PARENTHOOD
a divine stewardship

2. Bringing Clothes to the Lord and Dealing with Them One by One

A new believer must pay attention to the matter of clothing. If you have any doubt about any of your clothes, you should bring them to the priest for examination. The Lord is the High Priest today. You must ask Him whether or not you can wear this clothing. Do not think that this is a small matter. Clothing is a big issue to a new believer. If you do not know which clothes are plagued with leprosy, you should bring them to the Priest and let the Lord tell you whether they are plagued.

Remember that a person has to separate himself from a leper. A house plagued with leprosy had to be torn down and a garment plagued with leprosy had to be burned. Of course, today you do not need to burn your clothing. But at least you must not wear those things anymore. There are many garments which are plagued with leprosy. Many of them can be worn again after the sleeves are lengthened and the dress dyed to a different color or changed to a different style. Some clothing can be kept after it is examined by the priest and altered a little. Some clothing has the nature of leprosy even after it is examined and altered. It must be thrown away. As soon as a person believes in the Lord, he has to present his clothes piece by piece to the Lord and allow Him to examine each one in detail. He should let the Lord tell him whether or not the clothing is appropriate for him.

I hope new believers will behave as Christians when they present themselves before men....A cleansed person would never wear plagued clothing. Our leprosy has been cleansed and our sins are forgiven. From now on, we should not wear any leprosy-infested garments.

New believers must present everything in their wardrobe piece by piece to the Lord and pray over each item. Do not expect others to come and tell you what is good and what is not. You must bring everything to the Lord yourself and let the Lord judge you. You must ask the Lord, "I have become a believer now. Is this clothing all right? Is this clothing right?" Some items of clothing have to be thrown away, while others must be altered. Let the Lord teach you what to do. Some garments cannot be altered at all. You must decide for yourself whether sin is involved in a certain garment. Your clothing has much to do with you. This matter must be dealt with soberly.

Watchman Nee, Messages for Building Up New Believers, Vol. 3, pp. 603-608

APPLICATION

1. According to Biblical history, what is the significance of clothing?

2. "The modern trend of exposing one's body is a violation of God's original principle. God's original purpose is for man to cover himself with clothing." Do you agree that this principle should apply to our dress today?

3. Consider whether, in both your personal and your family life, there is the need to present your clothing to the high Priest for His evaluation of its suitability before Him.