CAUSE WE’RE LIVING IN A MATERIAL WORLD
A STUDY ON THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT: PART XXIV (CLOTHING)
BIBLE VERSE: Matthew 6:28-30
6:28 Why do you worry about clothing? Think about how the flowers of the field grow; they do not work or spin. 6:29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was clothed like one of these! 6:30 And if this is how God clothes the wild grass, which is here today and tomorrow is tossed into the fire to heat the oven, won’t he clothe you even more, you people of little faith?
INTRO: MATERIAL GIRL
Here are some lyrics from the “Queen of Pop” (I guess that could be her nickname, I dunno), on her first real hit song made back when music was music in the 1980s (by the way the message is horrible).
“Some boys kiss me
Some boys hug me
I think they’re ok
If they don’t give me proper credit
I just walk away
They can beg and they can plead
But they can’t see the light (that’s right)
’Cause the boy with the cold hard cash
Is always Mister Right
’Cause we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
You know that we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl”
SADLY…IN MANY WAYS…I THINK SHE IS RIGHT
…but is she right for Christians?
1. THE CLOTHES:
Who wore the first clothes? (hopefully someone will get the right answer here)
BIBLE VERSE: Genesis 3:6-7
3:6 When the woman saw that the tree produced fruit that was good for food, was attractive to the eye, and was desirable for making one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate it. She also gave some of it to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. 3:7 Then the eyes of both of them opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
What was the immediate guilt evidence God saw after Adam & Eve sinned? He saw the fig tree, the covering of their nakedness. So why was the initial reaction of a person who has just sinned?
Correct, the first thing the first person did after the first sin…was to put clothes on. Wow, huh.
A Generality: Here is something we should know about Christianity vs. The Pagan world. Whenever Christ is shared and a remote tribal village becomes Christian, one of the first things that happen is people put clothes on (the other general thing that happens is they stop cutting themselves). Why?
History Lesson: As USA progresses, our nation has worn less and less clothes.
There was once a time in the Victorian era (that is 1870s-1890s), when kneecaps were covered, and the dirty girls showed their knees.
Then in the Roaring 20’s, miniskirts came in, and the women showed their elbows.
When the 1960’s hit, the hippies wore tight revealing clothes, some exposed themselves (remember, accept for the hippies, it was still a culture of purity in the early 60s).
In the 1980s, cleavage became popular for even the clean girls.
And when the century turned, the upper buttock region became popular to show.
Literally, it is now okay to show anything, have you heard of thong swimsuits?
Is it right?
The World’s Message: The World tells us to take off our clothes. Mass media glamorizes red carpet clothes that reveal everything. To Planned Parenthood, clothing is obstacles to freedom. Those covering themselves are considered prudish by the media, modest clothing orders is supposedly God’s way of spoiling our fun.
The World Doesn’t Love You. “The world doesn’t love you. It doesn’t even know you! But people in the world want your money. Companies and corporations try to get it by selling you "sexy" clothes (to "attract the opposite sex"), contraceptives (so you don’t have to "worry about getting pregnant"), an abortion (when contraception fails), and expensive pharmaceutical products to treat the sexually-transmitted disease they don’t tell you about but which you might pick up. What they can’t sell you is a product that will repair your broken heart; a pill that will cure your disease; the ability to restore your baby to life; or a therapy session that will provide forgiveness, hope, and change the way God can.”
What is God’s Response to the Lack of Clothes for Adam and Eve?
BIBLE VERSE: Genesis 3:21
3:21 The LORD God made garments from skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.
IF THE QUANTITY OF WHAT WE WEAR DOESN’T MATTER TO GOD, THEN WHY IS HIS FIRST ACT FOR US TO PROVIDE US WITH CLOTHES? (food for thought, maybe is does matter)
2. THE IDEA:
It’s called “the idea” because we want to put the idea into people’s heads that clothes and may modesty matter, especially since we don’t want anyone to fall into the sin of Matthew 5:28.
Does it matter what someone wears? (discussion here, know there is no answer to a question this vague)
Does it matter what a professional wears at the job? (what a doctor wears, lawyer, surgeon, police officer)
1930s Movies: Remember those old western movies? You could come in the middle and know exactly who the bad guy was, it was the guy wearing black clothes, in the black hat, on the black horse. Heck, the good guy would ride on a white horse, in a white shirt, step up to the saloon, and order a glass of milk.
The Hippy: None of us in the room lived during the hippy 60’s, but if we did, we would have noticed a whole lot of multi-colored, feather-wearing, non-showering people walking around. Their colors and clothes gave them away, they were against the Vietnam War (and other stuff if we’re being honest).
Doctor’s Office: Doctor’s can often tell that a female patient is getting better by how she is beginning to dress. In fact, you can probably watch your female classmates and see what mood they are in based upon their clothing choices (walk up to a girl wearing old sweats and ask what’s wrong, and you could be right).
SO THOUGH IT DOESN’T MATTER TO GO HOW WE DRESS…
HOW WE DRESS DOES SEND OFF A MESSAGE AS TO WHO WE ARE!
AND WHO ARE WE?
The Team: I love football, any football lovers in here? And some of you may know that I love the Green Bay Packers. In fact, when people ask me what is my favorite color, I say Green & Gold. Well, their colors are different than other teams, I know what team to root for when I turn the game on by the colors being worn. What are the Christian colors?
BIBLE VERSE: Proverbs 11:22
11:22 Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout is a beautiful woman who rejects discretion.
3. THE REBELUTION:
Some Christian guys (the Harris brothers) created a website and group designed to lead people to Christ and to correct some wrongs in society. On their website at therebelution.com they have done one of the greatest polls ever done on the issue of clothes and modesty. They asked 100s of questions to thousands of men, and got what the American male sees as modest and immodest. Would you like the results?
*We have to realize that this information may have an impact on how some girls feel (technically that is good). But it does pinpoint sin to one gender. Just mention that if we were doing a lesson on touch or choice words or other stuff that is more geared towards males, the opposite affect would take place.
**Also, just because a majority of men think something is immodest, it does not necessarily mean that. Of course the opposite is also true, just because few men think something is immodest, doesn’t make it so.
This is going to be given to you ladies so you can have some understanding as to what men think, cool?
Suggestion: keep track of all of those higher than 40% (or those lower than 60% if it is a reverse statement):
THE QUESTIONS (ALL ANSWERS ARE DIVIDED INTO AGREE/DISAGREE):
1. Modesty is an important feature for a future wife to have. 95.4% Agree
2. You have less respect for an immodest girl than a modest one. 75.6% Agree
3. Character, intelligent, and personality are more important than physical beauty. 91.1% Agree
4. Zipping a form-fitting jacket just below the chest draws too much attention to the bust. 56.8% Agree
5. Denim jackets with faded sections on the chest draw too much attention to the bust. 31.9% Agree
6. Leotards, sheer skirts, and tutus in theatre or dance performances are immodest. 35.8% Agree
7. Immodest clothing is less of a problem for you when a friend wears it. 14.3% Agree
8. A technically modest outfit can be a stumbling block when it has attached sexual 61.8% Agree
associations (such as Brittney Spears wearing a school girl outfit)
9. It is okay for girls to wear tighter and/or more revealing clothes if they are working out. 26.3% Agree
10. Showing any cleavage is immodest. 70.4% Agree
11. Bending over so that cleavage is visible down the front of the shirt/dress is a stumbling 89.8% Agree block.
12. It is a stumbling block when a girl reaches into her shirt to adjust her bra strap. 65.4% Agree
Notes:
7. On this one, notice that the opposite is true. This one indicates that the arousal factor of a friend is much higher than that of a stranger when it comes to immodest clothing. The guy is more aroused when he knows the person wearing inappropriate clothing.
8. We had better take a careful look at some implied Halloween costumes don’t we.
9. Notice, there is a certain “hotness” that is portrayed in the gym or on the sports team.
AND THESE QUESTIONS ARE ONLY IN A CATEGORY MARKED “GENERAL/OTHER.” THERE ARE DOZENS OF OTHER QUESTIONS IN THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES AS WELL:
Swimsuits
Undergarments
Shirts/Dresses
Layering
Pants/Shorts/Leggings
Skirts
Posture/Movement
Makeup/Jewelry/Hair/Shoes
Open Questions
SO WHAT, WHY DOES ALL THIS MATTER, WELL, BECAUSE IT IS A MATTER OF SIN:
BIBLE VERSE: Matthew 18:7
18:7 Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks! It is necessary that stumbling blocks come, but woe to the person through whom they come.
CLOSE: Friends, we cannot live in sin, and placing stumbling blocks in front of people causes sin. Just like giving alcohol to an alcoholic is evil, God says woe to you to anyone who puts up stumbling blocks. Now that we know what our society has determined to be the blocks, let us live accordingly.
Sources:
Handford, Elizabeth Rice. Your Clothes Say It For You. Sword of the Lord Publishers, 1997, pages 1-21.
Lutherans For Life. Who’s Trying to Remove My Fig Leaf? Thoughts About Modesty. Lutheransforlife.org.
The Rebelution, Modesty Survey. Therebelution.com, A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations.
CAUSE WE’RE LIVING IN A MATERIAL WORLD
A STUDY ON THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT: PART XXIV (CLOTHING)
BIBLE VERSE: Matthew 6:28-30
6:28 Why do you worry about __________________________? Think about how the flowers of the field grow; they do not work or spin. 6:29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was clothed like one of these! 6:30 And if this is how God clothes the wild grass, which is here today and tomorrow is tossed into the fire to heat the oven, won’t he _______________________ you even more, you people of little faith?
1. __________________________
BIBLE VERSE: Genesis 3:6-7
What was the immediate evidence after Adam & Eve sinned? ____________________________________
History Lesson: Victorian era: ________________________________
Roaring 20s: ________________________________
Hippies: ________________________________
Reagan 80s: ________________________________
New Century: ________________________________
What was God’s Response to Adam & Eve for a lack of clothing? _________________________________
2. ___________________________
The Western Movie: ___________________________________________________________
The Hippy: __________________________________________________________________
The Doctor’s Office: ___________________________________________________________
The Team: __________________________________________________________________
BIBLE VERSE: Proverbs 11:22
11:22 Like a gold ring in a ________________ is a beautiful woman who rejects ______________________.
3. ____________________________
YOUR RIGHT
THE TEST (WHAT PERCENT AGREE?) ANSWERS ANSWERS
1. Modesty is an important feature for a future wife to have. __________ _________
2. You have less respect for an immodest girl than a modest one. __________ _________
3. Character, intelligent, and personality are more important than physical beauty. __________ _________
4. Zipping a form-fitting jacket just below the chest draws too much attention to the bust.______ _________
5. Denim jackets with faded sections on the chest draw too much attention to the bust._______ _________
6. Leotards, sheer skirts, and tutus in theatre or dance performances are immodest._________ _________
7. Immodest clothing is less of a problem for you when a friend wears it. _________ _________
8. A technically modest outfit can be a stumbling block when it has attached sexual _________ _________
associations (such as Brittney Spears wearing a school girl outfit)
9. It is okay for girls to wear tighter and/or more revealing clothes if they are working out._____ _________
10. Showing any cleavage is immodest. _________ __________
11. Bending over so that cleavage is visible down the front of the shirt/dress is a
stumbling block. _________ __________
12. It is a stumbling block when a girl reaches into her shirt to adjust her bra strap. _________ __________
BIBLE VERSE: Matthew 18:7