ADORNED OR NAKED?

Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; 

But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. 

For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands" (1 Peter 3:3-5). 

"What matters is not your outer appearance—the styling of your hair, the jewelry you wear, the cut of your clothes—but your inner disposition. Cultivate inner beauty, the gentle, gracious kind that God delights in. The holy women of old were beautiful before God that way, and were good, loyal wives to their husbands" (1 Peter 3:3-5, The Message). 

One of the greatest errors of humanity is the thought that the face, arms and feet we see are all that there is to the creature called man. There is therefore overt concentration on adorning and beautifying the visible parts of our being. But the real you is far more than a nice haircut, muscular arms, athletic built, and designer suits. Lady, you've got to know that the real you is much more than trendy hairstyles, a smooth face, a nice figure, designer perfume, shoes and bags, and all the stuff that makes you a social celebrity. The Bible would have us know that the more important dimension to human being is the hidden man constituted by your soul and spirit. 

You may not have realised this, that your soul wears clothes just as your body does. This is what the Bible is trying to get us to understand in today's Scripture verses. But whereas your body needs shirts, trousers, blouses and skirts which could be of silk, woollen or cotton material, the clothing of your inner man is of a different substance. The adornment of the soul consists of 'garments' like meekness, gentleness, kindness, patience, humility, submissiveness, and a quiet spirit. The apostle Peter urges us, for instance, that all children of God should clothe themselves with humility (1 Peter 5:5). In another place, the Bible refers to the garments of the inner man as the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). 

A naked soul in a gorgeously dressed body is of no spiritual value. Ultimately, it will also be of no physical value. It is like a hungry soul in a well-fed body; it will continually breed inner frustrations and general dissatisfaction. Many marriages have crashed because the contracting partners rated external comeliness above inner beauty. Many other social relationships have gone sour for the same reason. If you are of them that prize external beauty at the expense of inner beauty, get ready for frustrations and disappointments in the journey of life. External beauty without inner beauty would ultimately be found to be a waste of life. 

This is why the Bible admonishes Christians to place emphasis on inward adornment. Moreover, God relates more with our inner being than with our physical presentation. That which catches God's fancy is not man's facial beauty but the beauty of the heart. Let us note also that even though women are particularly mentioned in today's Scripture, there is no gainsaying the obvious fact that both men and women are expected to take equal heed to this pious admonition. For as we have women who are obsessed with fashion, so do we have men who are crazy about swag. However, the Christian that will please God must learn to dress his soul in fine linen which is "the righteousness of saints" (Revelation 19:8).