True Beauty

Last week, a friend mentioned that they couldn’t imagine me wearing make up because they’re so used to seeing me with a natural face. I showed them a picture I’d taken on a typical day at my last job. They confidently declared “you look better without it.” Assuming that perhaps they were simply being polite, I automatically replied “thanks, but that’s not true.” I wish you could have heard the conviction behind their reaffirmation of their previous statement. Isn’t it funny that their standard of my beauty is different from my own…

“Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!” (1 Chronicles 16:29b)

Holiness

The sentiments of the verse above are echoed in several places (e.g. 2 Chronicles 20:21; Psalm 29:2; Psalm 96:9).  However, the primary inferences are:

1. God is holy
2. Holiness is beautiful

God’s holiness is distinctive: “there is none holy as the Lord” (1 Samuel 2:2, KJV). Therefore, He defines what it means to be holy, and thus holiness that is not derived from Him is a counterfeit.  In Psalm 27:4, David states that his one desire is to behold the beauty of the Lord forever. One could argue that God’s holiness is what makes Him so beautiful; it characterises the essence of His being, and thus it is impossible for Him to do anything that is unholy. Such holiness is alien to us as human beings; therefore, it’s easy to see why David would be so enamoured by it.

God invites us to share in His holiness.

God’s holiness is accessible: “as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written,“Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:15-16).  By inviting us to be partakers of His holiness (Hebrews 12:10), God is reminding us that holiness is not exclusively for divine beings. In fact, Peter specifically states that we are part of a “holy nation” (1 Peter 2:9). As a Christian, holiness is not optional. You simply cannot be indifferent towards your unholiness whilst claiming to: a) serve a holy God, b) belong to what should be a holy nation (of fellow believers).

Internal vs External Beauty

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.” (Matthew 23:27)

External beauty is like a whitewashed grave. Numbers 19:16 states that anyone who touches a grave will be unclean. Therefore, the Pharisees whitewashed tombs that might not otherwise be visible so that they didn’t accidentally touch them. Jesus’ rebuke highlights that their beauty is superficial; it is only skin deep.

Holiness isn’t a ‘look.’ It’s an attitude. A way of being.

True beauty is internal. The holiness that you cultivate on the inside invariably leads to beauty on the outside. This beauty is manifested in terms of character rather than appearance. The world has shifting standards of beauty and it can be exhausting (and expensive) to keep up with trends. Proverbs 31:30 is a stark reminder that external beauty fades. In addition, Ezekiel 28:17 highlights that Lucifer’s beauty birthed pridefulness. Are you truly content with looking beautiful on the outside, whilst being ugly on the inside?

Becoming Holy

“Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” (2 Corinthians 7:1)

Perfecting holiness is a lifelong endeavour. God is holy. He doesn’t have try. He just is. You, however, need to have holiness at the forefront of your mind at all times to mirror even a fraction of His holiness.

The pursuit of holiness leads to beauty.

The most encouraging thing about God’s holiness is that it is constant. It isn’t influenced by trends, and it doesn’t change with each passing season. Put simply, you know what you’re aiming for. Society can make you question whether you’re truly beautiful (side note – I didn’t think there’d be so many skin whitening products in Indonesia!). I’ve scrolled through many social media posts and wished I had longer hair, clearer skin, fuller eyebrows, and so much more… But those things are distractions – “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). Allow God to define how you perceive your beauty.

So…

I hope that you’re encouraged to take your internal beauty more seriously, and place less emphasis on external beauty. Whether you do, or don’t wear make up is a personal choice. However, He chose you to be holy (Ephesians 4:1) – not (externally) beautiful. Don’t just be a pretty face!