Principles

"Every man, woman, and child in the world has a carnal nature by birth. But the male struggle to keep the thoughts straight is based upon more than the fleshly nature. It is rooted in the fact that God created men with a completely different sexual makeup than women.

"God made man in the beginning with a very sensitive sexual nature that could be quickly aroused by the SIGHT of female nudity. Woman, on the other hand, was created with a sexual nature which would not be so easily stirred, especially by sight. She was made to be more responsive to touch and tenderness. Her more subtle sexuality could be drawn out by the physical attentions involved in the conjugal relationship.

"God gave man his emotional sex nature for the purpose of making marriage more pleasurable and happy. The husband was to be the aggressive one in the relationship. Under this beautiful plan of God, the sex instinct of both husband and wife could be lawfully stirred. But mark this: God never intended for man's sex emotions to be stimulated outside the marriage chamber. And in order to protect him God placed within the woman a delicate sense of modest reserve, so that she would not expose her body except to her own husband.

"The plan was perfect, but it has been broken down in one area. Satan has managed to destroy to a very great extent that inherent modesty with which the Creator endowed womanhood. Under the growing curse of transgression, women have thrown off the moral restraints. Uninhibited nudity or provocative half-dress has become the accepted norm of modern fashion. On every side the Christian as well as the non-Christian is forced to look upon scenes of nakedness which are utterly foreign to the original plan of the Creator.

"What has been the effect of this perverted order of things? It has produced a sex-saturated society whose moral qualities just about match those of the antediluvians. Jesus said, 'For as the days of Noah were so shall also the coming of the Son of man be,' Matthew 24:37. And what were the conditions of Noah's day which would be duplicated in the end of time? Genesis 6:5 says that 'every imagination of the thoughts of his heart were only evil continually.'

"We have only to look at the sorry state of today's entertainment and communication media to know how fully this prophecy has been fulfilled. Pornography has been legitimized. The TV channels are crowded with lewd sex, either implicit or explicit. The world of advertising, and even the daily news commentaries are sprinkled with profanity and suggestive double talk. The imagination of modern man seems obsessed with the subject of sex, often deviant and perverted. Homosexuality has not only received the tolerant coexistence which it sought after, but has been given recognition by the majority of psychiatrists as normal sex behavior.

"And what about the Christians who are surrounded by this glorification of the flesh? Unfortunately it has not been left outside the church doors. Slowly the world edged into the remnant church. By degrees the sight of knees and thighs even in the sanctuary began to be tolerated. The sense of outrage disappeared as we got used to the weekly display.

"What about the Christian men whose inherent sex nature is so easily influenced by this nudity? Do they respond to the external stimuli by thinking evil thoughts and committing mental adultery. By the grace of God true Christians can lay hold of victory, even over the imaginations of the heart. Through submission and prayer any man can claim the power of a pure mind, but the styles of dress make it a more difficult struggle.

"Jesus made it clear that men are easily led into wrong thinking. He said 'Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shall not commit adultery: but I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart' Matt. 5:27, 28.

"And what can be said for the women who dress in such a way that they stimulate this kind of thinking? They are equally guilty before God. For this reason no true Christian woman, who understands the effect of such a course, will wear the revealing clothes which create such illicit desires. As the dress inches above the knee, the climate of sin is created. For the carnal man, who has not the power of the gospel in his life, there is no chance whatever to resist the temptation. Every mini skirt is fuel which triggers the mind to think the most debased thoughts of which the carnal nature is capable. Christian women should have no share in this kind of excitement.

"Indeed the second greatest commandment of Jesus would be violated by such a course. Christ said, Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself.' How could a woman wear clothing that was designed to cause her neighbor's husband to commit mental adultery, and not be guilty of breaking that law of love? Would she love her neighbor as herself if she willfully did something to cause her neighbor's husband to sin against his wife and against God?

We are dealing here with actions which cause others to sin. Moral issues are directly involved. We are counseled to close every door of temptation.

" 'Our example and influence must be a power on the side of reform. We must abstain from any practice which will blunt the conscience or encourage temptation. We must open no door that will give Satan access to the mind of one human being formed in the image of God.' 5T 360

"Because the female reaction to nudity is so different from that of the male, women often minimize the spiritual problem we are talking about here. Too often their attitude is that men ought to just use more power of self-control, and stifle their mental images. They fail completely to grasp the significant difference which God Himself put into the male nature. That nature cannot be reversed by any human effort or determination. It can be controlled by complete Christian commitment, but the Christian women must cooperate in closing the avenues of the soul to temptation."

Principles in Christian Dress, pages 101,102