It is a
strange time in the history of the Church. We have
been living off the capital of the Reformation for several centuries.
However,
we are also experiencing the judgment of God for the Church’s failure to
continue believing and obeying the Scriptures. As a nation we are
witnessing
the mass murder of babies (around 70,000 Australian abortions occur
every
year), every day hundreds of thousands of Christian children are being
taught
an anti-Christian worldview in secular classrooms. The list goes on and
on.
Some deduce from this that the end of the world is nigh. I don’t think
this is
the case. In fact many have thought this throughout the course of
history and
here we are with still much kingdom work to be done. The small mustard
seed is
still growing into a great tree that gives resting place for all the
birds
( Matthew 13:31-32, Luke 13:18-19). We still need to disciple and baptise
all
the nations ( Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus Christ, through the power of the
Holy
Spirit, uses the means of the Word being preached to conquer all His
enemies
before returning to hand the Father a completed kingdom (1 Corinthians
15:20-28), and there are still many enemies to be placed under Christ’s
feet.
So, there is still much work to be done. Some important cultural
concerns need
to be addressed in modern Christendom. In a previous
article I raised the questions of tattoos, piercings, modesty
(dress). What
astounds me is the general tendency of Christians (and even the Church)
to
assert these issues as being non-Gospel. It has even been said that
these
concerns are externals and thus unimportant in the eyes of God. This may
come
as a surprise to some: a certain culture flows from Christianity. In
other
words, faith in Christ reforms the entire man. Every inch of ones life
is to be
examined by the Word of God.
In ultimate terms there are two waring kingdoms, Christ’s
and Satan’s. We must not only recognise the ultimate conflict between the two
kingdoms, but should get down into the trenches and assess. Each kingdom is
governed by its covenantal head, both peoples have distinct cultures, and laws
or lawlessness prevails within each body. The head of the body sets the
standards and culture for his people. As God’s saints, we ought to look unto
Jesus and to His Word alone for our guidance. The Law of God governs us and the
Head
of the Church ought to shape our culture. What we believe, think, do and
how we live are to be informed and governed by the Scriptures ( 2 Timothy 3:16).
In this sense, all of life’s decisions are ethical ( 1 Corinthians 10:31) and
there is therefore no neutrality. Our beliefs and lifestyles are either
covenantally obedient or disobedient to Christ. Most Christians understand that
what we believe is to be consistent with the Bible but many don’t join the dots
and assert the same for lifestyle. What we must realise is that we are called
not only to believe but also to obey. We are to “trust and obey for there
is no other way, to be happy in Jesus.” This is what Christ demands of us,
that we trust Him or confess Him with our mouths and then obey Him with all of
our life ( Luke 6:46-49, John 14:15). In other words, culture is simply religion
(i.e. our bond to God) externalised. Jesus is interested in both faith and obedience.
The two are inseparable. Once we enter the Kingdom of Christ we are to obey the
laws of the King.
During a battle the enemy is identified by their uniform. Kingdom uniforms have
always been distinct. The people of God have historically been apart from the
world, holy and set aside to glorify Christ. Until modern Christendom, this has
never exclusively referred to the inward man. The magisterial reformers
identified the need to establish all of faith and life on the Scriptures alone.
In fact all the way through the Bible itself we see how God is interested in
both the internal and external purity of His people. The one flows through and
produces a change in the other. Coming into the Kingdom of Christ is the
starting point of a new theology and lifestyle. Each aspect is important. I
cannot glorify Jesus with poor theology nor with an inconsistent lifestyle. All
those who have been baptised into Christ’s body must bear fruit in accordance
with their baptism ( John 15:1-17). This fruit is not simply notches on an
evangelist’s belt; rather it is the full paradigm of believing and obeying the
Head of the Church ( John 15:14) in every aspect of faith and life.
External appearances are important to God. Unfortunately this needs to be
clarified in today’s Church. I do not mean that your appearance makes you right
with God or that your clothes somehow transform you into an angelic being.
Rather, your “fashion” choices reflect your inward moral compass. A person’s
attitude towards Christian obedience can be seen in their choice of attire and
adornment. So what grounds do I have to make this assertion? A pattern that
emerges from the Bible is the importance God places on His people’s dress
sense. From the very beginning God has instructed His people how to look. After
Adam sinned he and Eve sewed together some fig leaves to hide their nakedness
( Genesis 3:7). A number of points are interesting here. When Adam and Eve had
prematurely taken from (instead of being given upon reaching maturity) the tree
of the knowledge of good and evil, they knew their nakedness and sought to
cover it. Implicit to this text is the issue of modesty. Our first parents
realised that in the new heavens and earth (one affected with sin) it was not
right to show off so much skin. They understood the concept of modesty and
covered themselves. However, we read on an see that God inspected them and then
not only atoned for their sin but also covered them with the skin of the animal
( Genesis 3:21). There are a number of important dimensions to this passage; the
animal covering represents the covering of salvation, something that only God
can adorn us with. But we must also realise that God was not happy with those
fig leaves. On all accounts the leaves only covered the bare minimum. So God
adorned Adam and Eve with appropriate coverings. So we see from the very
beginning God is interested in the covering of His people. As we progress
through the Bible we see how God emphasises the dress of the priests and high
priest ( Exodus 28). Aaron and the priesthood were dressed with robes and
flowing clothes “for glory and for beauty” ( Exodus 28:2).
There is objective “fashion” beauty in God’s sight. Christ is interested in how
we adorn ourselves. Why? How we adorn ourselves is powerful symbolism. If I
adorn myself with a shirt that has blood and gore all over it, with skulls and
other symbols of death, I am portraying a certain culture to everyone. In fact
I am revealing to all who see me what is of some importance to me. This is a
theme I will be pursuing over the coming weeks, working through tattoos, body
piercings and modesty. This article has simply given an introductory framework.
I recommend that you re-read Mrs
Genevieve de Deugd’s article, Reformation
in My Wardrobe.
Further reading and
resources
Free reading
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The Dominion Covenant: Genesis is also essential
reading. It is a large book (in excess of 550 pages and 5.38mb). but
it can be downloaded from this LINK.
To buy
Anselm
Study House recommends the following DVDs and books, which can be purchased
from our eShop .
The Culture War DVD by Dr Voddie Baucham, which
can be purchased at this LINK.
Training Dominion Oriented Daughters by Geoffrey
Botkin can be purchased from this LINK.
Tending Your Garden by Denise Sproul can be
purchased at this LINK.
It is a
strange time in the history of the Church. We have
been living off the capital of the Reformation for several centuries.
However,
we are also experiencing the judgment of God for the Church’s failure to
continue believing and obeying the Scriptures. As a nation we are
witnessing
the mass murder of babies (around 70,000 Australian abortions occur
every
year), every day hundreds of thousands of Christian children are being
taught
an anti-Christian worldview in secular classrooms. The list goes on and
on.
Some deduce from this that the end of the world is nigh. I don’t think
this is
the case. In fact many have thought this throughout the course of
history and
here we are with still much kingdom work to be done. The small mustard
seed is
still growing into a great tree that gives resting place for all the
birds
( Matthew 13:31-32, Luke 13:18-19). We still need to disciple and baptise
all
the nations ( Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus Christ, through the power of the
Holy
Spirit, uses the means of the Word being preached to conquer all His
enemies
before returning to hand the Father a completed kingdom (1 Corinthians
15:20-28), and there are still many enemies to be placed under Christ’s
feet.
So, there is still much work to be done. Some important cultural
concerns need
to be addressed in modern Christendom. In a previous
article I raised the questions of tattoos, piercings, modesty
(dress). What
astounds me is the general tendency of Christians (and even the Church)
to
assert these issues as being non-Gospel. It has even been said that
these
concerns are externals and thus unimportant in the eyes of God. This may
come
as a surprise to some: a certain culture flows from Christianity. In
other
words, faith in Christ reforms the entire man. Every inch of ones life
is to be
examined by the Word of God.
