Jessie Rice Sandberg wrote a beautiful song with this title. Do you know what it is suggesting? Here are a few more of the words:
Reflect in me thy beauty, Lord. I want the world to see...
That special glow that shines through me, and shows my love for Thee.
There is a beauty in a relationship with the Lord. There is a beauty in the worship of our Lord. In order to have that beauty in us, we must know what it is. In Leviticus 20:26 God says, “And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the Lord am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine.”
I Peter 1:15-16 “ But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; (that is our walk, our talk, our manner of life), Because it is written, BE YE HOLY; FOR I AM HOLY.”
What is our God saying to us here?
If we really want to be “beautiful for Thee”, then we must meet the required demands for that beauty. It is answered in Psalm 29:2 “Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.”
Beauty = Holiness
We cannot have one without the other. Holiness is not a choice if we’re going to really please God. It is a divine command!
That brings up a question Ladies....
What makes up holiness? How will this “demand” affect our lives? Only those who really, really want to please God, will continue reading....
God told His people in Leviticus that they were to be a “severed” people. A people separated from the world and so distinctly different, that their difference would be obvious! There is to be a distinction between God’s people and worldlings. The noun form for holiness, that is used in the Old Testament gives two different words. One is “apartness” and the other is “sacredness”.
In other words... there must be a sacred apartness - a separation, between the holy and the worldly.
Separation is intrinsically a part of the very definition of holiness.
In order to be truly “Beautiful for Thee”, then God’s people must conform to God’s morality.
This is true Christ-likeness. Do you really want to be beautiful for the Lord? When you hear a term like holiness or separation, do you perceive this as a positive doctrine or a negative one? Do you see it as just a list of do’s and don’ts? Holiness, in the mind of most 21st century Christians has become nothing more than controlled carnality. Yet we can go on thinking we’re okay. The scripture says otherwise....
Hebrews 12:14 “Follow peace with all men, and HOLINESS, without which no man shall see the Lord;”
I submit to you dear ones, that we must take a closer look at what we call “our Christian life”. We must be willing to examine our heart. To be “beautiful for Thee”, there must be a separation from unholiness to God, in our lives. Is this “look” obvious in you?
1. Examine your “conversation”.... your lifestyle and conduct. “All manner of lifestyle” (I Peter 1:15) covers the issues for each generation and each culture of mankind. Understanding I Peter 1:15 is the key to really applying holiness practically.
A. What is it about your lifestyle that shows your “apartness” and indicates holiness?
B. What is it about your music that clearly shows you are separated unto God?
C. What is it about your fashion, the way you wear your hair, your jewelry, your make-up, that indicates your separation unto God?
These are all questions that are well worth the asking for any woman who desires to be “Beautiful for Thee”.
Are you living in holiness.......or are you living in controlled carnality?
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