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Today's thoughts come again from the book of Song of Solomon. As I continue reading through this beautifiul piece of poetry, it is hard to remember that not so long ago, I dreaded the thought of even opening this book! In fact, as I read through it this time, I find myself "chomping at the bit", so to speak, excited to see what God will reveal to us next!
In the devotional from the Song of Solomon that was published in the Nugget last month (In the Desert Place), we saw in chapter 3 how the young woman longed for her lover, but when he didn't come to her, she went out looking for him until she found him. Today's devotional picks up just after she finds her lover. The young women looking on begin to cry out:
"Who is this sweeping in from the wilderness like a cloud of smoke? Who is it, fragrant with myrrh and frankincense and every kind of spice? Look, it is Solomon’s carriage, surrounded by sixty heroic men, the best of Israel’s soldiers.They are all skilled swordsmen, experienced warriors. Each wears a sword on his thigh, ready to defend the king against an attack in the night. King Solomon’s carriage is built of wood imported from Lebanon. Its posts are silver, its canopy gold; its cushions are purple. It was decorated with love by the young women of Jerusalem." (Song of Solomon 3:6-10 NLT)
The women in the story identify the carriage's occupants as King Solomon. We know, however, that this beautiful piece of literature is a symbol of our relationship with Christ. What, then, is this image of the emerging carriage referring to? Let's take a look, piece by piece:
a. "Who is this sweeping in from the wilderness like a cloud of smoke?" The Bible tells us that when Jesus returns, He will return "like the clouds" of Heaven, and every eye will see him: "Look! He comes with the clouds of heaven. And everyone will see him— even those who pierced him. And all the nations of the world will mourn for him. Yes! Amen!" (Rev. 1:7 NLT).
b. "...fragrant with myrrh and frankincense and every kind of spice." Elsewhere in the Bible, we are told that Christians have the fragrance of Christ, and that we are, "...a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish..." (2 Cor. 2:15 KJV): So if we have the aroma of Christ, and our aroma is called "sweet", then we know that Jesus also has a wonderful aroma!
c. "Look, it is Solomon's carriage, surrounded by sixty heroic men, the best of Israel's soldiers. They are all skilled swordsmen, experiened warriors. Each wears a sword on his thigh, ready to defend the king against an attack at night." We know that when Jesus returns, He will bring with Him a mighty army: "Then I saw the beast and the kings of the world and their armies gathered together to fight against the one sitting on the horse and his army." (Revelation 19:19 NLT)
d. "King Solomon's carriage is built of wood imported from Lebanon. Its posts are silver, its canopy gold; its cushions are purple. It was decorated with love by the young women of Jerusalem." Isaiah 35:2 reminds us that, "There the Lord will display his glory, the splendor of our God." (NLT)
We see, then, that the entire scene of Solomon, described by the women in the story, fits completely and totally with what the rest of the Bible teaches us about the return of Christ.
We also know that the women in this story don't know King Solomon. They are simply looking on. These can be understood to represent those who don't know Jesus Christ, and we see that they are quite impressed by the spectacle that they witness. Then we see the young woman, who represents each child of Christ, calling out to them to: "Come out to see King Solomon, young women of Jerusalem.He wears the crown his mother gave him on his wedding day, his most joyous day." (Song of Solomon 3:11 NLT)! Her excitement and her enthusiasm for her king are so evident in her response!
Are we as enthusiastic about our Jesus as she is about her king?
Herein lies a beautiful picture of what our response to the unsaved world should be: We should be as excited to share our Jesus as the woman is to introduce the other women to her King Solomon! We know that we are required to witness, for that this was the great commission that Jesus left for each of us: "Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. " (Matthew 28:19-20a NLT). If it is what we are commanded to do, then why aren't we as excited to witness as this woman?
To answer this, we must first look at why she was so eager to share her king. Could it be because she knew from personal experience how wonderful he was? Because she had experienced his love and was so in love with him that she wanted the others to know what a great king he was?
Many of us know from experience how it feels to be in love with someone. We don't want to keep it silent. We want to shout it from the mountaintops! And this is exactly what motivated the woman in Solomon's poem. She was in love, and she wanted to world to know!
This is, I believe, the beautiful and vital lesson to be learned from this passage of the Song of Solomon. Knowing that the woman represents each of us, we must ask ourselves: Are we as in love with our Jesus as she was with her king? Are we as excited to share our Jesus as the woman was? Do we see the hurting, hungry world and cry out, as she did: "Come out to see my Jesus, you people of the world! He wears the crown given to Him by His Father!"
And therein lies the first step to sharing our faith: We must be in love with Jesus! When we are, our passion for our Lord and Saviour will drive us to share the good news! Therefore, if you want to obey Jesus' last command, but somehow you just can't seem to get enthusiastic about sharing your faith, then perhaps you need take some vital lessons from this woman: Perhaps the reason you aren't excited about witnessing is that you aren't as totally in love with Jesus as she was!
Feeling like the Great Commission is a big burden? Why not focus instead of falling passionately in love with Jesus? When you do, you won't be able to stop yourself from shouting out as she did, "Come out to see my Jesus, you people of the world!"
In His love,
Lyn
Lynona Gordon Chaffart
Moderator, Associate Director, Answers2Prayer Ministries
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