Q4. Fancy Clothing

[Ryan W]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

It would cause a distraction. Some of the women in the church were dressing like the women of the society and culture that they were living in. They were dressing in such a manner to draw attention to themselves. They were dressing in a manner that reflected an unholy lifestyle. The culture of Rome at this time was very perverse culture. Paul was insgtructing women in the church to depart from that lifestyle and not bring that kind of culture into the church.

Paul was instructing women to be careful how they appear in the house of God. Clothing is entirely a cultural matter. Before we start passing this instruction on we have to understand that in Paul's time the kind of clothing they wore was matter of culture. During Paul's time the wearing of jewelry and braiding of the hair was the adornments of a prostitute or lady of wealthy or noble status. Women dressed like that for the purpose of drawing attention to themselves.

These days in our American culture those things are not offensive and acceptable and do not reflect the attitudes and lifestyles of someone who is trying to draw attention to themselves. Most women in today's society dress appropriately and wear jewelry to be seen and their hair in braids. These guidelines cannot be set in stone for all time.

[prosenstein]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

We, men and women, have to remember that it's not about us. When we dress in clothes that are too lavish or fancy, we draw attention to ourselves instead of to God. Anything that distracts us from our worship of God is not good.

[Mary C]

I assume the women in the church were not dressing themselves in a appropriate manner and it was not a good witness for the church.

In the church today women should be modest in their dress and have a quiet and gentle spirit.

[Commissioned]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus?

These women by their style of inappropriate dress brought disrepute to the church as such dressings were attributed to prostitutes and women who wanted to flaunt their riches. The church in Ephesus, as all other churches, promotes the gospel of Jesus Christ which demands decency.

How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

Paul's directive in to the church in Ephesus can be applied today without instituting legalism. If the body directs attention to the Will of God and not to themselves they would dress themselves as Paul suggested.

[Peggy Crans]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

The women that were in the fancy clothes were drawing attention to themselves. The attention is supposed to be on worshipping the Lord not on our attire. It must have been very distracting.

I believe most women in the twenty-first century dress modestly and respectfully. They use good judgment in their attire. Some women wear make-up, jewelry and so on, but not to draw attention to themselves.

[rambler]

In Paul's day this was how a prostitute or loose women would dress to gain attention to themselves. By making our aim godliness.

[debbiemoore]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

because thebut the idea is to have our focus onthe one true God it not what you wear but what is in the heart fashion was not what the church about the church was maybe being compromised by the fancy clothing because it was taking there eyes off God and his direction for the church. today the same thing applies the fancy clothing does not have to be the focus of what we are doing in church

[DrD]

Women dressing in fancy clothes in Ephesus had the tendency to compromise the church's witness in two areas; (1) it could cause more attention given to them than to the church and its purpose; and (2) it could result in a schism between the fortunate and not so fortunate members in the church and community. . .

Even though times and customs change the priciples of God never change - fashions that have the effect of drawing more attention to self than our cause - and fashions that have the tendency to elevate us above others causes divisionsand schisms in the church and do a dis-service to our purpse. . .

[DrD]

NO, th ewriter of the Book of Hebrews is not teaching or suggesting that it is possible to gain salvation by living holy because salvation is by grace and faith and not by works. . .Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV)

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

YES, hibitual sin can deprive us of heaven because such a lifestyle will result in the rejection of Christ / apostasy - wherein there is no sacrifice for such. . .

[Barbara A. Lee]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

The first thing that comes to my mind when answering these questions is what happened to me when I was, I think, 13 years old. A very impressionable age at that. I was fairly new to this small town, having moved from a city. My father had just retired from the navy and started his second carreer.ANyway, one of my new friends invited me to go to church with her. Being new to the town I thought this would be a good way to meet new people. At 13 I was not your normal shy teenager. Having moved around quite a lot I had to learn mighty quick how to make friends easy. So I went. Well, I did meet a lot of new kids and clicked right away. So I decided I wanted to start going there regularily. I told my parents, who were Catholic by trade, and they saw no problem with it. They never forced their religion on me so I was free that way. Well, I started going to this church with my new friends. Every Sunday while we were waiting for the service to start, (We sat near the middle of the church) this one lady would come in walk to the front of the church and make an about face and go to the back of the room. Several of the teens that I was with always snickered, and I could never understand why. So after about four or five weeks of this (and mind you, the lady that did this would wear a different out fit entirely every time. and i mean entirely, shoes handbag jewelry, hair just right, EVERY TIME it was a different outfit.) I asked one of my friends why she did this. They said, "She is one of the richest women in this town, and she likes to let everyone know it too." I sat there the whole time thinking about this. At 13 most teenagers would do what they had done, laughed and thought it funny. I didn't. I thought of all the poor people in town and around the world that I had seen in my travels with my parents. That afternoon when I got home I told my parents that I was never going back to church again. And I didn't. The only time I went to church in that whole time from age 13 to age 19 was when I got married. Then it was the Navy chapel on base. And from then till about 1981 when I decided I would go with my husband to a small church in Woodbridge, VA.

Then we visited a church there, one time, and the Deacons of the church came to pay us a visit one night. They started asking us questions like how much money did you make and how much did you plan on giving to the church and blah blah this and blah blah that. I finally got up walked to the door and very politely asked them to leave. They looked at my husband as if to say are you going to let her do this. And he said, "You heard what she said!" They left in a huff. Then it was another long time about 15 to 18 years before we ever thought about going back to church.. Now my husband and his brother have a church and it is run soley by giving from the heart. We realize that there are people who give all that they can give and some that don't, but you know what, that is between them and GOD! Not man. And we make enough to pay the bills on the church and that is fine with us. I think if more preachers preached the word of God instead of making money more people would go to church. We would have a lot less crime and hatefulness in the world. That is my opinion. I think this is what it meant in the Church in Ephesus. The people wearing the fancy clothes were bragging about how much material items they had and not enough on the things that really matter. Sorry about the length of this but this is a very sore subject with me. People have got to understand that some people may not have as much money as others do and not to offend those that don't.

I hope I get some repllies to this. Don't feel like you don't want to offend me because you won't. This is just a sore subject with me and this is one way of venting my frustrations. Ha Ha!

[jamjar]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

These women in their fancy clothes were more into themselves with the attitude look at me and what I have they were not thinking of the poor person trying to follow Christ with nothing. It was all about them and not about Christ. The church cannot grow spiritually with this attitude. I think today the women in the church should dress modestly and not with the attitude, look at me and my beautiful clothes. They should be thinking more about how Christ look at their inner appearance not their outer.

[Old Jerry]

The way a women dressed in fancy clothes threatened to compromise the church

[Eagleswings01]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

Women dressing in fancy clothes threatened to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus because they were dressing primarily to draw attention to themselves.

We apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism by counselling the women clothe themselves more appropriately and modestly. Inner beauty which comes from the heart is better.

[Craig]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

Paul exhorts the women in Ephesus to be concerned about clothing themselves with godly character instead of wearing inappropriate and lavish clothes that draw attention to themselves. A Christian woman's beauty is found in her godly character and her love for the Lord as demonstrated in all types of good works. To dress as the world dresses compromises the church's witness in that worldly standards take away from heavenly standards making it seem like their is no difference between the two. The Christian is called out from the world.

I think the principle remains the same -- dress with some modesty. The application of common sense eliminates legalism.

[wifee]

4a)In Pauls time many of the women would have been slaves, unable to afford costly gold earings,pearls,costly garments, such an act of pretentious display of wealth would have been offensive, in poor taste, and accentuated the divide between the rich and the poor.Paul didn’t want message of lack of concern for poor&drawing attention to themselves instead of Jesus,as this was poor witness of gospel in Ephesis.
b)We (women)are to apply Paul’s teaching in current day by dressing with thought of impact on others,not an outward show of costly clothes,loads of lavish jewelery &makeup drawing attention to themselves,bearing little concern for those with little money around them not able to afford this, but rather instead clothing ourselves modestly, sensitive to social/church situation and behaving with good deeds/works representing “the inward person of the heart”1Peter 3:4.in this way loving our neighbour&the Lord as part of our act of worship.It is our hearts that are judged by God &man not appearance.

[Reuben]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

In those days there would have been little choice and fancy dress would be expensive and rare. The woman would have division because it would be those who have and those who have not. It does not allow for common ground where most would feel welcome or included, simply because of attire. The woman can also cause problems by distracting men from their focus in church, and possibly cause friction between partners as jealousy could set in and destroy the harmony in a church community.

Today we see woman dress classy and appropriately and this can be done with or without braiding your hair or wearing jewellery, or hat on or hat off.

[Jonathan Edwards]

The focus is on the Lord Jesus Christ.   Apostle Paul didn't want the old pagan customs to continue in the lives of these new believers.  The emphasis on outward show is off limits for the Christian man or woman.  It is the "over the top" extravagant dress: hair style, wearing gold and fancy apparel that Apostle Paul is against.   He wants the women to be more concerned about being formed in the image of Jesus Christ; the pagan culture fostered extravagant dress which had no place in the Church of God.

General rules are definitely in order.   Little by little, a new believer will be more cognizant about proper dress.   A few rules in the church bulletin would be in order.   Fitness outfits, cell phones and immodest clothing both male and female, have no place in the church.  Conservative Mennonite and a number of Amish churches have a nice way to inform an inquirer or member about proper dress for church services.

[crissy464]

With the women dressing all up was a distraction in the church away from God. in Pauls day modesty was important because the Jewish and Hellenistic traditions associated  extravagant female styles with sexual promiscuity among Jesus.
    I think that when people dress up fancy they are competing against other members of the church, instead of coming to the church to worship. 
 

[Diane D.]

Women dressing in fancy clothes demonstrated another, more subtle means of discrimination.  All were to be welcomed into the church equally.  Dressing richly to some degree intimidated and definitely insulted those who did not have the funds or connections to do so.

This principle of modest dressing, mindfulness of others' situations, not showing off (hopefully) has become a standard in the churches today.  The main message regardless for men or women is to focus on Jesus, his teachings and then acting on them, promoting kindness, love and acceptance.  We are only passing through here.  Heaven does not have Versace gowns.

[Krissi]

In a materialistic and status-conscious society, exterior or visible markers (home, clothes, car, etc.) signal social status vis-a vis-others. It's always comparative. Both women and men have the tendency to compare or "peacock," but this passage speaks about women.

Recently, I visited a woman's meeting of mostly younger women (20s/30s) during which the leader chided attendees for comparing themselves to each other in appearance: weight, clothes, etc. I was surprised to hear the leader speak on this topic; sadly, she must have felt it was necessary.  By comparison, I regularly go to another bi-weekly meeting of women who are of many ages (mostly 50s) and have never seen this sort of problem. If anything, we come to the meeting in loose jeans, looking rather lousy. No one impresses others.

Modesty used to be expected. I've seen a timeline of bathing suits, for example, in which the degree to which the body is exposed increased during the last century to the point where, in Europe and a few beaches in America, near-nudity has become the norm. Western cultures which once valued modesty now value immodesty. To be modest, today, is to rub against cultural expectations. So, it's not surprising that even in church, some women haven't yet questioned social norms -- sanctification is a slow process, after all. 

The larger question of social status and materialism is the important subtext of these passages. If a woman gets out of a very expensive sports car which had been previously parked in her five-car garage at a large estate -- yet dresses modestly -- has she fulfilled the spirit of what Paul is saying? I don't think so. The attitude within her cannot be masked by modest dressing. It is actually possible to be ostentatiously modest ... to be proudly modest! Personally, I believe that people should live below their means, if possible, by never indicating their income is higher than others. This is done by quietly and secretly living below the average of their society/culture/neighborhood. Then, no attention is attracted to themselves. It's a way of preventing sin.

 

 

[Nandita A.]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

The women of that particular congregation had turned their fellowship meetings into empty social events. They were dressing in ways inappropriate to the purpose of the church, using it as a platform where they could display their wealth, elevating themselves above their peers (many of whom were slaves) and in a way that would likely rouse their envy. Such pride and cruelty would definitely have displeased God.

The principle of Paul's directive may have applied specifically to the women of the Ephesian congregation when he wrote the letter, but it applies to all people in all churches across all time. While on the surface the principle says that church isn't a place for flashy watches, designer jewelry, or T-shirts with divisive or offensive messages, at a deeper level the principle tells us that our self-worth should be derived from God's good opinion of us and not from the opinion of fellow humans. The rich women felt valued because they had the envy of the poor--but their self-esteem should have come from God's pleasure in their holiness instead.

[t-c]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus? How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

Probably because the way a woman or women dress could be very distracting to the men present in the Ephesus church. And if one woman dressed this way then other women could easily be encouraged to do  likewise. Nor do we want church to be a competitive fashion show for women. Whatever we do, we don’t ever want to hinder God’s message or distract others from hearing that message and coming to repentance and salvation.

The first thing and most important would be for mothers to model for their daughters what proper dress at church looks like and not allow the secular culture to do so. Fathers also can teach their daughters the importance of modest dress and how men in general are affected by  immodest dress. This message can also be taught from the pulpit and by youth pastors so people will know how important it is to the church.

[Zanele Tlhakanelo]

Women dressing fancy apparels drew attention to themselves and this undermined the have-nots. It showed a distinction between the wealthy and the poor and this not how the church should be. Beauty is not the outside but the inside hence it was important for Paul to address the matter. Basically, the beauty of a woman is seen when you take care of the needy and do good works so as to glorify God and not be adorned by people in the way you dress or have fancy hair or jewelry.

It is still appropriate to address the issue of the dress code to indicate the decency because you can be decent in a not expensive apparel. Women just like men need to look good but we must understand that God looks at the heart and not the outward appearance. Even in your decency, do not want to be seen by people but let the people see your good works in your community and church. 

[Niyonka16]

Q4. (1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church’s witness in Ephesus?

ANSWER: Paul tells the women in Ephesus that in the area of clothing and personal appearance, they were not to simply continue on in the style and manner of the culture around them. Rather than simply imitating the extravagance of the rich or the immodesty of the temple prostitutes, the women of Ephesus were to exercise restraint and moderation, to dress with decency and propriety.

They were to remember that they were ones who professed belief in God and who worshiped God, therefore, their manner of dress and concerns about personal appearance ought to be a reflection of that, rather than simply a reflection of the people around them. The beauty Paul is concerned with is an internal beauty, a beauty that radiates from a certain kind of heart and attitude and works its way out into "good deeds."

How do we apply the principle of Paul’s directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting a new legalism?

ANSWER: There are two principles Paul is giving in 1 Timothy 2:9-10 that we can apply to our lives and culture today without instituting a new legalism.

1. We should all live according to our faith and consciences, honoring the Lord in all we go do.
2. Paul indicates that those living like this are accountable to God, not to other believers, regarding matters of opinion. Their master is God and should work to please Him in their lives.

[Sister Evelyn]

Q4. ( 1 Timothy 2:9-10) How did women dressing in fancy clothes threaten to compromise the church's witness in Ephesus?

I believe that many women who dressed in fancy clothes perhaps were new to the church. They probably had little understanding how to dress appropriately. However, Paul was not prohibiting these things, he was simply saying that women should be careful about drawing attention to themselves through how they dress. In today's society many people has lost respect for the house of the Lord. Many dress like they were coming to  party. In reality some women dress so ungodly that by dressing that way they think they might find a husband. Some dress according to the 'modern world."

How do we apply the principle of Paul's directive in twenty-first century churches without instituting  a new legalism?

I am a Minister and teach Bible studies at the senior complex where I live. I dress casual but with respect. When I go to church if I put something on that doesn't seem correct the Holy Spirit will convict me. Example: if i wear a top and I feel uncomfortable I will take it off and put on an under tee shirt. In other words I am not revealing anything that shouldn't. Our bodies is the temple of God. As a Christian woman of God women should not go to church revealing anything that will or can make a man sin/****. We should not want to draw attention towards others. Remember God doesn't look at the outward appearance. Paul emphasizes that women of God should dress modestly, with decency and respect for themselves.