Naked

Genesis 3:8-11a

They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.” He said, “Who told you that you were naked?

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And everybody knows that the Plague is coming
Everybody knows that it's moving fast
Everybody knows that the naked man and woman
Are just a shining artifact of the past
Everybody knows the scene is dead
But there's gonna be a meter on your bed
That will disclose
What everybody knows

"Everybody Knows" written by Leonard Cohen and Sharon Robinson, recorded by Leonard Cohen and a host of others, originally released on "I'm Your Man"

Adam and Eve had the knowledge, knowledge they did not need to have. But they had it now and there was no turning back. That was when our melodrama changed to stage right with the entrance of the Lord God walking into the garden. This new knowledge give Adam and Eve all sorts of insight. They knew they had lost their perfect connection with the Lord God. They knew they had done wrong. They knew they disobeyed. They knew they disappointed the Lord God. They knew they were in trouble.

Everybody (both of them, but still it was everybody) know that the plague is coming and that it's moving fast. They knew they were naked and they knew they were more than nude, they were naked. They were laid bare before the Lord God. Death was coming. Their sin was naked before the Lord God. All they had was shame and fear. They had no idea what was coming next. So they hid.

It's our first reflex too when we are caught. Shame, fear, denial, "fight or flight," the reactions are numerous but they are just that, reactions. It is up to us to act, not react. Yes the plague is coming and moving fast. It is truly an artifact of the past, sin. We are creatures bathed in sin, individual and corporate. Our selves and our communities are covered in a sinful nature that is impossible to escape, those who don't know are foolish or ignorant.

Only in Christ, through the Lord God, in community with the Holy Spirit can we live in and through that plague. Only in this can we live in and not of the world, the plague. It's coming, it's coming fast, it's here. Everybody knows. This is not a chicken little moment. God is asking where we are. It's time to stop hiding.