GOD'S EVERLASTING LOVE Nakedness is destitution that erupts in a lack of adequate clothing, or a state of abject poverty. This was the condition of Lazarus, who was daily placed at the gate of "a certain rich man," and desired to be fed with the scraps that fell from his table (Lk 16:20). It was also the state of many faithful saints of old, of whom it is said, "they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being DESTITUTE, afflicted, tormented" (Heb 11:37). They did not have proper clothing to keep them warm, and were subject to shame. Some have been reduced to this condition by their enemies, and forced to wander about like the beasts of the earth, seeking refuge in dens and caves, as the text in Hebrews affirms. – Tomorrow:
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: 'For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.' Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:35-39, NKJV)
"Nakedness" can describe a situation where a person has not so much as one stitch of clothing, being totally unclothed. As the book of Job affirms, this is how we are born: "Naked came I out of my mother's womb" (Job 1:21). Solomon said the same in Ecclesiastes 5:15. Micah spoke of going "stripped and naked" (Micah 1:8), and Amos spoke of a defeat so devastating that "the mighty flee away naked" (Amos 2:16).
"Nakedness" also denotes a condition of shame and reproach. Following their transgression, and upon perceiving they were "naked," Adam and Eve "were ashamed" (Gen 2:25). In speaking of a spiritual condition, "shame" and "nakedness" are also joined together in Isaiah 47:3, Nahum 3:6, and Revelation 3:18.
The word is also used to denote inadequate clothing – insufficient to meet one's need. James referred to this condition as being "naked, and destitute of daily food," stating that such a circumstance was found in "a brother or sister" in Christ (James 2:15).
Those who spout off about health and wealth must produce a reasonable explanation for these passages, for they are in sharp conflict with their doctrine. Their teaching appears to reflect their own lust and covetousness rather than the mind of Christ. If their doctrine is correct, our text makes no sense whatsoever, for, in such a case, "nakedness" would reflect the triumph of the devil and a certain abandonment by Christ. In such a case, the "naked" would not be asked if such a condition could separate them from the love of Christ. Instead, they would be admonished to get back into the will of God, cease to live in poverty, and begin to enjoy God's abundance. But we must read the books of those who embrace health and wealth to get their emphasis. It simply is not in the Word of God. On the day of judgment, those who preach it will surely have to explain their reprehensible dogma to Lazarus and those wandering saints of Hebrews 11:37!
Paul, the premier Apostle who "labored more abundantly than they all" (1 Cor 15:10), once told of the pathway into which faith led him. In carrying out his ministry, he did so "in weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and NAKEDNESS" (2 Cor 11:27). With this expression, Paul has thrown down evil imaginations that say poverty is the curse of the Law. There is not a scanty mote of truth in such an affirmation.
Again Paul, showing the frequency of this experience, writes, "Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are NAKED, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwelling place" (1 Cor 4:11). That is where his faith led him – that is, in fulfilling the commission Jesus had given to him, he experienced these trying circumstances.
On one occasion, while in prison, Paul wrote to Timothy, "Bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas when you come" (2 Tim 4:13). It is as though he was cold, without adequate clothing, in the prison where he was being detained.
The question before us now is if "nakedness" can separate us from the love of Christ Jesus. Can it put a distance between us and the Savior? Is it evidence that we are not being blessed by Him, or that He does not care for us, or that we are outside of His will?
PRAYER POINT: Father, I thank You that "nakedness" is not the normal circumstance for Your people. In the name of Jesus, I also thank You that, should I be called to endure it, there is grace to sustain me while I am naked, and grace to finally recover from it.