Do you ever roll out of bed and notice everything hurts, not because you did anything especially strenuous but because your body is on the downhill side of life? Muscles scream and your insides grumble and groan. You get headaches and toothaches and back aches. Things are breaking down, sagging in some places, bulging in others. You look in the mirror and see all the telltale marks of age, stress and exhaustion—dark circles, wrinkles, gray hair, bloodshot eyes. It's not pretty, but it's life.
On those mornings when my body just isn't where I want it to be I'm tempted to feel guilty about all the things I should be doing but fail to do, like exercising more regularly, eating healthier, getting more sleep and so on. I worry about whether or not I'll end up with cancer, or if my spouse will still find me attractive in my forties, my fifties, my sixties... Thoughts like these can consume us if we allow them to, so much so that we go to ridiculous lengths to delay the effects of aging and spend exorbitant amounts of money in the pursuit of perfect health.
Now, we should take care of our bodies—we ought to exercise, eat healthy and avoid over-indulgence. There's nothing wrong with wanting to maintain physical attraction between you and your spouse. But as with everything else, we will do this imperfectly. There will be times of sickness and health, sedentary seasons and active ones. We will gain weight, lose it, and gain it back again. There will be times when we like what we see in the mirror, and times when we don't. But as Christians, we have a hope that goes beyond all the imperfections of this life—physical or otherwise. And that hope is in Christ.
When we are depressed about how we look or how we feel, it's helpful to remember the grace Christ offers us is just as much for our bodies as it is for our souls! It is also encouraging to consider Christ's humanity—the fact that He was both fully God and fully man (John 1:14). We tend to forget that between His birth and death Jesus was subject to the very same weaknesses we are (Hebrews 2:14). Teething. Growing pains. Puberty. He got hungry and tired and sad (Matthew 4:2, 8:24; John 11:35). He was not especially attractive (Isaiah 53:2). And although He never got sick, the Bible tells us He bore our infirmities in His body on the cross (Isaiah 53:4).
Listen to the prophet Isaiah's description of Jesus: "...he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted" (Isaiah 53:2–4).
By all outward appearances Jesus was not the handsome, chiseled, finely-dressed "superhero" type of savior we are so naturally drawn to in this world. If He were alive today, He wouldn't make the cover of People magazine. I doubt He would shop at Whole Foods or have a membership at Gold's Gym. And yet God the Father said of Him, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17). When Samuel was sent by God to anoint the next king of Israel, the Lord told him, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).
God does not see you as a number on a scale. You are more to Him than your hair color or your age. You are not the makeup on your face or the clothes you wear or the food you eat—you are His. As far as life in the flesh goes, Scripture says we are like flowers that come out and wither (Job 14:2). Psalm 103 says, "As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more" (v. 15–16). Because of the consequences of sin our bodies will perish. Age, illness and death may rob us of beauty, health and dignity, but they do not have the final word!
A Day is coming when every tear will be wiped away, and "death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away" (Revelation 12:4). Believer, set your sights on that blessed Day and rest body, mind and soul in the grace of God until it comes to pass! Honor God with the body He has given you, but remember that what is sown is perishable (1 Corinthians 15:42)—it is guaranteed not to last!
The hope of the Gospel is for every part of you—body, mind and soul! Let Christ's death minister to you not only when you go to church, but when you step on the scale. When you look in the mirror. When you spend the whole day in your yoga pants. When you wake up sick, tired, sore, or depressed. And above all, learn to see yourself through His eyes! You are beautiful (Song of Songs 1:15). Precious (Psalm 72:14). Dressed in white (Revelation 7:14). A new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). Righteous and holy (Ephesians 4:24). In Christ's eyes you are the light of the world (Matthew 5:14)!