Lesson 91. May I Look Inside Your Closet?

Jesus is in my home! He is with me everywhere. I handed Him the keys to all my doors and asked Him to maintain order in our home of happiness and love. But He politely returned the keys, making me understand that only I can open the locked doors of my soul. He respects my choice and gives me freedom to make my own decisions.

I have understood that the Lord knows perfectly well which of my rooms He needs to enter. If I do not wish to let Him into a certain place, He sorrowfully withdraws while remaining the same loving Friend. But I have also noticed that if I say no to Jesus when He knocks on one of my locked doors, He stops knocking on the other locked doors as well. I know how this can be corrected, but I do not always want to do so. In my home there is a basement called “the pride of life.” I enjoy bringing people from the street, my neighbors, strangers, and sometimes friends into this place. But if Jesus desires to go down there, I find a thousand excuses to distract His attention.

I have noticed that whenever I am preparing to go somewhere and put on suitable clothing, the Lord stands at the door of my closet and knocks, asking, “May I look inside your closet?”

I dislike it when my friends rummage through my clothes, but I cannot refuse Jesus. He examines my wardrobe very carefully and divides the clothing into two categories, leaving both groups in the closet. Respectable garments hang on the right; all the others are placed elsewhere.

I have a question: “Lord, what difference does it make what I wear? Is not the main thing that I believe in You and love You?” Yet even as I ask, I understand that I am being hypocritical. I wait for an answer.

The Lord helps me understand that clothing is a calling card by which many people determine whether I belong to the world or to another community. I am a priest of the living God, and I must always remember this when I go out among people. This means that my clothing should be clean, not torn, respectable, modest, appropriate to my sex, and suitable for the time in which I live. It should not advertise this world.

Jesus has placed the label “love of the world” on certain garments, but I cannot understand why He did so. After all, I paid an outrageous amount of money for them, and they represent the latest fashion. I simply do not want to accept my Friend’s taste because then I will feel like the odd one out.

But Jesus does not change His preferences, and His expectations correspond to high standards. When I agree with Him and accept dress reform, He asks what I will do with the garments He rejected. Of course I will keep them; let them remain in the closet in case I need them someday. But Jesus makes me understand that they may become a snare to me. I do not understand this approach and desire to examine the subject more carefully. I invite Christ to discuss it and present my counterarguments. He listens calmly and explains that diet and clothing are simple tests of faithfulness in my life by which the unseen world can easily determine the condition of my heart. Yet woe is me if I make these things a criterion of my salvation or a standard by which to judge the spirituality of those around me.

I realize that I do not fully understand what has been said, but Jesus assures me that changes first take place in the heart and then in outward conduct. A person must understand God’s requirements and expectations with his mind and live in obedience.

When I go to a store to buy clothing, Jesus greatly desires to be beside me and waits for my invitation. The Savior desires me to let Him into every area of my life so that He may have the opportunity to help me in everything.

When I choose clothing, I do not merely ask for something I can put on. I walk past racks and counters, paying attention to the items that appeal to me. I take them into the fitting room and look at myself in the mirror. I make sure the size fits. I see whether the color suits me and whether the garment coordinates with my other clothing. I imagine how I look to others and whether I resemble my favorite movie actor. I wonder whether my friends will admire me. Then I decide to buy the item. At home I put it on and go out among people. My clothing did not end up on me by accident; I chose it.

The enemy of souls presents his latest fashions to the world and tells people how sensual these garments are. He assures them that everyone will desire them. Then he takes these same items and brings them to God’s children, declaring that they are respectable and comfortable. When hot weather comes, Satan persuades me to wear so little that the air can freely reach every part of my body, insisting that it does not matter how this appears to others. Anyone who expresses disapproval of my appearance can confidently be called a fanatic or a Pharisee who understands nothing about life. I am not naked; I am merely lightly dressed.

The enemy of souls has created an even more sophisticated culture of exposed bodies and has made it seem so important and necessary to everyone that if I reject it, people begin to consider me insane and place me on a blacklist of strange individuals. Beaches and swimming pools have become customary places where the sight of my nearly naked body is considered perfectly respectable, because the body supposedly needs sunbathing. I even ask Jesus to be with me and bless me with rest and an even tan. My dear sisters possess such graceful bodies that it is very pleasant for the eyes to look at them. The small pieces of cloth with which they have lightly covered themselves do not prevent me from seeing what beautiful forms the Lord has given them. My thoughts are pure. I rest and disconnect from the whole world simply to lie in the sun, read the Bible, and think about nothing.

Then I hear a knock at the door of my heart and the question, “What are you doing here?” “I am sunbathing, Lord! Lie down beside me; I have time to fellowship with You!” In reply I hear, “Dost thou not know that thou art wretched and naked?” What strange words. “I am not naked; I am wearing swimming trunks. Do not classify me as a nudist—I have not fallen that far.”

Then I begin to think. If the Lord describes me this way, it must be true. But I cannot remove the culture of vacationing from my mind. I grew up with it and do not know what could replace this way of spending time. Life loses all meaning if I cannot go to the sea or a lake for vacation. This is the whole point: you save all year for a vacation, spend the money on your pleasures in two weeks, and then post your photographs on social media to delight your friends with the natural scenery your eyes beheld. If this is removed from life, a person might even fall into depression.

But the Lord says, “Thou art naked, and I counsel thee to buy of Me white raiment, that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear.”

What should I do? Once again, I have received a blow to the head. I long so much for Eternity, yet I also want to sunbathe on the beach. How can I combine the two? A vacation spent on my balcony does not appeal to me at all. Why is my dear Jesus so particular? He probably understands nothing about my need for rest. But I will try to listen. How boring.

Lord, help me understand You! I am accustomed to living differently, and Your requirements are foreign to me!

I enter the sanctuary and come to myself. I need a new heart—right now, here. I will not let You go, except You bless me! Save me, Lord, from myself!

1. What did you understand from this lesson?

2. Does it matter to God how I dress?

3. What constitutes immodest clothing? Where can a standard of modesty be found?

4. What does respectable and modest clothing look like?

5. What should I do if people wearing immodest clothing come to our gathering?

6. Please read Exodus 20:26; Isaiah 47:2–3; Deuteronomy 22:5; Leviticus 21:10; and Matthew 6:25 in the light of our lesson.