[ovrtaxt]

Here's my $.02- if you care to know what I think:

Peter basically meant that your inner beauty is more important than your outer beauty. He didn't legalistically mean you can't wear makeup and braid your hair, but that being preoccupied with outward appearance is unwise, if we neglect the true potential for beauty within.

That legalistic translation just devalues the spiritual content of the verse, lowering the standard to a carnal meaning, and putting the emphasis 180 degrees from the point of the verse in the first place.

[seowulf]

That legalistic translation just devalues the spiritual content of the verse

We are basically in agreement on this. Jesus came to fulfill the law, not do away with it. That is, he was doing away with the legalistic proscription which forced compliance from the outside and replaced it with the desire within to do the right thing.

That is not to say that if you slip a diamond ring on your finger you're doomed to hell. However, If you go all out with the bling bling, with a $10K ring on every finger, you become less approachable to a larger number of people. It is the business of Christians to be approachable. The point is that if you get to the point where your jewellry, make-up, clothes, cars, homes, etc. become more important to you than your Christianity, then you have a problem.