Get Naked and Get Covered
I had a wonderful moment this morning that made me cry. The Lord created feelings in me that I didn't know I could understand. The first was the feeling that I was covered and the second was the desire for me to get naked. I will address the nakedness first.
The second great story in the Bible is that of Adam and Eve, two perfectly matched beings who were naked and not ashamed. I imagined myself in the garden with the Lord and realized the blessing in that. They had nothing to hide. When I speak of getting naked, I am talking about being honest. It is not necessary to be honest with God because he already knows everything, but it is imperative that we get honest with ourselves. This honestly frees us from the facade of perfection and the chains of pride. If we are to be who God intended us to be then we have to be honest about who we are right now. In this way we can have real communion with God about where he wants to take us. When we bring who we are to God knowing that we are unworthy, God can and will work with amazing things with that. It is also a relief to us because we don't have to duck or dodge anyone else who wants to see the real us. We can walk unashamed because we have nothing to hide. Adam and Eve were like this before they disobeyed God, but when they ate the fruit they realized that they were naked and were ashamed. I want to know who they thought would see them besides God who created them? It seems to make no sense at all, but in a way in does because for the first time they realized that they had something to hide. Sin causes us to go from naked to uncovered, and the difference is much greater than you think.
This brings us to the discussion on being covered. I will approach this from the understanding of being uncovered. Uncovered in many instances means unprotected and exposed. This is the opposite side of the coin to naked which means unhindered for this discussion's sake. The state of being uncovered or exposed brings with it shame. This is what Adam and Eve felt after they ate the fruit of the forbidden tree in Genesis. Ever since their grave error in judgement humanity has been born exposed spiritually. We are all born exposed to evil in this world and in ourselves. We are left open to the harsh realities of a world in opposition of its creator. We are unprotected. Imagine an orphaned child wandering in the street, that's each of us. You may be thinking that you or your children aren't this way, but any parents are like children raising children if they do not get covered first. Thank God for Jesus who was sent to cover us and remove our shame. While Adam and Eve attempted to cover themselves with leaves, it did nothing to change the state of their souls. They chose to disobey God and believe the lie of another being. They couldn't have found enough leaves to cover their mess, and it was their attempts to cover themselves that became a display of their shame. We can't cover ourselves no matter how much make-up we put on or how many awards we receive. Jesus is the only one that can cover us because he not only covers us but wipes out our shameful sin.
Jesus isn't just a Band-Aid that hides the wound like old testament sacrificing, he is a balm that heals the wound forever. The greatest blessing of getting covered is that it only takes allowing Jesus to see us just as we are and receiving him for who he is. My Bible says that he will remove our sin and clothe us with righteousness. Jesus will cover us with his own identity, and redeem us. Jesus is our new beginning. When we are covered we are free from the fake coverings that only make things worse for us over time. We can get naked and healed. We begin to live instead of simply survive. We stop looking over our shoulders and start hoping for our futures. Christ removes the poison from our lives. We are at liberty to be our best selves, unashamed and unafraid. We don't have to worry about our nakedness because we have nothing to hide, and we don't have to worry about anything that happens in this world because we are covered by Jesus Christ. Fellow Journeymen get naked and get covered.
The second great story in the Bible is that of Adam and Eve, two perfectly matched beings who were naked and not ashamed. I imagined myself in the garden with the Lord and realized the blessing in that. They had nothing to hide. When I speak of getting naked, I am talking about being honest. It is not necessary to be honest with God because he already knows everything, but it is imperative that we get honest with ourselves. This honestly frees us from the facade of perfection and the chains of pride. If we are to be who God intended us to be then we have to be honest about who we are right now. In this way we can have real communion with God about where he wants to take us. When we bring who we are to God knowing that we are unworthy, God can and will work with amazing things with that. It is also a relief to us because we don't have to duck or dodge anyone else who wants to see the real us. We can walk unashamed because we have nothing to hide. Adam and Eve were like this before they disobeyed God, but when they ate the fruit they realized that they were naked and were ashamed. I want to know who they thought would see them besides God who created them? It seems to make no sense at all, but in a way in does because for the first time they realized that they had something to hide. Sin causes us to go from naked to uncovered, and the difference is much greater than you think.
This brings us to the discussion on being covered. I will approach this from the understanding of being uncovered. Uncovered in many instances means unprotected and exposed. This is the opposite side of the coin to naked which means unhindered for this discussion's sake. The state of being uncovered or exposed brings with it shame. This is what Adam and Eve felt after they ate the fruit of the forbidden tree in Genesis. Ever since their grave error in judgement humanity has been born exposed spiritually. We are all born exposed to evil in this world and in ourselves. We are left open to the harsh realities of a world in opposition of its creator. We are unprotected. Imagine an orphaned child wandering in the street, that's each of us. You may be thinking that you or your children aren't this way, but any parents are like children raising children if they do not get covered first. Thank God for Jesus who was sent to cover us and remove our shame. While Adam and Eve attempted to cover themselves with leaves, it did nothing to change the state of their souls. They chose to disobey God and believe the lie of another being. They couldn't have found enough leaves to cover their mess, and it was their attempts to cover themselves that became a display of their shame. We can't cover ourselves no matter how much make-up we put on or how many awards we receive. Jesus is the only one that can cover us because he not only covers us but wipes out our shameful sin.
Jesus isn't just a Band-Aid that hides the wound like old testament sacrificing, he is a balm that heals the wound forever. The greatest blessing of getting covered is that it only takes allowing Jesus to see us just as we are and receiving him for who he is. My Bible says that he will remove our sin and clothe us with righteousness. Jesus will cover us with his own identity, and redeem us. Jesus is our new beginning. When we are covered we are free from the fake coverings that only make things worse for us over time. We can get naked and healed. We begin to live instead of simply survive. We stop looking over our shoulders and start hoping for our futures. Christ removes the poison from our lives. We are at liberty to be our best selves, unashamed and unafraid. We don't have to worry about our nakedness because we have nothing to hide, and we don't have to worry about anything that happens in this world because we are covered by Jesus Christ. Fellow Journeymen get naked and get covered.
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