Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight (1 Peter 3:3-4 NIV).Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight (1 Peter 3:3-4 NIV).
The world places a high premium on feminine beauty. That perhaps explains why the cosmetic industry is a big business. This business has made great in roads into Christianity of our era, and sadly, our Christian girls/sisters have been caught in a mad rush to make themselves physically beautiful the way the world does. This is usually informed by the desire to look more beautiful or attractive, which in its sense is not sinful. However, what makes it sinful is the sole reliance on the external beauty instead of trusting God for a beauty that never fades. Peter the Apostle tells us clearly that the things we do to change our appearance and make ourselves more physically appealing are not the things that make us beautiful. Our beauty comes from something deeper – something that lasts. So, what is this thing that lasts hence makes it ‘unfading beauty?’ Simply, it means something that is not corrupted or decayed; something that is imperishable, and this cannot be sourced from the outward body. Remember, there is no body that time won’t age. There is no skin that will not wrinkle. There is no hair that won’t turn gray. Definitely, with the passage of time, there will be dentures, sagging and hearing loss. We must allow ourselves to accept that. Therefore, instead of spending so much energy and time on trying to maintain a physical body that will one day die and decay in the ground, why not chase what God sees as beauty? Why not commit ourselves to maintaining the beauty that is rather eternal? God never uses one’s outward physical appearance to determine the inner beauty. When Samuel the Prophet examined Jesse’s sons in search of the next king of Israel, he was impressed with Eliab’s appearance. But God told Samuel: Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart (1 Sam. 16:7-8 NIV).
Nothing in a person’s outward appearance impresses God. God looks at the heart, where inner beauty oozes from. The heart is that part of man which is invisible to the physical eye, but plain before God. Recognizing the quality God sees and cherishes in the life of a man, determines His concept of beauty. Peter directed Christian women to focus on the inner, spiritual quality in order to be truly beautiful. Peter is not prohibiting the usage of nice clothes or good hairstyle, but he is simply saying that a gentle and quiet spirit is even more beautiful in God’s eyes. However, just as a beautiful appearance can become ugly through neglect, a beautiful life of righteousness can equally become ugly through neglect. Spiritual beauty must never be taken for granted or be neglected. We must remember that just as it is possible to be a celebrity in society and be ugly in the eyes of God, it is also possible to be unknown in society, yet radiantly beautiful in His eyes. It is in the light of this that I pray that God’s continual blessings rest on you as you strive to see yourself through His eyes, to see that hidden part of you where the actual beauty lies.
UNFADING BEAUTY
