Article of the Month
September
| Article of the Month September
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The Approbation of God As the lily among thorns, so is
My love among the daughters. Song of Solomon: 2.2 The
Lord uses this highly contrasting and compelling imagery to emphasize
His love for His Bride. This
speaks of the Approbation of God,
or, the fact of His singular attention
and favor being uniquely toward her, and resting upon her life. She has touched the heart of the Lord
and He has become singularly interested in her. In the midst of others, she stands out
before Him, as though she were the only one. The
most important compliment that we could possibly receive from the Lord
would be to receive a similar expression of His
approbation, concerning us.
This would mean that we have become the recipient of His personal
interest, concern, and activity. We
have become His friend. It
is possible for each one of us to attract the attention of our Lord in
such a way that He becomes both interested in, and active, within our
life experience and activities, as if we were the only person in the universe. This is a divine mystery that we cannot
begin to understand. However,
it is very wonderful and rewarding to experience. After
the Lord had singled out the Bride from among the Daughters of Jerusalem,
by comparing her to A lily among
thorns (Song
of Solomon 2:2a),
she responded and told Him that He was as an apple
tree among the trees of the wood (Song of Solomon 2:3a). Then she added: I sat down under His shadow with
great delight, and His fruit was sweet to my taste. Song of Solomon 2:3b Notice, that to her, His presence
was but as a shadow. She had not yet become interested in the
reality of His personal presence.
At this time, the center of her interest was in the things that
she desired to receive from Him, rather than in Him as a person, and in
seeking to personally know Him. Because you say, I am rich, and
increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and know not that you
are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: I counsel
you to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich
Behold, I stand at the door, and knock:
if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and
will sup with him, and he with Me.
Revelation 3:17-18a, 20 Thinking that all these gifts and
blessings that He was able to supply would satisfy the hunger that was
within her, she asked Him for even more: Stay me with flagons, comfort me
with apples. Song of Solomon 2:5a He
responded to this expression of her desire and gave her so many gifts
and things, that she later said to Him: I am sick of love. Song of Solomon 2:5b After
she had received from Him all that she wanted at that time, she told Him
that He could leave and do as He pleased.
Her only concern was where He would be, in case she had a need. He feeds among the lilies. Until
the day break, and the shadows flee away, turn,
my Beloved, and be You like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of
Bether. Song of Solomon 2:16b-17 At
this time, her interest in the Lord centered around
the things that she was able to get from Him.
Thus, her testimony exposed her selfish attitude. The reason she desired the Lords involvement
in her life was so He could provide for her wants. Therefore she said: My Beloved is mine. Song of Solomon 2:16a If
we listen carefully, our testimony will reveal the level of our spiritual
experience and expose to us the desire, or intent of our heart, in relation
to the Lord. Still,
the Lord continued to bless her.
Later, when He felt she was ready to go beyond her initial self-seeking,
He began, in a determined way, to attract her attention away from all
these things, and direct it to Himself.
It is important that we notice the method He uses in doing this. While
she was still very occupied within the realm of her self-satisfaction, enjoying
all of the gifts that He had given her, He began to position Himself in
ways that would provoke her to notice Him as a person, apart from anything
that He could do for her. He stands behind our wall, He looks forth at the windows, showing Himself through
the lattice. Song of Solomon 2:9b This
wall speaks of the accumulative
build-up of all those things, which hinder or separates, the Bride
(us) from the Lords presence. The materials that make up this hindering
wall include, among other things, a preoccupation with material things,
a lack in spiritual perception, and an indifference, or unwillingness
to respond to the presence of the Lord. The secret of the Lord is with
them that fear
(reverence) Him; and He will show them His covenant.
Psalm 25:14 He made known His ways to Moses,
His acts to the children of This
spiritual dullness will greatly
hinder our ability to experience the deep inner satisfaction that results
from an on-going cooperative
relationship with the Bridegroom, in which He makes His ways known to us, and we experience His
approbation resting on our
lives. And, it will blind
us to the possibilities of our progression into a fully committed, Holy
Spirit-led, overcoming life, into which the Bridegroom
(Jesus) desires to bring us. Come, My beloved (us) ... let us get up early to the vineyards ...
there will I (Jesus) give you My loves. Song of Solomon 7:11-12 It
is very important that we cultivate within us a spiritual sensitivity,
which will enable us to both notice and rightly respond to the Lord, when
He comes to take us further. Where there is no vision, the people
perish. Proverbs 29:18a These
windows represent the Brides
spiritual vision. She became aware of these openings that lead into His chambers
through being quickened, or touched
by His presence when she, from time to time, had momentarily recognized
that there was something more
(the
Lord Himself) beyond all that she presently possessed.
However, she had not yet fully responded to this open
door into His presence. Therefore, He remained without,
seeking her attention through this window (door) that leads into His manifest presence.
She was still indifferent to His desire to come within to be with
her, because she had not yet experienced the lasting, inner satisfaction
of intimate communion with Him. Jesus answered and said to him,
If a man love Me, he will keep My words: and
My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our abode with
him. John 14:23 The
lattice speaks of the fact
that His presence is always, in some measure, veiled. God is Spirit, and can only be known through
spiritual perception and recognition. Along with this, we cannot abide the full
glory of His presence, until we come into the purity of life that is required
for us to draw near to a holy and righteous God. But we speak the wisdom of God
in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world
to our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they
known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is
written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the
heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love Him.
But God has revealed them to us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searches
all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of
a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even
so the things of God knows no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of
the world, but the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things
that are freely given to us of God. I Corinthians 2:7-12 The
Heavenly Bridegroom, the Lord of all creation, stood alone, outside of
all that He desired, patiently waiting for her to notice Him. He longed for her fellowship as He looked
through the windows, gazing upon her in such a way that she could see
His eyes. Finally, His patience
met its reward. She saw Him
and felt the intensity of His desire to be with her.
All else faded as she responded to this, and invited Him to come
into the room of her spiritual experience. Immediately, He came within (His
manifest presence) and began to teach her concerning
the way of entrance into this new realm of spiritual life that He so desired
for her. Then He invited
her to come with Him into His chambers that she might begin to experience
this new relationship of an abiding communion with Him. Rise up, My love, My fair one, and come away. Song of Solomon 2:10b His
intention was to take her beyond the unsatisfying relationship that she
had maintained with Him, which was built upon her desire for all of the
gifts and provisions that He had been giving her.
As in the past, He desired to please and to satisfy her, but He
had something far better to offer to her.
Therefore, He waited until she noticed Him, and invited Him to
come within. It
was necessary that she recognize her need for Him alone. Only then would she be able to see her
true spiritual condition, and rightly respond to Him, and to all that
He intended for her in becoming His Bride. For, lo, the winter is past, the
rain is over and gone; The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the
singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our
land: The fig tree puts forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender
grape give a good smell. Song of Solomon 2:11-13a The
winter represents the time
of spiritual barrenness she experienced while she was content with all
of the blessings she had received, apart from the Lord Himself. The rain had showered all of these blessings
upon her, but is about to be removed from her. It is now over and gone, as she enters the night season of her experience. It is here that she receives the treasures of darkness. The
resultant flowers speak of
the fruit of the Spirit that develops as
a result of her coming through this night season, and of being birthed
into the realm of fellowship and identification with Him in His purposes. The
voice of the turtle speaks
of her receiving a prophetic anointing that abides within her, and enables
her to better express her love and worship to Him, as she comes into this
new area of experience. The
fig tree, refers to First,
the Lord acknowledged her single eye toward Him. O My dove, that are in the clefts
of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let Me see your countenance,
let Me hear your voice; for sweet is your voice, and your countenance
is comely. Song of Solomon 2:14 Then,
He expressed His love for her and told her how much He longed to hear
the expression of her love toward Him, and how beautiful it sounded to
Him. This is a divine mystery, that we could bring such joy and satisfaction to the
Lord, who has all of the hosts of heaven to enjoy. After
she had received and accepted these expressions of His love for her, she
responded in thanksgiving and in worship.
Then, He replied and told her that her voice was sweet. The Lord longs for us to personally express
to Him our love for Him, and our desire to have His manifest presence
abide with us. The
Lord greatly desires to hear our audible expression of worship toward
Him. Then,
He placed her in the security of the clefts of the rock, so her newfound,
singular eye toward Him could be strengthened by expanding her personal
knowledge of Him through a further revelation of His person, presence,
and glory. O My dove, that are in the clefts
of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs. Song of Solomon 2:14a Soon
He will hear an even sweeter expression of thanksgiving and worship from
her voice, as she begins to realize all that is happening to her, and
how much better this is than her past, limited experience. It was but a little that I passed
from them, but I found Him whom my soul loves: I held Him, and would not
let Him go. Song of Solomon 3:4a As
these qualities developed
within her, and she began to seek the Lord for Himself, He repeated to
her the second time: Arise My love, My fair one, and come away. Song of Solomon 2:13b Now
comes the problem that she, along with all of
us, must face. He must wean
her from her past satisfaction with the gifts and blessings of the Lord,
alone (the winter is past, the rain is over and gone). She
had been more interested in His blessings (stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples),
than she was in being with Him.
She is still not willing to respond to His urgent call to rise up with Him, even though He has
repeated it to her twice. Therefore, He has no choice except
to chasten her and further tighten
the rope, limiting her freedom to do as she pleases. There is only one way that this can be
done. It must be done at
night, or in a time of spiritual darkness,
when (seemingly) He withdraws the feeling of His
presence, along with all of the blessings and things that He had given
her, at her requests. After
He did this, we find her to be very upset. By night on my bed I sought Him
whom my soul loves: I sought Him, but I found Him not. Song of Solomon 3:1 The
blessings are gone, and she is unable to find her way in the spiritual
darkness that has settled upon her.
All at once, the methods that she once used to receive a spiritual
blessing, along with the way the Lord used her in ministry, no longer
worked. She was not able to feel, or sense the
presence of the Lord, yet she discovered that she had never been so desirous
for the Lord to reveal Himself to her as she was now. Her
reaction to the withdrawal of His presence and blessing was panic. I will rise now, and go about the
city in the streets, and in the broad ways I will seek Him whom my soul
loves: I sought Him, but found Him not. The watchmen that go about the
city found me: to whom I said, Saw you Him whom
my soul loves? Song of Solomon 3:2-3 These
watchmen are a type of the
ministry. Before, she was
content with all that she had received through them. Now, she is intensely hungry for the Lord
Himself, and begins to look for Him.
She said, "I will rise now
and go about the city." She
sought Him in all the places where she had been previously blessed. She searched in vain, for she could not
find Him. She
found a minister to whom she said, Saw
you Him whom my soul loves?
However, the Lord did not permit this minister to help her, for
the Lord was seeking to draw her to Himself.
He desired to sup with
her alone in His chambers, and also to renew her according to the potential
that He had seen to be within her.
Therefore, the only thing that this minister was able to say to
her came from His own thoughts: You
are probably backsliding; you need to read your Bible and pray more. In
obedience, she did as she had been told, but nothing happened because
the Lord did not permit it to happen (the
rain is over and gone). Therefore, she felt all the more as if
the Lord had gone on a vacation,
or had forsaken her. No matter
to whom she spoke, or what advice they gave, none of these things worked
or helped her in any way. The
Lord had, insofar as feelings are concerned, withdrawn Himself from her. In
her distress, she sought all the more for Him.
The intensity of this seeking, without seemingly receiving any
results or satisfaction, caused her to cry out all the more for the Lord
Himself. Now, the very thing that the Lord has
been waiting patiently for is beginning to form, deep within her. She is recognizing her need for Him, apart
from things. She is desiring Him above all else. The single eye that the Lord had seen to
be buried within her is beginning to surface and to focus. She
had prayed and said to the Lord: Tell me, O You whom my soul loves, where You feed, where You make Your
flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turns aside by
the flocks of Your companions? Song of Solomon 1:7 In
the past, she had been satisfied with being nurtured only by others. Now, she intensely desires the Lord to
personally come that she might sup
with Him (Revelation
3:20). She is beginning to realize that only
the Lord Himself is able to meet her need and has asked where she can
find Him. The Lord heard
this prayer and has begun, step upon step, to draw her to Himself. It
will greatly strengthen and encourage us, in our seeking after the Lord
Himself, to understand the necessity of the Brides going through this
experience of night. She had been content with the blessings
that were readily available to her through an under-shepherd and had no
desire to go further, until the Lord removed these from her. There
is a time in our spiritual growth when we should begin to hear from the
Lord Himself and receive directly from Him.
We are to be under tutors
and governors until the time appointed of the Father (Galatians 4:2). This appointed time had come for her. Therefore, even though she sought out
one watchman after another,
she did not receive what she was seeking.
Finally, in desperation, she turned to the Lord Himself, who had
been patiently waiting, but veiled behind the lattice. It was but a little that I passed
from them, but I found Him...
Song of Solomon 3:4a There
had been a time when she was to receive from the Lord through others,
but now, the Lord caused their wells to dry up concerning her, as it was
time for her to mature. I found Him. He had been there all along, but now she
sees (Jesus) in a different way. He is no longer the shadow that she had been accustomed to
being near in the past. Now,
she clearly sees Him. During
their renewed time of communion together, the Lord began to teach her
concerning her ascent into all that He had for her. After
she submits to this process, and it becomes a personal reality within
her by being tested, the Lord again says to her, Rise up and come away, knowing that now,
she understands. She is ready
to experience His approbation, or singular attention, and be further changed
through her times of personal intimate communion with Him alone. The shadow with which she had once been satisfied,
has become the Lord Himself. Now,
she has found the source of the satisfaction for which she had longed
- the Lord Himself. As she
communes with the Lord, and as He leads into a new spiritual plateau,
there is a further disclosure of His
ways to her. These unfolding cycles of revelation and
spiritual understanding will open to us, as we spend quality time in His
presence. The
Lord has led her through this period of darkness, in which it was very
crucial that she not become discouraged and turn aside. She has been faithful and searched until
she found Him. I held Him, and would not let Him
go... Song
of Solomon
3:4b She
might have been turned aside by others, or become discouraged, but she
had caught a glimpse of Him and could no longer be content, until she
brought Him into her mothers house. There,
she has become wonderfully satisfied, as His approbation now rests upon
her life. Behold, I have set before you an
open door, and no man can shut it: for you have a little strength, and
have kept My word, and have not denied My name. Revelation 3: 8b |
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