Unfading Beauty | Fortify Series

Well, good morning. Today, we're continuing our series called Fortify, building strong families and strong foundations, impacting generations. Hopefully, this has been an encouraging series to you. Today, we're gonna be talking about biblical womanhood. Biblical womanhood, the title of the sermon is unfading beauty, unfading beauty. You see how we did this last week was act like men? This week is women, you're so beautiful. That's what we're gonna do today. All right, so let me just say to all the men in the room, I'm gonna say to you something similar to what I said to the ladies last week. The Holy Spirit doesn't need your help, neither does your health need your help either. So this is one of those sermons that if I say something affirming to the women, you say amen. If I say something that's rebuking, you just sit and take notes and keep your head down. That's what you do, all right? And for all you men who were tough last week and whispered in my ear on the way out, man, I hope you give it to the ladies like you did to us today. Your names will show up on the screen at some point in the morning. It won't be so tough after that. He's lying, I promise, I didn't say anything.

So listen, husbands, seriously, I'm gonna give you some stuff to write down so you'll know what to pray for for your wife and for your daughters and for your future, your daughter-in-laws is, this is what you're praying for. Young men in the room, I'm giving you the profile of who she must be becoming to date her and to marry her. So let's look at what God's Word says. And then for the ladies in the room, married and single. Let me just make a confession to you as I preach on womanhood. I've never been a woman, all right? Now, in our culture, I have to say that, right? So, man, I've gotta say it. Look, here's why. I have no context for the world you live in other than I live with three women, all right? And that does not make me an expert. I just know that, right? I will say this. My son recently moved out to go to college and my oldest daughter moved back in to finish her senior year in college, which means that overnight, I live now in a sorority house. I am the only man standing right now. So here's what I wanna do. I wanna encourage you ladies this morning. And I will say this.

While last week we spoke really directly to men, we speak to men like men. I do wanna be more gentle with you. At the same time, one of the kind of the ways that pastors handle the subject of womanhood in our culture because of the fear of backlash of culture or whiplash of culture, they soft pedal or they kinda dance around the issues of womanhood from a biblical perspective out of fear. Just need you to know I'm not that guy, all right? Because I can't love you well unless I tell you the truth about what God's Word says. And I know the women of New Beginnings want that, amen? And so we're gonna dive right in. So 1 Peter chapter three is where you're going to be. So you make your way to 1 Peter. Let me lay some groundwork by going to Genesis myself. It'll be on the screen. You don't have to go there. I'm gonna set a framework up for biblical womanhood. Now, let me make one more precursor as you're turning to 1 Peter. I'm not gonna cover everything. I'm not gonna cover everything that I want to today. In fact, I'm gonna actually cut back of what I've already preached today. But here's what we're gonna do. Tomorrow night, we're gonna be having a Facebook Live. So my wife and I,

and we'll probably have another couple on there with us, are gonna talk about what we've talked about the last three weeks and be able for you to come in live, ask questions, and have some dialogue about this. So there's more I wanna say, and we're gonna create some space to say that. And so if you want more input about what God says about marriage, family, men and women, tomorrow night, we'll get all that information out to you this afternoon or tomorrow, all right? So Genesis chapter one is where I'm gonna be. I wanna unpack a little bit about biblical womanhood. Here's what the scripture says. So God created man in his own image. In the image of God, he created him male and female. He created them, all right? So we understand male and female both created in the image of God. God blessed them and God said to them, "'Be fruitful and multiply. "'Fill the earth and subdue it "'and have dominion over the fish of the sea "'and over the birds of the heaven, "'over every living thing that moves on the earth.'" Now, the reason we go here is because I want us to make sure we understand this, that God creates mankind to be his image bearer. It means that we are created in what's called the imago dei, that we bear the image of God.

It's stamped on the soul of all of humanity. And why this is important to preach on men and women is because we've gotta understand in God creating a creature, a thing that's gonna bear his image, he creates humanity and within humanity, he creates two distinct genders, male and female, man and woman. And here's why it's important, that when God wanted to create something to display his image, he didn't just create man and he didn't just create woman, he creates man and woman. And here's what that means. It means that men are created in the image of God and there are character traits and aspects of God nature. that we reflect as men that women do not reflect. And there are character traits of God in his nature that displays his image in glory that women portray in their life, that display in their life, that are unique for women that are not in men. So as we see both man and woman, we see a more clear picture of the image of God. Does that make sense? Here's why that's important. Here's what that means. It means that both men and women are equal in value, dignity, and worth,

and both should be treated in that way. This is important that we understand this. Even though there is a distinction in role and calling and responsibility of how we display the glory of God, there is a complete equality. So last week I gave kind of a definition of biblical manhood to men, and I gave you one word, responsibility. Responsibility. Women, I'm gonna give you one. It's not one word. Listen to what it is, all right? Write this down if you're taking notes. So I'm gonna give you this. I'm not gonna unpack it because there's gonna be more I'm gonna say. It's gonna make sense as I move through the sermon. But let me give you, what does it mean for a woman to walk in biblical womanhood according to Genesis 1 and 2? Listen to this. A woman, so to walk in biblical womanhood means you're a woman who knows her worth is rooted in the image of God, surrenders to Jesus as Lord, and joyfully fulfills her calling to co-reign in creation through submission to her husband, nurturing her family,

and devotion to God's mission. Like, this is what it means for a woman to walk in biblical womanhood. Now, I know that some of you are like, well, I'm single. How do I do that? Because there's aspects that require marriage. So here's what I would say to you. You walk in whatever, listen, applies to you in the season you are in. That make sense? And so if you're not married yet, you're preparing for that season of life, that means that you walk in submission to the Lord, and you walk in obedience to God's mission, and that you are nurturing relationships and fostering relationships that are around you. Does that make sense? But according to what we see in Genesis 1 and 2, this is what we see. So now, the reason I give that, because now in 1 Peter, Peter is gonna show us in a practical level, what does it mean in real life for a woman to walk in biblical womanhood. Now, this is just one snapshot of many snapshots that we get throughout the scripture showing us this lived out in the life of a godly woman. But 1 Peter 3 is where we're gonna be. If you're there, say the Bible is true.

All right, here's what it says. Verse one, likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives. When they see your respectful and pure conduct, do not let your adorning be external, the braiding of your hair, the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear. Let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty. That's why we're calling the sermon unfading beauty, the imperishable beauty of gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious, for this is how the holy women of, the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands. As Sarah obeyed Abraham and called him Lord, you are her children if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening. So here's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna walk through this and we're gonna see some application here of what does it look like for a woman to be a woman who walks in unfading beauty, to walk in biblical womanhood. Here's number one, write this down.

The first thing we see is this, is that she humbly surrenders to Jesus and lovingly submits to her husband. She humbly surrenders to Jesus by lovingly submitting to her husband. Peter says it very clearly here in verse one. He says, likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands. So the word subject there is the idea of submission. So he very clearly calls women to willingly embrace the God-given role in the home that God has given them by submitting to our honor or acknowledging the role of leader that God has given the husband within the house. Now, this requires an understanding of who Jesus is. Now, the context of this is important. Why is it important? Because Peter, in this section, chapter two, and in chapter three, much of what he's talking about is how do believers live in a world of ungodliness and display the work of the gospel in their life? So how do we live in a broken culture in a way that gives glory to God? And so he's giving a number of different relationships we do that in. And then in chapter three, he begins to talk about the home and he says, wives, submit or be subject to your own husbands. So in other words, he's saying, how do godly women display the work of the gospel in their life if they're married?

They walk in submission to their husbands. Now, the immediate context of this, he's gonna say in a moment, so that even if they're not a believer or they're not walking in obedience to the word, you might win them over. So watch this, ladies. He's actually calling you to this in the most difficult circumstances. Like even if you're married to an unbeliever, this is how you should live. Even if your husband's not a great leader in your home, this is how you should live. Why? Because oftentimes what we do is we see commands of the scripture and then we justify why we don't do it by going, well, if they would have done better or if they would be a better leader, then I would do that. But what Peter is saying here, ladies, listen, even if the marriage isn't what you desire, you walk in your calling. That make sense? Now, when I use the word submission, some of you were like, like something doesn't feel right about that because we live in a culture that has a lot to say about the roles of men and women and all of that and God's word is oftentimes offensive.

And let me just say something about it. That just didn't sit well with you. Here are the two questions you need to ask. One is, what does God's word say? Because you can't let your obedience be shaped by your feelings. You gotta ask yourself, well, what does God's word say? Not what I feel, what does God's word say? Number two, why do I feel that way? It could be either some abuse in the past that we gotta work through or it could be just as simply, you know this is an area of weakness or failure for you, so that's the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Are you with me? So let me help give you some understanding of what submission is. I want you to hold your place in 1 Peter 3 and let me go back to Genesis 2. I wanna talk about this difference between the role of a man and a woman within marriage and why Peter gives this instruction for the home to work properly and display the gospel. Genesis 2, 18 says this, then the Lord God said, it is not good that man should be alone and I will make a helper, that's underlined on the screen, a helper fit for him. Now, eyes right here for a second. Let me kind of walk you back through last week's message.

So here's what we discovered last week. God creates Adam first. God gives Adam the responsibility to oversee creation and he's the first to hear about it. He's the one that God has instructed, hey, this is your calling to steward creation for its flourishing. And then Adam is the first to receive the command not to eat of the tree. And then God creates this relationship of husband and wife and brings her to Adam. And here's what we're seeing here. God is always intentional with what he does and how he does it. Does that make sense? So what we're seeing here is this, is that Adam creates man first. He gives him the command first. He gives him the calling first because Adam is to be the leader of the home that God is creating to be the foundation of society. He's creating him. So how will Eve and the family know their calling for the flourishing of humanity? It was Adam's responsibility to lead the way and to teach the way. How are they gonna know, hey, that tree is off limits? It was Adam's responsibility to lead the way, to teach and to show this is the commands of God. How are they to know what God's mission is?

It was his responsibility to lead the way. That's why last week when I said what is biblical manhood, the difference between a boy and a man was one word and the word is responsibility. Now notice how we did this last week. You get one word, men. We gave a paragraph to the ladies. You know why? Men and women are different. Like I live with a couple. So if I text my son, like literally, how's the day going? Good. How was class? Fine. Like did you work out? Yes. Like that's the dialogue. If I ask my daughters a question, get ready for a paragraph, right? This is the difference. So what I'm telling you is this. Simply put, men have been given the responsibility to lead their home and that's what it means to be the leader of the house. It means that you have the God-given responsibility to be the first to lead the way toward the things that God has for you and for your family. And the reason we use the word responsibility because here's what I want you to know.

Biblical headship is what we're talking about. Biblical leadership. That God has placed the man to be the head of the home, the leader of the home and watch this, that role is not about rights, it's about responsibility. It's not about. Authority, it's about accountability. And so just watch this. I believe when women understand the role that God has given men, and you understand the role that God has given you, you will not want the role of the man in the home. Here's what I mean by that. So who was the first to sin in the garden, Adam or Eve? I say it, so you can say it out loud, like Eve, right? Eve took up the tree and ate of it, right? But who did God go looking for in the garden? Adam. In the New Testament, whenever it talks about sin entering to the world, do you notice that it never mentions Eve? It always mentions Adam. Why? Because men have the responsibility, which means we are held accountable. And so here's what I want you to understand, men. Men, it's not about beating your chest and saying, I am the leader of the home. It is about you recognizing you are the one responsible to God for the accountability

of the direction of your family. Now, where does the role of wife come in? Now, go back to Genesis 2.18. He says, I will make a helper fit for him. In other words, Adam can't do what God's called him to do by himself, he needs a helper. The word helper there is the Hebrew word azir. Now, this word azir shows up in the Scripture. And before you get offended, understand what the word means. The word helper oftentimes is like, oh, so she's like the assistant that just comes and just is like the secretary that runs and manages. No, that's not what it is. An azir, the helper, is actually a strong term and a strong word. 21 times this word is used in the Old Testament, more than 16 times of its use in the Old Testament. It's a reference to God as the helper of his people. His people were called to fight in a battle and to go to face an army they couldn't defeat. And they would cry out to the Lord because they knew we were called to this, but we can't do it. And the Lord was their helper. And he came and he brought strength and power and enabled them to accomplish that. That's the way that this word is used. In the New Testament, there's a different word called periclete.

It's the word that Jesus uses to refer to the Holy Spirit, that the Holy Spirit is the helper of God's people. Listen, the Holy Spirit is not our assistant. He is the power and the strength and the gifting that we need in order to do what God's called us to do. Does that make sense? Now, with this term helper, here's what we understand. We understand the idea of roles. And what do you mean? So if I'm given a responsibility and I'm asking you to come and be a helper, here are two things that we discover. Number one, I'm responsible for a task. Number two, I can't do it on my own. So here's what I mean. So the fact that Adam is created and called to lead out, and then God says it's not good for man to be alone, what he's saying is he can't do this on his own. I'm gonna bring a helper. So if you're the helper, that means the person you're coming alongside is still primarily responsible for whatever it is, but they can't do it without you. Does that make sense? So I built a table a few years ago. When I say I built a table, my dad and I did. My dad is a third or fourth generation carpenter. He can build anything. I can build hardly anything, right? So Adrian was like,

hey, I wanna build a farmhouse table for the house. And I'm like, okay, you know what it is? I now have a responsibility to build a farmhouse table. Problem is I've never done it before. So I pick up the phone. I'm like, dad, hey, I got a responsibility. Adrian wants me to build a farmhouse table. And he's like, you've never built one. I was like, that's why I'm calling you. And so my dad, like, here's what you need to go buy. And I went and bought it and he comes over. And so together we built the table. My dad came to help me in that. Now, here's the question. As we built a beautiful table, we ate dinner at it last night. So, but as we built the table, who was responsible for building the table? Me or my dad? I was. Who was more important in the process of building, me or my dad? He was. So here's what we see here. Listen, the term helper is the idea of strength. It's the one who comes alongside with gifting and ability and strength and insight that is lacking so that what has been instructed or called or the person is responsible to do, they now can do because the helper is there.

Are you with me? Just like the Great Commission. Is the church responsible for the Great Commission? I'm gonna do this so you'll know the answer. Is the church responsible for the Great Commission? Is the church able to do the Great Commission? What do we need? We need the helper. We need gifts and strengths and ability that we don't have in and of ourselves. This is why Jesus says, go and make disciples of who you go and wait. Why, what are you waiting on? You're waiting on the helper. So watch this. So listen, men are created to lead, women are created to come alongside with your strengths, gifts, and ability. Follow the leadership of the husband and bring to the table what is lacking so that together you can accomplish what one could never on their own. Ladies, listen, when you understand this term, I hope you feel valued, not devalued. So when he's calling you to submission, he's calling you to step into that space, to that space. So let me just say two things that submission is not. First of all, submission is not universal and it is not unconditional.

Say, what do you mean submission is not universal? He's speaking directly to wives in relationship with their husband, not women in relationship with men. So here's what that means, ladies. It's like biblical submission is to Jesus and your earthly father until you have a husband. But until that day, you are not to live in submission to other men. Young men in the room who are dating and you're like, well, I'm supposed to be the leader of the relationship. No, you're supposed to be the leader of your home and you still live in mama's basement. So get a J-O-B, have a vision for your life, pursue Jesus, and when you put a ring on it, then you're in a relationship where you can lead and she follows. But until then, so I tell my daughters all the time, when you're in a dating relationship, your responsibility is to follow Jesus and submit to your earthly father until the day I am replaced by the person who you get their last name. But until then, you don't have to live in submission. This is not universal. This is not every woman to every man. This is a wife to her husband, amen? Secondly, it's not unconditional. This does not mean, ladies, that you have to stay

in an abusive relationship. Whether it's verbal or physical abuse, listen, you do not have to stay in a situation where you are emotionally, mentally, or physically in harm's way. What I would say to you, if you're in that type of relationship, whether you're married or unmarried, I want you to know we have ministers, counselors, and pastors, and elders who wanna walk alongside you, and I would encourage you, reach out to our office this week. We want to help. We wanna help. There's men in the room, you have an anger issue, and you are verbally or physically abusive. Listen to me, you are not walking in biblical manhood. We wanna help you as well, because that is not God's will for you or the person you're in a relationship with. It's sin, and you need to repent of it. This also doesn't mean that you have to submit to your husband into a life of sin. There are things that are physically and spiritually, sexually, or emotionally, not healthy. You are not to submit to those type of behaviors or activities just because your husband is demanding it or desiring it. We wanna be a protector of women at New Beginnings Baptist Church.

So I want you to know, it's not universal, it's not conditional. Here's the second thing I want you to know. It's not universal, it's not conditional. It is not subservience or silence. It is not subservience or silence. What does subservience mean? The difference between submission and subservience is simply this, one is voluntary, the other one is involuntary. So men in the room, you can't force your wife into biblical submission. It's only biblical submission if she voluntarily steps into that space. And so it's not subservience. Subservience is not a condition. It's not a condition. It's not a condition. It's not a condition. And so it's not subservience. Subservience is you're below me. That's not biblical submission. If there's any kind of a devaluing of using position for your own gain, that's not biblical submission to lord a position over a woman. So ladies, it's not subservience. You're not less than. And then it's not silence. Listen, some of you ladies,

you need to use your voice. You have insight and wisdom and gifting and knowledge and strength in many ways that far exceeds the men in this room. And husbands, we need to be strong enough men to be mutually submissive to the wisdom and insights of our spouse. I'm telling you right now, my wife, there is gifts that she has, discernment that she has, wisdom that she has, and strength that I desperately need. and I'm a fool if I try to lead without it. I lead a lot of people. I have a responsibility to lead a lot of people. Here's what I've learned about good leadership. Good leaders listen well to the people that are around them. So husbands, listen to me. If your wife doesn't have a voice, then you're not making decisions with all the wisdom that God has given you, and you are suppressing the gifts that God has been, which means you're robbing yourself, your family, and her from the joy and the glory that God wants to display in your family. So submission doesn't mean you don't have a voice. We need it. We're desperate for it. And men, you need to start recognizing that. And just because she disagrees with you

doesn't mean she's not submissive. We've got to change the way we think about this. That's number one, all right? You with me? Say uh-huh. All right, here's number two. She faithfully displays the gospel by her walk and her word. She faithfully displays the gospel by her walk and her word. Look at what he says in 1B. He says, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives when they see your respectful and pure conduct. Now, there's so much I wanna say, and like I said, we're gonna do a Facebook Live. You can ask questions. We may dive a little deeper in this. Let me just give you some basic application. In essence, here's what he's saying. Listen, wives, don't think you can shame your husbands into the gospel or godliness. Don't think you can shame your husband into the gospel or godliness. So if you're living with someone who's not a believer, listen, you don't beat him down hoping he becomes a believer. Like, you don't shame him because he's not going to church like you hope he go to church. He doesn't lead you like you want him to lead you. You gotta recognize the space that God has given you

and don't overstep into space where you're actually harming the work of the gospel, not helping the work of the gospel. Does that make sense? If you're with a husband who's not, he is a believer, he's not leading well, you don't shame him into godliness. Like, sometimes I hear women talk about their husband to other people. And I'm like, I feel sorry for that dude. Because I'm like, if this is what she's saying publicly about you, what is she saying to you in private? The Proverbs 31 woman honors her husband at the gates. She speaks well of him. Listen, women, you gotta understand, there's a fundamental thing that men need, husbands need specifically in the marriage relationship. Listen, and let me just say this to both men and women. This is a marriage tip for you. Here's what women need more than anything. Men, you gotta just remember this. They wanna be valued. They wanna be valued. You know what men want, women? They wanna be respected. And if you wanna shut a man down from growing spiritually, continually disrespect him. Continually just beat him down where he's coming up short. Like, I want you to help me clean the kitchen

and then you like correct how he cleans the kitchen. I want you to make decisions as long as you make the decisions that I want you to make and I'm gonna complain about it when you make decisions that I don't like. Or when you're constantly putting him down and not acknowledging the things that he does do, but you're only highlighting the things that he doesn't do. And let me just say this just as a side note here. I don't have the time, but I'm gonna say it anyway. So here's this. We gotta lose the term, the man is supposed to be the spiritual leader of the home. We gotta lose that term. You know why? That's nowhere in the Bible. Men are called to be the leaders of their home, not just spiritual leaders. Now, why is that important? Ladies, hear me say this. Some of you are married to good men and they work hard and they come home and they're emotionally engaged with you and their kids and they're there for, not just in the home, they're present and they bring their family to church and they're maybe even in a life group. That's a good man. But when all he hears from you is, but I just wish you'd pray more.

I wish you'd read the Bible more. I wish you would do this more. I wish you knew more about that. I wish you were more like this guy. When they hear that, listen to me, he's, listen, if you're married to a guy who works hard, comes home, emotionally engaged, is there for the family, present in the home, takes the family to church, is in a life group, listen, you've married a great man and he is 85% ahead of every other man in culture. You ought to thank God for that man. And so he's learning how to pray and he's not where you want him to be. What if you fan the flame of all the other growth that you see and let Jesus continue this work of the Holy Spirit in his life? Build him up, don't constantly tear him down. Listen to what the Proverbs says. While ago, you said, Bible is true, we're gonna find out in a moment. Proverbs 21, 19, it is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome and fretful woman. Like, you ever seen stories of how people die in the desert? Slow, painful death, typically animals are involved. Jesus went out to the desert and he met the devil. The Lord is like, hey, bro. Might just wanna go to a desert. That's actually an easier death. Listen to this one, Proverbs 27, 15,

a continual dripping on a rainy day and a quarrelsome wife are alike. It's like waterboarding, you wish you could die, but you can't, right? Ladies, listen to me. Your words are the most powerful thing in your husband's heart. Are you building up or are you tearing down? I'm gonna tell you this right now. Doing what I do for a living, I get emails, I get criticism, but people pull me aside in the foyer and like always got, you know, I wish you'd have said this, or why did you say that, or why didn't you, you know, there's just all the criticism that, it's part of the nature, I get it. And I, for the most part, sleep well at night even when you criticize me. But if my wife is disappointed with me, it crushes me. Like, I go to the gym with my friends or my son and I'm there and we come back home and I'm like, I'm feeling okay. Like, okay, it was fun, it's good. But if I'm walking through the kitchen and my wife hands me a jar and says, hey, can you open this? I'm like, you bet I can. You know, it's like chest out, right? There's just something about being respected and being loved and built up by your spouse.

I can hear a thousand compliments that encourage me, but I'm telling you, the affirmation of my wife is the world to me. And can I just give you a little secret, women, into the hearts of men that men won't say, and some of these men in here are gonna just look straight ahead and they're not gonna make any, because they're just not gonna admit it. Here's the reality. There's a little boy in every man that asks this question, am I enough? Am I enough? And they don't wanna just be enough for the world, they wanna be enough for you. Build them up. Show the gospel in your walk and in your words. Here's number three. She intentionally focuses on her inner beauty, not just her outer beauty. Listen to this one. Do not let your adorning be external, the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry and clothing you wear, but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. Now, he is not forbidding external beauty, all right? So let's just make sure we say that. He's not saying you shouldn't wear jewelry,

you shouldn't wear makeup, you shouldn't have your hair done. He's not saying you shouldn't care about nice clothes or presenting yourself. He's not saying any of that. What he's talking about is the obsession and the focus of your life should not be those things. The word adorning here is the Greek word cosmos. It's where we kind of get the word cosmos. It's the word for the ordered universe. It's where we get the word cosmetology. So here's the, so what is cosmetology? Put makeup on, it's like ordering the universe, right? It's like we're gonna put things in order, right? Here's what he's saying. What he's saying is is that godly women, women who are pursuing an unfading beauty, here's what they do. They give way more attention to the inner beauty than the outer beauty. Like there's the focus of their life is not just presenting an external facade that by the way is fading and it is perishable. And listen, you are getting older. You can fight it, you can argue it, you can deny it, you can try to cover it up, but we're all getting older. This body is wasting away, but Paul says there's a work on the inside of us where while the outer person is wasting away, the inner person is being renewed day by day.

What he's saying is godly women give way more attention and focus to what Christ is doing on the inside than what they're doing on the outside. And ladies, I want to set you free. I've got two beautiful daughters and a beautiful wife I'm more attracted to today in her. 40s and I was when we met in her teens and I'm telling you You you've got to reject the lie of culture the filtered life isn't real and What's happening is is that women are being subjected to these? body images and this expectation of external presentation that is literally Robbing the joy of the wisdom that comes as you get older And you take 19 Selfies because you got to get it just right at just the right time of the day so the lighting can be perfect and we got all these little Filters that we put on that make us thinner that make us tanner that make us look more pleasant that opens our eyes all of Those things can I just tell you listen what you're doing with this is that you are Recovering the imago day that you exist in and The culture has given you a complex that says if you don't meet a certain standard that by the way is a filtered Standard then you're not a beautiful person. I'm here to tell you listen You know it's beautiful thing is a woman who ages Gracefully and grows in her godliness because there is a beauty that doesn't have a time stamp on it And I'm not going to oversell this but I've done dozens of funerals Dozens of funerals Then dozens of funerals of old Saints women of God And When I'm blessed by is the number of people that say man

Mama prayed for us She was such a hard worker she she loved my dad so well She never stopped praying. She was the one person that never how many of you are here today because of a praying mama or grandmama Can I tell you like when I'm standing with the family around the casket, I I never hear this Man, she has such a great fashion sense She her what she could do with makeup Never hear that And her fashion sense, but she always dressed I Mean the things that she did to her face through the years just amazing You know, I have heard I Hope I'm as godly as her when I'm an old person See what your kids and what your grandkids the legacy ladies is not the filtered pictures that you post on Social media trying to convince the world you've got it all together That's not you that's who you project Your legacy is the inner Beauty that Christ is forming in your heart and do not let the world Call you to a standard That no one can measure up and that the God of the universe never calls you to You need to be free of that Here's the last the last one. All right She courageously embraces God's mission for her family She courageously embraces God's mission for a family. Listen to this He says for this is how the holy women hoped in God used to adorn themselves by submitting to their own husbands as Sarah Obeyed Abraham calling him Lord and you are children of God And you are the children of God and you are the children of God Submitting to their own husbands as Sarah obeyed Abraham calling him Lord and you are children if you do good and do not fear anything That is frightening. So just a word of warning to the men of the room. This verse is not calling the wives has called their husband Lord Like I had one guy in the first service he was like Don't go home and do that. So ladies he's this is this and what he's saying. This is what he's saying. He's saying listen Sarah

Embraced God's mission for her home By honoring and respecting The role and the calling that God gave her husband and she followed him on the mission That God called them to say what do you mean? See a lot of times we talk about Sarah and Abraham We always talk about Abraham's faith man Abraham's faith I mean that God spoke to him and told him leave your family leave your friends leave your everything and go to a land Where are we going? I'll show you when we get here and in Abraham does it and we're like, oh man, that's amazing He hears from the Lord and walks in obedience. I think Sarah's faith is greater than Abraham's He heard the voice of the Lord she heard the voice of her husband and what does she say wherever God calls we're going to go. She joyfully packs her bags and leaves everything. She follows because God gave a promise to her husband and she embraced God's mission and the promise God gave, even though she wasn't a direct recipient of it. Here's what we find with Sarah. Her faith created in her this courage that said yes to God's mission, yes to God's design, even when it cost her everything. And he says, listen, here's what I want you to be as women, be people who are courageously devoted to God's mission, regardless of where God takes you. Be devoted to your family. Let family be priority. This is what Titus says. He says, older women teach the younger women to be busy at home. That doesn't mean women can't work outside of the home. Here's what he's saying. Godly women prioritize God's mission. Your first mission is your home. Does it mean you can't have a career? No, it just means your career can't be more important than the home. And by the way, that applies to the men as well. So ladies, this crazy lie of the world that you have to have it all. Have all of what? Like if you've thought, what is all? So men, you can't have it all. What you can have is all that God wants for you. But this whole idea of women, you go and establish your independence and have your career and make that top priority and where it fits in, there's your home. Listen, you, none of us can have it all. What you can't have is a legacy. Make God's mission your priority by making your home your priority. Single ladies in the room, use your singleness as a preparation of surrendering to the Lord so that one day you can submit to your husband.

And as you follow your husband on to God's mission, don't wait for God's mission until you're married. Live on God's mission now. Like, let that be priority now. And here's, here's why this is important. It's important because here is what I believe is missing in today's culture. What's missing, missing is a vision for legacy. Living a life that outlives you. So as husbands step into biblical manhood, as wives step into biblical womanhood, the legacy is the being fruitful and multiply. It's generations of families who come behind you that now have the testimony of the life that you live. Listen to this, impacting generations to come. Women, this calling is to live a life that outlives you. Live a life that outlives you. This is what the Proverbs 31 woman does. Listen to this, strength and dignity are her clothing. She laughs at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks to the Lord and says, wisdom and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well into the days of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed. Her husband also, he praises her. Many women have done excellently, but you surpassed them all. Charm is deceitful and beauty is in vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her the fruit of her hands and let her work. Praise her in the gates. This is a life of legacy. So here's how we're going to respond. I'm going to ask you to bow your heads. I'm going to speak to both men and women and give an opportunity to respond. Listen, we can't be what God's called us to be as husbands and wives, as men and women, apart from first surrendering to Jesus as Lord. And so if you're in this room today, here's what I want you to know. If you want to become this, but you haven't submitted to Christ, you haven't been born again, which means you received Jesus's death is your death and Jesus's life is your life. Then right now, that's the first decision you make. So today you've heard testimonies of people who transferred. life from living for themselves to surrender to Jesus and if you've never made that decision I'm gonna give you an opportunity right now to respond this is of both men and women in the room like I want to step into what God has called me to but I got to receive Christ first and I know I've never done that but today is

the day I'm gonna ask you right now just I know this takes a lot of courage but if that's you you're saying I'm ready to step in and receive Christ as my Lord and Savior I'm gonna ask you where you are just to stand to your feet if that's you you're like today's the day I'm tired of trying this on my own I want to step in to a genuine relationship with Jesus where I am forgiven of my sins and I want to receive him as my Lord and Savior just where you are just stand it takes a lot of courage I recognize that but following Jesus requires courage and he'll give you the strength to stand if he's calling you just surrender to him right now say give me the strength to stand and then stand if that's you praise God is anyone else it takes so much courage I'm so proud of you for standing anybody else for those standing if you'll just look to your left there's gonna be an encourager there that wants to pray with you praise God now ladies in the room I want to read a blessing over you and so for the ladies in the room you're like man whether you're young or old you could be seeking to be a spouse one day you might be a grandmother to a dozen and hearing this message today you're like I want to be that type of woman I want Jesus to turn me into this and to continue this work of making me into this I'm gonna ask you if you would to just stand all the women who say that I want this I want this in my life I want this work to continue I want to be this kind of grandmother I want to be this kind of mother I want to be this kind of young lady aspiring for marriage praise God all over the room we're grateful for the women here at New Beginnings grateful for you and so women I want to read this blessing over you and I want you to look on the screen and I want you to see it this is a blessing that's been written from the Proverbs 31 listen to this may you live as a woman who fears the Lord for she is truly to be praised may strength and dignity be your clothing and may you laugh without fear of the future may you bring your husband good and not harm all the days of his life and may your household rise up and call you blessed may your hands be diligent and work

skillful in providing and open in generosity to the poor and needy may wisdom flow from your mouth and kindness from your tongue and may your life crowned with faithfulness and reverence for the Lord shine as a legacy of beauty honor and blessing for generations to come may this be you in Jesus name amen and amen hey let's just put our hands together and thank the Lord for all the ladies New Beginnings