Okay, this evening we're going
to look at the Song of Solomon. Give an introduction, then we'll
look at the first four verses. The first four verses. Notice
how it begins. It's the Song of Songs. The Song
of Songs, which is Solomon's, or which was given to Solomon
by inspiration of God. This song is the greatest song
ever written. It's the Song of Songs. with
the best melody, supreme and superior lyrics, and sung by
the greatest singer, the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Remember,
our Lord said in Matthew 12, behold, a greater than Solomon
is here. As we study through the Psalms
and about David, we often call him the greater David. the Lord
Jesus Christ, but he's also the greater Solomon. Greater than
Solomon is here. We know that King Solomon is
and was a personal type of the Lord Jesus Christ in his wisdom. No one had wisdom of all the
men of the earth. Solomon was a wise man. Where'd
he get that wisdom? Didn't come naturally, God gave
it to him. He's a picture, a personal type
of the Lord Jesus Christ in his wisdom, in his knowledge. He
had knowledge of all things. His power, he was a powerful
king. He was a powerful king. Remember
how he constructed the temple and everything about all he did
in his kingdom and his glory. He had a glorious kingdom. And
all that is type and picture of the Lord Jesus Christ, our
blessed Savior. Now, this inspired writing of
Solomon is a beautiful love story, a love story and a desire the
believer has for the Lord Jesus Christ. and the love and desire
the Lord Jesus Christ, our God and King, has for his church.
We're in love with him and he's in love with us. The church is
called, you remember, the Lamb's Wife, the Bride of Christ. You remember from Ephesians chapter
5, we read that He loved the church and gave himself for it,
that he might present it to himself a glorious church without spot
or wrinkle or any such thing. Now this Song of Solomon, these
eight chapters, it's a spiritual, intimate dialogue between Christ,
our heavenly bridegroom, and the church, his bride, that he
loved, that he chose, that he bought with his own blood. that
he calls out of darkness. And it's not a temporary love.
He loved us with an everlasting love. Now Solomon, we know, was
the son of King David. And upon the death of King David,
Solomon was anointed as king in Israel. He was given great
wisdom to rule upon the throne of God that God installed him
as that king. We read a moment ago in 1st Kings
chapter 4, God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much
and largeness of heart even as the sand that is upon the seashore. And all that speaks of Christ
our Lord, doesn't it? Christ our King. We have not
only the Song of Solomon, We also have the book of Proverbs,
31 chapters in the book of Proverbs, that is also penned by King Solomon. And also the book of Ecclesiastes,
that's also a writing of Solomon. The Lord used Solomon, King Solomon,
to pen these words. He calls it the Song of Songs.
That is, it's the best song. It's the best song. You know
why? Because it's a gospel song. To him give all the prophets
witness. Peter writes, for the prophecy
came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spake
as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. God gave these words
to Solomon to write about the love story between Christ and
his people. Christ and his people. One of
my favorite verses in this, turn to chapter 5, where it describes,
look at chapter 5, verse 9 and 10. 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. My beloved, verse 10, chapter
5, is white, ready, The cheapest among ten thousands. And then you'll remember this
verse. Look at verse 16, because I quote this most often. His
mouth is most sweet. Yea, he's altogether lovely.
This is my beloved, and this is my friend. He's my friend. He's a friend of sinners. Oh,
daughters of Jerusalem. Now look at verse 2. Chapter
1, verse 2. Therefore, the bride of the Lord
Jesus Christ, who's an object of his love, an object of his
mercy, she says to her beloved, let him kiss me with the kisses
of his mouth, for thy love is better. Thy love is better than
anything. It's certainly better than wine.
This song begins with the church singing about her love for the
Lord Jesus Christ and a desire for intimate union, intimate
communion with the Lord Jesus Christ. Let him kiss me with
the kisses of his mouth. In other words, smother me with
kisses. Smother me with kisses. All who
know the Lord Jesus Christ love him. and they desire a manifestation
of his love and his kindness toward us. That's why she said,
Lord, kiss me. Just smother me with kisses.
We only love him because he first loved us. Here in his love, not
that we love God, but he loved us and sent his son to be the
sacrifice for our sin. To know him and believe him and
submit to him is to love him. It's to love the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now, we confess we don't love him like we ought to, do we? We don't love him like we should. And we don't love him like we
will one day. But we can say, like Peter said,
Lord, you know all things. You know I love you. To know
him and submit to him and believe him is to love him in our heart. We do love Him. You remember
Paul writes, if any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let
it be anathema, baranatha, when the Lord comes back. It is not
possible to have saving, true knowledge of Him without loving
Him. It's not possible to have faith
in the Lord Jesus Christ and not love Him. For He is all together,
He's most lovable. He's a lovable, He's a lovable
Lord. You remember, the apostle writes
this, 1 Corinthians 13, let me just read it to you. Though I
speak with the tongue of men and of angels and have not love
or have not Christ, I'm a sounding breath and tinkling cymbal. Though
I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and
knowledge, though I have the faith so I can remove mountains
and have not love, I'm nothing. Though I bestow all my good to
feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned and have
not love, it profits me nothing. We do love the Lord Jesus Christ
because we know him. We know him as he's revealed
in the word of God. We know him by regenerating grace. This love of God is shed or brought
in our heart by the Holy Spirit, isn't it? Remember the story
of the returning prodigal son who took all of his father's
substance, went out and wasted it. And finally the Lord gave
him some sense and he said, I'm going to go home and see my father.
In my father's house he had plenty. I'm down here in the hog pen
eating corn husks that the pigs I have to fight over. And when
his father saw him coming, his father fell on the neck of that
prodigal son and kissed him. Why did he do that? Because he
loved him. He loved him. The father's love for his son
never faltered, and the love the Lord Jesus Christ had to
us never falters. It never fails. It says that
in that same chapter of 1 Corinthians 13. Love never faileth. His love never faileth. Never
faileth. Nothing is sweeter or precious
to a true believer than the kisses of his mouth. The sweet kisses
of his mouth, kisses of his love, kisses of his everlasting mercy,
kisses of his sovereign grace. These are tokens of his forgiveness,
pardon, and acceptance in the beloved to the praise of his
glory. Now, this is a mushy story, isn't
it? It's a story of love. It's a
story of love that we have to him and his love to us. We give
thanks for his power, we rest in his promises, but what we
desperately desire is his presence and his love. We must have him. That's why the apostle said,
I must count everything else lost, dung, and ruined that I
may win Christ and be found in him. Now the second part of verse
two, let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth, He says,
because, that word for, because thy love is better. His love's better than wine,
but it's better than anything else. What is more superior or precious
than the love of Christ to his people? It's dying love. It's saving
love. Saving love. Thy love is better.
Better. Wine is delightful. It's a delightful
beverage. It rejoices the heart. It revives
the spirit, soothes the nerves, but can only help the body. Use
a little wine for your stomach's sake, remember, in our study
of 1 Timothy. But the love of Christ is far
better than the best of any earthly wine. For it reaches unto our
soul. The love of the Lord Jesus unto
us is his redeeming love, electing love, calling love. He called us out of darkness
into his marvelous light. Why did he do that? He loves
his own. It's an everlasting love. It's
love without measure. It's love without change. It's
love that does not have a beginning. It does not have an end. For
he loved us with an everlasting love. You remember Jeremiah,
he said in Jeremiah 31, The Lord hath appeared of old unto me,
saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore
with lovingkindness have I drawn thee. No beginning and no end
to his love. No change, no variableness, neither
shadow of turning. The Apostle Paul in Ephesians
3, when he talks about praying for the church, He said, we pray
that the Lord would grant you, according to the riches of His
glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner
man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, that you
being rooted and grounded in love may be able to comprehend
with all the saints what is the breadth, the length, the depth,
the height, of his love and to know the love of Christ which
passes knowledge that you might be filled with all the fullness
of God." Isn't that precious? Nothing, remember from Romans
8, he said, nothing can separate us from the love of God, nothing. Height, or depth, or area, or
creature? And his list is quite comprehensive, isn't it? And
he said, nothing can separate us from the love of God, which
is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Turn just a couple pages over
to chapter 8. I was reading through this again
this afternoon, and I came on this verse here in chapter 8.
Look at verse 6 and verse 7. Chapter eight. Set me as a seal
upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm, for love is strong
as death. Jealousy is cruel as the grave.
The coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement
flame. Many waters cannot quench love. Nothing can quench His love for
us. Neither can the floods drown
it. If a man would give all substance of his house for love, it would
be utterly contemned or despised and compared to His love for
us. Many waters cannot quench His love. Trouble cannot quench
His love. Nothing can separate us from
the love of God, which is in the Lord Jesus Christ. You see
what he's saying there? His love is better. Now remember
from our study in the book of Hebrews, better, Christ is better. He's better than anything. His
love is the best. It's superior. None can compare
to His love toward us. Now look at verse 3. And we'll
just look at verse 3 and 4. Because of the savor of thy good
ointments, thy name is as an ointment poured forth. Opened
up and poured forth. Therefore do the virgins, they
love thee. We do love our Lord Jesus Christ.
The virgins there that he's speaking of are believers who are believers
in the Lord Jesus Christ. We'll look at that in just a
minute. Many, his many attributes and his glorious characteristics
are like a precious sweet fragrance of ointment It's not closed up
in a bottle and sealed. It's poured forth. It's opened
up. When the Gospel is preached,
the fragrance of the Gospel, the fragrance of His love, it
just spreads through the room. His holiness, His goodness, His
mercy, His truth, His justice, and His love are like good ointments
poured out. And to every believer, there's
no attribute of his character that's not altogether lovely.
And to those who are in love with him, we love him for who
he is. We love him as he's revealed
in this Word, don't we? We love his holy character. We
love his sovereignty. We love him that he's the Almighty
Lord. We love him in that he delights
to save sinners such as we are. We love Him for who He is, not
for what He gives. He gives us all things, all blessings,
but we love Him for who He is. His name is above every name. God has highly exalted Him and
given Him a name above every name, that at that name every
knee should bow, every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ
is Lord. Therefore, do the virgins Love thee. They love him. You can't help, a believer can't
help but love the Lord Jesus Christ. Now admittedly, I don't
love him like I want to. I don't love him like I should. But I do love him because he
first loved me. His name is above every name.
Therefore to the virgins, that is true believers, made pure
in him, they love him. Neither is there salvation in
any other name but the Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul, I've
read this many times here over the years. In 2 Corinthians 11
verse 2, Paul says, I'm jealous over you with a godly jealousy,
for I espoused you to a husband that I may present you as a chaste
virgin. That's how we're presented in
Christ, as a chaste virgin. Therefore, to the virgins, they
love thee. Remember from our study in the
Revelation 14, talks about the elect of God, the 144,000. These are they which are not
defiled with women, that is, made new creatures in Christ,
for they are virgins. These are they which follow the
Lamb, whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among
men, became the first fruit unto God and to the Lamb, and in their
mouth was no guile, for they are without fault, and they're
before the throne of God. He presents us as chaste virgins,
holy, unblameable, unreprovable in His sight. Now we confess,
as it says in verse 5, we'll look at next week, verse 5, we
confess that we're black, we're sinners. But also it says, there
you're comely. That word means beautiful. In our flesh, we're nothing but
sin, but in the Lord Jesus Christ, we're holy, unblameable, unreprovable
in his sight. That's grace, isn't it? That's
the grace of God. Remember from Isaiah 9, his name
was Wonderful Counselor of the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father,
the Prince of Peace. He's the Lord our righteousness.
He's the Alpha and the Omega. He's beginning in the ending.
To many, He has no form or comeliness. Many despise and reject Him,
but to the believer, He is the fairest among 10,000. He's the
bright and morning star. He's altogether lovely, and He's
most precious. Verse 16 in chapter 1, Behold,
thou art fair, my beloved, yea, pleasant. Oh, so our bed is full
of fruit. It's green and fruitful, full
of life, salvation in Him. You remember, I quote this all
the time, 1 Peter chapter 2, to you who believe, what's the
rest of it? He is precious. He's altogether
lovely. Now, that being so, look at verse
4. Draw me. Draw me. Draw me with cords of love. Draw
me to thy heart, to thy bosom. You draw me, and we'll run. When
he draws us, we do run. Draw me, we will run after thee.
The king hath brought me. This is the king of kings. This
is the king of kings, the Lord Jesus Christ. Draw me, and we'll
run. Because the king hath brought
me into his chambers. into his secret chambers. We will be glad, and we will
rejoice in thee. We will remember thy love more
than wine, the uprightness, the upright, the upright, they do
love thee. They love thee uprightly, as
the marginal reference has. Draw me, and we'll run after
the Lord Jesus Christ. Without the precious act of His
sovereign grace, we'll never love Him or we'll never come
to Him. Remember our Lord said in John
6, no man can come to Me except My Father which sent Me draw
him. All those who have heard and learned of the Father, they
come to the Lord Jesus Christ. We only believe on Him according
to the working of His mighty power. I quoted a moment ago
Jeremiah 31, He loved us with an everlasting love, therefore
with love and kindness He does draw us to Himself. You see what
he's saying there? Draw me and we'll run. We'll
run. We'll run. You don't need to
beat up on folks. Just preach the gospel of God's
saving, sovereign grace in the Lord Jesus Christ, and God the
Holy Spirit will sweetly and powerfully draw us to Him. Blessed are those that are chosen
who causes us to approach unto Him. You remember in verse 32
in chapter 12, He said, If I be lifted up, talking about Christ
and Him crucified, I'll draw all unto Me. of his elect, he
draws us to himself. And when he draws us, thy people
shall be willing in the day of his power. When he draws us,
look what it says there, we run after him, we'll run after him. We will run after him because
he keeps drawing us. How does he draw us to himself?
By his irresistible power, his irresistible love. You know how
he draws us irresistibly? He makes himself irresistible. He's my beloved. He's altogether
lovely. By manifesting himself, manifesting
himself through the word, we desire the sincere milk of the
word that we might grow thereby. Thy word is pure, is very pure,
therefore thy servants loveth it. And how does he draw us? By the gracious influence of
the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit takes the things
of Christ and reveals them unto us. This running to him and coming
to the Lord Jesus Christ is a life of faith. I was at the dentist
on Monday. Yeah, Monday. And they were doing
some of those procedures in my mouth that are usually not very
pleasant. For some reason, I started quoting
an old preacher. And I said, come to Christ and
don't move a hand or a hair. And she looked at me, she said,
what did you say? I said, come to the Lord Jesus
Christ and don't move a hand or a hair. She said, where did
you hear that? I said, 1954, A.D. Mews, Harts Harbor Tabernacle,
Louisville, Kentucky, 1954. I can't remember what I had for
lunch yesterday. 1954, A.D. Muse. Running to Him is a life of faith. Come to Christ. It's not a physical
thing. That's why I was trying to tell
that dentist assistant, look to Christ in your heart. It's
not a physical thing. I know we've made it something
physical, coming down front or shaking the hand or doing this,
but it's coming to Christ in your heart. We just live by faith. This running to Him is a life
of faith, it's a walk of faith, it's pursuing Him, it's coming
to Him, it's looking to Him, it's following Him, it's cleaving
to Him, willing to serve Him out of love in our heart. And notice what it says there,
the King brought me. He brought me. He brought me. He bought me and then He brought
me. He brought me into his chambers. Wow. Wow, the king did that. The king's chambers is a special,
special place of intimate, intimate love. He must bring us or we'll
never come. He brought me, he brought me
to his... Look at chapter two, verse four. I think this is the verse I want.
He brought me He brought me to the banqueting house and His
banner over me was love. His banner over me was love. He brought me. He brought me
to His house and we will be glad and we will rejoice in Thee.
This is a symbol of our marriage to the Lord Jesus Christ. The
union is formed. My beloved is mine and I am His,
as it says in chapter 2. Remember from Revelation 19 about
the marriage supper of the Lamb? How He brings us into the marriage
supper of the Lamb? And we are blessed because we
are brought to the marriage supper of the Lamb? Let me see if I
can read that to you again. Hallelujah, the Lord God omnipotent
reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice and
give honor to him for the marriage of the Lamb has come and his
wife hath made herself ready. To her was granted that she should
be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white, the fine linen is
the righteousness of the saints. And he said to me, right, blessed
are they which are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb.
And he said unto me, these things are true and faithful. He brought
me into this marriage union, and it's the eternal covenant
of grace. that we have in Christ Jesus.
What the Father had purposed, the Son had purchased, and the
Holy Spirit has conquered. And now the sinner is brought
to be one with Him because He bought us. As I've often said,
he bought us and he's going to take us home and enjoy us forever
because he bought us with his own blood. What are these chambers? He brought me into the banqueting
house and his banner over me was love, love, love. Robert Hawker had this comment
on that verse. Those chambers of the king, therefore,
seem to mean acquaintance, knowledge, communion, union with the Lord
Jesus Christ. He brings poor sinners when he
shows them his covenant. He reveals to them his love,
brings them more intimately acquainted to be acquainted with their own
corruption and their need of Him. And when He opens to them
the Scriptures of truth, pours out to them gracious manifestations
of Himself, and gives us ravishing views of His glory, in short,
He reveals Himself to them otherwise than He does to others in this
world. He reveals Himself to us. Look
at verse 4 again. The King hath brought me, by
His grace, by His love, He brings me into His innermost being. And we will be glad, I mean we
willingly come. He makes us glad and willing
in the day of His power. We will be glad, we will rejoice
in Thee, we will remember Thy love more than one, more than
the upright. The upright love Thee. We will
love Thee more than one. His love is better. We will be
glad and we rejoice in Thee. Rejoice in the Lord always and
again I say rejoice. We have so much to rejoice in,
don't we? In His dying love, His saving
grace, His sovereign mercy, and His complete pardon from all
sin. In Him was all the fullness of
the Godhead bodily and we are complete in Him. I'm reminded
of the example of Ruth. You remember the book of Ruth?
I think we might look at that when we get finished with the
Song of Solomon. You remember Ruth, her husband
died, and Naomi, her husband died, and the other boys, they're
all dead, and Naomi's getting ready to leave the land of Moab
and go back to Jerusalem. And Ruth said, Entreat me not
to leave thee, or return from following after thee. For whither
thou goest, that's where I'll go. Whither you lodge, that's
where I will lodge. Thy people shall be my people,
thy God, my God. Where you die, I'll die, and
there I'll be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more
so also with aught but death, part thee and me." She was willing
to go with Naomi no matter what. Paul said, I know whom I have
believed, and I'm persuaded he's able to keep that which I've
committed unto him against that day. Draw me, and we'll run after
thee. The king has brought me into
his chambers. We will be glad. We do rejoice. We do remember the Lord is love
is better than any.