Approaching God With Your Hat In Your Hand

Clouds and darkness surround Him… —Psalm 97:2

Are you familiar with the idiom “Coming with your hat in your hand”?  It means to approach someone “In a meek or submissive manner. (The removal of one's hat is typically a gesture of respect.)”  Men used to tip their hats or grab the brim and move it downward as a show of respect.  Standing before God with our hats in our hands is comparable to Moses removing his sandals because He was standing on holy ground. When we come to worship collectively or privately, we may come just as we are. But we must be careful that we are not prideful in our attitude toward God thinking that we can come with any heart condition and He can “take it or leave it”.  WYSIWYG - What you see is what you get. You may be thinking, “I would never do that?”  Well, my fear is that many of us do refuse to remove our hats when we stand before God without even thinking about it.

Over the past 30 years, there has been a shift in how people dress on Sunday morning when going to church.  We no longer wear our “Sunday go to meetin’ clothes”, but put on whatever we pull out of the closet.  Today, if a man wears a suit and tie to church many people assume he is either going to preach or is in church leadership.  

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” - 1 Samuel 16:7

God judges the heart of man, not his outward appearance.  The outward appearance is not necessarily a true reflection of the heart.  Don’t misunderstand me.  I don’t think Moses had a suit and tie on when God interrupted his life … he had on work clothes.  This is not about clothing.  It’s about reverence.  In times past, I am certain that many people came to church “all dolled up”, “dressed to the nines” (I love those old sayings) with sin in their heart. They were looking for recognition by men and not God.  

for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. - John 12:43

What I am concerned about is that we may have lost our awareness that we have come to worship a Holy God.  When we approach Him, on any day, it must be with an awareness that the only reason we have access to God is because of Jesus and His sacrifice. The clothes, so long as they are not a carnal distraction, are irrelevant.

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. - Hebrews 4:13-16

The next time you pray .. read the Word of God .. attend a worship service … maybe even take your next breath … keep this in mind.  He is the potter, we are the clay.  We are saved by grace through faith and not works .. there is nothing we can take credit for.  Know that as you stand before God - He is looking at your heart.

So take off your hat!

What does the Lord require of you? But to do justly, To love mercy, and to walk humbly before God. - Micah 6:8

Think about it – Pray about it – Believe it – Walk in it.  Do It! Let your light shine and give God the glory.  

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone