Follow-Service Wear Series

Title: Follow-Service Wear

Place: BLCC

Date: 4/2/17

Text: Luke 12.37; Colossians 3.12-14; 1 Corinthians 11.2-12.

CT: As followers of Jesus we are to be dressed to serve.

[Screen 1]

FAS: Does what we wear tell us about who we follow? How about these guys?

(show pic of UK fan tricked out) Or how about these folks? [Screen 2]

(show pic of Louisville fan tricked out) [Screen 3]

(Show pic of Muslim women) [Screen 4]

(Show pic of Buddhist monks)

We can recognize whom these people follow by what they are wearing.

How should we as Followers of Christ dress? [Screen 5]

(pic dressed up suit) [Screen 6]

(pic of “Jesus freak”) ]Screen 7]

(pic of hate filled “Christians”)

Our outer-wear will reflect who we follow. We as followers ask these kind of questions. That’s OK. The people of the early church did as well. The church of Corinth sent some questions to the Apostle Paul about how they should dress in worship. He answered them in a letter to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians chapter 11. Here is what he told them about covering their head and hair. [Screen 8]

3 But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. 5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. 6 For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head.

7 A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. 8 For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; 9 neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10 It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her own head, because of the angels. 11 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God.

These people were concerned with what they wore. They wanted rules to follow. That is what all religions want. [Screen 9]

Religion gives us rules to follow to be right with God. [Screen 10]

Following Jesus brings us into relationships. It builds relationships that lead us to do what Jesus leads us to do.

At first glance these rules seem a bit outdated to us and even a little silly. But at that time the covering of the head had a sexual and religious connotation for the people of that culture. It was a big deal.

Christians were to be separate from the other religions. There were many who still worshipped other little “g” gods and paganism was all around. Paul was concerned about how they would appear to others outside the church in their witness to them.

Behavior, mannerisms, clothing or hairstyles that suggested a person was unfaithful to their spouse, promiscuous, homosexual or the devotee to some non-Christian occult would have not been appropriate in the church then or today.

Basically men should not disgrace their wives and wives should not disgrace their husbands. That is what all that woman and man language says to me.

Clearly head coverings send virtually no sexual or religious messages in the contemporary Western society. Yes there are some very fundamental churches that take this literally. Doubt they are reaching many people for Christ. They missed what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9.19-23 where we are to be to all people to reach as many as possible.

In other cultures even today head coverings do have a great significance. Muslims who are Christian may still feel the head covering necessary to not disgrace one another. Cultures view things differently. Bare shouldered women to a Muslim Christian would be as inappropriate as a women walking in church here topless.

Paul was not trying to give these people a checklist to go by. He was concerned about how they dressed would effect their relationships with one another. This included their fellow brothers and sisters as well as those on the outside looking in. [Screen 11]

Is what we wear important in church?

Here at Blue Licks we wear a lot of different styles and outfits. We feel there is a lot of freedom in what we wear. The only time I believe there would be a problem is when what we wear on the outside reflects something that makes it appear we are moving away from God’s ideal on the inside in our heart. If we wear something that would make someone else stumble we should use wisdom in deciding if it is appropriate. We should all dress to honor God as we come to worship Him. We should not dress to glorify ourselves or bring attention to our selves or something contrary to God’s ideal.