Now this evening, we're gonna
look at Song of Solomon, chapter five. Chapter five, and we're
gonna look at verse two, down through verse eight. I'm taking
the title for the message from what is said in verse two. I
sleep, but my heart waketh. I sleep, but I'm awake. I'm sleepy, sluggish, but yet
my heart, my heart is awakened. awakened by the spirit of God.
In our study this evening, these verses tell us something about
ourselves as true believers, true believers of the gospel.
We are sinners saved by his matchless grace, dogman grace, but we still
have this old sinful nature to deal with that very often greatly
hinders us in our spiritual growth, hinders us in our true worship,
hinders us in blessed communion with our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. We're often hindered by this
flesh. Remember in Romans 7, if you
want to turn there, when the Apostle Paul talked about, in
my flesh dwelleth no good thing. Romans 7, I know that in me that
is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing, verse 18, for the will
is present with me, but how to perform that which is good, I
can't find it. For the good that I would, I
do not, but the evil which I would not, that's what I do. What a terrible thing this is
to have this nature, this nature of the Adam nature and And then
also being born of God, we have that spirit of God dwelling within
us, and there is a constant battle between the two. And Paul finally
said, when I would do good, evil is present with me. And then
he throws up his hand and said, oh, wretched man that I am. You
remember what he said next? Who shall deliver me from this
body of death? I thank God through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Within each of us, Within each
believers and I'm talking about believers. I'm not talking about
unbelievers Within each of us as believers. There is a constant
battle a constant warfare of This sinful flesh the Adam nature
and that new nature created in Christ Jesus Paul writes about
it in Galatians chapter 5 this way for the flesh is left us
against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. These are
contrary one to the other so that you cannot do the things
you would. Isn't that so? That which is
born of the flesh, flesh, that which is born of the spirit is
spirit. In verse two, the Lord calls
his people to eat Or verse one, the Lord calls his people to
eat and drink abundantly. Remember verse one, I'm coming
to my garden, my sister, my spouse. I've gathered my myrrh with my
spice. I've eaten my honeycomb with
my honey. I've drunk my wine with my milk. Now eat, oh friends, eat abundantly,
drink abundantly. Oh, beloved, the Lord calls his
people to eat and drink. But look at the slow, sorry response. I sleep. I'm sluggish. I'm really
not interested right now. This is not the sleep of spiritual
death of an unbeliever, but rather that of neglect and drowsy indifference
of believers. Remember our Lord said you're
lukewarm. You're lukewarm. How is it known
unto us when prayer becomes a burden? when devotion languishes, when
worship is just going through the motions, going through the
motions in the flesh, rather than an eager, holy zeal to seek
the Lord. We often get that way, don't
we? I do. Robert Hawker had this, every
believer goes through times of coldness and indifference to
divine things of the gospel. And though we often fail him,
he cannot and will not fail us. His love never fails. He cannot
fail. Everybody knows John Newton's
song, Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound. I mean, everybody
knows that song, even the lost religious person. But not many
people know this song of old John Newton, the preacher back
in the 1700s. There's a point, he says, I long to know, and
often causes anxious thought. Do I love the Lord or no? Am
I his or am I not? If I love, why am I thus? Why
this dull and lifeless frame? Hardly sure can they be worse
who have never heard his name. Could my heart so hard remain
and prayer a task and burden prove? Every trifle give me pain
if I knew the Savior's love. I mean, here's a man who was
used of God in a mighty way to preach the gospel. When I turn
my eyes within, all is dark and wild, vain and wild, filled with
unbelief and sin. Can I deem myself a child? If
I pray or hear or read, sin is mixed with all I do. You that
love the Lord in need, tell me, is it so with you? Yep. Yet I
mourn my stubborn will, find my sin a grief and thrall. Should
I grieve for what I feel if I did not love him at all? Could I
joy his saints to meet, choose the ways I once abhorred, find
at times the promise sweet if I did not love the Lord at all?
Lord, decide this doubtful case. Thou art the people's son. Shine upon this work of grace,
if indeed it is begun. Let me love thee more and more. If I love at all, I pray. And
if I have not loved thee before, Help me begin today, right now. There's a point I long to know. You see, that is a case, that's
an honest believer before God. We have times of doubt and fear
and anxiety, and then we have times of great joy and peace,
resting in Christ. But here's the hope of grace. Look at verse two again, chapter
five, solemn, solemn. But my heart's awakened. My heart's awakened. Here's a
call of grace to the sluggish, cold heart. It's the voice of
my beloved that saith, open to me, my sister, my spouse, my
dove, my undefiled, open to me. It's the voice of my beloved
that knocketh, saying, open to me, my sister, my love, my dove,
my undefiled. You remember what he said in
chapter 4, look at chapter 4 verse 7. Thou art all fair, my love,
there's no spot in thee. Down to chapter 4 verse 10, how
fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse, how much better is
thy love than wine, the smell of anointment, than spices. Open to me, open to me, my beloved. Thank God he does not leave us
alone in these cold sluggish times, not completely, not totally,
not forever. He knocks at our heart's door
to awaken us to come unto him and open unto us. We read a moment
ago in Revelation 3, as many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Be zealous, therefore, and repent.
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear my voice
and open the door, I'll come in. and sup with him, and he
with me. To him that overcometh while
I grant you, sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame
and am set down with my father in his throne. Behold, I stand
at the door and knock." The Lord knocks. How does he knock? He
knocks with the preached word by his sovereign. He knocks by
his sovereign providence. He knocks by the power of God
the Holy Spirit. You see, the Lord will not leave
us alone. He said, I'll never leave you,
I'll never forsake you. He will not leave us alone for
you're bought with a price. We're bought with his blood.
We are married to him in that eternal covenant of grace and
he must have us and he does and he will forever by his purpose
and by his grace given to us in Christ before the foundation
of the world. We're bought with a price. He's
gonna take home what he bought. If you spent a large sum of money
for a precious gift, would you discard it? No, you bought it,
it's yours. You take it home and enjoy it.
That's what the Lord's gonna do with this church. He's gonna
take us home and enjoy us forever. Now look at verse three. Here's
an awful example of what degree of vileness and ingratitude of
our sinful nature, what it's capable of. Ungrateful excuses
we often make to justify our own spiritual laziness. Look
what it says in verse 3, I put off my coat. This is the beloved
coming to the heart's door and here's a believer saying, well
I just don't have time right now, can you come back another
time? I put off my coat. I don't have time to put it on.
How shall I put it on? I've washed my feet. I don't
want to get them defiled again. I've taken a bath. I'm getting
ready for bed. Here's an awful example of what
degree of violence and ingratitude our sinful nature is capable
of. We are capable of such spiritual laziness. Thank God our Lord
is long-suffering and patient with our ingratitude, for he
knows our frame, he knows we are but dust. Remember we studied
in Hebrews 4, Verse 15, he was tempted and tried in all points
like as we are yet without sin. He knows what it is to be tempted. He knows what it is to be hungry.
He knows what it is to have a sorrowful aching heart. He knows our weakness,
He knows our inability, but that does not excuse us. We are responsible
and accountable to the Lord. Neither is there any creature
that is not manifest in His sight, but all things are naked and
open to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. We have to
do with Him. I've put off my coat. How shall
I put it on? I've washed my feet. Here's the
excuses. And the Lord doesn't Quit on
us. My beloved put his hand by the
hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him. The Lord
takes that sovereign hand of mercy and sticks it right in
our heart. Right in our heart. Notice his
sovereign, sovereign power. My beloved, my Lord, my Savior,
he put his hand in the hole of the door and my bowels were moved. They tell me the old timers,
those doors of years ago, they didn't have locks like we have
now. You could put your hand through the door and move the
tumblers inside that big wooden door if you knew the combination
and the door would swing open. That's what the Lord does. He
puts his hand in our heart and he knows the combination. And
he just opens up the door and comes on in. Thank God he does. Here's what our sovereign Lord
does to recover us from a dullness of heart and spirit. He puts
his almighty hand of mercy in the door of our heart. He has
the keys, the ownership of us, and we are called the sheep of
his hand. He is not discouraged by our
lame excuses, but boldly takes possession of us, and he invites
himself in. Aren't you glad he doesn't leave
us? that he opens the door and he comes in. Remember from the
Revelation study in chapter 1 verse 18, our Lord said, I am he that
liveth and was dead. Behold, I'm alive forevermore.
I have the keys of hell and death. He has the key to our heart.
He owns us. He bought us. And notice the response. My bowels
were moved. God ever sticks his hand in your
heart, You'll be moved. You'll be moved. I want to be
moved. I want him to stick his hand in my heart and do a work
of grace in my heart. My bowels, my heart were moved.
I thought about this. In Luke 24, we've read this many
times. Remember the two men on the road
to Emmaus, they were walking on the road to Emmaus after the
Lord had been risen from the dead and after he had appeared
to some of those disciples. And the Lord drew near unto them
and listened to their conversation. They were somewhat disheartened.
They said, we thought this is the third day and we thought
he would rise again and we'd have a kingdom, everything would
be great. And the Lord opened to them the
Scriptures. And they said, did not our heart
burn within us while He talked with us by the way, while He
opened the Scriptures unto us? Remember, He began at Moses and
all the Scriptures. He opened to them all the Scriptures
in the thing concerning Himself. And what did their heart do?
It was moved. It was moved. I pray the Lord that it speak
to our heart that way and move us. how our hearts rejoice that
our Lord will not leave us alone, not totally, not finally. He
opens us up inwardly to turn us to him by his effectually
calling us with the gospel to the heart of his people. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of his power. Turn and read this one with me.
Turn over here to Isaiah. Isaiah. Isaiah 54 verse 7. Isaiah 54 verse 7. Isaiah 54
verse 7. For a small moment I have forsaken
thee, but with great mercies I'll gather thee. In a little
wrath, in a little wrath, I hid my face from thee for a moment,
but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith
the Lord thy Redeemer. This is as the waters of Noah
unto me, for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should
no more go over the earth, so I have sworn that I would not
be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee. For the mountains shall
depart and the hills be removed, but my kindness shall not depart
from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed. Say it to the Lord that hath
mercy upon thee. Thank God he will not let us
go. He's married us in that covenant. We are one with him. And though
oftentimes we don't sense his presence, he's always with us. He said, Lo, I'm with you always,
even to the end of the earth. Now look at verse five. I rose
up. You see, when he sticks his hand
in the heart of the believer and our bowels are moved, now,
I rose up, no more excuses. Now, I'm seeking the Lord. I
rose up to open to my beloved, and my hands dropped with myrrh,
and my fingers were sweet-smelling myrrh upon the handles of the
lock. Ready, response, I rose up open
to my beloved. Here's the sweet effects of God's
grace. We see how quickly his sweet
and sovereign grace does affect us. No longer any excuses, no
longer any indifference, but hands and fingers dripping with
myrrh. Myrrh here is a symbol of grace. Symbol of grace. Turn back to
chapter one, verse 13. Chapter one, Song of Solomon. A bundle of myrrh is my well
beloved unto me. He shall lie all night betwixt
my breath. He's a bundle of myrrh. He's
plenteous in mercy. Delight to show mercy. Hands
now, in verse 5, hands now are ready for service. Fingers ready
to feel after him, ready to fight for him. And here's the believer
ready to report for duty when the captain of our salvation
calls us. Then we contend for the faith
once delivered unto the saint. Then we fight the good fight
of faith by his grace. David writes this in Psalm 144.
Let me read it to you. Blessed be the Lord my strength,
which teacheth my hands to war and my fingers to fight. The
good fight of faith. The good fight of faith. Now
look at verse 6. I opened to my beloved, but my
beloved had withdrawn himself. and was gone, and my soul failed. When he spake, I sought him,
but I could not find him. I called, but he gave no answer. Here's an alarm. I opened to
my Savior, my Lord, my Beloved, but he had withdrawn himself.
Now, this is not a final and total departure from us, but
rather a temporary and necessary departure in order to teach us
of our constant need of him, to teach us to be always ready
to seek him and to serve him out of love to him, believing
and trusting all his precious promises. You remember this wise
man Solomon said in Proverbs 3, verse 5 and 6, trust in the
Lord with all thine heart, lean not unto thy own understanding
and all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy path. Trust him at all times, ye people.
Pour out your heart before him. God is a refuge for us. His love
to us and his affections for us are never diminished. For
He loves us with an everlasting love. He married us in that eternal
covenant of grace forever. Nothing can separate us from
the love of God, which is in our Lord Jesus Christ. Don't
turn, let me just read this to you. This is familiar scripture
to all of you here. He that spared not his own son,
Romans 8, 32, but delivered him up for us all. How shall I not
with them also freely give us all things? Who shall anything
to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justify. Who is
he that condemns? It is Christ that died, yea,
rather is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God,
who also make his intercession for us. Who shall separate us
from the love of Christ? Tribulation, distress, persecution,
famine, nakedness, sword, As it is written, for thy sake we're
killed all the day long. We're counted as sheep for the
slaughter, nay, in all things. We're more than conquerors through
him that loved us, Romans 8, 38. For I'm persuaded that neither
death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers,
nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth,
nor any other creatures. I mean, that covers everything,
doesn't it? shall be able to separate us from the love of
God, which is in the Lord Jesus Christ, which is in him. Nothing can separate us from
his love, for he loved us with an everlasting love, with loving
kindness there he draws us to himself. But this temporary hiding
of the Lord's presence and a suspension of his influences by the Holy
Spirit are only temporary, and he does it for our good. David,
on more than one occasion, David, the sweet psalmist and man of
God's own heart, in Psalm 77, he said this, is his mercy clean
gone? David was at despair, wasn't
he? Is his mercy clean gone forever? Does his promise fail forevermore? No, it doesn't, but sometimes
we often think that. How our heart and soul as a believer
does fail many times. When we call on him, he does
not answer. When we seek him, we do not find
him. How sad, how sad that is for us. How heavily we go all
the day if we find nothing of his communicating and quickening
grace daily to sustain us when the Lord ignores us when we call
upon him. Now, he's not totally forsaken
us, but oftentimes he withdraws his manifest presence to show
us our need of him. Lord, have mercy on me. This
is for our good because it causes us to truly and earnestly seek
after him. Jeremiah, the Lord says to the
prophet Jeremiah, you shall seek me and find me when you search
for me with all your heart. Turn back to chapter three. Song
of Solomon, chapter three. Look at verse one. You remember
these verses? Song of Solomon, chapter three,
verse one. By night on my bed I sought him
whom my soul loveth. I sought him, but I found him
not. I'll rise now and go about the
city and the streets and the broad ways. I'll seek him whom
my soul loveth. I sought him, but I found him
not. The watchman that goeth about
the city found me, to whom I said, saw ye him whom my soul loveth?
It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom
my soul loveth. I held him and would not let
him go until I brought him into my mother's house in the chamber
of her that conceived me. I found him by grace and would
not let him go. Look at verse 7 now, chapter
5, verse 7. The watchmen, here's these watchmen
again we read in chapter 3. The watchmen that went about
the city found me and they smoked me. They wounded me. The keepers
of the wall took away my veil from me. I believe these watchmen
here, are pictures and symbols of God's servant. The watchman
and the keepers of the wall represent God's faithful preachers of the
gospel. Thank God for his faithful watchman,
the servants of the Lord who will not allow us to hide behind
any flimsy excuses, but out of love to our soul and the glory
of Christ, he'll take the word of God and operate on our soul
and wound us with the sword of truth and remove the veil of
sluggishness and take away the covering excuses, exposing us
before God. That's what the preacher of the
word does to his people. Isaiah, we read, cry aloud, spare
not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression
in the house of Jacob, their sin. Lift it up, don't spare,
cry aloud, You see, it's the word of God that rebukes us when
we get cold and sluggish. That's why Paul, when he writes
to Timothy, he says, I charge thee before God and the Lord
Jesus Christ, who shall judge the living and the dead at the
appearing of his kingdom, preach the word, be instant in season,
out of season, reprove, rebuke, and exhort with all longsuffering
and doctrine. Well, the time will come when
they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall
they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears, and they
shall turn away their ears from the truth and be turned unto
fables. Boy, that's the day in which
we live, isn't it? Cry out and spare not. Thank God he rebukes
us with the word of truth, with the word of truth. He rebukes
us when we know, when we need it. Whom the Lord loveth, you
remember Hebrews 2, 12 rather, whom the Lord loveth, what does
he do? He chasteneth and scourgeth every
son whom he receiveth. He said if you be without chastisement
of the Lord, you're not a legitimate child of God. Now look at verse
8, in closing. I charge you, O daughters of
Jerusalem, If you find my beloved, tell you him that I'm sick. I'm sick of love. I'm sick in
love. He loves sick. And that's the
believer seeking the Lord. He loves sick for his Lord. Tell
my Lord I'm sorry for being ungrateful. Tell my Lord I need him at all
times. Tell him I cannot rest until
I find him, until I know I have his pardoning mercy and renewing
grace. Tell my Lord I'm sick with love for him, full of love
for him. Tell my Lord that I need him,
that I want him, that I love him. The psalmist said this. Hear,
O Lord, and have mercy upon me. Lord, be thou my helper. Thou
hast turned for me my mourning into dancing. Thou hast put off
my sackcloth and girded me with gladness to the end that my glory
may sing praise to thee. Be not silent, O Lord. And I'll
give thee thanks forever. Lord, speak to our hearts.