What Makes a Woman or a Man Truly Beautiful and Attractive?
Summary
Beauty is a $532 billion dollar industry. We human beings are quite literally obsessed with beauty. Some are even addicted to looking “perfect” all the time. And we are “hard-wired” to respond positively to everything beautiful.
But is beauty, or wanting to be beautiful, a bad thing? Not at all. But like everything in life, we can miss out on another aspect of beauty, which is far more important.
So here are the five biblical truths about real and true beauty:
1. Every human being has been created by God with innate worth, value, and beauty.
You may not think that you are all that beautiful or handsome by worldly standards, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have value or worth as a person. Since you were created in the image of God, that makes you valuable, worthy, and beautiful! You’re as unique as a single snowflake.
2. It is your heart — and not your face, height, or body — that makes you truly attractive.
Having a handsome face, a muscular build, and a commanding height and presence is attractive and impressive, but not to God. He looks beyond the physical. What makes a person truly beautiful and attractive is having a good, loving, kind, and righteous heart.
3. Don’t be fooled by appearances — what’s truly attractive is a person who fears God.
Charm and beauty are prized and idolized in our society today. But you and I know it’s not going to last. Fame and popularity is only temporary. Let’s never forget Who really matters — the One who gave us life, and Who sustains our very existence.
4. Working out your lungs and muscles is good; working out your character is better.
There’s nothing wrong with exercise. In fact, it’s good for you! But when you are spending far more hours in the gym building a great body than building godly character through daily prayer and Bible study, you may be focusing on the wrong priorities.
5. A gentle and a quiet spirit is what makes a woman truly beautiful in the eyes of God.
An angry, rebellious, and contentious woman is unattractive, no matter how physically beautiful she is. So outward beauty is desirable, but inner beauty is mandatory.
We can only do so much about our genetics and our looks. But we have far more control over our character and our attitude.
What makes a person (whether man or woman) truly beautiful — truly attractive — is a godly attitude and character that flows out of a God-fearing heart. So forget about “looking perfect.” Instead, strive to be perfect in your character, where it matters.
Full Transcript
Would you like to become a more beautiful and attractive person?
There is a poem by John Keats which begins like this: “A thing of beauty is a joy forever.”
But the question is, what kind of beauty is a joy forever? Specifically, what makes a woman (or a man) truly beautiful and attractive?
In this episode, you will learn five biblical truths — five practical ways — on how YOU can become a truly beautiful and attractive person. Let’s discuss...
Beauty is a $532 billion dollar industry. Beauty vloggers, brand ambassadors, and social media influencers on YouTube, Instagram, and Pinterest are driving this trend.
Women in the US, for example, spend around $3,000 every year in cosmetics, according to the New York Post. Skincare, haircare, make-up, perfumes, toiletries and deodorants, and oral cosmetics are the main product categories of the cosmetics market.
Skincare was the leading category, accounting for about 39 percent of the global market. Haircare products made up a further 21 percent, while make-up accounted for 19 percent in 2018. Skincare has been forecast to remain the most profitable product category.
We human beings are quite literally obsessed with beauty. Some are even addicted to looking “perfect” all the time. And we are “hard-wired” to respond positively to everything beautiful.
Maybe that’s part of the reason why we love k-dramas — and why we idolize our celebrities, our beauty queens, and our models. We put them high up on a pedestal and pay them the highest salaries in the world. We may not want to admit it, but we secretly want to be like them, because certain studies have shown that “beautiful people” get preferential treatment wherever they go.
But is beauty, or wanting to be beautiful, a bad thing? Not at all. But like everything in life, we can miss out on another aspect of beauty, which is far more important. Jesus (Yahshua) said:
Luke 16:15 — “For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.”
So here are the five biblical truths about real and true beauty:
1. Every human being has been created by God with innate worth, value, and beauty.
You may not think that you are all that beautiful or handsome by worldly standards, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have value or worth as a person. Since you were created in the image of God, that makes you valuable, worthy — and yes, beautiful! After all, God doesn’t make junk.
Psalms 139:14 — I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.
Did you know that it’s rare, if not impossible, for any two snowflakes to be exactly alike? That’s right! Every single one is totally unique. Every single one is special and different. So are you!
2. It is your heart — and not your face, height, or body — that makes you truly attractive.
For all you guys out there: Don’t you wish you were taller, bigger, or more “macho”? Wouldn’t you expect Israel’s future king to look like that? Well, that’s what the prophet Samuel thought.
But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. 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
David did not measure up to those human standards when compared with his older brothers.
Sure, we can’t deny that having a handsome face, a muscular build, and a commanding height and presence is attractive and impressive, but not to God. He looks beyond the physical — beyond the superficial. What makes a person truly beautiful and attractive is having a good, loving, kind, and righteous heart.
3. Don’t be fooled by appearances — what’s truly attractive is a person who fears God.
Proverbs 31:30 — Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.
Charm and beauty are prized and idolized in our society today. But you and I know it’s not going to last. How many celebrities do you know who have soared to popularity like a shooting star, only to fade back years later into the unknown blackness of space? That’s what happens when we forget Who really matters — the One who gave us life, and Who sustains our very existence.
4. Working out your lungs and muscles is good; working out your character is better.
1 Timothy 4:7-8 — But reject profane and old wives' fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with exercise and working out. In fact, it’s good for you! But when you are spending far more hours in the gym building a great body than building godly character through daily prayer and Bible study, you may be focusing on the wrong priorities.
According to psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross:
“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.”
5. A gentle and a quiet spirit is what makes a woman truly beautiful in the eyes of God.
1 Peter 3:1-6 — “Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear. Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel— rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror.”
Society may mock this advice as hopelessly old-fashioned, but the Bible is never out-of-date. Its principles have stood the test of time, and they transcend both culture and geography. An angry, rebellious, and contentious woman is unattractive, no matter how physically beautiful she is.
In closing, let me tell you a story of two beautiful queens...
Once upon a time, in the ancient land of Persia, there was a beautiful queen named Vashti.
In the third year of the reign of King Ahasuerus, he threw a feast for all the people and nobles, after which he called for Queen Vashti to be presented before all the people in the kingdom...
But Queen Vashti refused to come, to the great embarrassment of the King.
The King was furious and asked his advisers what must be done, since Vashti had just set a bad example for the other women to disrespect and disobey their own husbands. The advice of Memucan was to remove her as queen and to select another queen more deserving than she.
After an intensive search, a young Jewish woman named Hadassah won the heart of the King. He loved her more than all the other young women. We now know her by her more popular name, Queen Esther. Not only was she very beautiful on the outside, she was equally beautiful on the inside. With grace, dignity, and courage, she risked her own life to save her people from certain death and destruction.
Here’s the bottom line: Outward beauty is desirable, but inner beauty is mandatory. As Mandy Hale once said, “Outward beauty pleases the eye, but inner beauty captivates the heart.”
The truth is, there is only so much we can do about our genetics and our looks. But we have far more control over our character and our attitude.
As Randi G. Fine once wrote, “Outer beauty is a gift. Inner beauty is an accomplishment.”
What makes a person (whether man or woman) truly beautiful — truly attractive — is a godly attitude and character that flows out of a God-fearing heart.
Supermodel Elle Macpherson once said: “I believe real beauty is soul deep, not skin deep. It’s a way of being, a way of living.”
So forget about “looking perfect.” Instead, strive to be perfect in your character, where it matters:
“For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.
For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.
For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.
For beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day.
For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone.”
~ Sam Levenson
That will make you a truly beautiful and attractive person!
Until next week, this is Daniel Macaraeg of BiblicalTruths.TV, reminding you to always be growing, always be giving, and always be grateful.
