09/19/2008 Sabbath Meeting Transcript

Last week we spoke much about the need to continue growing spiritually, and the importance of removing or overcoming the stumbling blocks that cause us to become unfruitful.

So tonight I would like to discuss something related to this very thing and I would also ask everyone to please read this study completely and with an open mind before coming to a conclusion.

The topic I would like to discuss is modesty and dress in the assembly.

I realize that this is a controversial topic that tends to ignite a lot of emotion. Part of the reason for all the emotion is due to the societal pressures often placed on the quality of a person's physical appearance.

But sisters, ladies, I want you to know that this study is not intended to be an attack on you. I realize that society brings much pain into a woman's life because of the heavy pressure to look a certain way. I would like to discuss this topic without hurting anyone, but at the same time try and communicate the standard that Yahweh has set forth in the scriptures.

If I hurt anyone by how I present this topic, please forgive me in advance because this is not my intention.

It is sad, but in our culture today a person's acceptance is often based their appearance more so than their character. Various media outlets glorify youth and having the perfect figure, and a lot of attention is given to the flesh.

But as we discussed last week, we know that Yahweh does not ask us to glorify the youth. Rather, He commands that we honor the aged while praising those who are of an upright and blameless character. 

Proverbs 31:30 - Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth YAHWEH, she shall be praised.

Proverbs 11:22 As a ring of gold in a swine's snout, So is a lovely woman who lacks discretion.

So the outward is not Yahweh's definition of true beauty and it shouldn't be ours.

Our focus needs to be on the beauty of the inner person, not the outer shell. Both Kepha/Peter and Paul speak of this very thing:

1 Timothy 2:9-10 in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, 10 but, which is proper for women professing reverence, with good works.

1 Peter 3:3-4 Do not let your adornment be merely outward -- arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel -- 4 rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of Elohim.

These verses are often quoted to demonstrate the need for a person to wear modest clothing. But the thing that stands out to me in these verses is that the modesty spoken of is not necessarily speaking of how much a woman ought to cover her body, but rather how much she ought not to draw attention to herself with her clothing, hair style and jewelry.

It has to do with avoiding this mindset of seeking to draw attention to yourself with displays of wealth and an elaborate hairstyle. Our focus in this life is not to be on self, and it is not to be on carnal, earthly things. Our King is Yahushua, and our kingdom is not of this world. The riches that we seek are eternal riches, not the fading treasures of this age. 

At the same time, it is important to understand that our appearance speaks volumes about what is in our heart and what kind of person we are.

For example, courtroom judges wear black robes and police officers wear uniforms to communicate the need to show them respect.

Business executives and politicians wear a suit and tie to communicate professionalism.

The rebellious among the youth of each generation continually chooses different, increasingly immodest clothing styles in order to communicate that they are in rebellion against the former generations, accusing former generations of being "out of touch."

Among the youth, various gangs communicate who they stand for by wearing certain kinds of clothing, and then there is the "Gothic" look which communicates a certain message to others about what their attitude is and what their views are.

So it is evident that our clothing is actually a form of communication. Though it is audibly silent, it speaks loudly. As long as the eyes of others are upon us, it never stops speaking its message. Indeed, sets the context of everything we say and speaks volumes in regards to what we are about.

So an important question that we need to ask ourselves is, "What are we saying to others by what we wear?"

Does our clothing communicate that we enjoy and love the things of this the world, or does our clothing communicate that our kingdom is not of this world? You can tell a lot about a person by what they wear.

1 John 2:15-16 - Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

So are we speaking conformity to the world or are we communicating a marked stand against conformity? Are we turning the world upside down with the message of the good news, or have we been turned upside down by the world? 

Our clothing is expressed our attitude. If you wear immodest clothing that exposes the form of the private parts of the body, you are communicating promiscuity and that you are possibly available for fornication or adultery.

Such clothing will attract those of the opposite gender and they will lavish attention on you. Not because they love you as a person, but for what they think you might do for them...and I don't need to go into details. 

So what is the standard of modesty that Yahweh seeks? What is considered to be acceptable clothing in His eyes?

What kind of clothing would communicate purity and non-conformity to the world?

I certainly don't believe there is a double standard. Both men and women are called to communicate righteousness and purity. So what is the answer here?

When it comes to understanding modesty, many have been challenged to find a scriptural basis for what kind of clothing is considered "modest" and acceptable in Yahweh's eyes.

Can we find the answer in scripture, or do we need to do what is right in our own eyes?

I would hope that when it comes to modesty that we can all agree that at a minimum Yahweh would not want us to walk around naked. So what is considered to be nakedness in His eyes?

Much of the world believes that nakedness can be covered by only covering two small portions of a woman's chest, and the portions of a man and woman's body used for reproduction. But if Yahweh had a choice, what parts of the body would He cover?

We can find the simple answer in Genesis chapter 3. When Adam and Eve/Chawah sinned, they attempted to cover themselves with aprons made of fig leaves:

Genesis 3:7 - And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

The word translated "Aprons" in this verse is also translated "girdle" in other verses. It covered the area from the waist to partway down the thighs. This is the same area of the body that our modern "shorts" would cover.

But Yahweh didn't consider this to be sufficient, so He made a different kind of garment for them:

Genesis 3:21 - Unto Adam also and to his wife did Yahweh Elohim make coats of skins, and clothed them.

The word in Hebrew here is "Kuttonet" (#3801). The Kuttonet is also translated "tunic" and it refers to shirt-like garment that would hang down off the shoulders toward the knees or ankles.

Prior to this time there was no such thing as clothing for man or woman. Therefore, it is evident that the tunic was actually a covering that was invented by Yahweh Himself.

The tunic/Kuttonet describes Joseph's coat of many colors, the priestly tunic/coat of fine linen, and the dress of the King's daughters:

Genesis 37:3 - Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of many colors.

Exodus 39:27 - They made tunics, artistically woven of fine linen, for Aaron and his sons,

2 Samuel 13:18 - Now she had on a robe of many colors, for the king's virgin daughters wore such apparel. And his servant put her out and bolted the door behind her.

2 Samuel 13:18 - Now she had on a robe of many colors, for the king's virgin daughters wore such apparel. And his servant put her out and bolted the door behind her.

The "kuttonet" was considered to be sufficient for covering a person's nakedness. But how low would the tunic need to hang in order to adequately cover a person's nakedness? Some might say the ankles and others might say the knees.

In the Torah, when Yahweh was discussing the clothing of the high priest, which included a tunic, a robe and trousers, we find an interesting comment:

Exodus 28:42 - "And you shall make for them linen trousers to cover their nakedness; they shall reach from the waist to the thighs.

The word translated "nakedness" in this verse is actually from two Hebrew words (#1320 'basar' and #6172 'ervah'), meaning "naked flesh." In order to cover the naked flesh, his trousers needed to reach from the waist to the thighs.

The phrase "to the thighs" could mean the person making the trousers needed to make them long enough to cover the thighs, OR it could mean that the trousers only needed to be long enough to cover the waist only and didn't need to cover the thighs.

But since a portion of the thigh would need to be covered in order to adequately cover the reproductive parts, it would make no sense for the trousers to only cover the waist and stop covering when they reach the thigh.

Therefore, the thighs would have been inclusive of the the area covered by the trousers.

In light of this, we can gather that Yahweh, through the tunic garment that He invented, desired for Adam and Eve to cover their chest, waist and thighs. So did the tunic only reach to the knees?

A tunic only reaching to the knees would actually not necessarily sufficiently cover the thighs.

This is because a tunic that reaches to the knees while a person is standing will go slip higher and expose the thighs when the person is sitting down or bending over. Therefore, in order to adequately cover the thighs, the length of a tunic would need to be longer than just to the knees.

An archaeological discovery gives us an indication of what length the ancient Isrealite tunics were. The discovery of Sennacherib's prism depicts two 700 BCE Israelite captives wearing tunics with sleeves reaching halfway to the elbows and hanging down to the middle of the lower leg.

This makes a lot of sense if a person wanted to ensure that their chest would not be visible through their sleeves and their thighs would not be visible when sitting down.

Even today, a woman wearing a dress that doesn't cover the knees while sitting down is constantly faced with the challenge of having to keep her legs close together to avoid exposing the entire area from the waist to the thighs as well as her undergarments.

Wearing a dress that adequately covers the area below the knees when sitting down will eliminate the problem. This would place the dress length to about halfway between the knees and the ankles.

So what about modern clothing styles? Certainly the modern practice of wearing "shorts," which fail to cover the thighs, are inadequate to cover a persons nakedness.

Most all swimsuits are also inadequate. There is no indication that Yahweh's lowers His standards of modesty the moment we decide that we want to go swimming.

This is actually a cultural concept, not one found in the scriptures.

I know one brother who took his family swimming at a lake here in Missouri a few years ago. He and his family were wearing their regular clothes while swimming and he was approached by a woman who asked, "May I ask you a question? Why are you all swimming in your regular clothes?"

His reply was something to the effect of, "Well, maybe you can answer me something. Why on earth is everyone else out here in their bra and underwear?" His simple reply made the point. We aren't the one doing something contradictory and strange... the rest of the world is!

Historically, those who had less clothing were the poorest ones in society. Those who wore less clothing were considered to be "naked" and in need of financial assistance. In the prophets, Yahweh would often voice his concern that the naked were provided with adequate clothing.

But in today's perverted and adulterous generation, people who wear less clothing don't typically do it because they lack the finances to pay for sufficient clothing. Whether they are wearing a swimsuit or regular clothing, they purposely wear less clothing to provoke lust, adultery, and fornication.

They are actually naked in Yahweh's eyes but they do not care because they want to draw attention to themselves by provoking lust.

Each generation seemingly lowers the bar even lower to where now it is fashionable for women to wear shirts and pants that are purposely designed to expose cleavage on the front and backside of their their bodies. 

However, what is shocking today probably won't be shocking in the next generation. What was shocking in previous generations isn't so shocking today.

So an important question that we as Yahweh's people need to ask ourselves is, "How much of this kind of influence have we as Yahweh's people sold ourselves into?" Have we, like various shirtless cultures in the jungles of South America, just assumed something was modest because it's what we are used to?

We need to realize that Yahweh takes lust and adultery very seriously. He forbade adultery in the 7th commandment and lust in the 10th commandment, both of which were written with His own finger:

Exodus 20:14 - Thou shalt not commit adultery.

Exodus 20:17 - Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.

In most modern societies, adultery is generally frowned upon. But Yahweh's disdain for it is clearly illustrated. It is a very serious offense in His eyes and is punishable by death:

Leviticus 20:10 - And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.

But today, it is not even considered to be a crime. It is committed regularly without any civil punishment whatsoever.

But there ought to be.

After all, the ones who have to bear the pain of this kind of crime are the ones who least deserve it-- children.

Children usually suffer the most due to the breakup of families. Children usually suffer the most in unwanted pregnancies because their own mother murders them 25% of the time.

Of those that are born, 1 out of 3 are born out of wedlock.

A child conceived in the United States has a 75% chance of either being murdered in the womb or not having their biological father and mother in the home at age 18.

The divorce rate has skyrocketed over the last 60 years, in part because of adultery.

Today's divorce rate would be higher, but a high percentage of people now live together, regularly committing fornication and harlotry, and even having children without marrying.

Gallup polls tell us that only 1 out of 3 Americans believe that fornication (relations outside of marriage) is morally wrong and only half believe homosexuality is wrong.

Amazingly, more people believe its wrong to wear a fur coat than believe its wrong to commit fornication.

So when looking for a good standard of modesty to go by, we cannot look to the world for guidance. The world's standard of modesty is influenced by its lusts, and is often downright contradictory.

After all, why would most women blush if they were to be seen in their bra and underwear, yet purposely wear the same basic thing when going swimming?

In light of this, is it any wonder that the latest dress styles actually include the display of various undergarments?

Considering the seriousness of this problem in our society, we need to be sure we are doing all we can do to avoid being a "part of the problem" and seek to provoke purity, holiness and righteousness by the way we dress rather than provoking lust and causing others around us to stumble.

Mainstream Christians are often in the news with various fornication/adultery scandals. We need to be as far from that example as possible and truly set His light upon a hill in this area.

Yahweh's people ought to be known for their purity and modesty...calling the men and women of the world back to the higher standard of Yahweh's original intent...one man, one woman cleaving together in a lifetime commitment to one another.

Immodest dress undermines that very principle. 

Any clothing that would undermine the principles of purity should not even be considered as part of our wardrobe. Immodest clothing provokes lust, and lust leads to adultery and fornication.

But when it comes to modesty, having an adequate covering is not the only issue. A person could be covered from head to toe, but if it's all spandex material that wraps tightly around the body, it would obviously be immodest.

In ancient Israel, both men and women wore clothes that hung down over the body rather than clothes that wrapped around it. Thus, form fitting clothing was not really an issue in those days. The closest thing to form fitting clothing was a High Priest's trousers, but that was considered to be his underwear!

Typical clothing styles worn today are actually rooted in attempts in generations past to provoke lust and immorality. You don't need to look too far in recent history to come to this conclusion.

Over the last 100 years, dresses got shorter and shorter, and clothing styles got tighter and tighter.

Hollywood celebrities became popular because of it, and their example of moral depravity became a pattern that the whole world, after the initial shock, eventually followed after and even invited into their own living room through various forms of media.

Books, television shows, magazines, catalogues, newspapers and now the internet has offered windows into the immoral lifestyles of the "rich and famous." Thanks in part to that, we now have a generation of orphaned and fatherless children who, except by the grace of Yahweh, are destined to follow the same patterns or worse.

The Importance of not Causing Stumbling

In all of this, one thing that is important to understand is it's always our responsibility if we choose to sin. We cannot blame our sin on another person. We should be willing to avoid sin even at the cost of our own life.

Hebrews 12:4 - You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin.

If a man chooses to lust after a woman, I want to emphasize.. and I DO MEAN EMPHASIZE...it is his fault and his fault alone.

He cannot blame anyone and be absolved of responsibility. He can choose to turn away his eyes and pray for Yahweh to help him overcome temptation...no matter how someone is dressed.

At the same time, we also need to understand that it is sinful for a person to provoke stumbling in another person. Clothing that causes exposes the shape or form of the private parts of the body does just that.

Our private parts should be just that: PRIVATE.

The private parts of the body are only intended to be seen by a person's spouse. They are not created to be objects for anyone else's desire. Therefore, the shape and form of our private parts should be unknown.

So in spite of this world which seeks to find various clothing styles to draw attention to, or flaunt the private parts of the body, it should be clear that we need to be as far from this as possible.

Yahushua warned about those who cause stumbling:

Matthew 18:7 - Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!

But sadly, there are garments that people are wearing in various churches and assemblies today that a prostitute would have been ashamed to wear 50-75 years ago.

We need to forsake these things and understand that we are called to edify one another, seeking to build up and strengthen the body of Messiah.

We need to be very sure that we are not the author of any kind of stumbling block, whether it be a little child or a spiritual babe in Messiah:

Luke 17:1-2 - Then He said to the disciples, "It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! 2 "It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.

A lot of times the physical children of this world grow up with major offenses and stumbling blocks. Little boys become men who have been "hard wired" to lust since the time they were small. Pornographic images become difficult to erase from memory, and a false world view of women is hammered into their little minds.

Because a life of lusting after immodest women have corrupted their consciences since they were young, when they become believers as an adult the purifying of their mind doesn't always happen overnight.

The most challenging sins to overcome are usually the ones that you have been trained to practice since the time you were small. Therefore we need to be sure that we are not causing spiritual babes/little ones to stumble.

Even men who did not grow up in our adulterous generation had their struggles. Both Samson and Solomon were brought to ruin through the love of women, and we all know that David's sin began with the equivalent of modern pornography--albeit probably unknown to Bathsheba.

Women, you may not understand the intense fleshly drive of men, but please understand that in order for a person to overcome, they must be stronger than Samson, wiser than Solomon, and more dedicated to a purity of mind than King David! 

So the last thing Yahweh's people need is women dressing in such a way to provoke lusts. A man struggling with weakness in this area should be able to walk in a room full of believers and not have to do spiritual battle.

The gatherings of Yahweh's people ought to be a place where the body of Messiah is strengthened, encouraged and blessed. This is why, as the host of a few feast gatherings, I established a dress code.

The dress code that was set up isn't quite up to the standard that we will be examining in this study, but at least there is something.

Most all of us have been affected by the lack of purity in our society and we have to retrain all of our minds to accept the scriptural standards.

But if we choose to wear something that accentuates the private parts of our body, thereby creating a temptation for another person to sin, we need to understand what we are doing.

We all know that the devil/satan and various demons spend much of their time seeking to do things which create temptations for us to sin, do they not?

So an important question we all need to ask ourselves is, "Do we want to imitate him?" 

Certainly NOT!

There are two forces in this world, one seeking to tempt us to commit sin, and the other seeking to bring us to righteousness. We don't want to be one of satan's agents. We don't want to work for him! We need to be on Yahweh's side in everything that we do!

When Yahushua spoke to the assembly in Pergamos, he was displeased with them because they tolerated stumbling blocks in the assembly:

Revelation 2:12-13 - And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, ' These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword: 13 "I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan's throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.

Revelation 2:14-16 - "But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. 15 "Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. 16 'Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth.

To accept immodesty in the assembly is to accept the spirit behind Balaam's doctrine, who taught Balak to send in the Moabite women and tempt them to commit fornication, thus putting a stumbling block before Israel (Numbers 25).

Numbers 31:16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against Yahweh in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of Yahweh.

The fact is, we are not only to be careful that we are not causing stumbling for others, we are actually called to deliver those who are stumbling:  

Proverbs 24:11-12 Deliver those who are drawn toward death, And hold back those stumbling to the slaughter. 12 If you say, "Surely we did not know this," Does not He who weighs the hearts consider it? He who keeps your soul, does He not know it? And will He not render to each man according to his deeds?

While this proverb may be speaking of delivering those who are headed toward a physical death, a spiritual death is far more weighty and important. 

Scripture even speaks of the need to be aware of another person's weaknesses in regards to things that we consider to be permissible. Paul warns the Romans and Corinthians about the dangers of doing anything by which others may stumble or are made weak:

Romans 14:21 - It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak.

1 Corinthians 8:8-9 But food does not commend us to Elohim; for neither if we eat are we the better, nor if we do not eat are we the worse. 9 But beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak.

1 Corinthians 8:13 - Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.

And in fact, if we are unwilling to concern ourselves with doing whatever is needful to avoid being a stumbling block toward another brother, we have ceased from walking in love:

Romans 14:15 - Yet if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are no longer walking in love. Do not destroy with your food the one for whom Messiah died.

Do you want the assembly to be strong or weak? It is a very serious matter to cease from walking in love:

1 John 3:10 In this the children of Elohim and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of Elohim, nor is he who does not love his brother.

Yahushua held to this principle Himself when He paid the temple tax:

Matthew 17:24-25 - When they had come to Capernaum, those who received the temple tax came to Peter and said, "Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?" 25 He said, "Yes." And when he had come into the house, Yahushua anticipated him, saying, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth take customs or taxes, from their sons or from strangers?"

Matthew 17:26-27 - Peter said to Him, "From strangers." Yahushua said to him, "Then the sons are free. 27 "Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first. And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you."

Yahushua was actually free of needing to pay a temple tax, but He went ahead and paid it so that He would not cause another person to stumble.

As a side note... historically the temple tax was not a requirement in the first century, and it was not commanded in the Torah. But it was expected that any devout Jew would pay it. He did not want to cause others to stumble, and neither should we.

So rather than judging those who have issues with lust, we should judge ourselves and be sure that we are not doing anything to create temptation for others or who put a stumbling block in our brother's way:

Romans 14:13 Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother's way.

It is so serious that Yahushua said:

Matthew 13:40-42 - Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. 41 "The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, 42 "and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Matthew 13:43 - "Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear,

May Yahweh give us ears to hear, and discerning hearts to understand how important it is to not cause others to stumble, and to beware of those who do.

Satan is already on the assault with his tools of media such as pornography. But we need to understand that just as men are tempted to look at pornography, women are often tempted to commit pornography.

The truth is, you don't have to star in a movie or pose for a picture in order to commit pornography. All you need to do is dress in a way that arouses lust in men and you are committing pornography with your life!

When there is a picture of an immodestly dressed woman in an advertisement somewhere, women are often tempted to want to look like the woman in the ad, and men are often tempted to desire the woman. Both are temptations that we need to reject. Advertisers are playing on both temptations to sell their product and they know it works time and time again.

As men, we are called to maintain "eye to eye" contact and avoid "eye to body" contact. Knowing that men are called to do this, women should not be wearing the equivalent of flashing signs pointing to the very things men are not supposed to not be looking at.

A man who is weak in this area walking into whole room full of immodestly dressed women is like a former alcoholic walking into the bar he used to visit. We aren't called to serve as bartenders, we are called to serve one another in love and even lay down our very lives for one another if need be.

Therefore, we should not wear tight shirts or shirts with low necklines which draw attention to the chest. Shirts should be tight enough around the neck to not flap open when bending over. Yahweh sought to cover this part of the body in Genesis 3 and we should not reverse it.

Pants or dresses that expose the shape of a person's rear end, or dresses that allow the thighs to be exposed are clear examples of clothing designers seeking to provoke temptations to sin. We should have no part of this kind of dress.

Rather, we ought to cover this part of the body in the way that Yahweh covered it, by a garment than hangs down rather than wraps around. If we must wear pants, we should at least wear a loose, long shirt that hangs down over top of it to keep our private parts private and unknown to everyone.

Ancient Israel had trousers, but it was always an undergarment. Does this not speak volumes?

And in spite of the fact that the high priest wore trousers, ancient Israel was still commanded to not build an altar that goes up by steps:

Exodus 20:26 'Nor shall you go up by steps to My altar, that your nakedness may not be exposed on it.'

So trousers alone are insufficient. There must be something over it to keep the private parts private. We should be mindful of these scriptures when looking to a righteous standard of modesty.

For women, dressing immodestly may give a them a sense of power and control, increasing the potential number of suitors for marriage. I would agree that they are able to achieve a remarkable amount of control over some men. As powerful as Samson was, Delilah was able to bring him down.

But as believers, we should never seek to control others with temptations and stumbling blocks.

An unmarried woman or young girl's clothing ought to communicate "You can't touch me. I'm not for sale, nor am I for your eyes. I am covered, protected, and too valuable in Yahweh's eyes for me to cheapen myself into some kind of object for visual harlotry."

A married woman's clothing ought to communicate, "Already taken!"

When it comes to seeking a spouse, the initial attraction between a man and woman ought to first be spiritual. Yahweh is supposed to be the one directing our lives, not our own lustful eyes. Many a man sought after a pretty little girl who didn't have much of a spiritual life but paid for it later when she ran off with another man and took his children, his house, and his money with her.

And young women, if you are seeking to attract a man and increasing your choices of men to marry by displaying or highlighting your body, don't think for a moment that the man you happen to catch with it will will always be satisfied with yours alone.

Proverbs 27:20 - Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.

So if you marry such a one, there will always be others besides you that will be physically attractive. For this reason, when such women are married long enough for the physical attraction to begin fading, many men in their 40's and 50's seek other pastures...to their own destruction.

This is because there is never point where lust is finally satisfied. Lust will continue to desire things that are forbidden until it ventures into the unthinkable.

Romans 1:26-27 For this reason Elohim gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

Men, we need to realize that we are also called to dress modestly. In today's society, a man might be tempting a woman or (sadly) even another man. Believe it or not, there are men in the assembly who have formerly had problems in these areas. I know because I've had to counsel some of them.

Though it may be hard for us to fathom such a thing, we want to be sure we are building up the body of Messiah rather than tempting others to go into former ways.

Of course, it is a mistake to assume that women never have wrongful lusts toward men. If you don't believe me, look at how teenage girls scream in a total frenzy over various boys that they call "heart throbs." There is an entire genre of magazines devoted to this very thing.

When Yahweh covered Adam's body, he covered him with a tunic that covered the same areas of the body that he covered woman with. Yahweh made no distinction and I find no reason to ignore that example.

Men should dress like gentlemen and women should dress like ladies. Women who dress like a lady will often be amazed at how men will start treating them like a lady--with respect.

Let's dress in such a way that glorifies the ways of Yahweh rather than dressing in ways that seek to glorify ourselves or glorify sin. Yahweh's ways are ways of purity, ways of holiness, and ways of loveliness and honor.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 - Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from Elohim, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify Elohim in your body and in your spirit, which are Elohim's.

This means that we will have to be different than the world. We will act different, we will talk different and we will look different. We are called to glorify Yahweh with our body and spirit, which belong to Him.

Romans 12:2 - And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of Elohim.

In part, this means that in everything we do, we will seek to cause no offense to our brethren or to the world around us:

1 Corinthians 10:31-32 - Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of Elohim. 32 Give no offense, either to the Jews or to the Greeks or to the assembly of Elohim,

1 Corinthians 10:31-32 - Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of Elohim. 32 Give no offense, either to the Jews or to the Greeks or to the assembly of Elohim,

Therefore, my brothers and my sisters... let's seek to live out the pure and holy life of Yahushua the Messiah, walking worthy of the high calling to which we are called.

Ephesians 5:3 - But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints;

Ephesians 5:4 - neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.

Ephesians 5:5 - For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Messiah and Elohim.

Ephesians 5:6 - Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of Elohim comes upon the sons of disobedience.

Ephesians 5:7 - Therefore do not be partakers with them.

Ephesians 5:8 - For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Master. Walk as children of light

Children of light...

....let's walk in the light and do all that we can do to encourage one another...

build up one another...

edify one another...

help one another...

serve one another...

bearing one another's burdens...

breaking every yoke...

with the strong ones bearing the infirmities of the weak...

...laying down our own lives for one another.

Doing so will fulfill the example of the One, the Blessed One..

The one who bore all our weaknesses...that we might walk in righteousness and purity with Him...forever.

May Yahweh bless you and have mercy on us all!