A New Clothing Line

by Bryan Gibson
May 29, 2008

Did you realize that God was a fashion designer? It’s true. “Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin and clothed them” (Genesis 3:21). Adam and Eve had made their own outfits (Genesis 3:7), but evidently their “coverings” did not cover enough. Would it be safe to say that many of the “coverings” worn today have the same problem? God does care how we dress, and it’s high time we realize that.

Putting stress on the inner adornment is the key to pleasing God. After all, that is the way He works on us—from the inside out. “Do not let you adornment be merely outward...rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit” (1 Peter 3:3-4). “Be clothed with humility” (1 Peter 5:5). Here are some other virtues to add to our “clothing” line, all of which are taught in the New Testament: shamefastness, modesty, discretion, chastity, sobriety, self-control, reverence. Perhaps all of these virtues could be summed up by one admonition: “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 13:14). It’s hard to imagine someone with the virtues of Jesus Christ wearing what so many are wearing today—bikinis, short shorts, plunging necklines, tight clothing, see through outfits, etc. Just think about it—would you use words like modest and discreet to describe someone who wears these kinds of clothes? One with the above virtues will be more interested in concealing than revealing.

While we’re on the subject of virtues, let’s not forget about love, and the influence it has on the clothes we wear. The last thing we should want to do is cause others to sin, and clothing, or the lack thereof, can certainly do that. As surely as there is “enticing speech” (Proverbs 7:21), there is also enticing clothing, or to use another Biblical term, “lascivious” clothing (that which causes others to lust). When private parts of the body are made public, what do we think will be the result? Consider carefully the following words from Jesus: “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea” (Matthew 18:6).

Again, the key is the inner adornment. One who is truly “chaste” (Titus 2:5) would not dream of wearing something enticing, at least not out in public. Chaste is a “word used to describe behavior, dress, speech, etc., that exhibits morality or purity” (Webster’s New World Dictionary, Third College Edition). What do our clothes exhibit or reveal about us? Do they reveal the kind of character that is pleasing to God?

“Put on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 13:14), with all the accompanying virtues, and you will put on the right clothes.