Day 13:30-Day True Woman Makeover Challenge

A Woman’s Great Loveliness

What comes to mind when you hear the word modesty?

• To be modest is to:

o know how to be appropriately embarrassed.

o be discreet.

o be reserved.

o see yourself as you really are.

o be ashamed if your attitudes or dress were ever to cause dishonor to Christ.

• To be immodest is to:

o be showy.

o talk too much.

o be arrogant.

o be aggressive, controlling, or domineering.

This is just a taste of what you'll learn from Nancy Leigh DeMoss in the series, “The Attractive Christian Woman.”

Moving on…

Modesty is a controversial topic, especially when you throw God into the mix. For some, they simply cannot fathom, amidst all the great injustices in the world that God actually cares if a girl wears skin-tight pants with the word “Juicy” written on them. But in the end, it is the Word of God that should drive our discussions about modesty. What has God revealed about it? First and foremost, a biblical definition of modesty must focus on the heart. Modesty is primarily about our motivations. In addition, modest dress is also about discernment, having an awareness of others and our environment.

Paul on Modesty: 1 Timothy 2:8-10

“I desire…that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire, but with what is proper for women who profess godliness—with good works.“

Christian women should concern themselves with modesty because the Bible does. This text is a primary example.

What Modesty is and what it is not:

1.       Modesty is not anti-pretty: “women should adorn themselves.” These are not the words of an anti-fashion prude. The question for Paul isn’t about whether a woman should ornament her body, but how.

2.       Modesty is about who you worship: Women are commanded to adorn themselves in a way that is fitting for worship. When you go to church, go dressed in a way that shows you desire to the attention to be on God, not yourself.

3.       Modesty is about behavior and attitude, not just clothing: Women should seek to dress their lives in works that do good to others, marked with godly love. This means modesty is not simply about what we wear, but how we act, how we communicate, and how relate to others.

4.       Modesty shows sensitivity to sin: No, a woman is not guilty of a man’s lust if she dresses with the intention to allure him. Let him account for his sins. But she is guilty of a lack of shamefacedness, for treating sin lightly. A heart of modesty is motivated by a love for one’s fellow man.

5.       Modesty is about true freedom, not repression: More often than not, modesty standards are seen as repressive, arbitrary rules that restrict a woman’s creativity and freedom. But when modesty is motivated from the heart, the exact opposite is true.

Modesty is a respectable manner of adorning one’s body and carrying oneself, born out of a freedom from a worldly definition of beauty and worth, and motivated by a hatred of sin and a desire to draw attention to God.