 |
| [Image by Jean Goff on Flickr] |
It was a busy market-place, oh yes, she knew. But what had happened to her only minutes ago had compelled her to discard all sense of reason.
She halted every worry about the way she looked some miles before she got here. Crazy hair, sweaty face. No longer did she care about appearing delusional. She just kept running, loose, wild, and free like a mad woman. "Quick," she told herself. "Faster." She wanted to tell everyone the news. Lost her pair of bathroom slippers in the process, but she didn't care. Couldn't find her scarf, so she allowed the wind to blow through her naked brown strands of hair, plunging them into mad cascades down her back.
"Believe me when I tell you this," she screamed again. "He saw my nakedness." Maybe no one stopped to listen because not one of them understood what she meant by nakedness.
"No, no. I don't mean my body. I mean he told me everything I've ever done. Secrets about my life. And not just that, He has given me what no one else can ever give me. Living water. Come and see this man."
One young boy finally stopped to listen. Then an old woman. Suddenly, at the mention of her nakedness, people began to stop to listen. And one by one she told them what had happened at the well...
(true story told in the form of fiction)
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Nakedness is the very essence of you. No clothes. No coverings. No false appearances. Nothing of that sort. I tell you, your nakedness reveals you just as you are. In your birthday suit- the way you were born.
Let's look at two instances of nakedness.
#1. When Adam and Eve sinned, they realized the essence of their nakedness. So it was that when God came to walk with them, as He usually did in the cool of the evening, they ran away from Him because they knew He'd see right through to the depths of their essence. So they decided to flee, shameful of what they had done.
#2. The woman at the well, hers was a different story. She did not feel judged when Jesus saw her sin, instead she felt His love when He offered her rivers of living water. (Full story in John Chapter 4).
What was the difference between these two instances? In the first, nakedness brought guilt, but in the second, it exposed love. Jesus came to redeem us from the judgment nakedness reveals. His salvation tore the curtains of the temple so that you can run into the Holy of Holies. No longer do we need an intermediary, He has carried the burdens of our nakedness to the Father, and we are now the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. In other words, when God looks at your nakedness today (your mistakes, your sins), He sees Jesus on the cross. He sees His Son's righteousness.
He sees everything you've ever done since the day you were born till this very hour. He sees you when you wake up in the morning, to when you sleep at night. He sees you as you read this blog. He sees your sins. He sees your struggles. He sees your determination and accomplishments. But more than that, He sees your VICTORY in Christ.
So, today...please run to Him. Yes, even because He sees your nakedness. Don't hide in the bushes, you cannot hide from God. Run to Him. He is merciful. His hands are waiting to embrace you. Run to Him. He is the Father of the Prodigals. Run to Him. He is the redemption for your naked sins. Run to Him. He is the source of living water. What man cannot tell you, He will tell you about yourself. What man cannot do for you, He will do for you.
There's no longer the need to run away. Jesus has paid a very dear price for you. You can now run to Him when He sees your nakedness, not away from Him. That's what the woman at the well was trying to tell the people.
Question for the Day: Have you ever considered running to someone who sees and knows everything about you (and who genuinely loves you)? God does, so run to Him first. I Love you readers, but God loves you more. Looking forward to reading from you in the "comments." Happy 1st of December. New month, new beginnings :)
