When preparing to go somewhere special, women typically ask themselves “what are you going to wear?” Not because they really care about the miniscule details of their friend’s outfit, but because they want to get an idea of the standard that’ll be set by putting their outfits together. No one wants to go to an event and find out that they are over or underdressed. So as I thought about this, I wondered what this could mean for us as Christians.
In Colossians 3, Apostle Paul admonishes the Colossians to live a new life in Christ. In verse 12 and 14 specifically, he says since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience…Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.
I find it interesting that these new “clothes” sound a lot like the Fruits of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23) and the qualities of Love (1 Corinthians 13). Since they align so well with one another, I think it emphasizes the importance of what wearing these “clothes” actually means for us as Christians.
Paul’s admonishment in this scripture makes a case that God cares about what we wear. He cares about how we carry our appearance both physically and spiritually, and we can see it all throughout the Bible. God first addressed his concern for physical appearance with Adam and Eve in Genesis 3, which we’ll later read. In other instances, He cared about what was worn spiritually like in Isaiah 61:10 where it says for he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness. I am like a bridegroom dressed for his wedding or a bride with her jewels. Ultimately though, I believe 1 Samuel 16:7 says it best, But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
So, if the Lord looks at the heart, my question to you is, “what are you wearing?” Is it shame? Is it envy? Is it love? Is it kindness? What is it?
The things we unconsciously clothe or cover our hearts with influence our thoughts, our mindsets, our perceptions, and they eventually creep up to the surface in little ways. What your heart is clothed with matters, so it’s worth evaluating what you’ve been wearing and why.
Let’s now look at Genesis 3. Adam and Eve had sinned, and the worst curse for women was about to be pronounced *cries internally.* Verse 7 says, at that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves.
The moment Adam and Eve sinned, they reached for a physical covering. Why? Because, they found themselves naked and they felt this new form of covering of shame in their hearts. Well in verse 11 God asks them, who told you that you were naked?
Though simply stated, that question is pretty profound. In order for Adam and Eve to have known they were naked, someone had to have told them that they were, and they then had to agree in their belief that they were. Read that again slowly.
Who tells us the things that we believe about ourselves? Who influences the things we choose to feel and why? Up until this moment in Genesis, Adam and Eve never felt “shame.” I don’t even think they knew what “shame” was. They were bountifully enjoying the presence of God in the Garden of Eden, so there was nothing to feel ashamed about. But the moment they fell, they started feeling everything opposite of what they had ever felt before and they now wanted to cover themselves with the wrong things. Physically with fig leaves, spiritually with shame.
In this new year, what will you be covering yourself with? What will you be wearing? These are questions I’ve been pondering on as I set goals for the year and I think you should too.
God cares about what we cover ourselves with. So much so that even when Adam and Eve covered themselves in fig leaves, God took the time out to make them thicker and long lasting clothing from animal skin (Genesis 3:21). Even when they covered themselves with shame and went to hide, God still sought them out (Genesis 3:8-9). This all shows His tenderhearted mercy, provision, and unfailing love towards us.
As Believers, there is a standard for the things we should and shouldn’t wear. These standards aren’t based on society, but they are based on Christ; and anything based on Christ, does not change or shake (see Isaiah 28:16). So it’s worth considering what we are wearing and why, after all the Bible does instruct it.
So, as you go about your 2022, consider asking yourself “hey, what am I going to wear?”
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