by Carlin Nasiatka
Modesty. The concept is one I have been asked countless questions on and have grappled with in my own walk with God. What exactly is modesty?
What is God’s picture of modesty? In I Peter 3:3-4 it says, “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.” Now this verse isn’t saying to never braid your hair or wear pretty jewelry or clothes. What it is saying, however, is that your beauty should stem from your heart – in pursuing the things that God loves. Those things that are of “great worth.”
Modesty is a matter of the heart. An immodest heart seeks to draw attention to self, while a modest heart runs in pursuit of all that is pure and righteous, because it runs after God, who is the ultimate picture of holiness.
So does modesty have anything to do with clothes? I think it does. But I think the problem is when modesty is defined solely by outward appearance. Some women could wear a bur-qua and still be immodest.
However, there’s also a problem when a woman who says she loves the Lord and desires to be a light for Him walks around in sleazy tank-tops, mini-skirts and bikinis. To what is she drawing people’s attention? The holiness and righteousness of her God? The joy of abandoning self to be His servant? The beauty of a gospel which says that “He must become more, I must become less (Jn. 3:30)”? Of course not. She is too wrapped up in her own image to be concerned with how she is portraying God’s.
Let’s think about this for a moment… what was the motivation for Eve to go against a God that loved her with an everlasting, affectionate, tender type of love? Satan told her, “you will be like God (Gen. 3:5)”. In her choice to eat the fruit, Eve’s motivation was to STEAL FROM GOD’S GLORY. To be “like God” was to have just a little bit of that praise, a little bit of that adoration, a little bit of that worship for herself.
This is exactly the same choice Christian women make when they choose to dress or act immodestly. Immodesty causes others to give glory to an individual rather than God.
So the question is: does my choice of clothes and the way I act cause others to marvel at the beauty of God? To glimpse His redeeming grace, unending love, and life-changing compassion in my life?
A life of pursuing radical purity is anything but boring. It is perhaps the most difficult and self-incriminating road you will ever set foot upon. And it is only worth it for a young woman who loves the Lord with absolutely everything that she is.
Sorting through all this has been really difficult for me. I thought I had this modesty thing under control. But I again realize how far from the mark I often fall. Modesty goes way deeper than my choice of clothing. It is a measure of how faithful I am in denying myself and using all that I am to bring glory to the God who loves me, and His world, with a consuming passion for righteousness.