In the book of Genesis, we have the account of the fall of mankind. Genesis 3:1-7 “Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, ‘Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?’ And the woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’’ Then the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’ So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.” Before eating the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the man and woman were both naked but they were not ashamed. They were pure, innocent and free from guilt. But after they received the knowledge of good and evil, they knew that they were naked and they covered themselves with fig leaves. God put curses on the man, the woman, and the serpent, and then He made clothes for the man and woman. Genesis 3:21 “Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.” Note that He made tunics of skin. This implies that one or more animals died so that the tunics could be made out of their skin. Perhaps this was the first animal sacrifice because of sin. God no longer wanted the man and woman to be naked.
Then the book of Genesis tells us of the wickedness of mankind and the resultant flood of the earth. God spared Noah and his family in the ark. After leaving the ark, Noah planted a vineyard. Genesis 9:20-25 “And Noah began to be a farmer, and he planted a vineyard. Then he drank of the wine and was drunk, and became uncovered in his tent. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and went backward and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father’s nakedness. So Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done to him. Then he said: ‘Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants He shall be to his brethren.’” Noah became drunk and became uncovered in his tent. Noah’s son Ham saw the nakedness of his father but all he did was tell his brothers. His brothers Shem and Japheth covered the nakedness of their father and intentionally avoided seeing their father’s nakedness. When Noah awoke, he cursed Canaan the son of Ham because Ham had seen his father’s nakedness and had not covered him. Noah was very displeased that Ham had seen his nakedness.
The Lord gave instructions to Moses concerning building an altar to offer sacrifices. Exodus 20:24-26 “An altar of earth you shall make for Me, and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I record My name I will come to you, and I will bless you. And if you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone; for if you use your tool on it, you have profaned it. Nor shall you go up by steps to My altar, that your nakedness may not be exposed on it.’” The Lord did not want the Israelites to build an altar with steps. It seems that if there were steps, and the priest walked up the steps, someone standing near the altar might look up and see the priest’s nakedness inside his garments. God did not want the nakedness of the priest to be exposed. God therefore commanded that the altar not have steps.
From these three stories, we learn that nakedness and seeing the nakedness of another were not considered good. In many modern societies today, nakedness of men and women is frequently displayed. Some individuals seem to try to expose their bodies as much as they can. Through the internet, one can readily find pictures of nudity. How should a Christian deal with nakedness?
We cannot change how others in our society display their nakedness. But we can control how we behave. Job said in Job 31:1 “I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman?” Like Job, we can choose to avoid looking at that which God would not want us to look at. Jesus taught us in Matthew 5:27-28 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘you shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” I believe that this principle of looking, lusting and committing adultery in the heart should apply to both men and women. I encourage you to avoid committing adultery or fornication in your heart as a result of looking at the nakedness of others.
But what about displaying our nakedness to others? The New Testament does not give us a dress code. It is up to us to decide in our hearts how we will dress, knowing that God sees us and knows our hearts. The apostle Paul taught in 1 Timothy 2:9-10 “In like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, but, which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works.” Paul’s guidance on dress is modesty, propriety, and moderation. Our clothing should be that which is proper for one professing godliness, with good works. I see this guidance applying to both men and women. If we seek to please God and we profess godliness, we will make good choices in the clothes that we wear.
God does not approve of nakedness. I encourage you to be like Job and control how you look at others, especially those displaying nakedness. I also encourage you to dress with “modesty, propriety and moderation” as one professing godliness.