Dwelling in God’s word: what does Jesus have to do with how we see ourselves?
How we should think and feel about our physical appearance seems to be an everchanging concept.
One moment, the world tells us true beauty comes from within, and it doesn’t matter what you look like on the outside; the next moment we’re being told that everyone is beautiful and unique; and then we get bombarded with images of stereotypically attractive people and given vast quantities of advice on how we could or should look like them!
No wonder many of us have a confusing relationship with our appearance!
Read 1 Samuel 16:7. Why do you think people tend to judge others by outward appearance?
Now read 1 Samuel 16:11–13. What description is given of David? If God does not look at outward appearance when choosing people for his work, why do you think the Bible includes this physical (and positive) description of David?
The thing that comes first and foremost for God is what’s in our hearts. He doesn’t choose people because they have good looks, but neither does he disregard them because of that. Looks just don’t fit into God’s category of ‘worthiness’.
However, God did create us – in some sense – to appreciate beauty in ourselves and others.
One of the most common Bible verses given to promote ‘body positivity’ in a Christian setting is from Psalm 139.
Read Psalm 139:14, carefully noting the wording. How often could you honestly actually say that to God? Instead, how often are your feelings more along these lines: ‘I don’t really believe I personally am wonderfully made, but I’m happy to say it about others!’
Verses like this one can be lovely for coffee mugs and notebook covers, but it doesn’t stop me from seeing a picture of a celebrity and thinking ‘Maybe the body God intended for me is more like that, I just haven’t exercised enough to get there’.
Or perhaps, you take the other view and prefer to think that you don’t care so much about what your body looks like; that you have higher things to think about and that God would never care about bodies this much.
What is your natural inclination to how you feel about your body?
Can you see any possible issues with caring too little?
Issues around body image are often seen as mostly relating to teenagers whose changing bodies and minds can leave them most susceptible to the pressure of looking a certain way.
But when I reached my 20s, that pressure did not just suddenly disappear for me. Instead, I felt the pressure to look more ‘mature’ – but not too old! In fact, based on how I saw other women act around me, I assumed that whether I was younger or older, I was supposed to try to look around the age of 25 for as long as possible.
Then I had the realisation that I would never look like that ‘optimal’ version of myself. Because as long as I was looking at myself, I’d never be perfect.
Read John 1:14. What does it tell us about the importance of our bodies (our ‘flesh’) to God?
In the book What God Has to Say about Our Bodies, author Sam Allberry writes: ‘Jesus’ incarnation is the highest compliment the human body has ever been paid.’
It’s good to remember that Jesus’ death restores all our relationships, the one with ourselves included! Jesus dying for us on the cross, for our sins and our salvation, means that when God looks at us now, he sees the perfect nature of Jesus in us. And if God sees us like that, we can see ourselves like that too.
How might remembering what Jesus has done for you, and that he lives in you, help you change your narrative around body image?
Emma Strelan is a production assistant with Lutheran Media.
