I want to say 2 "words" to the girls and 2 "words" to the guys. I don't in any way presume that I will – in the next 30 minutes – answer every question about clothing that you have. What I want to try to do is give some "big picture" instructions that are informed by God's Word; hopefully you will be continually learning to apply the gospel to your everyday lives.
Here are two examples of the kinds of questions we received on the website. The first is serious; the second... I'm not so sure!
Well, I'm not going to get into the details of bikinis and 3-inch rules yet (we may during our open time of Q & A). Here are, first, my two words to the girls tonight:
The most important way that you as young Christian women can "adorn" yourselves…is with godly character. That is the FIRST kind of "clothing" you should be concerned about.
Do not let your adorning be external – the braiding of hair, the wearing of gold, or the putting on of clothing – but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. 1 Peter 3:3
The most important question that you young ladies can be asking yourselves tonight is this: "What is more important to me: my Character or my Clothes?" What's more important? Are we – if we are honest with ourselves – more obsessed with the way we look than with the way we think, act, speak, and live? The most important thing about you ladies – the thing that you ought to treasure most dearly and hold closest to your heart – is your identity as daughters of God... saved by Jesus Christ to be clothed in his righteousness and godly character. You are redeemed by Jesus; you belong to Jesus; you are living for Jesus; you can only be fulfilled by Jesus.
If you dress in a certain way…you will get attention! But, it may not be attention from the kind of guy you want to marry some day. When guys are giving you attention primarily because you are wearing something revealing, their minds are not focused on marriage, love and commitment!
Most of you would say you want to marry a godly man. How does the way you dress reflect that? Keep in mind that the way you dress can tell a story about you. For a woman of God, the story told should be of a person who is more concerned with her character than her sexy style. That will attract the right kind of man of God.
***Now, the hard part is that all of you young women need to apply those two things I've just said – I can'tdo that for you. The challenge that comes as we seek to live in and for Christ our Savior is to apply biblical truth and wisdom to everyday situations. That is why, tonight, I am not going to make a black/white statement (for example) on bikinis. You all need to grow in your ability to apply the gospel and the truth of God's Word to every situation in your life.
Guys, we live in a sex-obsessed culture. You will never be able to entirely avoid seeing glimpses of images (whether on television, or on billboards, or in stores) that are designed to get you thinking sexually. So, no matter how modestly the girls in HYACKs dress, you will need to learn to take responsibility for your eyes, your thoughts, and your imagination. We are called – as men – to purity. We can live in purity by the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells in us.
Job said this, "I have made a covenant with my eyes, that I might not look lustfully at a young woman." Men, we need to make covenants with our eyes – covenants that are kept by God's grace and are stronger than the immodest dress that surrounds us. It is our responsibility to be pure in the way we look at women.
I know that this is easier said than done. The world tries so hard to convince us that we should want "sexy" women, rather than women of character. In reality, the only way you can do this is by pursuing Jesus yourself with all that you have. You need to be in relationship with Christ and his people. You need to be spending time with Him in honest prayer and confession. You need to be reading his Word. Only as we seek Jesus ourselves can what we desire actually be shaped by Him. By His strength and power in us we can be more attracted to godly character in women than sexiness in women.
The great thing about growing in being attracted to godly character in women is this: you will actually encourage and lead the young women around you to be godly. You can encourage their growth in Christ by affirming them – not for their revealing clothes or their flirting – but for their Christ-like character with which they seek to adorn themselves.
***Here is a final principle to end the night, and one that applies to both guys and girls as we think about clothing. We are people who have been saved by Jesus Christ. We, though we were dead in our sins, have been made alive in Him; he took our punishment on the cross and rose from the dead so that we can live forever with Him. Our goal as people who are saved by Jesus…is to point other peoples' attention to Jesus! That is the goal of World Impact, Chicago Impact, and even HYACKs itself: to bring attention to Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world!
So, here's the principle. If the way we dress is primarily about bringing attention to ourselves, there is most likely a problem. Our clothes are probably getting in the way of a desire to bring attention to Jesus. So, a good question to ask ourselves – standing in front of the mirror in the morning – might be this one: "What is my goal with this outfit?" If it's to bring attention to myself (especially in a sexual way), it might be time to change clothes.
