Christian Modesty
Chad Johnson
December 11, 2009

In like manner also that woman adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array. I Timothy 2:9 (KJV)

Modesty has become a forgotten subject in the modern day church. Preachers no longer cry out against immodesty in the way people dress. We see here in this verse a command to be modest. The word modesty means moderate, not excessive or extreme, not extravagant. It also has to do with chastity, or purity in heart. So it is evident that outward modesty comes from a pure heart and immodesty comes from a wicked heart. Once a Christian is shown from the word of God what modesty is then they are to line up with the truth. There are two things I want you to learn about modesty. First, there must be a definite distinction between a man’s clothing and a woman’s clothing. Secondly, after we have made the distinction we must be modest in our dress. Deuteronomy 22:5 says "The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman’s garments: for all that do so are abomination unto the Lord thy God. (KJV)"

Abomination means something hated, an object of disgust, detestable. I know some of you right now are thinking this is Old Testament and does not apply to us today. The Old Testament law lists two types of abominations: ceremonial and moral. Certain things were said to be abomination to Israel, and certain things were said to be abomination to God. While the ceremonial abominations were done away with at Calvary, the moral abominations are still enforced. The abomination mentioned here in this verse is a moral one and is still enforced today. One main argument against this text is that people in Bible times all dressed the same and all wore robes. The verse we just read says there is a distinction in how we should dress. In Exodus 28, God gave instruction on what material the breeches for the High Priest were to be made out of. I know men’s pants today are different from those in Exodus 28, but the concept is the same. Men’s pants wrapped around the leg and women wore long, flowing garments. Pants on women in America rose from a social revolution called the feminist movement. These women were struggling to be equal with men because they were not content with their elevated position in Christ Jesus. So we see the origin of women wearing pants came from a very wicked movement. It promoted independence from their husbands and a departure from Scripture. Society as a whole did not accept pants on women until after WWII. Their popularity grew until the late 1960s and became main street clothing through the influence of the rock-n-roll movement.

In conclusion, outward modesty without inward modesty is utterly useless. I pray that God would give us a revival in our hearts. No amount of outward modesty can take the place of the most important thing, a heart full of inward modesty and purity. Amen.