THE ATTIRE OF A HARLOT
“And, behold, there met him a woman with the ATTIRE OF A HARLOT,
and subtle of heart” (Proverbs 7:10). This is
speaking about a strange woman (Proverbs 7:5). A condition which predisposes to
fornication and adultery is ‘strangeness’. Strange people are those whose
behavior in a certain sense sows the seeds of fornication in others. The Bible
didn’t say she was a harlot, but that, she came with the dress of a harlot. If
you are a Christian there are certain dresses that you are not supposed to
wear. A believer ought to dress decently. If you are not a prostitute but you
often dress like one, then you have one of the characteristics of a strange
woman. Strange women often dress in suggestive and revealing ways. It is not
only the dress that speaks, but their pose also says volumes. You can
immediately see they are after something. If you dare come to church with such
a dress, then there is no doubt that you are strange. Some of the dresses
expose half of their breasts. But a woman’s breasts are not meant for public display.
I know of only two reasons why breasts were made: for breast feeding, and for
husbands to enjoy! Ladies, always dress decently — do not dress in a suggestive
or revealing way! Make-up helps to enhance the beauty of women, but there is a
limit. At a point the make-up becomes too much and other messages are loudly
sent across. Every Christian should look beautiful, but we should be careful
not to cross the line into ‘strangeness’. The Bible says temptation shall
surely come but woe to him through whom the temptation comes.
King
Solomon wrote about a strange woman who seduced a young man and made him land
in to the trap of adultery. The woman met the young man at night and she was
dressed like a prostitute or a harlot. It is not uncommon today to find a
prostitute on the streets being more decently dressed than some Christian
sisters. This woman's dressing is not spoken about in a positive but in a
negative sense since she used this dressing to induce the young man to have sex
with her, “With her much fair speech she
caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him”
(Proverbs 7:21). As a born again Christian you should not be the one being
compared to prostitutes on the streets and you should make a difference for the
better. In Genesis 38:13-18 we see Tamar seducing and having sex with her
father-in-law because of dressing as a harlot.
DEFINITION OF INDECENT DRESSING
Indecency
is defined as the quality of not conforming to standards of propriety and
morality. A person who is indecent is one who is offensive to good taste
especially in sexual matters. God has set specific standards in His word
concerning how a Christian should dress. He gives us specific guidelines that
govern all things in life; nothing is left out (2 Peter 1:3).
1. Dressing that causes others to stumble
"But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which
believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his
neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea” (Matthew 18:6). Jesus makes it clear that he opposes those who
dress in ways that will cause one of God's children to be offended or to
stumble. A believer has to consider whether their dressing is going to distract
others from serving God and if it does then they have to act in love and not
wear it (1 Corinthians 8).
2. Dressing that brings shame to the wearer
“Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and
keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they SEE HIS SHAME” (Revelation 16:15). The scripture refers to a naked person as
showing their shame. This is a type of dressing that brings dishonor to the
wearer and causes others to lose respect of them. Today we have many Christian
women who have no sense of shame. Apostle Paul advises women to have a sense of
shame or shamefacedness as they select their clothing (1 Timothy 2:9). One of
the ways you can tell if the clothes you are wearing are bringing shame is if
you are constantly adjusting them by trying to pull the blouse higher toward
the neck or pulling the skirt lower towards the feet. Another characteristic is
trying to cover the exposed body with a sweater, shawl, wrapper, handbag or
books.
3. Dressing that exposes the sexual organs and other parts of the
body
“And thou shalt make them linen breeches to COVER THEIR NAKEDNESS;
from the loins even unto the thighs they shall reach” (Exodus 28:42). God made it clear that the priests were to cover
their private parts and thighs with breeches or special shorts. Apostle Paul
states that we have to honor certain parts of our bodies that are not proper to
be exposed by clothing them (1 Corinthians 12:23).
4. Dressing that is too tight
“They shall have linen bonnets upon their heads, and shall have
linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing
that CAUSETH SWEAT” (Ezekiel 44:18). Clothing
that causes a person to sweat is obviously tight clothing. Many Christians go
ahead to dress in tight clothing that leaves nothing to the imagination and
dishonors God.
5. Dressing that excites lust in the onlookers
"For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil
thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, ... LASCIVIOUSNESS... All these
evil things come from within, and defile the man” (Mark 7:21-23). Lasciviousness is defined as the tendency to
excite lust, and promote irregular indulgences. This is the root of soft and
hard core pornography. A woman or man who dresses in a sexually suggestive way
and makes others imagine how good they would be in bed is committing the sin of
lasciviousness and stirring up their fleshly lusts.
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