Being like Jezebel is definitely not desirable at all. . . . And yet, without knowing it, we may actually be like her!

“How is that?” we women ask. “We are not like Jezebel. We don’t commit murder. We don’t openly defy God and try to kill His servants or worship idols.”

Ah! But let us look at what happens when we turn our eyes and mind away from God. Who is the first person we look at when we turn away from God?

That’s right. We begin to look at and study ourselves.

We look in the mirror and this is what we say:

“Ugh! I have a few freckles on my skin.”

”Oh no! I am getting grey/white hairs in my hair, and I’m only 28!”

“My eyelashes are too light.”

“My eyes are pale and don’t stand out.”

A cosmetic catalogue then gets put into our letterboxes, and we flick through it “just to have a look.” We see beautiful women posing attractively (usually in tight or low-cut clothing, showing off as much of their chest as possible), advertising makeup, hair dye, and jewelry.

“Oh, look at the girl’s skin,” we say. “Maybe I’ll just buy one of those foundation creams, and if I just put it on lightly to cover my freckles and blemishes; no one will notice.”

“Ooh, look at that woman’s hair! Maybe if I just buy one packet to dye my grey hairs that would be okay - especially if it’s labeled ‘natural.’ After all, I am SO young. And it’s not fair that I should look old when I am not.”

Ladies, do you know who we are being like when we succumb to these temptations?

Is it Abigail that we are imitating? Really and truthfully?

No, of course not. Do you honestly think that Abigail who trusted in God and lived a godly life would have needed to wear all this stuff? The Spirit of Prophecy tells us that Abigail was a woman after the order of Christ. She didn’t need to wear all this “goo.” Her face radiated the love of Jesus which would have given her appearance a much more attractive image than anything artificial that we are putting on.

Just imagine that being said of us - that we are women after the order of Christ. What an honor!

But instead, sad to say, do some have to admit the awful truth that we are actually being like that horrible woman, Jezebel. Do you know that she is the first woman mentioned in the Bible who wore makeup? And when we put this stuff on our faces, change the color of our hair or of our nails, we are imitating Jezebel, and we are actually telling God that we are dissatisfied with His creation and are defying Him by trying to change the way He made us. Isn’t that just awful? It makes me shudder to think what God must be thinking of our poor little efforts to “improve” His wonderful creation.

And wearing makeup does not just consist of wearing foundation, eyeliner, or eyelash tint.

Makeup includes everything that you put on yourself to cover up what you don’t like about yourself. Yes, it includes dying of the hair, eye enhancer, creams to cover freckles and blemishes, lipstick, nail polish, and jewelry.

Ladies, let’s face it. Do we really want to be like Jezebel? Do we really want to copy someone who is known as a murderess, a woman who defied God?

In Revelation 2:20, God says that He had something against the church of Thyatira because they had women like Jezebel in their congregation and even allowed them to hold positions in the church. These women were influencing the younger girls in the wrong way as well as setting stumbling blocks in the paths of newcomers.

And do you know that that message is for our church TODAY!! Yes, our very own SDARM!! Isn’t it shameful to think that in our organization we might need to have a message like that given to us? But let’s face facts - we are living in the Laodicean era when lukewarm Christianity is the typical norm and worldly pride and vanity are rampant.

Especially, older women - please consider something. You don’t realize how much of an influence you exert over the younger ones. It may not seem like it, but they do watch and imitate everything you do. If they see you dying your hair or wearing makeup, even though it might only be a tiny bit and hardly noticeable (and you seem to get away with it), your girls are watching you. If you wear your dress or skirt shorter than your healthy conscience allows (the Spirit of Prophecy says it should be 8 to 10 inches from the floor1), just wait and see: The younger generation will wear their dresses even shorter until you are shocked. And guess what? You started the trend.

And do you know that when there is no difference between you and other moms in the world, soon there will be no difference between your girls and the girls of the world. But, just remember, GOD KNOWS.

“The power of example is great. Sister A. ventures to wear small hoops. Sister B. says, It is no worse for me to wear hoops than sister A., and she wears hoops a little larger. Sister C. imitates the example of sisters A. and B., and wears her hoops a little larger than A. and B., but all contend that their hoops are small.”2 Yes, of course we know that hoops are not used today, but the same timeless principle certainly applies. Plunging necklines, skin-tight clothes, and padded undergarments are commonly worn to accentuate certain body parts and incite lust. It’s amazing how the power of self-justification and imitation of others so often governs our choices in fashion instead of a simple, firm, faithful reliance on God’s word and the pen of Inspiration!

So now, let us imagine something really wonderful.

Let us imagine that we are all Abigails.

Our eyes are continually looking upward to God and away from ourselves. When we look in the mirror in the morning, instead of saying, “Oh no, my hair is grey. I look so old,” we will smile and say, “The Bible has nothing but good to say about grey hair (in Leviticus 19:32 and Proverbs 16:31). If found in the path of righteousness, it is a crown of glory! Today I am going to put on meekness. Maybe I’ll add to it a calm and quiet spirit, and I think I’ll mix a little wisdom in along with some kind words and actions.” “Today my makeup artist is going to be Christ.”

And just imagine that when we walk into the church and greet all the women we find that their faces are clean and natural, their hair has its natural color (without artificial chemically-induced curls or straightening), their nails are free from color and polish, their lips are not shining with gloss, and the contours of their bodies are modestly covered, not on display.

Sisters whose adorning is a meek and quiet spirit just like the holy women of old (1 Peter 3:3-5) are candidates for a place in the kingdom of glory.

Christ promises us that with His help we can do ANYTHING (Philippians 4:13)!!! How wonderful is that!

So women, young ladies, and girls, let us take our banner (which is sagging heavily) and hold it straight and high for the Lord. It takes two hands to hold it high. It is impossible to hold it with one hand while the other is weighed down with cosmetics and worldly vanity. We want to be women after the order of Christ, NOT of the world.

And just think how much easier it would be for the ministers and Bible workers to be able to concentrate on reaching souls who have never heard the message instead of having to fight Jezebels as did the prophet Elijah!

It is interesting to note what the end results were for these two women:

Abigail ended up becoming the wife of one of the most favorite kings of Israel (1 Samuel 25:39-42).

Jezebel ended up becoming food for dogs (2 Kings 9:30, 35-37).

Abigail’s story had a happy ending.

Jezebel’s story had a dreadful ending.

I encourage each and every woman, young lady, and girl to search our heart. Let us ask Jesus to come into our life and help us clean every bit of Jezebel out. Then we will be more like the truly beautiful woman as Abigail of old was.