1 Peter 3:3

[nahkoe]

Originally Posted by Digging4Truth

*sigh*

No sir it isn"t. Also... I generally don't view or teach anything along these lines in the manner of clothes line rules. What I would busy myself with doing would be the teaching of concepts.

So... a good start in the general direction of the ideal concept that I would love to see would be a simple realization of our tendency to walk this line of adornment.

If we have found ourselves doing exactly what scripture warned us to stay away from then no level of closet reassignment is going to change that. What I would like to see is open discussion on a subject such as this one that might help us realize that we do make many decisions with the very criteria scripture warns against.

This might trigger someone to do a little thinking and from a little thinking comes a little prayer and from a little prayer comes a little change.

The change may not even be something that someone would be able to see on the outside but an inward change that causes someone to begin to change the focus of their clothing selection to lean more on how this covers me with modesty and less on how well this adorns my body.

I am not one who seeks changes in the sense of others beginning to do things the way I would like to see them. I am one who seeks changes that come from thoughtful & prayerful study. That translates to a change in the heart and the mind. That translates to an outward change that came from their own heart and from their own relationship with God.

But... none of that can be attained unless we can find ourselves able to discuss these issues without an immediate feeling that this brother must have an agenda to be asking this question.

I agree with what you're seeing here. I'm puzzled by things like perms and fancy hair-dos and painful looking shoes. There's plenty of adornment going on in the churches I've been to.

One thing I've noticed kind of looking in from the outside is that those who have been taught all their lives how to live, tend to adorn more than those who are coming into this from outside the church. I think it's human nature to want to look nice/pretty/made up and I think that's where it's coming from. W/o these things being a personal conviction, something that this person has sought God's face over, it's just a list of "do this" and "don't do that". I don't think most who do this even recognize it, it's just how things have always been so it's done w/o any second thought. I also don't think any less of those who do this. It's just something I've noticed as almost a double standard...don't wear make up but it's ok to spend 2 hours teasing your hair and use an entire can of hairspray to keep it in all those fancy curls. It's really not about any list...it's about what's inside.

[Digging4Truth]

Originally Posted by nahkoe

I agree with what you're seeing here. I'm puzzled by things like perms and fancy hair-dos and painful looking shoes. There's plenty of adornment going on in the churches I've been to.

One thing I've noticed kind of looking in from the outside is that those who have been taught all their lives how to live, tend to adorn more than those who are coming into this from outside the church. I think it's human nature to want to look nice/pretty/made up and I think that's where it's coming from. W/o these things being a personal conviction, something that this person has sought God's face over, it's just a list of "do this" and "don't do that". I don't think most who do this even recognize it, it's just how things have always been so it's done w/o any second thought. I also don't think any less of those who do this. It's just something I've noticed as almost a double standard...don't wear make up but it's ok to spend 2 hours teasing your hair and use an entire can of hairspray to keep it in all those fancy curls. It's really not about any list...it's about what's inside.

Great post.

It is, sometimes, the teaching of rules rather than understanding that leads to so many inconsistencies.

For instance... the rules may be... our ladies wear skirts...

The end result is that no one has been taught an inward concept of Holiness so, while a skirt is being worn, it is skin tight and reveals as much as any pair of pants.

The issue here is that we have missed the point. The way we missed the point is by teaching a list of rules. Then the focus was on that list of rules and the beautiful and powerful concept of holiness and modesty were missed.

There is no substitute for a child of God learning and loving the very nature of their creator and savior.

[Light]

I Peter 3 is not about standards, in facts it is just the opposite.

I Peter 3 is about winning a husband that is lost. Peter is saying don't let your man made standards be the tool you use to win the husband. The tool to win the husband is a meek and quite spirit. This tool is not found in many that use dress as their thermometer of spirituality.

[Digging4Truth]

Originally Posted by Light

I Peter 3 is not about standards, in facts it is just the opposite.

I Peter 3 is about winning a husband that is lost. Peter is saying don't let your man made standards be the tool you use to win the husband. The tool to win the husband is a meek and quite spirit. This tool is not found in many that use dress as their thermometer of spirituality.

Which is why I quoted more than that scripture... for the context.

And.. I am glad you agree with what we have been posting here.

It isn't about standards... it is about a Spirit that is equal to the holiness, modesty and wisdom of our creator. It is about walking in His wise way and the powerful affect such a heart borne wisdom can have on others.

[nahkoe]

Originally Posted by Digging4Truth

Great post.

It is, sometimes, the teaching of rules rather than understanding that leads to so many inconsistencies.

For instance... the rules may be... our ladies wear skirts...

The end result is that no one has been taught an inward concept of Holiness so, while a skirt is being worn, it is skin tight and reveals as much as any pair of pants.

The issue here is that we have missed the point. The way we missed the point is by teaching a list of rules. Then the focus was on that list of rules and the beautiful and powerful concept of holiness and modesty were missed.

There is no substitute for a child of God learning and loving the very nature of their creator and savior.

Or, they move and end up in a church with a pastor who preaches "I don't..because" but not "you may not" and they go kind of wild over that freedom.

I find it kind of sad. What I do or don't do started 10 years ago with God showing me what to do/don't do. I wasn't in a church that taught standards, didn't know any such things existed, but 8 to 9 years ago I living what I now recognize as some of the standards taught in Apostolic/Pentecostal churches. As soon as I came back into the church (this time Apostolic/Pentecostal) God pointed out that I still have a responsibility for what I once knew. Not just what I look like, but everything having to do with holiness and sanctification. I *look* like I've been taught well, but it's not my pastor doing the teaching. lol Changing something visible would be an outward sign of an inward change, not the change itself, in either direction.