LET THE BEAUTY OF JESUS BE SEEN IN ME! -- Devotional for August 16, from "Good Seeds"

Clothe yourselves in humility toward one another. (I Peter 5:5)

Scripture refers to clothing a lot more than we might expect. I say this because the Bible is a spiritual book, emphasizing spiritual themes and qualities. It’s always taking us from the exterior to the interior, from skin deep to the deep, inner soul. It doesn’t deny the outer man; indeed, recognizing its proper place, it rejoices in it. One false faith considers the body to be evil. This belief leads to one of two extremes: 1) It separates the body from the spirit to the point of giving permission for indulging fleshly passions with impunity; 2) It denies the body its normal functions and desires, casting aspersions on all the things God gave us “richly to enjoy” such as food, drink, marital love, and God-honoring good times. We were created in the image of God, giving us an instinctive awareness of and longing for the Eternal God and eternal life. But as he was given a body to house his soul, a man is not a man apart from that body. Before the fall, the first man and woman were pure inside and out, free of sin, and free from any harm from the elements, animals or illness – all while totally naked. Adam and Eve were souls, living in a body, with only their skin for clothing! Of course, sin changed all that. But God has begun the process of changing it back again, of restoring paradise, reversing the effects of sin by eradicating its power through the atoning cross-work of Christ. Oh, we still wear clothes, of course, for sin is still very much with us and all around us. But at every opportunity God’s Word reminds us that life is no longer just about the external body with its wrappings and trappings. Solomon was a man who went far astray from God’s way with his perennial “Miss Israel” beauty pageant in his court, but when he came to his senses he gave us God’s mind on the subject: “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised” (Proverbs 31:30). Peter echoed that theme in his exhortation to the fairer sex: “Let not your adornment be merely external: braiding the hair, putting on makeup, wearing jewelry, and worrying over your wardrobe – but rather let your adornment be a pure heart and respectful attitude” (I Peter 3:2,3). In the end-times vision Christ gave to John, the saints in heaven are always dressed in white, representing worthiness, a faith-gift (better than a face-lift!) from Christ Himself (Rev. 3:4,5; 4:4; 7:13). But there’s another garment Christians can wear right now: the robe of humility. If we try to conjure up this trait on our own, it quickly turns to “putting on airs,” and our pride and shame are as exposed as the Emperor in his “New Clothes.” But when we “clothe ourselves with humility,” the nakedness of our sin is covered by the beauty and purity of Jesus Himself.