Matthew 6:28 "And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."

So much emphasis is placed on apparel today. We worry that we are dressed appropriately for each occasion, we worry that what we have on doesn't make us look too fat and then there is the problem of not wearing the same thing too often. And have you noticed that many religions and cults have their own ideas of how their members should dress? Some dictate that their women must wear dresses to their ankles with long sleeves and have their heads covered. Others insist on their women wearing veils and still others forbid their members to wear jewelry.

They dressed in robes and sandals in Israel in the era when the bible was written. Common sense, weather and fashion of the time dictates that we don't dress that way today. God made Adam and Eve coats of skins, He didn't expect for man to continue to dress himself in coats of skins for the rest of his life. Times change, weather changes, fashions change from one land to another. When addressing the issue of apparel, we must simply use the common sense that God gave us and the guidelines of His word. Let's look at some examples.

1 Timothy 2:9 "In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;"

Some take this verse and teach that women are not to wear jewelry or braid their hair. If you are going to take this verse to mean that today then you are going to have to take the rest of the chapter and live by it today, also. That means the women are going to have to learn silently from their husbands and they would not be able to teach or speak out on any matter of importance. As we study God's word we must remember when it was written, what the culture was then and how the people lived. Evidently broided hair (hair braided with ornaments or ribbons) was a sign of extravagance as was "gold, pearls and costly array." Paul was warning against the sin of vanity in these verses, he was not teaching a lesson on how to dress. If you are looking for a lesson on how to dress here, the key word would be modest and modest means free from showiness or ostentation or unpretentious. A Christian should always strive to be Christ like. If you are in doubt about something when you try it on in the store, don't buy it. If you think you would be ashamed to stand before God with it on if you were to die in it, then don't buy it!

Deuteronomy 22:5 "The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God."

I was going to leave this verse out but I thought it needed to be addressed here. Though I am sure there are those who will not agree with me, I believe this verse is referring to homosexuals. Men dressing like women and women dressing like men. If you are going to take this verse to literally mean that a woman cannot wear any garment that resembles a man's, then she could not wear a blouse with a collar and cuffs, a suit jacket or even loafers. At the time this was written both men and women wore robes that looked much the same and men had long hair. From behind and at a distance, it would be hard to tell the difference in a man and a woman if not for the headdress the women wore. I feel like this verse means that a woman is not to intentionally dress to look like a man and a man is not to intentionally dress to look like a woman. God intended women to look like women and men to look like men, that's why He created us to look different in the beginning. Once again, it comes down to common sense, decency and modesty. As it was in 1 Timothy 2:9, if you are going to take this verse from Deuteronomy literally to mean a woman cannot wear any garment that resembles a man's garment, then you should probably also live by the rest of the verses concerning clothes in this chapter and not mix the fabrics in your outfits (such as a wool skirt or suit with a linen shirt or blouse - verse 11) or the wearing of fringes on all four sides of a shawl or cloak (verse 12).

Matthew 23:25 "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. 28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity."

Jesus said it just right in this scripture. Many people are dressing up the outside and completely forgetting about the inside. They appear beautiful outwardly but inside they are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. There isn't anything wrong with wanting to look nice. If we are carrying the name of Christ we are representing Him and we should try to always look our best. The problem comes when we start caring more about what man sees than what God sees. Ask yourself these two questions:

• How much time do you spend on your outward appearance each day?
• How much time do you spend on your inward appearance each day?

  

  Luke 15:22 "But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet:"
  
  Revelation 3:5 "He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels."

  It's just human nature to worry about what we are going to wear. Most nights, before I go to bed, I'll lay out clothes for the next day. But God tells us in Matthew 6 that He has clothed the lilies of the field with more beauty than even Solomon in all his glory and they don't do anything except stand there, "Shall He not much more clothe you...?" He said He knows what we have need of and if we will just seek His kingdom first then all these other things will be added unto us. Everything we need, we will receive if we just seek Him first. What a wonderful promise! In Luke 15 we read the story of the prodigal son returning home to his father after he had squandered his inheritance. His father was so glad to see him, he dressed him in his best robe, put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet. That's just the kind of Heavenly Father we have! When this life is over, when we have overcome the temptation of sin and death, He will clothe us in white raiment and read our names from the book of life before the Father and the angels.

  

  CONSIDER THE LILIES
  
  Consider the lilies, they don’t toil nor spin
  And there’s not a king with
  more splendor than them;
  Consider the sparrows, they don’t plant nor sow
  But they’re fed by the Master
  who watches them grow.
  
  May I introduce you to this friend of mine
  Who hangs out the stars, tells the sun when to shine
  And kisses the flowers each morning with dew,
  But He’s not too busy to care about you.
  
  We have a heavenly Father above
  With eyes full of mercy and a heart full of love;
  He really cares when your head is bowed low;
  Consider the lilies and then you will know.
  

  

  
  
  LOVE, MEME

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