Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Modesty and the Cross



"Ten minutes until we leave for church, everyone!" Emma heard the voice of her dad down the hallway from her bedroom. She heaved a sigh as she held up a skirt to the mirror. It was her favorite white skirt, but she hadn't worn it since last summer. She was delighted to find it in the back of the closet that morning, but disappointed when she tried it on.

Emma had grown several inches taller since the skirt's last debut and now it fell several inches above her knee. Standing up, it appeared to be modest, but sitting down, she knew it showed too much.

Just the same, she fought with the idea of setting the skirt aside. Short skirts were in style, and this one was particularly flattering. Besides, the outfit would still be more concealing than most clothes these days. Staring into the mirror, Emma asked herself aloud, "Why not?"

Modesty is a never simply an option. The Bible gives us little room for doubt on that note: "Women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control." (1 Timothy 2:9) And all Christians are told not to do anything that would tempt brethren to sin. With immodesty inevitably being an advertisement for lust, the command is clear-cut. If we want to obey God, we have no other recourse.

Still, when that shirt hangs just a little too well on us, or that pair of jeans flatteringly hugs our frame, we begin rationalizing. We think that compared to others, we're still modest. It isn't a big deal. When we're not sure if it completely fits the 1 Timothy 2:9 category or not, we push the question to the back of our minds and wear it anyway. I know the steps of rationalizing because I've walked through them myself, more often than I feel comfortable admitting. Why do we do this? Deep in our gut, we know it's wrong. Why does sin still appear so irresistible?

Because we haven't spent enough time remembering.

Every time I look with one eye on the Cross and another on my own sin, I run out of words trying to describe the wonder of it. The realization that those sins are no more because of His blood is staggering. It's like remembering something precious you forgot; or waking up from the dream that felt like reality, only to collide into genuine, blazing life. I want to touch those boards, splintered by His nails, and know they're mine. They were meant to be mine. God took them instead. Exquisite pain paid for the sins I commit, committed and will commit. How can I move on from this?

Unfortunately, we don't stare at the Cross long enough. When the question of modesty comes up, we toss reservation in the trash. We forget the cost of sin. We forget how serious our offenses are to a Holy God. By moving on from the Cross, we belittle the opinion of God. We let the world gain a foothold in our lives.

Emma's predicament has been my own many times over; but that does not lessen the seriousness of it. Just as every other area of our lives, modesty needs to be brought under the dominion of Christ. And when fighting to surrender, it helps to remember the Cross.

"Take away my roving eye, curious ear, greedy appetite, lustful heart;
show me that none of these things can heal a wounded conscience,
or support a tottering frame,
or uphold a departing spirit.
Then take me to the cross
and leave me there." (The Valley of Vision)

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