The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Song of Songs 2:3-4,
"Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest
is my beloved among the young men.
I delight to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
Let him lead me to the banquet hall,
and let his banner over me be love."
The oriental erotic literature of the Song of Songs has been variously understood and taught from the perspectives the song is about the relationship between God and his covenant people, Israel, or between the church and her Savior, or Christ and the soul of the believer, or simply as a celebration of King Saul and the ardency between him and his lover.
No matter the approach to the book, one thing remains true.- this book is among the inspired texts of the Scriptures. It is inspired by God and a part of his revelation to us. As such, what we learn from it, what we are exposed to is the love, the passion, the ardency of the love our Lord has designed to be expressed and experienced within his creation and beyond.
This love of God, expressed so well in this book, is nowhere on display more graphically than on the cross of Jesus Christ. With an ardent love for mankind, God expressed his passion for us by sending his Son to pay the penalty of our sins - for each one of us! Paul speaks of this love as something that is both beyond our comprehension and yet something to, nonetheless, reach out and grasp, "to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Ephesians 3:19.
This passage from Songs 2:3-4 is the expression of the maiden for her lover. It is the expression of God's people for their God, the saved for their Savior, the children of God for their Father Almighty. Our approach to the Lord should not be that dusty pursuit of the theologian within his ivory tower, lost in his books. Our approach to the Lord should not be that of the spiritually bored looking for divine entertainment. Our approach to the Lord should not be that of the sterile ecclesiastical environment of vestments, of liturgy, the order of service, the practice of sacraments and ordinances, of halos celebrated in stained glass... Our approach to the Lord should be of the most intimate expressions of our hearts - expressions of passion, love, thankfulness, reverence and awe. Most importantly, the ultimate expression of embrace, of trust and faith.
As the expression of the maiden who delights to sit in the shade of her lover, does our passion for the Lord rival hers?
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
"Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest
is my beloved among the young men.
I delight to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
Let him lead me to the banquet hall,
and let his banner over me be love."
The oriental erotic literature of the Song of Songs has been variously understood and taught from the perspectives the song is about the relationship between God and his covenant people, Israel, or between the church and her Savior, or Christ and the soul of the believer, or simply as a celebration of King Saul and the ardency between him and his lover.
No matter the approach to the book, one thing remains true.- this book is among the inspired texts of the Scriptures. It is inspired by God and a part of his revelation to us. As such, what we learn from it, what we are exposed to is the love, the passion, the ardency of the love our Lord has designed to be expressed and experienced within his creation and beyond.
This love of God, expressed so well in this book, is nowhere on display more graphically than on the cross of Jesus Christ. With an ardent love for mankind, God expressed his passion for us by sending his Son to pay the penalty of our sins - for each one of us! Paul speaks of this love as something that is both beyond our comprehension and yet something to, nonetheless, reach out and grasp, "to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Ephesians 3:19.
This passage from Songs 2:3-4 is the expression of the maiden for her lover. It is the expression of God's people for their God, the saved for their Savior, the children of God for their Father Almighty. Our approach to the Lord should not be that dusty pursuit of the theologian within his ivory tower, lost in his books. Our approach to the Lord should not be that of the spiritually bored looking for divine entertainment. Our approach to the Lord should not be that of the sterile ecclesiastical environment of vestments, of liturgy, the order of service, the practice of sacraments and ordinances, of halos celebrated in stained glass... Our approach to the Lord should be of the most intimate expressions of our hearts - expressions of passion, love, thankfulness, reverence and awe. Most importantly, the ultimate expression of embrace, of trust and faith.
As the expression of the maiden who delights to sit in the shade of her lover, does our passion for the Lord rival hers?
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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