USA. She wore a sari, the customary Indian dress – a long flowing dress from her neckline to her ankles. My wife wore a blouse and a skirt that came to her knees. No doubt this Christian lady from India was a bit scandalized by my wife’s dress. Her LEGS were showing! And although the legs of the Indian woman were completely covered, her stomach and back were completely exposed. That is the traditional female dress of India. In America, men are accustomed to seeing a woman’s legs and in India men are accustomed to seeing a woman’s midriff in everyday street dress. Her dress did not turn heads in India, and my wife’s skirt did not turn heads in America. There is no shock or scandal in seeing what we are accustomed to seeing.

To help me understand this concept I contacted missionaries on several continents and tropical islands, and asked them pointed questions about the clothing and culture in their little corner of the world. Some of the missionaries did not want to be identified by name, for fear that they would be misunderstood by their supporters in the USA. This was especially so of missionaries in Africa. In answer to my questions they replied that in the tribal regions, African women dress extremely modestly for church and when they go into town. They usually wear a “hat-like wrap” on their heads. Their brightly colored dresses are long, loose, and flowing and cover from their neck to their ankles. There is nothing shocking or scandalous about their dress UNTIL you see those same ladies working in the fields wearing nothing from the waist up, the way men often work in this country. This missionary spoke to the men in the village about this practice and he was told that a woman’s breasts were not considered alluring, (they viewed them as baby bottles) but their legs were. Hence, the ladies cover their legs and are less concerned about covering their torso.

Sometimes accepted norms of a culture clearly clash with the Biblical principle of modesty. Where cultural standards are out of line with the principles of the Bible, it sometimes years – even generations – for change to occur. This creates some sticky situations for our missionaries. Pray for your missionaries! They have some thorny issues to deal with.

What a person is accustomed to seeing has a huge influence on what is considered acceptable. It is the unexpected that is shocking and sometimes offensive, whether it be legs in India or midriff in America. When Hudson Taylor did the unexpected (he decided to follow the instructions in the Word and dress like the Chinese), it became somewhat of a scandal in his native England. Naturally, his Chinese attire was not scandalous in China. In fact it opened many doors for him to preach the gospel! But it was misunderstood by his supports in England. What Hudson Taylor saw as wisely following Biblical principles, they saw (wrongly) as compromise. They were scandalized that their missionary was wearing what they considered to be pagan clothing. It took a while for his supporters to realize that Hudson Taylor WAS in fact obeying the Biblical principle (I Cor. 9:20). There is no such thing as Christian or pagan clothing. As long as it is modest and gender appropriate, clothing and styles are neutral. Misunderstanding cultural differences is nothing new.

In conducting my poll of missionaries around the globe, I expected to hear that those who live on tropical islands would have the biggest problem with immodesty. Wrong! A missionary from Fiji noted that the chief problem they had with immodesty on the beaches came from the Western tourists! Another missionary from Eastern Europe reported that in her godless society, just going to the public lake one could expect to see topless women and even complete nudity. It’s no wonder that much of the world looks at us as the decadent West.

Things are very different in various places around the world. Sometimes those differences are merely cultural with no moral significance at all. Sometimes they are clearly matters of morality and modesty. And then there are occasions when it’s hard to tell whether a practice is just a cultural issue or a moral issue. Missionaries have to walk a tight rope. They are not sent to foreign lands to impose Western standards or enforce American taboos. They are there to preach the gospel and teach believers there the principles of godliness from the Word. Some things are obviously contrary to Biblical principles. On other issues, great discernment is needed to sort out the distinctions between TRUTH on the one hand, and opinions, traditions, and cultural matters on the other hand.

Until the Lord comes believers will continue to experience friction over these issues. Is it a matter of culture? Modesty? Tradition? Opinion? Subjectivity? Maturity? Truth? Taste? Preference? Style? Clothing has always been a battleground in the church. But it is a battle that has to be fought because our adversary is relentless in his pursuit to conform us to his corrupt world system.

There is no easy answer. There is no such thing as a Christian uniform. There are no Christian clothes. There is no universal, Biblical dress code. Instead we are given principles in the Word to be applied personally, as led by the Holy Spirit. Even then, Spirit filled believers aren’t always going to draw the line in exactly the same place. It is up to the Christian to pick and choose from among the wide variations within a culture that which is acceptable and that which is not acceptable to the Lord. There is a tendency today to use culture and liberty as cloaks of maliciousness. A missionary seeking to find the right clothing to wear in Mongolia should study the culture and seek out clothing that has a wholesome image in the minds of the average Mongolian. He will not seek to imitate the styles of the Mongolian street gangs, nor will his wife seek to imitate the clothing she sees on women of ill repute. Christians seeking to serve God in America should have the same kind of common sense. “Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord” (Eph. 5:10). Absolutely EVERYTHING (including our outward appearance) is to be surrendered to His Word and to His Spirit.

Culture is constantly changing. As Christians, we need to be willing to accept those changes as long as they are not contrary to the Scriptures.  Change is inevitable, and it is not always bad. That which was unacceptable in one generation may soon become perfectly acceptable. For example America’s attitude towards beards has changed completely from the 60-70’s to today.

Cultural expressions change with time. Some assume that as a fundamentalist we should stick to our guns and not change when the styles change. That kind of silly. Like it or not, everyone one of us dresses according to what our culture dictates to us. None of us wear a tunic or a Pilgrim outfit, or those incredibly hideous wide neckties of the 70’s. As Christians we ought to acknowledge that styles DO change, and if we don’t, we will end up looking like the Amish – sticking out like a sore thumb and attracting attention to self. Times do change, and the challenge for us is to make appropriate application of Biblical principles TO the changing times. Our goal is NOT to preserve a particular style or a conservative tradition but rather, to uphold Biblical principles and apply them to everyday life as best we can for the glory of God.

The House of God

Bible believing Christians support missionaries in various locations around the world. Around the world, Christians dress very differently when they come together for worship. But God has called us to represent Him in a particular location. As we gather for worship, we need not be so concerned about the culture in India or Africa. But we DO need to be concerned about the culture of the region where God has placed us to be His ambassadors.

Our region has a culture that expresses itself in ways very different from the culture in Bangladesh or Baghdad. When men or women seek to express respect and honor in our culture, they dress up. Men wear suits and ladies wear dresses or skirts. For example, when our Senators and congressmen “serve” in their respective “Houses”, they wear suits or dresses. If a senator showed up in dungarees and a T-shirt, it would be considered an expression of disrespect for the institution, and would probably be on the six o’clock news! But senators and congressmen don’t do that. There is a protocol, an unwritten dress code. Out of respect for the House, they don’t violate that protocol. We live in the same North American culture they do. When we want to show respect for an institution, we get dressed up too. If our congressmen are willing to get dressed up as an expression of respect when they come to “serve” in their “House,” shouldn’t we much more be willing to get dressed up to “serve” in the “House of the Lord” (I Tim.3:15)? It is not a matter of law, but rather of respect.

Of course the inside of the cup is FAR more important in our worship. We are to worship in spirit and in truth (John 4:24). But if the inside of the cup is clean, shouldn’t we be willing to sacrifice personal preferences in order to demonstrate respect in our culture, even down to tiny details, like our dress? While ministering to the Jews, we should go out of our way to show respect in worship according to their culture. While ministering to the Chinese, we should go out of our way to show respect in worship according to their culture. We should do the same according to our own culture. To the North Americans I became as a North American.

Naturally, not every Spirit filled believer is going to see it this way. Some will insist on NOT getting dressed up for church. If you are one of them, and the reason for not getting dressed up for church is stubborn self will (nobody’s going to tell me what to wear!) then that attitude ought to change – even if your wardrobe does not. But if on the other hand, you choose casual clothing for the Lord’s House because you honestly believe that you ARE showing respect and honor to God, then we agree in principle, though not in practice.

It’s not a matter of law. We certainly don’t REQUIRE folks to get dressed up for church. It is not a command, but an exhortation based upon our position as saints and in light of the culture in which we live… a culture which still does get dressed up for special occasions as a sign of respect. We believe the worship of God is a special occasion.  As an individual believer/priest, you have your liberty. One’s relationship to God is certainly not determined by our outward appearance. But as leaders of the church, we also have the liberty to set standards for those serving in visible positions in the church. We are responsible for the overall testimony of the Lord’s work here. There is a dress code for folks who sing in the choir, teach Sunday School class, work in the nursery, and serve in official church offices. God is worthy of our best in everything (Mal. 1:6-8), yes, even including our clothes (I Cor. 10:31-32). We encourage folks to wear your Sunday best to church. If your “best” is a beat up, old pair of pants and ripped shirt, then wear it. God will be pleased that you thought enough of Him to wear your best in His House. He is worthy of our best.

As our culture changes, the definition of “Sunday best” will also change. Our purpose is not to preserve the present dress code at all costs, but to express respect and honor for Christ and His Body, the local church, according to the changing norms of society. It really isn’t the clothing – it’s the heart. When the inside of the cup is clean, it will manifest itself on the outside too. That’s something that we should ALL agree on, and something that should NEVER change: an inward desire to give honor and glory to God with our WHOLE being: body, soul, and spirit (Rev. 4:11; I Cor. 6:19-20). He is worthy of our BEST.

“Christ in you” should have a transforming effect on every believer. What we wear on the outside of the cup should be consistent with the character of the One who lives inside the cup. Transformation is a process of growth.

God treats us as full grown sons in Christ (Gal. 4:1-7). God told the Old Testament priests what to wear and even what kind of cloth to use. He does NOT tell the New Testament priest WHAT to wear. Instead, He gives us principles that we might make intelligent, Christ honoring decisions as guided by the Holy Spirit, that are suitable to our location and culture.

Respect the convictions of others. Be gracious towards those who differ. Be cognizant of the fact that folks who get saved TODAY are not going to have high standards of dress. All of this talk might be a foreign language to them. They will need TIME to grow, to learn, to come to maturity, and to obtain discernment. Until then, we will need to exercise GRACE, especially with new believers. Don’t pounce on them for clothing right off the bat. Give God time to work. Remember, God is at work in their hearts first and foremost. When the inside of the cup is cleaned, the outside will eventually get cleaned.  The danger is ever present of making such a BIG issue out of cleaning the outside of the cup, that the new believer assumes that Christianity is just a superficial change, rather than in internal transformation into the image of Christ.

We need to use caution and discernment in HOW we handle this issue. It is easy to come across quite legalistic or antinomian. Avoid both extremes. It is also necessary to learn to live with other believers who may define good taste differently, or who may define good grooming differently, or who may even define modesty differently. Give people time to grow and mature. “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. ³² Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the churchof God” (I Cor. 10:31).