Beautiful People are the Worst
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Today seems like a good day to talk about beauty.
Today seems like a good day to talk about beauty.
Investment banking analysts estimate that the global beauty industry—consisting of skin care worth $24 billion; make-up, $18 billion; $38 billion of hair-care products; and $15 billion of perfumes—is growing at up to 7% a year, more than twice the rate of the developed world's GDP. And that doesn’t even include the fashion, fitness, and plastic surgery industries.
In fact, there is more than a cottage industry in reality tv that’s centered around so-called beauty, from ATM, to the Kardashians, to all the “Real Housewives” shows where they use real collagen and real botox while wearing designer clothes that no real housewife would wear.
And I think this is why we have a twisted relationship with beauty: we love when we have it, we love to admire and imitate it, but most of us secretly think that Beautiful People are the Worst. (apologies to Jennifer Eddins)
Have you ever felt self conscious about your beauty? Or maybe just some new piece of clothing? Women tend to do this more than men, feel self conscious about their beauty so when receiving a compliment, they deflect or self deprecate; “You look amazing in that dress!” “Oh this old thing? I still look like a blimp.” So we spend most of our lives trying to look like the beautiful, denying when we look beautiful, and rooting against the beautiful that’s not us.
So I say this
When you think of beauty in old age, male or female, who do you think of?
Analysts at Goldman Sachs estimate that the global beauty industry—consisting of skin care worth $24 billion; make-up, $18 billion; $38 billion of hair-care products; and $15 billion of perfumes—is growing at up to 7% a year, more than twice the rate of the developed world's GDPWhen you think of beauty in old age, male or female, who do you think of?
When you think of beauty in old age, male or female, who do you think of?
Well the Bible tells a story of beauty that trumps all those names, and still shows us the ugliness that’s in all our hearts...
Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, “I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.” When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. And when the princes of Pharaoh saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh. And the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house. And for her sake he dealt well with Abram; and he had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels.
But the Lord afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. So Pharaoh called Abram and said, “What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her for my wife? Now then, here is your wife; take her, and go.” And Pharaoh gave men orders concerning him, and they sent him away with his wife and all that he had.
Haran (Turkey) to Egypt over 1000 miles on foot. And after all that, Abraham says, “I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance...” at around 90 years of age! Whatever! The Worst!
Beauty alone never satisfies
Beauty alone never satisfies
We will do almost anything to try and get/keep it (beauty)
We will do almost anything to try and get/keep it (beauty)
Abram was willing to sin to keep the beauty of his wife but more importantly the beauty of his life. But Abram couldn’t see the beauty in obedience, the beauty in trusting God.
Abram used a half truth about his half sister...
The old saying,
Beauty is but skin deep,
And ugly to the bone.
Beauty soon fades away,
Beauty is but skin deep, And ugly to the bone. Beauty soon fades away, But ugly holds its own.
But ugly holds its own.
Beauty alone never satisfies
Beauty alone never satisfies
Beauty into her 80s and 90s was not enough, in that culture, women were ostracized if they were not married, and still if they bore no children. Trusting God was not enough. In , we read about Sarai, Hagar, Ishmael...
You know what’s worse than beautiful people? IMPATIENT BP! RIght?
The old saying,
Beauty is but skin deep, And ugly to the bone. Beauty soon fades away, But ugly holds its own.
And ugly to the bone.
Beauty soon fades away,
But ugly holds its own.
Is it me or are beautiful people more impatient than us ugly folks? I think it’s just we notice impatience in beauty more than the ordinary. And that’s why...
The old saying,
Beauty is but skin deep, And ugly to the bone. Beauty soon fades away, But ugly holds its own.
Sin always ruins beauty
Sin always ruins beauty
Why? Our perception of beauty is something or someone seemingly without FLAW. And that’s what sin is, from crows feet by our eyes to a shocking disfigurement, sin ruins symmetry and perfection.
You see, sin and Jesus are life’s two great equalizers: no matter our personal physical beauty or internal beauty of personality or intelligence, sin makes us all ugly. And no matter our external or internal ugliness, Jesus can and will make us all beautiful. And that is why we must remember this fact...
Jesus always restores beauty
Jesus always restores beauty
Your life needs a makeover
Even with Abram and Sarai’s disobedience and ugliness, God made their lives new, giving them new names, Abraham and Sarah, and told Abraham that He would give them a son and to name him Isaac. But still Sarah doubted this story to the point of laughter. But God had foreseen her response because the name Isaac means laughter! What a beautiful plan God had to redeem Abraham and Sarah’s sin.
You see, Abram had arguably the most beautiful woman in the world, and still he wouldn’t die for her. But Jesus has, at times, the most ugly of brides, us, the church, and he would and did die for us. Why? To make us beautiful.
You see, Abram had arguably the most beautiful woman in the world, and still he wouldn’t die for her. But Jesus has, at times, the most ugly of brides, us, the church, and he would and did die for us. Why? To make us beautiful.
God made Eve the mother of humankind, and God made Sarah the mother of the Jewish faith and bloodline of the Messiah. And even in the NT, Sarah is named as someone to be imitated.
You see, Abram had arguably the most beautiful woman in the world, and still he wouldn’t die for her. But Jesus has, at times, the most ugly of brides, us, the church, and he would and did die for us. Why? To make us beautiful.
But like Abram and Sarai, because of sin, your life needs a makeover. You need the true beauty of Jesus making beauty from the ashes of a life lived by your rules. And when we see the world and the people in it like Jesus does, we start defining beauty differently and we stop rooting against people, beautiful and ugly alike, and start seeing Jesus as the only answer to the ugliness in the people in our lives and in your and my life as well.
We’re all ugly, because of sin. But we all can have unfading and unsurpassing beauty, because of Christ.
Outward/inward esteem/third way god esteem
We want perfect beauty now in our surroundings, experiences, and relationships; what want Heaven on Earth.
Another way Jesus turns our envy to beauty is when we see other people not suffering or hurting like we are. We see their beautiful life and wonder, “What did I do to deserve this? Why are they spared?” First off, their beautiful life might not be so beautiful. Instagram and Facebook posts are just a sliver of reality. We don’t know how or what these people with beautiful lives are really feeling.
Second, Jesus reminds us of the beauty and peace in the certainty that our God is a God of mercy and grace. And so there’s beauty in pondering the possibility that God knows that person with a beautiful life couldn’t handle what you’re going through right now. And that God wants to show you even more beauty in getting through what you’re going through and then walking alongside someone else that will walk the same path in the future.
So when we suffer wounds and scars, the world tells us to try and cover them up with makeup and masks, with superhero costumes of our own sewing, when Jesus uses our wounds and scars to comfort and caution others walking or about to walk that same path. That’s true beauty in a flawed world.
The old saying,
Beauty is skin deep, but ugly to the bone. Beauty soon fades away, But ugly holds its own.
Without Jesus Christ as your source of perfection and true beauty, every pursuit of perfection in your appearance, your intellect, your schooling or occupation, your reputation and relationships…all your pursuit of beauty will fade and turn ugly, because of our flawed hearts. But when you turn to Jesus, He always restores beauty to our pursuits as long as we are pursuing Him.
You see, Abram had arguably the most beautiful woman in the world, and still he wouldn’t die for her. But Jesus has, at times, the most ugly of brides, us, the church, and he would and did die for us. Why? To make us beautiful.