While it is true that God looks on the heart, the people we minister to, lead to the Holy of Holies, and witness to look on the outer appearance. If our attire (or lack thereof) is such a distraction that it takes the congregations’ eyes off of Jesus, what is the purpose? We seem to forget that when we serve as a worship team, it is not about us.

The questions I ask praise and worship teams (including sound techs)about what they wear on the platform or in the sound booth:
1). Would you wear the same outfit to a corporate executive meeting at your place of employment, a job interview, or if you were meeting someone you were really trying to impress?
2). What would be a person’s first impression of the “company” you represent as an ambassador of Christ.
3). Do we project unity, a spirit of excellence and the seriousness of our responsibility as a member of the worship team, or do we look like a bunch of folks who just got together about 20 minutes ago to make a joyful noise?
4). Why do we seem to care more about our personal appearance for others than for when we are representing God? If you do not care at all about your personal appearance for others, then what sacrifice have you made to lead the corporate body to, and expect an audience with, the King of Kings?

Most of the “world’s teams” have distinct identifiable colors, school/community and national sports teams, community bowling leagues, social groups like the Red Hat Society, etc.) I do not believe we have to wear “uniforms” where we are all wearing the exact same thing, but I strongly believe we should wear the same color scheme (alternating colors each week) where we look like we belong on the same team.

Your last line is good- we moderns tend to look at anything that smacks of symbolism or is representative and dismiss it out of hand…

I think the idea of propriety comes in here- while it would probably be appropriate to wear a suitcoat in worship service, a fancy tuxedo would probably be sort of pretentious..

There are sometimes when wearing a suit can communicate that one is taking this stuff seriously, and without any pretense or ‘putting on airs’.

Totally agree. It’s symptomatic of the human heart that we can take pride in dressing down as much as we can dressing up. Our choice of clothing should somehow reflect the awareness that we are with God’s people and want to honor them. For some, that means dressing more casually. For others, it means dressing more carefully. In no case, at least in our culture, should it mean that it doesn’t matter at all.

My 2c…

The modesty issue is a constant stuggle and it doesn’t look to be going away any time soon. I have had to turn people away from particiapating on stage because of immodesty, even though we have taught on it so many times. Thank you so much for the heart of this matter.

Looking forward to the Worship Conference…

Thanks for taking some time to post on this and to be willing even to post on something that can be so variant in views.

We’ve been dialogging about this as a worship team. We’ve mostly talked about what ulitimately is going to serve our local church. I’m very grateful to God for our worship team and their desire to prefer others in the midst of this dialog, and this humility I believe has blessed the Lord even more.

We’ve tried to take into account what our church has been used to. Some of our folks have come from a more traditional church setting, and for some, jeans and sandals is quite possibly distracting. We’ve only changed back from not wearing jeans on Sunday ams because of it is easily looking sloppy on stage and distracting for some folks. We’ve not had complaining as much as humble observations about what people are distracted by or even struggling with (not offended). So, as a team, we have decided not to wear jeans, and at this point in time, sandals are out as well.

We’re considering sandals again at our next team meeting, but the dialog in and of itself has helped me see where the hearts of our worship team and those who offer suggestions/observations are. Not that we are perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but we are trying to faithful to serve…that is our goal, by God’s grace.

Thanks again for posting!

See you at the conference next week!

Jeremy

What I really want to comment on is that I can’t wait for next week to be at the conference!!!!!!

I’m looking forward to meeting you Bob. I will be praying for the filling and the anointing of the Spirit in your life to empower you and others to be a channel of grace to build up and bless the body of Christ for the Glory of God through the gospel!!!

Grace & Peace

Ian

Thanks for stopping by and for your encouraging words. You asked,

“What might a Christ-follower’s reaction be to those artists who seek to set the standard style for popular worship? And what, if any, loopholes might there be if the artists aren’t singing specifically God-directed hymns or psalms, but rather, mere spiritual songs about God or about Christianity?”

If I understand your questions, you’re asking how the whole issue of modesty applies to Christians who are involved in public music ministry but not in a congregational worship setting.

I’d consider the question from two perspectives. If I’m commenting on Christian “worship artists,” I want to be careful not to judge their motives quickly or uncharitably. Certainly standards of modest dress differ. However, as I understand God’s Word, the only “loopholes” for inappropriate clothing might be ignorance or poverty. Poverty’s probably not the issue, but I can understand how someone might be ignorant of their heart or what actually tempts others.

If I’m a Christian musician of any type, I need to be aware of any ways my clothing might tempt or distract people from my mission, which is to point them to God’s grace in Jesus Christ. It doesn’t matter whether I’m in a congregation or not ( 1 Cor. 10:311 Corinthians 10:31
[31]So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do
all to the glory of God. (ESV)

; Col. 3:17Colossians 3:17
[17]And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything
in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the
Father through him. (ESV)

). I don’t wear my clothes simply to look good in the eyes of the world, but to honor God. Sometimes those two goals may intersect, but certainly not always. My question shouldn’t be, “How far can I go?” but rather, “How can I be sure that no one stumbles because of my clothing?”

Does that answer your question?

While you say you’ve been lax in posting, I’ve been lax in reading — I will try to keep up more with the excellent grounded-in-Scripture mini-essays you write here. It’s beyond encouraging to know that a well-known someone is defending Biblical worship that does not revolve around, and draw attention to, the worshipers themselves, either in thought, appearance or even the words of the songs.

Your emphasis on modesty, like that of Harris, Mahaney, and all the Sovereign Grace folk — is particularly encouraging. Freedom in Christ is a wonderful thing, but that also means we should be seeking to honor Him in our bodies and what with what we clothe our bodies. I would almost prefer outlandishly casual clothing to “formal wear” so long as the former is actually modest — I’ve seen both extremes at different churches.

Meanwhile, ’tis odd that although modesty seems a requirement for most Christian artists and most CCM album covers, they often seem to find “loopholes.” If clothing covers all, for example, it will be tight, or, outlandishly trendy. Spiked, dyed hair and ostentatious earrings seem to be the norm for those kinds of artists and album covers as well.

What might a Christ-follower’s reaction be to those artists who seek to set the standard style for popular worship? And what, if any, loopholes might there be if the artists aren’t singing specifically God-directed hymns or psalms, but rather, mere spiritual songs about God or about Christianity?