The Excellence and Supremacy of Christ

My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. the chiefest...: Heb. a standard-bearer - Song of Solomon 5:10

    “My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand..”

    The glorious, intimate, loving description of our Lord Jesus Christ given in verses 10-16 is given in response to the question of the daughters of Jerusalem in verse 9. “What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?” In his commentary on the Song of Solomon, Pastor Roger Ellsworth makes a tremendous statement about this.

    “The question of the daughters of Jerusalem puts squarely before us a thrilling possibility – it is possible for God’s children to so love Christ, and as a result to live in such a way, that they arrest attention and arouse interest. The reverse side of the coin is somber. It is also possible for God’s children to live in such a way that they never stimulate in others any thought about their faith or provoke any consideration of it. The apostle Peter tells his readers to ‘Always be ready to give a defence to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you’(1 Peter 3:15). He expected them to live in such an arresting manner that they would frequently have to explain why Christ meant so much to them.”

    May God give us grace to live in such obvious devotion, love, and consecration to Christ that people are aroused to asked us about him.

    A question

    What a joy it is for a believing sinner to call the Lord Jesus Christ, “My Beloved.” May God give us grace to constantly give him our hearts, to constantly set our hearts’ affection upon our Savior who loved us and gave himself for us (Co. 3:1-3). It is of utmost importance that our hearts’ affection be really and truly set upon Christ.

    We must trust him; and we must love him. Christ on the cross saves us when he becomes to us as Christ in the heart. It is of little value for us to know about Christ, if we do not really trust him and love him. It is meaningless for us to talk about Christ, unless our hearts are truly wed and knit to him. The orthodoxy of our doctrine is but a mockery of Christ, if we do not love Christ.

    Therefore, I must ask a question. It is a question which I ask of myself frequently. – “Is the Lord Jesus Christ my Beloved?” Can I call the Lamb of God, who was crucified on Calvary and who now reigns at the Father’s right hand, my Beloved? Can I truly call him my Beloved? We will never consider a more important question. It would be far better for a person never to have been born than to live and die without true love for Christ (1 Cor. 16:22). Religious morality is not enough - Do I love Christ? Religious zeal and devotion is not enough - Do I love Christ? Religious works are not enough - Do I love Christ?

    Love for Christ is not the ground of our salvation. Only the righteousness, and shed blood, and sovereign power of Christ can save me. Love for Christ is not the means by which we obtain salvation. Salvation comes by grace through faith. But true love for Christ is essential to salvation. Where there is no love for grace there is no grace and no salvation.

    Believers are men and women who truly do love the Son of God. We do not love him as we ought. Indeed, we blush to speak of our love for him! But we do love our Redeemer. With Peter we bow our heads and say, “Lord, Thou knowest all things. Thou knowest that I love thee.” As John puts it, “We love him because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). His love for us precedes our love for him. His love for us causes our love for him. His love for us infinitely exceeds our love for him. But if we know him, we do love him. All who know him, trust him, worship him, and love him. There are no exceptions. Loving him, we find his word delightful, not grievous. Loving him, we find his will satisfying, not irksome. Loving him, God’s people love his Word, seek his glory, delight in his salvation, and love one another (1 John 3:14; 5:1-3). Loving Christ, believers rejoice in his honor, his exaltation, and his glory. We may be reluctant to sing it in public, but believing sinners can truthfully sing to their Savior…

    “My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine,

    for Thee all the follies of sin I resign;

    My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art Thou,

    if ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ‘tis now.”

    If truly we love the Lord Jesus Christ, we delight to speak of him. Love speaks of its object, defends the honor of its object, and is never ashamed of its object.

    Would you grow in the love of Christ? Then seek to know the love of Christ that passes knowledge. The surest way to grow in the knowledge of his love for you and in love for him is to seek to know him. Meditate on Christ. Study Christ. Try to understand the glory of his Person. Seek to know the purity of his character. Study Christ in all his sacred offices. Think and study much about the cross, the blood, and the atonement of Christ. Meditate upon his resurrection, ascension, exaltation, and intercession. Feed your soul’s hope by contemplating the Lord’s glorious second coming. Study Christ! Study Christ, so that when any ask you, “What is thy Beloved more than another Beloved?”, you may be ready to answer easily, quickly, and forcibly (1 John 1:1-3).

    "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ."

    The better we know the Lord Jesus Christ the better we will love him, speak of him, and praise him.

    Christ’s excellence

    Throughout the Song of Solomon, and throughout the Book of God, we are given glimpses of the excellence of Christ. Here the Church speaks of Christ’s excellence in admiring words of deep affection—“My Beloved is white and ruddy.”

    It seems to me that these words call attention to the two primary characteristics of our Lord’s Person. Solomon had often seen the snow-white lambs, those emblems of purity, brought to the temple to be offered in sacrifice to the Lord. So he compares Christ to the white lamb of sacrifice. “My Beloved is white.” He had also seen the priest slit the lamb’s throat, and then had seen the ruby red blood of the lamb poured out in sacrifice to God. So he puts the two together and says, “My Beloved is white and ruddy.” The white represents his immaculate purity. The red represents his sacrificial blood.

    Our Lord is in himself white. He is the eternal, immaculate Son of God (1 John 1:5). Jesus Christ truly is God, the second Person of the Holy Trinity (1 John 5:7). Whiteness also represents the purity of our Savior’s life as a man (Heb. 7:25-26). Both perfect Godhood and perfect manhood are essential for him to be our Mediator and sin-atoning Substitute.

    Redness refers to the sacrificial character of our Redeemer. We must never be turned aside from the great good news of the gospel and the message of substitutionary redemption. It is the foundation and the cornerstone of our faith (Rom. 1:16-17; 1 Cor. 2:1; Gal. 6:14). Christ died at Calvary as our Substitute, having all the sins of God’s elect imputed to him, that all his righteousness might be justly imputed to us (2 Cor. 5:21). He was made to be sin for us by divine imputation. And we are made to be the righteousness of God in him in exactly the same way. When he had fully satisfied the righteousness and justice of God by the sacrifice of himself in the room and stead of his people, he put away our sins forever and obtained eternal redemption for us. The excellence of Christ is seen in his Person, in his work, and the fullness of grace that is ours in him (1 Cor. 1:30).

    Christ’s supremacy

    Next, the Church speaks of the supremacy of Christ. – “My Beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand.” These words suggest a comparison. The Lord Jesus Christ is higher, lovelier, more excellent, and greater than all others. He is the greatest Angel. He is the Messenger of the Covenant. He is the greatest Friend. He is the Friend who sticketh closer than a brother. He is the greatest Bishop. He is the Bishop of our souls. He is the greatest Shepherd. He is the good, chief, great Shepherd. He is the greatest Physician. He is the greatest Advocate (1 John 2:1-2). The angel said to Mary, He shall be great;” and he is great. There is none to compare unto him. Christ alone is Great!

    To say that he is “the chiefest among ten thousand” is to say that Christ is the Head, the Ruler, the Prince, the King, the Lord over all things (Psa. 2:8; Isa. 53:10-12; John 17:2; 2 Pet. 2:1; Psa. 69:18; Eph. 4:18). Christ is head of all things (Eph. 1:22). Christ is King! He is the King of the universe, King of his Church, and King in the hearts of his people.

    These words might be translated, “He is the chosen one out of ten thousand (Psa. 89:19). He was chosen of God to be our Savior, our Surety, our Redeemer, and our King. And he is chosen by each of his people. Chosen by his People. The marginal reference suggests that it should read, “He is the standard bearer (ensign) among ten thousand” (Isa. 11:10). An ensign, a standard bearer, is one who holds the banner around whom the battalions rally. With a valiant heart he leads the army from victory to victory. Our Ensign is Christ himself. Our banner is the cross. Our weapon is the gospel. Our triumph is sure.

    Our all-glorious Christ is flawlessly perfect in all things! – In His Person. – In His Works. – In His Doctrine. — In His Salvation. – In His Dominion.