I have read this verse many times. It almost always served to encourage me with the reminder of the everlasting love of God in Christ.

But today the word "nakedness" jumped out at me. My first thought was of Adam and Eve in the Creation narrative (Genesis 2:23 and 3:7-11).

"Nakedness" speaks of exposure and vulnerability. Images of skinned susceptibility, unprotected danger, jeopardy come to the fore. Eugene Peterson uses the word "homelessness" as its synonym. Destitute, impoverished, naked despair drives some to suicide.

Conversely, "Nakedness" speaks of pure beauty. Who does not wonder at the spectacular magnificence of the human body? Painters and sculptors of the early centuries understood this more than most people. There was no shame or embarrassment in Adam and Eve’s initial natural innocence (Genesis 2:23).

It also speaks of intimacy, the deepest of intimacies between people. In the proper context, in their nakedness, sexual intimacy between husband and wife evokes unspeakable joy and creates an irrevocable bond. In the wrong context (rape, torture, persecution), however, nakedness evokes unspeakable horror, ultimate shame.

We are all born naked - naked in our physical introduction to this world. Naked in the barest of vulnerability, dependency, and neediness. Naked in our neonate innocence.

And in death, regardless of whether we end up dressed in our funereal best or as we were in our last earthly moments, we will still end up naked before our Maker. God sees us as He saw us from conception.

Naked we come, naked we will go. May the truth of the naked penuriousness of our souls drive us to One who cares more for the internal than the external being. For in Christ, nothing and no one can separate us from the love of God.

Reflecting on the immeasurable everlasting love of God in Christ.