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1. A CHANGE OF GARMENT

a. What did Adam and Eve discover when they disobeyed God, and with what did they substitute their heavenly clothing? Genesis 3:7–11.

“Adam and Eve both ate of the fruit and obtained a knowledge which, had they obeyed God, they would never have had—an experience in disobedience and disloyalty to God—the knowledge that they were naked. The garment of innocence, a covering from God, which surrounded them, departed; and they supplied the place of this heavenly garment by sewing together fig-leaves for aprons.”—The Review and Herald, November 15, 1898.

b. What is represented by the fig-leaf covering? Isaiah 64:6.

“The fig-leaves represent the arguments used to cover disobedience.”—Ibid., November 15, 1898.

c. What does it mean to be clothed with the robe of Christ’s righteousness? Isaiah 61:10.

“When we submit ourselves to Christ, the heart is united with His heart, the will is merged in His will, the mind becomes one with His mind, the thoughts are brought into captivity to Him; we live His life.”—Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 312.

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2. NAKEDNESS

a. What shows how God views nakedness? Genesis 9:20–25; Exodus 20:26.

b. With what purpose does Satan use nakedness, and what is his main instrument to sow the seed of immorality? 2 Samuel 11:2–4; Matthew 5:27, 28.

“[The seventh] commandment forbids not only acts of impurity, but sensual thoughts and desires, or any practice that tends to excite them.”—Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 308.

“When once the barriers of female modesty are removed, the basest licentiousness does not appear exceeding sinful. Alas, what terrible results of woman’s influence for evil may be witnessed in the world today!”—The Adventist Home, pp. 58, 59.

c. What sins are committed through exhibiting or beholding partial or total nakedness? Galatians 5:19–21; 2 Peter 2:14.

“It is Satan’s design that the faculties of the mind shall become belittled and sensualized; but it is not God’s will that any should yield the mind to the control of the evil one. In intellectual and in spiritual pursuits, He would have His children make progress.”—Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, p. 237.

d. What transformation occurs in the dress of a person who used to love the world and now loves God? Luke 8:27, 35; 1 Corinthians 4:9 (second half).

e. To what is the Christian’s dress compared? Matthew 6:28, 29.

“All heaven is marking the daily influence which the professed followers of Christ exert upon the world. . . . Your dress is telling either in favor of Christ and the sacred truth or in favor of the world. Which is it? Remember we must all answer to God for the influence we exert.”—Testimonies, vol. 4, p. 641.

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3. MODESTY IN DRESS

a. What are some characteristics of good clothing?

“Our clothing, while modest and simple, should be of good quality, of becoming colors, and suited for service. It should be chosen for durability rather than display. It should provide warmth and proper protection. . . .

“It should have the grace, the beauty, the appropriateness, of natural simplicity.

“Christ has warned us against the pride of life, but not against its grace and natural beauty.”—Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, pp. 302, 303.

b. What type of clothing should be avoided? 1 Timothy 2:9; Isaiah 3:16–24.

“[1 Timothy 2:9 quoted.] This forbids display in dress, gaudy colors, profuse ornamentation. Any device designed to attract attention to the wearer or to excite admiration is excluded from the modest apparel which God’s word enjoins.”—Ibid., p. 302.

c. What distinction must be observed between men’s and women’s clothing? Deuteronomy 22:5.

“There is an increasing tendency to have women in their dress and appearance as near like the other sex as possible and to fashion their dress very much like that of men, but God pronounces it abomination. . . .

“God designed that there should be a plain distinction between the dress of men and women.”—Child Guidance, p. 427.

d. What caused the hoops in Sr. White’s day to be immodest—and how are many today guilty of even worse immodesty? Proverbs 7:10; Isaiah 3:16, 17; Jeremiah 8:12.

“Ladies with long dresses, especially if distended with hoops, as they go up and down stairs, as they pass up the narrow doorway of the coach and the omnibus, or as they raise their skirts, to clear the mud of the streets, sometimes expose the form to that degree as to put modesty to the blush.”—The Health Reformer, August 1, 1868.

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4. UNHEALTHFUL CLOTHING

a. What parts of the body should be protected, and why? Luke 15:22.

“Our limbs and feet are suitably protected from cold and damp to secure the circulation of the blood to them. . . . Morning exercise . . . is the surest safeguard against colds, coughs, congestions of the brain and lungs, inflammation of the liver, the kidneys, and the lungs, and a hundred other diseases.”—The Health Reformer, September 1, 1868.

b. Describe the unhealthful conditions caused by fashions in our society—and explain how to correct this problem.

“The health of the entire system depends on the healthy action of the respiratory organs. . . . The female dress should be suspended from the shoulders.”—Ibid., February 1, 1872.

“The clothing of most women is worn too tight for the proper action of the vital organs. Every article of dress upon the person should be worn so loose that in raising the arms the clothing will be correspondingly lifted.”—Christian Temperance and Bible Hygiene, p. 88.

“Every article of dress should fit easily, obstructing neither the circulation of the blood, nor a free, full, natural respiration.”—The Ministry of Healing, p. 293.

c. What special care should be taken in the attire of those living in colder areas?

“[One] great cause of mortality among infants and youth is the custom of leaving their arms and shoulders naked. This fashion cannot be too severely censured. . . . The air, bathing the arms and limbs and circulating about the armpits, chills these sensitive portions of the body so near the vitals, and hinders the healthy circulation of the blood, and induces disease, especially of the lungs and brain.”—Selected Messages, bk. 2, p. 467.

“Special attention should be given to the extremities, that they may be as thoroughly clothed as the chest and region over the heart.”—My Life Today, p. 145.

“Why not clothe your daughter as comfortably and as properly as you do your son? In the cold and storms of winter, his limbs and feet are clad with lined pants, drawers, woolen socks, and thick boots. This is as it should be; but your daughter is dressed in reference to fashion, not health nor comfort.”—The Health Reformer, September 1, 1868.

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5. HEALTHFUL CLOTHING

a. What care should we have in choosing our clothing? Matthew 10:32, 33; Colossians 3:23–25.

“Our words, our actions, and our dress are daily, living preachers, gathering with Christ, or scattering abroad. This is no trivial matter, to be passed off with a jest. The subject of dress demands serious reflection and much prayer.”—Counsels on Health, p. 600.

“Puritan plainness and simplicity should mark the dwellings and apparel of all who believe the solemn truths for this time.”—Messages to Young People, p. 315.

b. What lesson can we learn from the instruction given to the people of Israel about the ribbon of blue? Numbers 15:38–41.

“If God gave such definite directions to His ancient people in regard to their dress, will not the dress of His people in this age come under His notice? Should there not be in their dress a distinction from that of the world?”—Our High Calling, p. 271.

c. What comforting assurance comes by replacing our taste for worldly beauty with Christ’s higher ideal of genuine beauty? 1 Peter 3:3, 4.

“The most beautiful dress [Christ] bids us wear upon the soul. No outward adorning can compare in value or loveliness with that ‘meek and quiet spirit’ which in His sight is ‘of great price’ (1 Peter 3:4).”—The Ministry of Healing, p. 289.

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REVIEW AND THOUGHT QUESTIONS

a. How are we often guilty of manufacturing “fig-leaf garments” in our life?

b. As the health of a tree is shown by its leaves, what does our dress reveal?

c. Describe some spiritual problems caused by the use of tight clothing.

d. Name some improper style of clothing.

e. How can we improve our Christian witness?