When the Lord is pleased to awaken
His children from the utter deadness of sin in which they are by nature,
they are caused to hunger and thirst after Him. This is the
result of the gift of faith and the operation of His Spirit in
them, which works in them both to will and to do of His good
pleasure. Though they are made new creatures
by this heavenly operation, yet they are still very much plagued
with this flesh in which they were born and which remains unchanged
and does even now seek to rule over them. It is this deathly
conflict which Paul describes in Romans. For I know that in
me that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing. For to will is
present with me, but how to perform that which is good I find not.
For the good that I would, I do not, but the evil which I would
not, that I do. For I delight in the law of God
after the inward man. But I see another law in my members,
warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity
to the law of sin, which is in my members. He sums this up in
Galatians, saying, For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and
the Spirit against the flesh. And these are contrary the one
to the other, so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
Apart from an understanding of this conflict between the flesh
and the spirit, it is impossible to comprehend the yearnings and
the evident complacency of the Shulamite in the Song of Solomon.
One moment she is pining for a glimpse of her beloved, and
the next she is so preoccupied with her own comfort that she
cannot even arise and open the door for him. The only consistent
love which is demonstrated throughout the book is that of him who brings
his spouse into his banqueting table and unfurls his banner
of love over her. His pursuit of her is relentless.
Though he sometimes hides himself from her, it is only for her
benefit to remind her of the preciousness of his presence
and the purpose of demonstrating his tender mercies and rich desire
that he has to behold her beauty, which is not really her own,
but that which he declares as a result of his everlasting love
for her. Even as Peter said, love covers
a multitude of sins, and he sees her through the eyes of his special
and enduring love, which is never diminished, nor can it be increased,
since it is absolute. Thou art all fair, my love. There
is no spot in thee. This Shulamite is an illustration
of the church to whom the Lord has imputed his righteousness.
Because of this imputation, she can never be brought under any
condemnation at all. Rather, she stands before the
Lord and his law as one who has never sinned and possesses an
absolute righteousness. The Lord declares this as Paul
exhorts husbands of the fashion in which they should love their
wives, that he might present it to himself a glorious church,
not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should
be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives
as their own bodies. The love of Christ for his people
is the moving cause of his redemptive work. Greater love hath no man
than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. But
God commendeth his love toward us, and that while we were yet
sinners, Christ died for us. No man can point to a time when
Christ began to love his people, nor when they were not viewed
as without spot or blemish by him who loved them as a spouse
in whom was his delight. In this we find a great mystery,
and one which strips men of all notion that they can somehow
earn the favor of God or influence the outcome of the redemptive
work of Christ. The grace of God is not revealed
nor secured by the action of men. Rather, the whole scheme
of redemption from the first to the last is of the Lord. What
a wonder of wonders that he who is of purer eyes than to behold
evil should demonstrate this grace to the glory of his name,
in loving a people who, by their own admission, are unlovely.
Yet the gospel is sent to apprise them of his acceptance of them.
How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal
spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience
from dead works to serve the living God? Quite often the Lord
awakens his children to seek after him, but does not appear
quickly, lest they should have the notion that they somehow
command his presence. When they have utterly despaired
of their own devices, then he appears as a king and takes them
to his pleasant garden and his house of cedar. There is one
bed upon which this marriage can be consummated, and it is
not of the design or in the possession of those whom he loves, but rather
of his own making and revealed in his own time. This is the
glory of the revealed gospel, that place of sweet communion
between the beloved and his spouse, whom he woos and wins with the
riches of his grace, both in seeking her out and bringing
her to his chambers. She is the sole object of his
desires, and he will not rest until she is safely in his loving
embrace. Let us be glad and rejoice, and
give honor to him, for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his
wife hath made herself ready. If you would like a free transcript
of this broadcast, email us at forthepoor at windstream.net.