Why Do We About Worry What to Wear on Sunday?
There are many conflicts in the church today; a popular conflict is how we dress in church. There are many judgmental comments on clothing that is worn in church during worship, which is not right. Many people dress to impress others but they are oblivious to the meaning of worship. The real meaning of worship seems to be lost in this world of materialistic things. How can a church with a God who is very merciful and accepting be so judgmental on worldly things? Why are such small things, like clothing, so important? It seems we think the person dressed well is the one who is worshiping more. We tend to pick and choose who can be saved or not, based on material wealth. In many places, wearing a t-shirt and shorts is an unacceptable way to dress for worship. Sometimes people can not afford a fancy suit or clothing, are they not considered Christians?
In an experiment, a preacher dressed up as a homeless person and went to his church on Sunday. When he sat in a pew next to some people, they got up and moved to a different pew. There was a huge circle around this homeless man; no one wanted to be near him and every one ignored him. When it came time for the preacher to preach his sermon, this homeless person went up to the podium, pulled off his wig, and removed the fake facial hair. There before the congregation stood their very own preacher, a person they had known for years, yet they had rejected him because of the way he looked and dressed. Imagine how the congregation felt when they found out they had rejected one of their brothers in Christ.
If God can accept someone in rags, then we should be able to accept them too. It seems we are consumed by the way we look.
Fashion is a huge part of our culture; anyone who looks different is rejected. But when fashion collides with the church, it causes a huge confliction on what we wear when we gather to worship. Whenever we think of what to wear to church, we immediately think of a suit and tie or a very nice dress. When someone comes in wearing a t-shirt and shorts, they are usually thought poorly of. There is something wrong with that picture because in the Bible Jesus usually hung out with the sick, poor, and sinners. Rarely was he ever with the rich and powerful.
Is how we dress going to have that much affect on how we are reaching out to those in need? Clothing is something we use to show how wealthy we are; we buy brand name clothing for hundreds of dollars when we can get the same thing with a different name brand at Wal-Mart for maybe $20. Are we really doing God’s will or ours? We become so consumed in our clothing that we can forget what actually needs to be done in the world. We also look down on the less fortunate people. Are we not supposed to be helping them? The money we spend on those designer brand clothing could actually be used for a better cause. We can also become more acceptable of others. We can find out what it means to truly worship.
We do not understand what the true meaning of worship until we give up all our worries; for in Matthew 6:25-34 tells us not to worry and have faith that God will provide. That even means the worry of what to wear to church. But then we think: “Why do we even bother taking care of ourselves, if we are not suppose to worry about it?” But it says in 1 Corinthians 6:19- 20 that our bodies are a temple in which the Holy Spirit dwells. So we need to care for ourselves, but set a barrier on how far to dwell in the world of fashion.
If we reject people because of what they wear, we are telling God to step down and we will control who is allowed into his kingdom. We are turning His church into a fashion runway, on which we flaunt our wealth and worldly things. That is not what God had in mind when he established the first church. He wanted a place where Christians can come together and praise his name. A place where bonds that can not be severed are created, where we accept each other for who we are, not how we dress. Can a dress coat show you more love than a fellow Christian? Can a shirt give you comfort when you need it?
People can wear suits and tie if they want, but they go and belittle another person for wearing something that is not fancy is when it becomes wrong. It should not be the clothing that defines why a man is going to church. It should be what his heart and soul is doing to give praise and worship to God. Nowhere in the Bible does it say what is expected to be worn to worship, so why is there so many people saying that it is required that we where our best clothing on Sundays.
Some may say that we dress up to honor God and have a sense of cleanliness, but why only on Sunday? We are called to honor God in everything we do, not only on Sunday. We are making it look like we wear a mask on Sunday and take it off after we are through with worship. We should act like Christian every day, not only on Sundays, by being the same person every day, will wear the same sort of clothing we wear every day and it won’t make a difference when we go to church to worship.
Even in the church there are conflicts, and how we dress is one of the biggest ones. We tend to flaunt our wealth with fancy suits and dresses and we criticize those who can not afford name brand clothing. We waste hundreds of dollars on designer clothing when we could be using that money for a better cause. God is in control of who is worthy of worshiping him, not us. Rejecting people from the church because of the way they dress is not what a Christian is suppose to do. Letting go of the worldly things can create closer bonds with God and other people. Clothing does not matter; when it comes to worship it is the heart and soul that are most important. If God can accept a person who wears rags, then we should be able to accept them also. Any person can make as much of a difference as a person in a suit.
