What Makes You Beautiful
ICS Daily Devotions
1 Peter 3:1-4 (NKJV) Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear. Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel— rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.
The Bible does not say that women cannot dress up, look nice, or have fine apparel. Instead, it says that beauty should not be merely an outward adornment of makeup, nice hair, and fine apparel. Essentially, outward appearance should not be the primary focus of a woman’s life.
These verses emphasise the hidden person of the heart. There is a beauty that comes from within, and it refers to the inner man who is born again and has the nature of God. It is not something we do in our strength, or treat as a law, but more of a natural outflow of our being. This inner being, or the heart, is the born-again part of us, which cannot be seen except by being lived out from the inside out. Therefore, we must live out the hidden person of the heart from the inside out, because that is the real us, who we are in Christ, and a partaker of God’s nature. The incorruptible beauty of gentleness, quiet, kindness, goodness, love, joy, peace, patience, faithfulness, and self-control flows out of our being and exudes in the way we speak and behave. It is a kind of beauty that is more attractive than any adornment on our body.
The opening Scripture also encourages the Christian wife to be submissive to her unbelieving husband because her words and actions can win him over. There are many reasons why we are seeing an increasing number of strong women in the world today. The sin of mankind is a primary reason why women may reject the idea of submission to their husbands. Sin stems from self-centeredness, while coming from a better family and academic background can also be a contributing factor. The fall of man has led to feelings of insecurity and rejection, which can also cause fluctuations in women’s emotions. Sometimes, a strong exterior is a defence mechanism women adopt because of past experiences, such as verbal and physical abuse or having seen how their mothers were treated. Many women strive to be financially independent because they have seen too many women being abandoned and betrayed. It is right and wise to protect themselves, but it is wrong when it hinders them from building a healthy marriage relationship of their own.
If we want a good marriage, the couple must have a marriage covenant attitude, where the husband and wife share everything, such as wisdom, finances, and navigate difficult times together.
Sermon Series：The head of woman is man?
