Wearing the Fringe

Wearing the Fringe Numbers Everyone knows we make a statement about who we are by what we wear, how their hair is cut, and even the way we walk.

The Children of Israel were instructed to wear fringe on the hem of their garments. The fringe was to be worn in plain sight and the fringe would be seen several times each day. They may have been identified as ‘the ones who wore the fringe, you know, the Children of Israel’. The fringe was not a fashion statement. In fact it was more like a yellow caution sign along a highway. The fringe was to be a warning for each person who wore it. It was to be a constant reminder to do God’s commandments.

Numbers15:38 Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue: 39 And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the Lord, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring: 40 That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God.

God knows us so well. He knows our weaknesses. The fringe was not for God’s benefit. He didn’t need to brand or label the people who were His. God didn’t need to see the colored fringe in order to easily locate them whenever He looked down from heaven. Realistically, God doesn’t even need us to wear clothes! He doesn’t get embarrassed at our nakedness. He has no need to cover our nakedness.

The fringe was to remind them about what our sin does to us. Adam and Eve were embarrassed because of their sin. They reacted to the guilt of their sin by making clothes to cover themselves and hide from God. God hates sin. He cannot tolerate sin. He hates sin because He is holy. He hates sin because sin separates us from Him. Every generation was told to continue wearing the fringe on the borders of their garments. Every generation was to remember to do all of God’s commandments.

What God required of them on the outside, their clothes, was only to be a sign to keep themselves for Him on the inside. Wearing the fringe would help them remember they were His children so they would not be whoring after other gods. The clothes represented holiness to themselves and to others. God still requires holiness, inside and out, but He provided a better way. He sent Jesus to pay for our sins, once and for all – on the cross.

Now we are able to live holy lives. God, Holy Spirit, will come to live inside of us and help us resist what is unholy. With His Presence actually dwelling in us we can make good choices concerning what is holy. It is a choice we make to invite Him to live inside us. It is our  choice to resist what is unholy to live a holy life. The choice to live holy is because we want to reflect Him who is holy.

Choosing to live holy is about others seeing a reflection of Him in our lives. Similar to the same reasons as the Children of Israel who wore fringe their clothes - we show who we are.  Everything, our clothes, our attitudes, and our habits are important to our testimony. They help us make a statement to everyone who sees us about how we live and we love a holy God.

What we wear can help to remind us that we are not our own. Those who have invited His presence to dwell in them He calls them the Bride of Christ. Christ makes them His own. A bride in a white wedding dress is beautiful and special. The color white represents a purity  reserved for her bridegroom alone. No longer to live only for ourselves, but also for our bridegroom.

We love the phrase, 'Happily ever after.' Scripture says the Bride, the church, will be given to Jesus Christ to dwell with Him forever in Heaven. In the same way the fringe marked the Children of Israel, and what we look like on the outside is the first impression or reflection of what is on the inside, the love for her bridegroom.