Covering the Naked

Because the time for the release of my book is approaching, I want to give you a preview and at the same time help many in the body of Christ that may not realize are violating an important spiritual law that could be detrimental to their destiny and the future of their descendants. I am referring to the principle of covering each other with prayer and intercession instead of slander and gossip. I pray you are blessed through this excerpt and get back to the right path if you have fallen from it and receive the grace of God to avoid this violation of a spiritual law.

 

...Continuing our study about fasting covered in chapter 5, Isaiah 58:6-7 raises the bar to God`s intended kind of fasting for His people and some important reasons why we must fast on behalf of others. It says,

⁶“Is this not the fast that I have chosen:
To loose the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the heavy burdens,
To let the oppressed go free,
And that you break every yoke?
⁷ Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out;
When you see the naked, that you cover him,
And not hide yourself from your own flesh?

We are commanded to do the things outlined in these verses not only on our own behalf or for our family members, but also on behalf of others we are called to intercede for. The dictionary definition of the word intercession is:

1.      The action of intervening on behalf of another.

2.      The action of saying a prayer on behalf of another person.

We are commanded to not only seek to satisfy our own physical or spiritual needs, but also the needs of others in the body of Christ. This also means that we need to stand in the gap for others that for a number of reasons may be showing a low level of the character of Christ in them. But one important reason could be that they have needs that we, as a body of Christ, should be mindful to help meet so that no one among God`s people is suffering unnecessarily when we should help carry one another`s burdens until the person gets strong enough to do it on their own. Galatians 6:1-3 says it this way, Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. ² Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ. ³ If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important. NLT

 

But returning to the passage in Isaiah 58, verse 7c says among the commands, when you see the naked, that you cover him. This verse is not merely referring to covering someone with clothes made of fabric. Besides that, it commands us to cover with our mouths those that may be going through trials out of their control or may have fallen from the way. One of the first things to do to help them restore is to pray for them and help them in any way we can instead of slandering or gossiping about them. Our prayers of intercession can help them find their way back and out of their fallen state.

In addition, Genesis 9:20-27 gives us the account of Noah’s nakedness and the two different reactions from his sons along with the consequences of those reactions. ²⁰And Noah began to be a farmer, and he planted a vineyard. ²¹Then he drank of the wine and was drunk, and became uncovered in his tent. ²²And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. ²³But Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid on both their shoulders, and went backward and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father’s nakedness. ²⁴So Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his youngest son had done to him. ²⁵Then he said:

           “Cursed be Canaan;

A servant of servants

He shall be to his brethren.”

²⁶And he said:

“Blessed be the LORD,

the God of Shem,

And may Canaan be his servant.

²⁷May God enlarge Japheth,

And may he dwell in the tents of Shem;

And may Canaan be his servant.”

Canaan was cursed and sentenced to serve those who did the right thing because he did not. Now as you fast forward to when God promised Abraham the land of Canaan as an inheritance for him and his descendants (Genesis 17:8), don’t you think God’s decision for the land to be removed from the hands of the descendants of Canaan and into the hands of Abraham and his descendants could have originated with this incident? Thus, know that when something happens in which someone around you is being exposed and shown naked in front of you (their trials and testing being made public), God may be dealing with their sins or shaking their wrong foundations by taking them through a process that you do not understand, but He also may be testing you to see how you are going to use your mouth in the situation.

 Also, understand that people that claim to follow the ways of the Lord, but slander, gossip, and by this fail to have a true love walk, have poor discernment of the things of the spirit and become easy prey to be used of the enemy to turn them against others and attack them with their mouths. But these people are also sowing seeds for their time when their nakedness will be shown to others, and instead of receiving mercy, they will receive the same judgment magnified instead of mercy. The same pipeline from where the water gushes out gets wet first. This means that the damage they caused to others through their slander and gossip will come back upon them. This is indeed a warning to ask God for help if you are prompt to slander and gossip because you do not want to forfeit the great destiny God has for you and the future of your descendants because of this sign of spiritual immaturity and contamination with the spirit of this world. God is no respecter of persons, but He is a respecter of principles. So if you like me, have ever violated this spiritual principle, repent and receive the grace of God to have the words of your mouth and the meditations of your heart be pleasing in His sight (Psalm 19:14). As always, to God alone be all the Glory.