A Bundle of Myrrh and a Cluster of Camphire

Q: What does the Bible say about the beauty of Christ?

The Bible describes Christ as a 'bundle of myrrh' and a 'cluster of camphor,' representing his preciousness and beauty to believers. In the Song of Solomon 1:13-14, Christ is poetically depicted as a 'bundle of myrrh' and a 'cluster of camphor,' symbolizing the richness, sweetness, and beauty He embodies for His people. Myrrh, known for its fragrant and valuable qualities, indicates Christ's worth and the fullness of blessings found in Him. Believers consider Him precious, acknowledging that any beauty they possess is attributed to Him alone, as seen in passages like Ezekiel 16:14 where the Lord adorns His people with comeliness derived from His glory.

Q: Why is Christ valuable to Christians?

Christ is valuable because He offers eternal life, redemption from sin, and a relationship with God, fulfilling the deepest needs of believers. The value of Christ to Christians is profound and multi-faceted. He is not merely a historical figure but the foundation of faith, symbolized by His designation as a 'bundle of myrrh' in Song of Solomon 1:13. He suffered, died, and rose again, ensuring the redemption of sinners and guaranteeing their salvation through His covenantal sacrifice. This redemptive work is seen as invaluable, as it provides believers with eternal life and a personal relationship with God, surpassing all earthly treasures (Philippians 3:8). His worth remains central to the faith, and believers express allegiance and devotion because of the preciousness of His character and the salvation He provides.

Q: How does Christ's suffering relate to believers?

Christ's suffering illustrates His love and sacrifice for believers, showing that He endured suffering on their behalf to secure their salvation. In the sermon, the suffering of Christ is likened to the bitter qualities of myrrh, emphasizing how He bore the wrath of God for the sins of His people. This connection is vital for understanding the depth of Christ’s sacrifice; He did not only suffer in isolation but endured the pain and punishment that rightly belonged to sinners (Isaiah 53:5). This relationship between Christ’s suffering and believers’ experiences is significant as Christians often traverse difficult paths. Just as Christ suffered, His followers may expect trials, yet they also share in His ultimate victory and peace, knowing that He is their protector and preserver through all circumstances, thereby deepening their faith and reliance on His grace.

Q: Why is the concept of Christ being a 'cluster of camphor' important?

The 'cluster of camphor' represents the numerous blessings and beauty Christ imparts to His people, highlighting His sufficiency and grace. In the context of Song of Solomon 1:14, Christ as a 'cluster of camphor' signifies not just a single blessing but an abundance of grace and favor bestowed upon believers. Camphor was used for its fragrance and beautifying properties, suggesting that through Christ, believers are adorned and transformed. This imagery emphasizes that Christ offers a multitude of blessings, covering His people with mercy and righteousness. The more one contemplates His beauty and accomplishments, the more one recognizes how these blessings extend from His infinite grace, assuring believers of His presence and provision in their lives, which is essential for spiritual endurance and growth (Ephesians 1:3).

Turn with me, if you would, to Songs of Solomon, Chapter 1. Songs of Solomon, Chapter 1. We're gonna look at just two verses. This is the church, us, speaking to our bride, Christ. This is the church, every believer, speaking about our beloved, the Lord Jesus Christ. Look with me at verses 13 and 14 in the first chapter of Songs of Solomon.

A bundle of myrrh is my well-beloved unto me. He shall lie all night twixt my breast. My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphor in the vineyards of Engidae. Now with these two similitudes or comparisons or even types or pictures, the church here, that's us, describes just how precious Christ is to us. Just how precious he is. A bundle, he says in verse 13, a bundle of myrrh. And in the second verse, in verse 14, he's as a cluster of camphor. We're gonna look at those two comparisons before us this morning.

The church, we cannot say sufficient of her beloved. Nay, the text, I like how the text words it, in verse 14 it says, my beloved, but in verse 13, our well beloved, our well beloved. And is he not so to those who have tasted that he is gracious? I ask this of myself and I ask this of us here. Is he this to us this morning? Is he our well beloved to us this morning? Let's venture upon these two pictures of what Christ is to us. The first one in verse 13, he's a bundle, a bundle of myrrh. These two descriptions, it describes the richness and the infinite blessings found in Christ to sinners like we are. Myrrh.

Now we don't You know, maybe you really look at that so much here, if you go to the botanical garden in St. Louis, you can see, you'll find some. But myrrh was a well-known spice back in the Holy Lands. It's a herb and or gum or resin. They smashed it, they beat it, they used it for different purposes. Amongst some of the purposes, it was used in the anointing oil. In Exodus 30, when they made that anointing oil, myrrh was included. It's a perfume. Esther chapter two, verse 12 speaks about the perfume of myrrh.

And it is also used for preserving or embalming in the time of our Lord, Mark chapter 15. So let's just look at each of these and how it pictures the Lord Jesus Christ to his people. First of all, it's rich and sweet in its perfumed state and is not our spiritual senses to us. He is the most sweet and fragrant to the soul. Christ is to us. He's the name above every name.

Turn to Ephesians chapter 5. Ephesians chapter 5. And verse two, and walk in love, as Christ's telling his church, as Christ also loved us and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savor. That's why the priest, that's why he didn't get annihilated when he walked in the Holy of Holies. He had that incense. And it was perfume, the perfume of Christ, His work, His righteousness, all that's about Him was sweet. And we also, we don't have to turn our butt in 1 Peter 2, unto you who believe, He's precious. He's precious.

Now, I don't know why I'm bringing this up, but just for a matter of fact, a matter of thought, there used to be a cologne that Avon had, it was called Derek Jeter. I mean, everybody that, when I wore it, I had more people ask, what is it, what is that? Well, he's a multimillionaire, and so decided to take it out from Avon, and then you can only get it on eBay. It's 150 bucks for two ounces. That's a lot. That's a lot. The Lord Jesus Christ is sweeter by far. Sweeter than the honeycomb is what the scripture says.

Secondly, this myrrh beaten up and smashed up had bitter qualities. And it goes along with what our Lord must, he must undergo the bitterness and the wrath and the anger of God for his people. on behalf of his sinning, erring people, the bitter herbs before, and the delightful results of complete and peaceful salvation.

We're gonna go through the wilderness, and this is just like us as well. Why do we go through the wilderness before we get to the promised land? Because that's what Christ did. He had to experience this myrrh, this bundle of myrrh. He's this to unto us. And as He suffered, so we suffer.

Thirdly, myrrh was precious or is valuable, very valuable. It was offered to the babe in the manger in Matthew chapter two, verse 11. It was one of the frankincense and myrrh was brought. So it's very valuable. Christ is the esteem of his children and the love of our beings. He's the desire of our souls. To him, we give allegiance and obedience. Why? Because he's valuable. And what he did was valuable. And it's worth talking about. It's worth talking about every time we come here. I know it's like Spurgeon. We got that one string guitar. Just keep plucking it.

That's okay. That's okay. The simplicity in Christ, that's okay. That's okay. Matter of fact, Bruce read. Paul didn't want people to think more of him than what the scripture said. And that's what we should do. Oh, you did it. I know he uses mouthpieces. And he uses his preachers, and he uses his people to spread the gospel. But it's not of us. Our sufficiency is in our valuable one, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Lastly, this myrrh was of a preserving nature. They used it for embalming. Does not our Lord, with covenantal contract, preserve us to all eternity? Because of the Father, and the Son, and the Spirit, and a covenantal agreement before the foundation of the world, we have everlasting life.

Now Christ had to bleed, suffer, and die. The herbs are smashed and ground up. That shows the picture of the sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are truly resting in our well beloved. He is our great protector. He's our great preserver and our eternal life guarantor. Because the death of the testator guarantees salvation for all those for whom he suffered. But there's more. There's more.

Verse 13, a bundle of myrrh. A bundle. And verse 14, a cluster. It's not just a sprig. See, this is the beauty of Christ. Not only do we experience all his benefits by sovereign grace, not by our works, which we do, but He's a bundle. He's not a mere sprig. That means our cup overflows. He's more than enough for all his elect bride. He's a super abundance.

Or we say world without end. He is the whole bundle to his chosen. And I ask and I pray that we would avail ourselves to him who is all the promises given to us in Christ Jesus. Everything is in Christ Jesus. So he's a whole bundle, a bundle of myrrh, not just a sprig, but his grace is sufficient. And look at what the last verse in verse 13 says.

He shall lie all night between the churches, each believer's breast. That means, what's between the breasts? It's the heart. I know I got a slit there. They cut it and they pulled it open. It's right in the middle. I was waffling wondering that, you know, right in the middle. That's, again, why not have him dwell betwixt our breasts all night? That's what the believer does, pulls them into our heart of hearts. My son, and I added my daughters in Proverbs 23, 26, give me your heart. Give me your heart. He wants the heart.

The head, just got a new book yesterday on another devotional by a preacher that preached right before Spurgeon, preached five years at the New Park Street. And then he went somewhere else, James Smith, I think. Oh my word. Wonderful. And that's what he said, he said, the head knowledge is it's one thing but heart. God will have the heart.

Now, let's look at verse 14 in continuation. My beloved is unto me as a cluster, not just, you know, you think the cluster of grapes, not just one. Not just one. It depicts numerous blessings perceived and known and trusted in our Lord Jesus Christ. And camphor, from what I've read, it was fragrant and it was used, when they smashed it, it was used for dyeing clothes, toenails, fingernails. It was used for beauty. Well, turn to Ezekiel 16. Is He not this unto us, His church? Ezekiel 16. This is the Lord talking about His church, His saved, redeemed people. Look at verse 14 of Ezekiel 16. And thy renown went forth among the heathen, that's the people of Jackson, that's the unbelievers, for thy beauty.

Oh, now we've got something to boast in. Hold on. For it was perfect, perfect, Cluster, a bundle, perfect through my comeliness. Any beauty we have is through Christ. Which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord God. You talk about one verse, and there's many verses, that's sovereign free grace. We did nothing ourselves, he put beauty on us. He covers us with his robe of righteousness. Oh my word. Perfect beauty. And we look at ourselves in the mirror, or we get older and we can't do what we used to do. No, I'm far from it. In Christ, we have all and all, and in all. He's everything to us. Indeed, indeed He is. So, such is Christ to us, for in Him we are made comely. We in ourselves, however, are vile, corrupt, detestable in God's sight. That's what we are.

But oh, in Christ, he covers our shame and dresses us in beauty, not our own, which reminds me of another favorite hymn that I couldn't, I don't know if we had it in the, in the Cold Course booklet, but it's, this is one by Robert Murray McShane. When I stand before the throne, dressed in beauty not my own. When I see you as thou art, love thee with unsending heart, then, Lord, shall I fully know, not till then. how much I owe. What a hymn. Dressed in beauty, if we could just keep that one thought, every time we wake up, we've done something good, people are saying how great we are, and that's fine, compliments, but we could just say, not unto us, oh Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy name give glory. Unto Thy name give glory. Well, this word camphor, I looked it up in several Hebrew encyclopedias and it comes from the word, now listen to this, this is beautiful. It comes from the word to cover, to cancel, or to atone. To atone.

Isn't that what our Lord is to us? He is our atonement. He is our covering. He has cancelled the power, the penalty of sin. Why? Because He chose to do so. Nothing good in us. He chose, who maketh us to differ from another? It's God that separates. Oh, precious Savior, precious blood, covering of all we have done and all we will do. We may do things in the future that are disagreeable to the true nature of God in us. Truly, Jesus paid it all, all to him we owe. We sing that song as well.

Indeed, he is a cluster. He's a bundle, he's a cluster of merit, and righteousness. Now I want to close in a few thoughts and this is a vital importance. If you don't hear anything I've said, you just read these two verses. A bundle, he says verse 13, a bundle of myrrh and a cluster of camphor is my beloved unto me. Now he repeats those words In verse 14, my beloved is unto me, me, personal, each individual. This is of vital importance.

All that I've said is of naught if Christ is not all these things to you and to me and to us. He's personal. He may be mom and dad's Redeemer, He may be mom and dad's cluster, He may be mom and dad's bundle, but is He yours? Is He yours? Do you trust Him? Do you desire Him? Do you love Him as your only hope, and only grace, and only salvation?

I pray it would be true this day. I pray it would be true this day. Let me close you with quote here on these two verses. It is indeed ecstasy to meditate on him and on his work. Every feeling is charmed when contemplating his beauty, his glory, his achievements. Let us be wise and entertain ourselves in the sweet garden of these countless flowers. Each is enchanting sweetness. Each exhilarates and strengthens.

The church resolves that nothing shall take his joy from her. The bundle of myrrh and the cluster of camphor shall lie all night next to her heart. She will clasp her beloved Lord to her heart of hearts. As throughout the day, his presence had gladdened her walk, so when shades of night obscure all other objects, he still shall be near to her, adoring love, and breathe his fragrance through her wakeful hours."

Just like flowers. Most everybody here really enjoys flowers. And fragrant ones at that. And sometimes if you can't see them, you can smell them. And that is our beloved to us. Let me reread this in closing. A bundle of myrrh is my well-beloved unto me. He shall lie all night betwixt my breast and my heart. My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphor in the vineyards of Engidae. May the Lord bless the reading and the preaching, and may he allow us to have worshiped him and continue to worship him.

A Bundle of Myrrh and a Cluster of Camphire

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about the beauty of Christ?

Why is Christ valuable to Christians?

How does Christ's suffering relate to believers?

Why is the concept of Christ being a 'cluster of camphor' important?

Sermon Transcript

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A Bundle of Myrrh and a Cluster of Camphire

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about the beauty of Christ?

Why is Christ valuable to Christians?

How does Christ's suffering relate to believers?

Why is the concept of Christ being a 'cluster of camphor' important?

Sermon Transcript

About Drew Dietz

Comments

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