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1 I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse:
I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my
honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink
abundantly, O beloved. 2 I sleep, but my heart
waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my
love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my
locks with the drops of the night. 3 I have put off my coat;
how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them? 4 My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved
for him. 5 I rose up to open to my
beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet
smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock. 6 I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn
himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he
spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no
answer… 14 His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his
belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires.
15 His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of
fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. 16 His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether
lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem. (Song 5:1-6, 14-16)
The Song of Solomon is a beautiful story of Christ and His Church.
It is written in metaphor and parable. It reveals the intimacy of expression
and deep love which Christ has for His Church and which His Church should have
for Him.
I am come into my garden, my
sister, my spouse: Sadly, we often doubt the
presence of Christ with us. He loves His Bride so much, and us individually,
that He cannot let us out of His sight. How can we allow His presence to go
without acknowledgement. Is it possible, when we need Him most, He is right
beside us as He was to Mary Magdalene at the Tomb, the two travelers on the
Road to Emmaus, and the fearful disciples aboard the ship on the stormy
Galilean Sea? So, He must announce He has come to us! In fact, He often stands
at the door and knocks while we remain oblivious to His coming. In speaking to
the churches of Revelations, He says, I stand at the door and knock. (Rev 3:20). Unfortunately, that places
Him OUTSIDE – not INSIDE – the greater number of churches.
I have gathered my myrrh with
my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my
milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved. He has done all required for
the dowry of His Bride. He has received the myrrh of the burial and the sweet
spices of His resurrection. Because He has drunk His wine (Cup of Suffering)
with His milk (Morning Joy), He insist the entitlement for us to do so as well,
for all that is His is all of His Bride’s, too. We are ‘beloved’ to Him. What a
special title we have from such an exalted Lord and King.
I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my
love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my
locks with the drops of the night. The Bride is not so watchful as the Groom. She
sleeps while He has suffered the dews of the night. But she does, indeed, hear
His Voice and knows the Voice. And the Bride is not only a Bride, but a Sister
as well. My
mother and my brethren are these which hear the word of God, and do it. (Luke 8:21)
I have put off my coat; how
shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them? What deplorable excuses the
Church makes to cover its unwillingness to bear the cross. It is not
convenient! It is not the proper time! I have been sleeping and need rest to
regain my bearings? Today’s church is quick to act on matters involving power
and pelf, yet slow to do those things necessary to nurture wisdom and knowledge
of God in her members. It is a small thing to build a two million dollar Taj
Mahal, but quite a burden to put one’s self out to bring the sheaf to the barn.
My beloved put in his hand by
the hole of the door, and my
bowels were moved for him.
He will use His charms and His Spirit to beckon and to lure us and, yet, we
still are slow to respond. If we are too slow, He will not linger at the door
always. The term ‘bowels’ here is used in the same manner the term ‘heart’ is
used today. Our hearts are moved for Him because His heart was first moved for
us. We love him, because he first loved us. (1 John 4:19).
I rose up to open to my
beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet
smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock. Too slowly does the church
arise to open its door to Christ, and too often is Christ OUTSIDE the Church
and not INSIDE. (Rev 3:20). Her hands are full of the
myrrh of repentance, but the lo
ck of the door is the sin that has kept Him out.
ck of the door is the sin that has kept Him out.
I opened to my beloved; but my
beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he
spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no
answer.
The Spaniards have a beautiful name and title for Christ: Jesus es el Senor!
or ‘Jesus is a Gentleman’. And so He is. He does not intrude where He is not
welcome. We may avoid Christ to the point that He will not answer without
prevailing prayer. She awoke from sleep when He called, else He would have
departed for ever. Now she must be chastened for her reluctance to watch and
wait.
His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his
belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. His
legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of
fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. The precious stones mentioned
are those stones of the foundation for New Jerusalem. (Rev 21:19,20). The gold rings are symbols
of authority. His is tall and majestic as the Cedars of Lebanon.
His mouth is most
sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my
beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem. From His mouth we have heard
only kindness and loveliness. He is my Friend that sticketh closer than a
brother. (Pro 18:24). He is the only One for the
Church for there can be no other. She LOVES Him, and so must we
Perhaps we should stop to consider well what a marvelously
wonderful Savior we have. He is madly in love with His Bride, the True Church.
Should that love go unrequited by those who are showered with love without
merit?
