GOD and WOMEN

1 Timothy 2: 9-10 " Also, women should wear proper clothes that show respect and self-control, not using braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes. Instead they should do good deeds, which is right for women who say they worship God" ( NCV version)

If we claim to be Christians or followers of Christ then we need to obey God's Word. This is not legalism. Legalism is what the pharasees did..Jesus told them they were hypocrites because they were cleaning the outside of the cup, but inside they were full of dead bones. Legalims is trying to look good on the outside while inside is a mess. But if the outside is different because the inside is clean then that is holiness; that is a change of heart that led to a change of lifestyle, a change of values, and a change of priorities. So many people today thinkt hat doing what the Bible says it is legalism...that we just need to hear God for ourselves and the Bible is just a guidline. NO! The Bible is NOT a guidline. It is God's heart. He is the Big Guy and He makes the rules. If He says that something bothers Him or is sin against Him then who are we to tell Him that He doesn't really mean that, but something else? We are making God a liar. It is like your spouse saying , " You are hurting me when you yell at me", and you telling them, " Nah...that doesn't really bother you...come on!"

Yes, God is totally love and He is so much love that he is also jealous. he wants us all for Himself. It is time to stop livign double-minded and for the world and ourselves. There was a time in the OLD Testament that says that because Israel had no king, everyone was doing what was right in their own eyes. Now that is a mess! I would not want to live in that country.Imagine living in a place where everyone was doing what they thought was right and no consequences. Scary!

Yet, we believers do just that with God's Word; some to more degree than others. As soon as we find something that inconveniences us in the Bible, we label it as " that was the culture then". God will not play games and He will not honor those who half-way obey Him. God wants total consecration. I am probably too harsh here, but it needs to be done because America and not just America, but believers have gone way too much to the other side and abuse God's love. " God loves us" is used to give us freedom to do what we want there is no fear of God anymore.

And this brings me to today's topic: ladies. lately God has been showing me that if I really want Him to listen to my prayers and if I really want to see miracles in my life and others', I need to obey all the Word and not just what I like. I am a woman and I have gone through ups and down of how should I dress and how much should I wear. In today's church you see all kinds of varieties....some wear really expensive clothes because , well, we are princes and princesses and that means we need to have the best; pothers feel the scum of the Earth and worthless and do not even bathe....by the way..did you know the Bible tells people to bathe and wash their body with clean water....God is truly funny! Some of us need to hear that....lol.

Here is what I learned from 1 Timothy chapter 2. I do nto believe it is cultural. God creaated women beautiful and we are highly valued by Him. We have a special role in this world and no, we are not equal with men. God did not create us equal. Yes, we are equal in our inheritance, the way we are saved, and much more; but we are not equal in roles. I do not want to talk about that today because that is another topic. I want us to focus on how we dress as women.

Everywhere you look today: magazines, TV, stores, bilboards you see women being used as an icon of sex and we accept it. Our clothes are barely there. Even in the church among claiming believers. We wear mini skirts, dresses that show half of our boobs out ( I am guilty of that, too..I have done that), lots of make-up, the more jewelry the merries,huh? There is not decency anymore and no fear of God? What happened to the Scripture in 1 Timothy? Do you know that during Lot's times ( Abraham's nephew), there was open immorality, homosexuality in public, on the street in front of others...? Talk about culture. The culture was worse then! Thank God that the government will not allow people just doing their sexual act in public. We do not have any excuses about culture. During Jesus' times women actually covered themselves mroe than now and yet Paul still says that they need to be decent!

I have been to churches and I want to leave when I see so much "distraction" because of what people wear. Shiny hats, the tallest heels, boobs out, multiple earrings and bracelets....you judge for yourself: does that fall under beign proper as the Scirpture say? Oh, and here is nother that we think it is not big deal: braiding of hair. "Come on, are you kidding me? God has no problem with braided hair!" Well, you read it and then you tell Him He is wrong. Everyone will give an account for himself/herself.

Listen, I am really not writing this to judge you, but to challenge you to look at the Scriptures and see how far we are from obeying God. We need to stop being angry with God for not healing, intervening for us, doing this or that. He cannot and He will not because there is no fear of God in the land. There is a rejection of His Word and everyone is doing what is right in their own eyes. Instead of gettign offended abotu what I am writing here, will you please just take a moment and meditate on this and listen to your heart and God will speak to you.

It wasnt easy for me either to accept His Word because my flesh wants to scream, " I want that and this". " It is only the culture!" But I love God and I am sick of looking in the Bible and see the results the apostles had and look at our lives and see we do not experience the same kind of power. Yes, there are sometimes some outburts of God's power here and there...but we all know it is rare whereas in the apsotles' times and even in the 1930s it was something common. Why don't we experience that anymore? God shoed me because we are not obeying. We are ignoring His Word and we do not live it. See, Jesus did not tell the pharasees not to obey the Law( in our case the WORD). He told them they had to do that and not let things like showing mercy and giving undone.

If I write a letter to a loved one and tell them what bothers me and what I care about, if that person loves me, will do whatevewr it takes to help me or do what I like instead of hurting me. God wrote us a letter and He told us what he likes, what He doesn't , what is sin, what is not, how He wants women to dress. HE wants us to have good deeds ladies plus adrning ourselves decently. I am not saying is sin to wear make up or earrings; but I am a firm believer that it should be discreet and not flashy. Besides being natural is much better and a ton of eyeshadow. Long nails that are 3 inches long or just 2 ..who needs them. We are focusing so much on the outward appearance and inside we might be dead bones. How about being so tocuhed by Jesus on the inside that our clothing, our make up, our talk, our behavior, etc shows we belong to a King and we do not do what is right in our own eyes. We have a great Savior and it is time to allow Him to be Lord.

Moreover, how about teaching our children these things? How about teaching out daughters that having good deeds and being decent is what really matters. Remember, they are watching us and they are going to become us...so who are you?

Paul says that women should not braid their hair, wear pearls, gold, etc......Honestly maybe during that time gold was something big to have and expensive. Today this is so common. Everyone has something gold and diamonds. I am not 100% sure about not wearing any of that at all. But I know this. It is written that we should not and we should be proper. God wants us to be humble and decent/proper. I believe He wants us at least to be discreet and feminine. It is time to stop letting men see us so cheap. I am not just a bait for men to buy a car on a billboard. I am not just a tool men use to satisfy themselves. No, a woman is more than that. But how will we stop it if we allow it? And allowing it is just as bad as agreeing with it.

I am not against people: I am not against homosexuals, undecent people, murderers, or anyone else. The Bible says that people are not the problem: Satan is; In Ephesians 6 it says that we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but evil spirits, principalities in heavenly places; demonic powers...I am against the actions we display and believe me I am including myself here. I have been immoral, angry, proud, etc... and I am grateful Jesus saved me. He truly saved me and He is not onyl Savior, but Lord in my life. I am against sin and we know God is, too. I disagree with people hurting others because they do not agree with their lifestyle. Violence is not the answer: Jesus is. Prayer is.

We have the power to stand against demons and not allow them to make us like them: immoral,indecent, improper, rebellious...these deeds are all displaying satan's character.God cares about every aspect of our lives. To think that God only cares about some and He should live some things up to us it's deception.

It is time to rise up church and be THE CHURCH! The uncompromised church!