7 attacks against us: nakedness and peril; part 5
June 30, 2017
Romans 8:35
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Nakedness:
[root word]
Strong’s Concordance #1131
gumnos: naked, poorly clothed
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (goom-nos’)
Definition: rarely: stark-naked; generally: wearing only the under-garment; bare, open, manifest; mere.
There are 2 broad categories of clothing: physical and spiritual.
Let’s cover the physical first.
We need to know the objective and purpose of clothing:
The objective is to cover some parts of or all of our body.
The purpose is manifold:
- Protection from:
- Weather
- Animals or Insects
- Environmental hazards
- Enemies during fights and wars
- Special activities [wrestling, scuba diving, managing bee hives, walking in outer space, etc]
- Gender differentiation
- Cover private parts
- Indicate social status or rank
- Identification through uniforms – an outfit or style of dress worn by the members of a given profession, organization, or rank
- Religion identification
We will see the importance of the purposes of clothing later on.
There is more than one meaning of the word “naked” in the bible.
- Physical: no clothes
- Safety: no protection
- Spiritual: no gift of holy spirit present
This example in Isaiah contains 1 & 2: physical and safety.
The phrase “naked and barefoot” occurs only 3 times in the bible and all 3 are in Isaiah 20.
Isaiah 20
2 At the same time spake the Lord by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
3 And the Lord said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia;
4 So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.
5 And they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation, and of Egypt their glory.
Here, the prophet Isaiah went physically naked for a period of 3 years in the desert as a sign and wonder to Egypt & Ethiopia.
Just imagine if you had to do that!
In Hebrew, this word naked means that all Isaiah was wearing was something like a modern-day g-string.
Egypt was deep into idolatry and paid many consequences as a result, two of which were shame and no protection against the adversary because they walked away from the Lord.
There is a spiritual nakedness also, without the gift of holy spirit.
Genesis 3:7
And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
Verse 7 is immediately after the fall of man when he transferred his power over to Satan. That is when he lost the gift of holy spirit that was upon him upon a condition.
After the fall of man, Adam & Eve put physical clothes on to make up for the lack of spiritual clothes.
The first emotion that Adam felt after the fall was fear when he heard the voice of God in the garden [Genesis 3:10].
Fear contradicts the love of God and is negative believing that will bring consequences. It’s interesting that the first born child [Cain] became a child of the devil.
Adam and Eve were spiritually naked because they no longer had the gift of holy spirit.
Adam & Eve were sons of God by adoption, not birth like we are. Even if a Christian really screws up, they still have the spiritual incorruptible seed inside them.
But for people in the old testament, it was possible to lose their gift of holy spirit.
That’s one of the differences in the various biblical administrations.
How thankful we should be!
In this administration of grace, look what the Apostle Paul endured!
II Corinthians 11
27 In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
28 Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.
How to conquer:
If you need material clothing, keep God first.
Matthew 6 [amplified bible]
25 “Therefore I tell you, stop being worried or anxious (perpetually uneasy, distracted) about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, as to what you will wear. Is life not more than food, and the body more than clothing?
26 Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow [seed] nor reap [the harvest] nor gather [the crops] into barns, and yet your heavenly Father keeps feeding them. Are you not worth much more than they?
27 And who of you by worrying can add one hour to [the length of] his life?
28 And why are you worried about clothes? See how the lilies and wildflowers of the field grow; they do not labor nor do they spin [wool to make clothing],
29 yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory and splendor dressed himself like one of these.
30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive and green today and tomorrow is [cut and] thrown [as fuel] into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!
31 Therefore do not worry or be anxious (perpetually uneasy, distracted), saying, ‘What are we going to eat?’ or ‘What are we going to drink?’ or ‘What are we going to wear?’
32 For the [pagan] Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; [but do not worry,] for your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
33 But first and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being right—the attitude and character of God], and all these things will be given to you also.
34 “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Philippians 4 [amplified bible]
12 I know how to get along and live humbly [in difficult times], and I also know how to enjoy abundance and live in prosperity. In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret [of facing life], whether well-fed or going hungry, whether having an abundance or being in need.
13 I can do all things [which He has called me to do] through Him who strengthens and empowers me [to fulfill His purpose—I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency; I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses me with inner strength and confident peace.]
Philippians 4:19
But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
Hebrews 4:16
Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
God spiritually clothed us when we got born again.
Luke 24:49
And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
The word “endued” is the Greek word enduo which means to be clothed with.
This verse in Luke is looking forward to the day of Pentecost, only 10 days away, in the year 28A.D. which occurred in the open area of the temple in Jerusalem.
Model city of temple in Jerusalem
Since God clothes us, that means we were spiritually naked before that point in time that God clothed us, which is when we did Romans 10:9 & 10.
The first usage of enduo in the books of the bible written directly to Christians is in Romans 13 twice [in bolded italics].
Romans 13
12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.
14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
So the key here is the renewed mind, walking in the love, knowledge and wisdom of God instead of falling into the same old 5-senses routine.
Where can you go shopping for your spiritual clothing on sale?
II Corinthians 5:20
Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.
What is an ambassador?
Definition of ambassador at dictionary.com:
noun
1. a diplomatic official of the highest rank, sent by one sovereign or state to another as its resident representative (ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary)
2. a diplomatic official of the highest rank sent by a government to represent it on a temporary mission, as for negotiating a treaty.
3. a diplomatic official serving as permanent head of a country’s mission to the United Nations or some other international organization.
4. an authorized messenger or representative.
Abbreviation: Amb., amb.
What are the clothing needs of an ambassador?
Obviously wearing a pair of old worn-out blue jeans and a torn t-shirt is very inappropriate for an ambassador.
Wearing a top quality suit and tie with a vest would be more fitting.
What about the clothing needs of a wrestler? Being dressed as if you’re going to spend a winter in northern Siberia would hinder your athletic performance significantly.
How about if you were going to work on a farm? You would need appropriate clothing for that too.
Look at the versatility of our gift of holy spirit!
We are ambassadors for Christ; wrestlers in the spiritual competition; laborers together with God, and many other things, and yet, the one gift of holy spirit is the most appropriate spiritual clothing in every season and situation.
No matter what “hat” we wear, our one gift of holy spirit means we are dressed for success spiritually!
Colossians 2:10
And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:
II Corinthians 9:8
And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
So in Romans 8:35, when it mentions nakedness, since it’s written to believers, it can’t be referring to us without the gift of holy spirit.
Therefore, it has to do with either our lack of physical clothing, lack of protection or some other lack, which could indicate being out of fellowship with God or not believing him to meet our needs.
We can go shopping for our spiritual clothes in God’s Super Spiritual Clothing Store. You’ll find a custom-tailored outfit just for you. It’s appropriate for all seasons and situations. It’s located on aisle 10, Row 9 in the Romans section. It is the greatest bargain of all because it cost Jesus Christ his life.
1 Corinthians 6:20
For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
Peril:
Strong’s Concordance #2794
kindunos: danger
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Phonetic Spelling: (kin’-doo-nos)
Definition: danger, peril, risk.
What kind of perils are there?
II Corinthians 11:26
In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
Here, Paul was in 8 different types of danger, yet God delivered him from them all, so he can rescue us as well.
I looked up all the Greek words for the different types of perils so we can have a clearer and more accurate translation:
- perils of waters: Potamos – flood, river, stream, torrent;
- perils of robbers: lestes (“a bandit, briard”) is a thief who also plunders and pillages – an unscrupulous marauder (malefactor), exploiting the vulnerable without hesitating to use violence.
- perils by mine own countrymen: genos: offspring, family, race, nation, kind
- perils by the heathen: ethnos: people joined by practicing similar customs or common culture; nation(s), usually referring to unbelieving Gentiles (non-Jews).
- perils in the city: polis: city; the first city in the bible was built by a person who was a child of the devil; Stephen, the great man of God in Acts 7, was cast out of the city and stoned to death; in Acts 13, the Judeans stirred up an entire city against Paul and Barnabas and cast them out, etc
- perils in the wilderness: eremia: desert or uninhabited region; In Isaiah, Satan has made the world a [spiritual] wilderness>from wild beast; spiritually this refers to a devil spirit.
- perils in the sea: thalassa: the sea; In Acts 27, Paul was shipwrecked, but survived; James 1:7 But let him ask in faith [believing], nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
- perils among false brethren: pseudadelphos: a false brother; Galatians 2:4
“And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage:” definition of privily: pareisaktos: brought in secretly
: what is “smuggled in” by subterfuge and deceit – literally, “introduced (imported) from close beside”.
For me, if I categorize things, I can get a new and broader perspective.
Out of the 8 perils, 3 are from the environment [waters, wilderness, sea = 37.5%; 2 out of these 3 deal with some form of water] and 5 are from people [robbers, countrymen, heathen, city, false brethren = 62.5%].
2 out of the 8 deal with water.
It’s interesting that waters are listed as the first peril.
It was also the devil that caused the second peril on the earth by causing a flood in the time of Noah.
[Understanding the depth of this will be the subject of a future article].
II Peter 3:6
Whereby the world that then was [Genesis 1:1, the first heaven and earth], being overflowed with water, perished:
The book of Job, the first book of the bible written chronologically, follows a similar attack pattern consisting of people and the environment.
Because of Job’s fear, the attacks from people in Job 1 consisted of the Sabeans killing his servants and stealing his livestock and the Chaldeans stole their camels and killed more servants.
When it comes to the environment, a fire killed the sheep and servants and a storm knocked down a house, killing all of the men inside.
What does fear mean?
- Face
- Everything
- And
- Run
OR
- Face
- Everything
- And
- Rule
Make your choice.
How to conquer:
II Timothy 3
10 But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience,
11 Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me.
II Timothy 4
17 Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.
18 And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
I Corinthians 10:13
There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer [allow] you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
James 5:16
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Romans 8
26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities [infirmity]: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
These verses are talking about speaking in tongues, which is perfect spiritual prayer to God and actually have 17 benefits listed in the bible.
Speaking of perils in the wilderness, the entire world is a spiritual wilderness, yet look what God did for Israel!
- God fed Israel in the wilderness
- God blessed Israel in the wilderness
- God led Israel through the wilderness
Since he did this for his adopted sons under the bondage of the old testament, what can he do for us, his first-born sons in the age of grace?
Romans 8:29
For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Exodus 16:32
And Moses said, This is the thing which the Lord commandeth, Fill an omer of it to be kept for your generations; that they may see the bread wherewith I have fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you forth from the land of Egypt.
Deuteronomy 2:7
For the Lord thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand: he knoweth thy walking through this great wilderness: these forty years the Lord thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing.
Jeremiah 2:6
Neither said they, Where is the Lord that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt?
