“When you can undress without being ashamed, and take your clothes off and put them under your feet the way little children do … then you will comprehend the Child of the Living One.” ~ Jesus (Gospel of Thomas 37)

 

How intriguing this verse is when contrasted with the shame Adam & Eve felt after their “Fall” in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:7), and how intriguing as well that Jesus would have uttered such a verse – especially considering the fact that he was very well versed in Old Testament scripture, and that one of the primary purposes of his ministry was to radically reform the Judaic laws of his day (see Matthew 5:17-18 – where the word commonly translated as “fulfilled” is actually the Greek pleroo, a word which actually means “to hone” or “to perfect” or “to bring to completion”; see also page 427 herein) …

 

Regardless, this verse metaphorically refers to purposeful vulnerability – the purposeful opening of oneself completely to the other; even at the cost of ridicule or rejection (public nudity was a huge no-no back in Jesus’ day — see Leviticus 18:6-18) – once again showing Jesus using a bold example to champion self-sacrifice that was almost completely beyond misinterpretation.

 

Filed under: My Favorite Verses by Scaughdt