Last evening my pastor, David Fleming, discussed from the pulpit his personal conviction about why he wears a coat and tie in church services. He wants his dress to reflect his high view of the Lord. In terms of this lesson on “Integrity,” we might say that his clothes are in synch with his heart, mind and actions.
In my class, some members wear ties while others don’t, so dress code could make for an interesting discussion on integrity of worship. For example, an individual could dress in a tuxedo but not worship God with integrity if his mind was on the other side of town contemplating a meeting after church.
I’m not aware of a Bible verse where the Lord gives instructions about wearing a suit and tie for worshipping Him, but it seems “just wrong” for a person to show up to a worship service wearing flip-flops and cutoffs.
I don’t know what your thinking about this is, but discussing a topic like Sunday dress code in your class may help crystallize the issue of worshipping with integrity in the minds of members. On the other hand, dress code may be a non-issue in your class.
With a goal of teaching the Bible to transform adult lives, I search for object lessons, illustrations, exercises, etc. I post these (and some original ideas) in hopes other teachers will benefit, too.
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- I am a former adult Bible teacher at Champion Forest Baptist Church in Houston, TX, and Fielder Road Baptist Church in Arlington, TX
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3 comments:
RW,
I think it important to give our best to the Lord. We are called on be set apart, Holy as the Lord is Holy. I don't want to approach the Lord casually. I agree with your pastor and many times when I show up to church, I am made to feel overdressed, as most of our members choose not wear their "Sunday Best"!
It is important too that we understand we can approach the Lord at any time, and anywhere, and in any circumstance,(I am thinking Nehemiah before the King here.) However to worship corporately I think requires offering our very best everything! Our best attitude, our best mindset,our best focus, our best attire, and our best offering. I will discuss this in class. This is an excellent way to approach integrity before the Lord!
This will certainly encourage some of our members to speak out in our Sunday Bible study.
Thank you for your continued efforts to bring these biblical principles to the classroom in a new and fresh way!
LJ
I'm of two minds when it comes to "dress code." My wife won't go to church on Sunday morning unless it's in a dress--no slacks, not even a skirt and blouse. She refuses to let our kids wear shorts to church, even on Sunday night. A lot of people behave differently.
I've personally gone more casual in the last five years, generally alternating tie one week and polo or open collar the next (though I've been mostly in polos over the summer). Like you, I have a hard time stomaching cut offs and flip flops in "God's house" but then I started thinking about why I have those convictions.
An illustration goes back to a vacation I took with the family in 2005. On our way to Texas, we passed through Oklahoma and stopped for lunch at a McDonald's in Oklahoma City. There were a bunch of bikers in there, decked out in black leather from head to toe. I sat my family as far away from them as I could, not wanting to answer questions from my kids about the body piercings and tattoos we would no doubt see along with the salty language I fully expected to hear. As I went to the drink fountain to fill a cup, I caught the writing on the back of the jacket of one of the bikers. It said "Bikers for Christ" or something like that. I had an instant paradigm change and was convicted for my initial thoughts about them. What if one of these people had shown up in my church? Would I snub a brother or sister in Christ wearing leather and looking like people I don't normally hang out with? Probably so. It's a mixed up priority when I place higher value on someone's clothes than what the church is really about--healing the spiritually sick people in need of a Savior.
Part of my conviction on clothing is that it's one of those "we've always done it that way" conventions. Since I was a kid, we dressed nicely for church. As far as I'm concerned, it's always been done that way. But has it really?
I did some background work on this week's lesson in 2 Kings 25, reading about the siege of Jerusalem and the four major events that happened in the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth months. These four fasts mentioned in Zech. 8 commemorate the assassination of a governor, the beginning of the siege of Jerusalem, the burning of the temple, and one other thing I can't recall off the top of my head.
The law only called for the fast on the Day of Atonement, but the people had instituted customs to fast for these things that they had lost. They couldn't be more than seventy year traditions, but they had the flavor of things that "had always been done that way." Now in Zechariah 7, we see them wanting to get out of them. This is where the lesson on Integrity, or better "Motives for Pure Worship" hits home to me. Do I really need to fast for the loss of the temple when we're staring at a mostly completed replacement?
Do I worship of sincere motives or because it's a habit? Do I teach with conviction or just go through the motions? Am I following God's call or my own selfish desires and ego trips? It's convicting to work through this in my own life as I prepare to teach it to my peers.
Robert (KY)
LJ, Robert, thanks for commenting. Trouble is that legalistic thinking soon follows when a preference for suit and tie is expressed over an open collar.
Robert's example is a good illustration. He had a particular mindset about people dressed a certain way (biker leather gear).
How do we demonstrate by the clothes we wear a high view of the Lord without establishing an unwanted tradition, or paving the way for legalism? As Robert mentioned, the Jews established a tradition by fasting more than they were instructed to do.
Frankly, I don't see instructions to wear a suit and tie described in the Bible. But, if some choose to wear an open collar, how will the 'suit and tie' crowd react? You can guess...
Maybe it's better not to bring this issue up as an illustration?
Ronnie
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