Question : That chapter 3 of 1Peter has been for long based on to tell us Women how to wear, what not to put to our bodies and so much more. But when I try to read closely, I don’t seem to find any concept or next to clothes.What exactly is the Author trying to put accross?
Response: It is painful and pagan to consistently attend a worship place whose leaders are fashion police officers always patrolling one’s hair style, dress code, and which body part has jewellery on.
It becomes pagan when scripture becomes the justifier of cultural tradition and institutional policy. I would rather a worship place (Church) hangs a notice that is as honest as Paul was when he said: NOT THE LORD BUT MYSELF (1cor 7:12,25). Apostle Paul wanted his followers to distinguish between his opinion and the word of God. And I think we pastors should emulate this in all our rulings and stop baptising our opinions with the word of God.
The passage in perspective is not a biblical fashion reference magazine where all Christians should read and know how to dress. The context is strictly about the submissive relationship between a husband and a wife (1Peter 3:1-2,5-6, Ephesians 5:22).
The Bible argues that submission is the real beauty of a wife (Vs 3-4). Let us be clear here and stay within the context, the text is very particular and punctual and therefore not talking about any woman (gender) but WIVES. So the Apostle was cautioning the married women not to focus on the outward beauty more than they focus on their inner (brain and heart) beauty.
This passage reminds married women to not give their husbands an excuse of I couldn’t cook, do laundry because I did my nails. I can’t do this or that because of my dress, hair, or nails. This is what the text is about.
Shouldn’t married women then visit beauty parlors etc.? No, the scripture does not say that they shouldn’t but instead they shouldn’t consider that to the PRIMARY BEAUTY but consider this to be secondary beauty.
Fellow men will understand this analogy…in those days when we were dating you could have more than two potential ladies for marriage.
And in some cases it happened that there was this BEAUTIFUL, WELL-CURVED BODY, BUMMY (for those of us who like such), tall, nice toes, fingers and nails. but morally ugly and another could be, not as physically beautiful as the other… but morally beautiful. Most men, decided to marry the latter not the physically beautiful one.
In fact most nice looking married men have wives with unlikely looks, and the reasons are now obvious. After all it hard to find a beautiful lady pays attention to her inner as much as she focuses on posing before the mirror and the camera.
That Apostle Peter is talking about. We shouldnt dwell so much on how we look externally at the cost of who we are internally…though physical beauty should be on our daily agenda too.
This is what Jesus said to us through his rebuke to the Scribes and Pharisees:
Woe to you Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites for you cleanse the outside of the cup and of the plate but inside they are full of extortion and rapacity. Wow to you Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you are like whitewashed tombs which outwardly appear beautiful, but within they are full of dead men’s bones and uncleanness_ (Mathew 23:25,27).
As we visit our beauty palors and professionals, so should we always ask heaven to beautify our minds and hearts too… For there is nothing as dangerous as a beautiful bitch.
God bless you, I invoke Truth, Reason and Faith.
Pr ITM White
The Gospel Hawker
iTiS Well of Worship Ministries (John 4:24)
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24) 