Naked before God

“Then the eyes of the two of them were opened [that is, their awareness increased], and they knew that they were naked; and they fastened fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool [afternoon breeze] of the day, so the man and his wife hid and kept themselves hidden from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to Adam, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of You [walking] in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” God said, “Who told you that you were naked?...” (Genesis 3:7-11)

I don’t know about you, but when I think of NAKEDNESS I almost immediately think of SHAME. Shortly afterward follows the thought “Why am I ashamed of nakedness?”

Well some people may reply “You’re just a prude!” or some other much more salacious term I will not speak much less write. And it’s so easy to come back with that reply. But if spoken to my face, you would elicit a hearty laugh and a brief overview of my testimony of what Jesus saved me from (Far from being prudish!)

Now listen, when the LORD speaks to you of nakedness before Him, He leads you to change your whole perspective of what being naked really means. When the LORD talks to you about being naked, He is not talking about a physical nakedness (though let’s be real – He already SEES and KNOWS ALL!). He is speaking of a spiritual nakedness, where there is NOTHING between you and Him. Where you are totally surrendered to Him in His presence! And guess what? In His presence there is no place for shame.

I’ve come to realize that my natural reaction of SHAME in relation to NAKEDNESS is of the Adamic nature. After having sinned, Adam and Eve realized that they were physically naked and they became ashamed. Well, hold on a minute….were they not physically naked before they sinned? So what’s up with the feelings of shame? Their shame came with their sin. They had never felt shame prior to sinning because they had never put anything between themselves and God before. But the moment they sinned, they became COVERED in SHAME. And unable to rid themselves of their sin, they sought to cover their shame in the natural…..oh come on now, I’m preaching! Sin was like a garment between them and God.

They thought they were trying to hide their NAKEDNESS from God, but in reality, they were trying to hide their SIN!

How often do we try to fix a SPIRITUAL problem with a PHYSICAL method? We put FIG LEAVES over our sins and run away from the presence of God because we don’t want to face the TRUTH of our spiritual state.

Well, first off we need to become aware of our spiritual state. You may ask “How can I do this?” The scriptures tell us:

“The word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.” (Hebrews 4:12-13)

The Word discerns our spiritual condition. It has the ability to teach us, guide us, correct us, encourage us, (and so on) but that is only if we are getting in the Word and letting the Word get in us.

Based on the state of the CHURCH today, I have to ask this question: Are Christians reading, consuming, and meditating on the word of God? Because so many Christians are not aware of their own spiritual state. Many are clothed in religion, in works, in self-righteousness, in duty, trying to FIX SPIRITUAL ISSUES WITH PHYSICAL METHODS! Many in the CHURCH are wearing fig leaves and hiding behind bushes! Yet God still SEES them. Nothing is hidden from His sight. So here we are in the CHURCH, putting on clothing we make ourselves, all the while, God has provided us a spiritual covering that trumps ALL coverings!

His solution covers our sin and makes us NAKED before Him once again. Now in the natural, it doesn’t make since that to cover a covering makes you naked, but in the spirit it works!

What is this covering God has provided? Well it is none other than the blood of JESUS, the One and Only Begotten Son of God. When we receive Jesus as our Savoir, His blood covers our sins and makes us blameless in the sight of God. His blood cleanses us, heals us, and makes us new! And as you keep His covering over you through relationship (that is to receive Jesus also as Lord), you are ever clothed in His blood. It is His blood that strips away the barriers between us and God. It is like we are naked in the garden of Eden walking with the LORD.

But I want you to know this, you must keep yourself COVERED IN THE BLOOD OF JESUS! This is not a once-saved-always-saved deal. To stay covered in the blood, which is the NEW COVENANT, you must stay in COVENANT with the LORD.

You may ask “What does that mean?”

I believe Ephesians 5:22-24 explains this in a context most people would understand:

“Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as [a service] to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as Christ is head of the church, Himself being the Savior of the body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also wives should be subject to their husbands in everything [respecting both their position as protector and their responsibility to God as head of the house].”

The CHURCH, aka the BODY OF CHRIST, is also the BRIDE of Jesus Christ. He is the head of the CHURCH as a husband is head of the household. And the wife (that’s us as the CHURCH) is to be subject to her husband. I know that many people don’t know this anymore, but MARRIAGE IS A COVENANT in which a man and woman come together to become ONE. And a MARRIAGE IS A RELATIONSHIP where there is daily contact, conversation, intimacy, etc. You don’t get married, and then live separate lives. If you do, then it’s not a true marriage, it is a farce.

We as the CHURCH are truly ESPOUSED to Jesus Messiah. Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 11:2-3 that:

“I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy because I have promised you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. But I am afraid that, even as the serpent beguiled Eve by his cunning, your minds may be corrupted and led away from the simplicity of [your sincere and] pure devotion to Christ.”

He makes it clear that our devotion to Christ is what signifies our RELATIONSHIP with Him. Therefore, to REMAIN COVERED by the blood of Jesus, we must REMAIN DEVOTED to Him.

Listen, in the times of the Tabernacle, the only way you entered the presence of God was with the blood sacrifice. Thanks be to JESUS, we can enter into God’s presence with the blood of Jesus (Hebrews 10:19). But without the covering of blood, you cannot come before His presence.

So let’s get back to the part about being NAKED before God.

How many of us are willing to be totally BARE before the LORD? I mean, we know He already sees and knows everything about us, but I’m referring to us willingly being open, honest, and yielded to God as Jesus showed us.

The greatest example of a person NAKED before the LORD was Jesus Christ as He lived and walked on this earth. How was He NAKED before GOD?

“After He was found in [terms of His] outward appearance as a man [for a divinely-appointed time], He humbled Himself [still further] by becoming obedient [to the Father] to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:8)

“And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup [of divine wrath] from Me; yet not My will, but [always] Yours be done.”  Now an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. And being in agony [deeply distressed and anguished; almost to the point of death], He prayed more intently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down on the ground.” (Luke 22:41-44)

“When they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and one on the left. And Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots, dividing His clothes among themselves.” (Luke 23:33-34)

“He made Christ who knew no sin to [judicially] be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we would become the righteousness of God [that is, we would be made acceptable to Him and placed in a right relationship with Him by His gracious lovingkindness].” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

So how do WE become NAKED before God?

We follow Jesus’ example. WE DIE TO SELF.

“Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself [set aside selfish interests], and take up his cross [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me]. For whoever wishes to save his life [in this world] will [eventually] lose it [through death], but whoever loses his life [in this world] for My sake will find it [that is, life with Me for all eternity]. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world [wealth, fame, success], but forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:24-26)

We enter into God’s presence, not covered in sin, not covered in self-righteousness, not covered in our religion, but COVERED IN THE BLOOD OF JESUS. We follow Jesus into the presence of God!

“Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” (Hebrews 10:19-22)

Can we, like Paul, say:

“I have been crucified with Christ [that is, in Him I have shared His crucifixion]; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body I live by faith [by adhering to, relying on, and completely trusting] in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (Galatians 2:20)

Are we willing to take off all we know in this world to PUT ON and KEEP ON the covering of Jesus Christ? Are we willing to let Jesus wash away all that which has separated us from God the Father? Your answer to these questions is directly correlated to your desire to be in God’s presence.

If you, like David, can truly say, “One thing I have asked of the Lord, and that I will seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty [the delightful loveliness and majestic grandeur] of the Lord and to meditate in His temple.” (Psalm 27:4), then the only way is to become naked before the LORD, covered in the blood of Jesus.

And I can tell you this with certainty, in His presence, covered by the blood of Jesus, there is no place for SHAME! We live in a world where shame hides in everyday lives, fed by the lies and deceits of the devil. But in the Kingdom of God, as Children of the Most High God, we are FREE from SHAME.

Jesus demolished our shame!

“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)

“He was despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and pain and acquainted with grief; And like One from whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we did not appreciate His worth or esteem Him. But [in fact] He has borne our griefs, and He has carried our sorrows and pains; Yet we [ignorantly] assumed that He was stricken, struck down by God and degraded and humiliated [by Him]. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was crushed for our wickedness [our sin, our injustice, our wrongdoing]; The punishment [required] for our well-being fell on Him, and by His stripes (wounds) we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:3-5)

So do not let the excuse of SHAME keep you from desiring to be in God’s presence. God wants you to want to be close to Him. He will not force you to come, but He is most definitely calling out for you as He did Adam in the garden. Will you, like Adam, cover yourself in shame and hide from the LORD? Or will you receive the covering of the blood of Jesus and draw near to Him with a pure heart? It is up to you my friend. I pray that this teaching helps you to make that first step closer to the LORD and that a desire begins to build in you to be in God’s presence. In Jesus’ name!

Much love,

Kelly