What a Woman's Skin Says

I saw this comic on Facebook and was quite struck by it.  The artist catches us with the irony and in the process makes such a good point: While women here are eyeing women in Arabic countries and thinking how sad it is that they are treated by men like objects, the women here are actually being treated as objects themselves.

This summer, women will flood the beaches dressed exactly like the woman in the picture.  They'll give you a plethora of reasons why it is okay to dress that way.  And if you happen to say, "You know, when you dress that way, men will simply ogle you and see you as an object," they'll respond, "Well, that's their problem."  This is one of the excuses I hate the most.  I hate it because as a Christian, I hold to Romans 14:13: "Make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister."  What a Christian woman is saying with the previous statement is that she really doesn't care if she makes men stumble.

Now, the popular retort, even from Christians, will be, "Who are you to judge?"  Indeed, if you look at Romans 14, the passage I took the previous verse from, you will see that in that passage Paul is discussing the gray areas in the lives of believers (in his day, specifically eating meat offered to idols) and he says this, "Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another" (Romans 14:13).  So, maybe in an applicational way Paul is saying that men do need to get over themselves and let women do what they want.  But, not quite.

You see, Paul goes on to say this: "If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died...Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall" (Romans 14:15, 19-21).  Taking an applicational view of Paul's point in regards to the current discussion, Paul is saying, "Yes, you are fine with your body.  Fine.  God is fine with your body, too.  But, if your body and the display of it is causing a brother to stumble, cover it up.  When you do not, you are not showing love to your brother.  In fact, you are leading your brother to a fall."

From Paul's passage, I take that I cannot run around passing judgment on others in gray areas.  In other words, you aren't going to find me down at the beaches this summer using my Bible to hammer the heads of Christian girls in immodest clothing.  But I also take from Paul's passage that Christian girls who flaunt themselves in front of men and could care less that they are causing them to stumble have made a wrongful choice.

So, what does a woman's skin say in immodest clothing?  I don't care about my brothers in Christ.  I don't want to act in love.  I just want to be free to show off what I want to.  (And often, cause I want the attention guys throw my way).

Christian women, you do not need that kind of attention!  God has not made you an object to be ogled by men!  "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight" (1 Peter 3:3-4).  Perhaps if Peter had lived now, he would have added in, "or the lack of clothing," because his point is that women should find their beauty in their spirits, not in the displaying of themselves to men.

"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised" (Prov. 31:30).  Christian women, you will not always have your beauty.  Inevitably, no matter how many youth remedies you try, you will become a wrinkled old woman with white or gray hair.  If you have placed your worth in your looks, you will face an identity crisis.  If you have married a man for whom your looks were a primary factor, you will face discontent in marriage.  It is not worth it to put your value in your looks.  It is not worth it to sit on the beach and attract guys who care only about your body.  As a child of God, your body should be valued.  It should be valued by a man who really loves it because he loves all of you, and most of all, the inner you.  This man is the man you should seek to attract.  He will love you even in a one piece because he will see the fear of the Lord expressed in your soul.

Christian women, this summer, as you make choices on how to dress, remember the following two points: 1) Don't let yourself become a stumbling block that trips up your brothers and 2) Do yourself a favor and find your beauty where it really is: in your godly soul.  This may be a life change, but trust me, it is a good one.  I speak from experience because I am married to a man who loves me just the way I am, body and soul.  I know that even as my body changes, it doesn't affect his love for me.  I also know that I don't want any man but my husband seeing my exposed skim because I know he's loving it in a godly way.  I can't guarantee that anyone but him is doing that if I am flaunting my skin in front of other men.  For me, this love of my husband gives me safety and comfort knowing I'm not an object to please, but a woman to be loved truly and deeply.