The Clothes Don’t Make the Heart of the Man
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I guess maybe I need to preface what I’m gonna say with this statement: I love the church. I love Jesus. I want everybody to live in a relationship with Jesus that meets their needs and fills their life. Maybe I should also say that I don’t know everything. In fact, I don’t know much of anything. I don’t claim to have all the answers to life or after life. I don’t claim to be a herald of the truth or a lighthouse of knowledge. I am not the final authority on religion. To be honest with you, I don’t really want anything to do with religion. Just give me Jesus. All that having been said, I proceed…
There’s a magazine called “The Gospel Advocate” that comes out every month. Sometimes they have some really great articles. I’ll be honest with you, I don’t read it all that much. But every now and then I come up with a free moment and someone else’s copy, so I’ll read some of it. This month, some of the articles are titled:
“The Lord’s Day is Under Attack.”
“Convenient Christianity”
“Dress Habits and Worship”
“Confusion About Women’s Roles”
“My Pilgrimage” (concerning instrumental music and it’s divisive nature)
Already, you can see what kind of magazine this is. The Gospel Advocate is out there to correct everybody. That’s great, but it assumes one thing: that they know every correct answer. They’d never say that out loud, but that’s clearly the implication. How can you correct someone if you yourself do not have the correct answer? And over the many years the Gospel Advocate has been published, they have covered the gamut of religious topics, spewing forth article after article about the Church of Christ and those in it who teach error. Now, let me say that sometimes there are some great and very relevant topics. For instance, in this issue there is an article about the grip that pornography is taking on America; very relevant and needed.
What I would like to actually talk about is the article concerning dress for worship. It’s by a fella named Ken Joines. I’m sure he’s a cool guy. He’s a retired minister, the article says. He’s not overly antagonistic or anything. But he makes some comments and puts forth some assumptions that are way off base:
“Our children show up for worship sloppily dressed, carrying their iPods, soft drinks, and cell phones so they can send and receive text messages during the service. 2 or 3 trips to the restroom is not uncommon. None of this is allowed at school. When your children are this undisciplined in dress habits, you can expect a corresponding lack of reverence in worship.”
–> –> –> –> 1. I have never in all my life seen a kid bring a Mountain Dew into worship service.
–> –> –> –>2. The assumption is that kids are the only ones who are not respectful during worship. Shall we discuss the adults that sleep during worship?
–> –> –> –>3. Of all the things discussed here, only one refers to dress; and that is often allowed at school.
–> –> –> –>4. The underlying complaint and problem is lack of discipline, not poor dress. Is there a lack of discipline? Yes. Is that the kid’s fault? Partially, but it starts at home with adults.
“When a man is being tried as a felon, he appears before judge and jury dressed in a suit and tie nearly every time. He may never have worn a suit before, but his lawyer thinks he makes a better statement when well dressed. When we go for a job interview, meet with the governor, or serve as pallbearer, we wear our best.”
- In each of these situations, we dress to impress (except the pall bearer). Luckily, we don’t have to impress God. We are completely unimpressive in every way. The fact that I am covered by Jesus’ blood makes me presentable, and no clothing changes that fact.
- Who are we to be making a statement to? God or people? God expects a broken spirit and a contrite heart, not a suit and tie.
He also makes the statement that Jesus had fine clothes to wear. He bases this on the fact that the Roman soldiers gambled for his garment at the crucifixion and that he can’t see Jesus showing up at the synagogue without paying attention to how he was dressed. His point is that “he had more respect for the sacred.” He says, “I resent it when someone hints that my Lord went around unkempt.”
- If Jesus did have nice things (probably not, but I’ll entertain it), he certainly would not have been wearing them to the crucifixion. That point is stunningly ridiculous.
- Just because someone can’t envision Jesus as something doesn’t really mean much. The Jews couldn’t have pictured the Messiah being born in a manager or coming without a sword in his hand, but he did it. Some people can’t imagine Jesus as anything but a white man; however, he was anything but white.
- Jesus was unkempt. He was poor, man. He didn’t have anything. He didn’t shave. He walked around barefooted or at the very most with sandals on. He probably stunk. He probably peed in the woods. And do you resent when the Lord says that John the Baptist was “unkempt”? He wore camel skins, ate disgusting stuff, and lived in the desert. He stunk and he was weird. Luckily, God chose to use him. Maybe we should look at that inference a little more closely…
- “he had more respect for the sacred.” And herein lies the problem. Our lives are our worship. Our existence is the sacrifice (see Romans 12:1-2, along with everything Jesus ever said). Our worship on a Sunday is part of that, yes. But we have become so focused on the 4 hours a week of “worship” and placed it on such a pedestal that we have missed the point completely. “Sacred” is not limited to worship. “Sacred” is a condition of the worshiper, not the worship. Until a heart can be sacred, a worship service never will be. Sunday is not sacred. But we have made it sacred via our cultural preferences and what momma and daddy always did. Therefore, we must be a little different on Sunday than we are on Monday. That, my friends, is the farthest thing from the heart-training that Jesus taught.
Here’s my favorite: ” ‘But our culture is relaxed-casual.’ Do we allow culture to dictate how we approach our heavenly Father?”
- Yes, actually, we do.
- We approach God in English. That’s cultural.
- Some approach God in suits and neck ties. That’s cultural. (The neck tie was invented in the 1880’s.)
- We use song books. That’s cultural.
- We sing in 4 part harmony. That’s cultural.
- We serve communion on trays from a “communion table.” That’s cultural.
- We have the preacher at a pulpit, elevated above the crowd, rather than seated. That’s cultural.
- Some of us clap, some of us don’t. That, like it or not, is cultural.
- If culture was not involved in worship, our worship would look very different, indeed.
A couple of closing statements:
- “Sloppy” is a very subjective term, as are “fancy”, “nice”, “proper”, “respectful”, “ugly”, “beautiful”, and “unkempt.”
- I respect where Ken is coming from here. He wants people to give God their best. I agree. My point is just that God sees my dress as secondary (if even that; scripture seems to indicate that he doesn’t see it at all, i.e, 1st Samuel 16:7 for Jehovah sees not as man sees; for man looks on the outward appearance, but Jehovah looks on the heart.) to the condition of my heart.
Perhaps you disagree. Perhaps you agree. I’d love to hear your thoughts. I am always open to changing my mind. I want to learn and grow; so if you have knowledge, lay it on me.
19 Comments so far
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Brandon:
I would agree to some extent. Everyone should dress modestly. Further, one’s dress, even if modest, must not distract others from worship. For example, If I wore a t-shirt to worship that said, “Jesus is my home boy,” most eyes and minds would be on my tshirt and not God. Hence, my attire would be unappropriate for worship. A Christian would never wear something that would cause others to stumble. (How to get “Weaker” Christians to grow to the point that attire is not a stumbling block is a longer more detailed blog)
Now that is the standard that I believe is appropriate for Christians.
As to the question of what should be worn by those who are not a member of the Lord’s body, It is my opinion that the Chruch has an obligation to go into all the world (Matthew 28). We must meet people where they are and show them the way to the Cross and Christ’s blood.
The Church will have fulfilled it mission when people, who do not know Christ, come into the worship service to find out the source of our hope, charity, faith and love. And when these people come, I fully expect that they will come with their soft drinks (maybe even smelling of a stronger drink from time to time), their tattered and torn clothing with questionable slogans, and their lost and broken hearts.
We will have fulfilled our mission when the family who does not know God comes in to worship, sits on the front pew, and when we have passed the Lord’s supper takes a cracker or two and wonders why we are having “Snack time.”
There are teachable moments that Christians must seek out and seize. Christ had supper with sinners. Yet today, there are some “Christians” who refuse to get their hands “soiled” by dealing with those who are less fortunate.
We must become Mission Minded.
Jerome
There comes another problem and a new question we must ask ourselves, Should the worship on Sunday be the majority of the church’s evangelism? I don’t see any example, biblical or non-biblical, that shows where a person who was not a Chrstian was at the worship assembly. I’m not saying that I don’t want any nonbelievers in the assembly, but that is when the majority of the evangelism takes place. The church that I read about in the New Testament was at the temple daily and that is where a good majority of the people were as well. People were being added to the church daily, why, not because they were invited to an assembly that some of the people had to do secretly and in caves or secluded areas. It was because they evangelized wherever they were. I belive that if the church now would take on that same attitude, God would be adding to the church daily.
And it all comes back to traditions. You talk about the t-shirt “Jesus is my homeboy” and I agree, someone shouldn’t wear that, but what about Timothy talking about hair and jewelry? That is certainly not looked down upon; if anything it is looked up to if we dress really nice and we have the three piece suit and the dress that matches everything else on our bodies. It’s all about traditions. Once we get rid of the traditions that are holding the church back and get back to just loving the Lord, we will continue to be just a mediocre force in the world.
“I belive that if the church now would take on that same attitude, God would be adding to the church daily.”
I believe that you have stated well. Our “mediocre force” in the world though is not from “holding traditions” but from lack of true commitment.
Our “mediocre force” is from things such as:
1. Lack of true commitment by the part of most christians, and i will include myself in this, to truly evangelize to the people in our communities. I dare say that if Jesus went the the store to get bread, why he would i don’t know cause he could make his own, he would end up talking with someone in the store about his heavenly father. Many go to work day in and day out and never mention God to the people that they work with. They go in each day and carry one like everything is ok, knowing that the people around them need God. It could be that part that “tradition” says that you are not suppose to talk about religion at work or in the grocery store. As you say we cannot expect people to come to “church” to learn about God we must take the message to them.
2. Joking about religion. Time after time after time I urge our youth to be careful about joking about religion because people usually have a hard time taking it serious when you want to be serious about it. Now joking between us as believers of God is one thing but to scoff about teachings of the church to people who are unlearned treading on unstable ground.
3. Lack of clarity and consistancy. For example, I will not say that things like “mixed swimming” is sinful but many in the church will pitch a fit about it. Haha, then they will turn around and leave the next day and go to the beach. Silly rabbit, we should realize that when this type thing happens that people will not take us serious.
4. Agreeing to disagree. This one is a little tougher because we do not want to offend people with teachings of Christ. People many times will say, i don’t want religion just give me Jesus. In case these people missed the life of Christ, JESUS STOOD FOR SOMETHING. HE did not have the attitude that many people in the world have that what ever you believe is fine as long as your are searching.(This based on a misuse of Hebrews 11:6) Jesus made enemies not because of mean speech but because when you stand for something many times there is someone standing in opposition. I can remember when i made someone mad because i said that it really meant nothing to come to worship and just sit there. I refered to what Jesus said about “honoring me with their lips but their hearts are far from me.” I was jumped after church for making generally the same statement that Jesus did. We must always stand for the truth not matter what. Truth by nature will be devisive and many people do not like to hear the truth. Some people will talk to no end about God but when you bring up JEsus they don’t want to talk about religion. The fact that Jesus Christ is the Son of God is one that divides many in the world but still it is the truth and we must teach it.
I could think of many things that lend to mediocrity but these are a few that i will offer at this time other that traditions.
I think it is a combination of the those and many other things, traditions is just one example.
AMEN! Now get up in front of our congregation and preach this brother. AMEN!
i agree with matt, all i have to say is amen brother! dirty bird also brought up good points.
Stupid myspace only lets me give 2 kudos. So I give my 2 kudos and then some. Well said. Tradition, tradition, tradition. Anyone remember the Pharisees?
Clothes make the man like shoes make the basketball player.
I think that your title is right on, “clothes don’t make the heart of a man” but i do feel it can be a reflection of it. Whether you use the word heart of attitude the way that you dress does reflect it. I will agree that many times too much emphasis is place on the way the we dress, however, it is a reflection of many, not all hearts.
When i comes to dress for worship I notice different things none of which are directly what you are talking about.
1. I know people who will wear blue jeans and t-shirts to church on sunday morning just hoping someone will say something to them. Do i believe it is wrong in itself to wear that, no not really but the attitude of daring someone to say something is a devicive attitude.
2. I can remember when i would wake up at 7:50 am to make it to a 8:00 class. The idea was that i know i could sleep as long as i wanted to and still make it to class because i felt like i “had to” be there. The reason was that i had already missed the maximum amount of classes that i could and was burdened into making it there or failing the class. I know that the attitude of some is exactly the same, that it is a burden to be here on sunday morning and they will put off getting up to come until the last possible minute. I believe that we should have the attitude that David had about coming to the house of the Lord, that it is a pleasure. I structure my whole saturday so that come time for kick off, i am in front of the tv to see it. Preparation is the key, i focus my attention on the chores that i must do to get to see the game that i want to see. Why do we not have the same attitude of preparation to come to worship? The term sloppy, as subjective as it is, refers to those people who show up as if to do God a favor by being here to worship in his presence.
As for “bringing a mountain dew into worship” i must say that i never seen it, but i have seen Dr.Pepper, Pepsi, Sobe, among many other snacks like candy bars and chips and not just once. Just because you haven’t witnessed it yourself doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened.
Discipline for out youth is something that you have stated well. It starts at home!! I am ashamed at how many of our youth sit and text druing worship and bible class but point taken about respect by adults also. Adults sit and use the palm pilots to do other things like make grocery list, check calenders, and so on. It is kinda interesting to notice though if you were to look at the adults on palms and youth on cell phones many times they are related to each other.
Well i must agree that the example of the clothing at the cross is a bit of a stretch, there is question unrelated to this discussion of where those things come from that he wore to the cros? I believe as you that Jesus might not have been the cleanest individual because sleeping on the ground doesn’t leave you with clean clothing. It is often the point we make about feet being dirty when we talk about Jesus washing the disciples feet and how dirty they must have been. Jesus may not have had “nice things” but what he had was a reflection of his heart. The heart of a servant that was more concerned with doing the will of his father and not collecting things and possessions.
I firmly agree that God sees not as man sees!
I firmly agree that clothes doesn’t make the man nor the heart.
BUT
I firmly believe that clothing is a reflection of attitude.
i agree with almost everything you said. i believe that “clothing CAN be a reflection of attitude,” but that’s not the same as saying “clothing IS a reflection of attitude.”
i do believe that clothing is a reflection of personality. for instance, if i had things my way, i’d wear flip-flops and a t-shirt year round (i like hyphenated clothing, i guess), every where i went. not as a matter of disrespect, but as a matter of personal preference, comfort, and (to a degree) style consciousness. that doesn’t necessarily mean i have a poor attitude; it means i’m a lot different in my personal style than a 60 year old man. i can’t look at someone who wears a suit to church every sunday and assume that they think they are better than everyone else because they wear a suit. that would be incredibly presumptuous of me. by the same token, it is incredibly presumptuous for someone to say that anybody who wears flip-flops and a t-shirt to worship is not being respectful. that argument works in both directions, folks.
like you, scott, i know some people who wear “sloppy” clothing just to tick folks off and make them say something about it. but those people are idiots. and by the way, the abuse of a thing does not delegitimize a thing in and of itself. for example, a lot of people sniff white out and get high; but that doesn’t mean that white out is bad, just the abuse of it.
as for folks bringing a pepsi into worship service… i have yet to see it. however, if i did see it, i would not consider it to be a problem. would it be a problem if i stepped out during worship to get a drink from the water fountain? what’s the difference in having it in a bottle during the sermon? i think that looking at that with common sense and consistency would eliminate the taboo from it.
scott, your point #2 is perfectly illustrated. i wish everybody thought like that.
So what I don’t understand is who gets to determine what is dressy enough? Because ties of course didn’t come into this world until the late 1800’s and surely through modern styles and new innovative ideas, dresses and suits have changed tremendously over time. Who judges between what is and isn’t acceptable attire to worship God in? Is it how much income the family has? Because I know many folks who can’t afford a decent suit and dresses are pretty expensive (I only assume because I don’t shop for dresses, I just borrow them). Do we categorize families by how many children they have as to how much money they have in order to determine their proper dress? So now we have wondered into the land of judging, which is what is taking place right now with articles like brother Ken’s.
The dress thing goes either way. Because it is an attitude and heart thing. Like the example of the folks who wear jeans just to get a reaction, clearly they are not their for the right reasons. The folks that wear fancy clothes and lots of makeup and jewelry and hats that all match, to me they are a bigger distraction than the dude in flip-flops and t-shirts. And then the dude who just comes rollin in and puts no prep time in his preworship experience, I believe all are examples of the heart not being where it needs to be. There is more in the Bible about how our hearts are supposed to be like than anything that goes on during the worship. Now that does not negate the fact that our worship is to be pleasing and reverent to God, but we are different people, and different people do not do things the same. I may worship God better when I am in jeans and a polo shirt, that is my choice and preference. Someone else may worship feel they are worshiping God better and more respectful in a three-piece suit, that is also his choice and preference. Either way is right. Either way God accepts the worship, as long as it is from the heart. God is not going to accept worship from a dude who is wearing a suit but is not wearing a humble and reverent heart. Also God will not accept the worship of a dude in jeans and a t-shirt that is wearing a disrespectful and hard heart. That is what it is really about and I don’t think traditions are our only downfall, however, they are a huge catalyst. I think our biggest problem is we major in the minors and minor in the majors. Folks get all upset over things that aren’t covered specifically in the Bible and forget the things that are specifically in there. Jesus did stand for something, a new heart. I believe we need to stand for something as well, the Bible; not what we think is in the Bible, not what we interpret the bible to say to back up our opinions, but the Bible as God’s Word and nothing else.
We don’t need to worry about dress in worship, that isn’t going to make or break the church, but the hearts of the people will.
Dude, I love these kinds of convos, but I couldn’t read all that, but I got the jest, therefore, dose kudos.
Kudos bro..
What guys like this that write articles like that don’t get is what worship is. Worship is 24-7, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. It’s not twice on Sunday and once on Wednesday. Our lives are worship to him.
Our assemblies have all become too formal and as a result they are intimidating to those who are a bit “Outside the Box”, those being from a different social status or ethnicity.
Brandon thank you for taking a stand on what to me is a non-essential matter when it comes to the big picture. We’re too much like the pharisees were at times though and spend our time arguing over petty stuff instead of working together to help our brothers and sisters.
Word up, and an amen.
“…Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” -I Samuel 16:7
I believe GOD said this. I’m pretty sure he’s all that matters.
Besides modesty issues,….dress doesn’t matter. I’ve never known an American Eagle shirt to have an affect on my heart. And furthermore,…if what I wear causes someone to be distracted,….they need to sit in the nursery and color like the other toddlers, because their heart isn’t where it needs to be anyway. We are Christians, ladies and gentlemen. If we are mature enough to take on the responsibility of wearing Christ’s name,…we should have the maturity to focus on what is important.
I agree that the outward appearance is not an indication of the soul’s inner life. But I will say that the current climate has gone so far in the other direction that dressing like a slob has become a symbol of holiness.
It is exactly the same issue: if a Christian says: “Look at me - I am better because I am wearing overalls, and dressed as if I am poor”, that is just as self-righteous as a man who wears a $5,000 suit and owns three Rolexes.
It has reached the point now where a man wearing a tie is ridiculed and mocked in most churches. Those who mock are just being cruel.
Most men who are older look better in a suit. That’s the way it is. It is associated with mature masculinity, which is often mocked today. I think taht is going too far.
BRAVO!
This is FOR REAL FOR REAL BRO.
Grace and Peace,
Wess
Awesome.
I must say that I have seen kids texting and bringing pop into Church. Some Churches are more casual in dress so that is not a big deal. Like anything, it comes down to personal responsiblity and if you child is playing with electronics in a service, perhaps the parents should address the behavior.
There is an old adage that says “Appearances can be deceptive”.
The soul of a man will always outshine any Armani suit.
People loved Jesus when he went about healing souls not because of his outward appearance but the quality of his reputation. The same thing applies to us mortals here on earth.
I used to be a slave of outward appearances but have learned never to judge a man by his clothes; but rather by his countenance, humility, actions and the way he generally carries himself.