A few years back, a series of events caused me to seek more understanding of the principles behind Christian dressing especially the code of dress that I have grown up to embrace. Over the course of some weeks, the Lord revealed a few things to me.
The Bible is very clear about the purpose of our dressing – to cover our nakedness. I addressed the principle of covering our nakedness HERE. If everyone walked around naked, there would be a greater level of sexual perversion that we are witnessing in the world today. Sex would be incredibly easily accessible. However, in God’s divine plan and order, sex is a Holy and sacred gift which is to be engaged in within the confines of marriage between a man and a woman. Therefore, God requires that we are clothed, so that there is purity in society and in the body of Christ.
So then, which parts of our bodies constitute nakedness? According to the inspiration given, my understanding of our nakedness is those areas of our bodies including our breasts, torso, back, buttocks, reproductive organs, and thighs. Essentially, anything from the shoulders to knees is considered nakedness. When putting on clothing, it is important to wear clothing that extends far away from our nakedness (the core of our body) as possible. Let not your nakedness be easily accessible. Be moderate – avoid overdoing or underdoing. Our nakedness is created for a beautiful and divine purpose.
In the world, gates to homes, and offices are kept closed and locked at the end of a working day to prevent intruders and burglary. The people and things behind closed doors are deemed valuable and therefore, the doors remain closed so as to not give any intruder access into the home to wreak havoc. Our body is valuable. Satan is the ultimate intruder who seeks daily to cause havoc in our lives. When our nakedness is carelessly exposed, Satan gains access to that which should be guarded and treasured. Our action to expose our nakedness is as well displeasing to God as it demonstrates a misplacement of the purpose of our nakedness secondary to lack of knowledge; thus a divergence from His original purpose. As Christians, the Bible says that we are God’s Temple (1 Corinthians 3:16). That means that our body is not a commodity. Our body is a prized treasure and it is expected to reflect the purity, beauty, simplicity, and glory of the One who dwells within.
Exposure of nakedness is in two-fold: grossly exposing the private parts of one’s body through clothing or, wearing tight clothing so as to reveal the contours and organs underneath the clothing.
– Collar bone – serves as the gateway to our breasts. Wearing tops that reach the collar bone is a great way to keep this gateway closed from exposure. I have personally found that wearing tops at the collar bone level provides me with much comfort. If I have to bend over, I am not exposed. In this video, I share with you how to handle low-cut tops. 
– Elbows– serves as the gateway to our breasts and armpits. The elbows help provide a guide for the length of sleeve appropriate for covering. The higher above your sleeves are from your elbows the easier it is for your nakedness in this region to be exposed. For example, sleeveless and short sleeve tops make it easier for our armpits and even undergarments to be easily revealed. Elbow length tops, three-quarter length and long sleeves are appropriate for covering. In addition, these lengths of sleeves serve as a barrier and protect our arms from harsh weather such as the scorching Summer heat!
– Hips – serves as the gateway to our reproductive organs. Clothing around the hip area should be loose enough so that the contours of that region is not overtly seen. from a health perspective, tight clothing does more bad to our bodies than good. Tight clothing causes a restriction in the ease of blood circulation throughout our bodies in the affected areas which can lead to many health issues. Remember that God desires that his children be in health in body and spirit and that our dressing as Christians promote godliness and not sensuality. If a dress or skirt fit like a glove, it is simply too tight. Also, if you or others can see your panty lines and shape of your bottom, it is too tight.
You are welcomed to visit my Youtube channel HERE for more visible content on modesty, natural hair care, etc. Please subscribe to the channel and share with others. Also, I have an active closet of the Poshmark app where I am selling some modestly inspired clothing.
Upholding His Standard of dress,
-Charity