Song of Solomon 5
Solomon’s comments verse 1a
I am come into my garden – my love – my spouse
I have gathered my myrrh with my spices
I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey
I have drunk my wine with my milk
Woman of Jerusalem response verse 1b
Eat – O friends – Drink – yea – drink abundantly – O beloved
Wife asleep when Solomon arrives verse 2- 4
I sleep – but my heart wakes
it is the voice of my beloved that knocks \
saying
Open to me – my sister – my love – my dove – my undefiled
for my head is filled with dew
and my locks with the drops of the night
I have put off my coat- how shall I put it on?
I have washed my feet – how shall I defile them?
My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door
and my bowels were moved for him
Wife gets up to let Solomon in verse 5- 6
I rose up to open to my beloved
and my hands dropped with myrrh
and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh
upon the handles of the lock
I opened to my beloved
but my beloved had withdrawn himself
and was gone
my soul failed when he spoke – I sought him
but I could not find him
I called him – but he gave me no answer
Wife searches for Solomon verse 7
The watchmen that went about the city found me
they smote me
they wounded me
the keepers of the walls
took away my veil from me
Wife asks daughters of Jerusalem for help verse 8
I charge you – O daughters of Jerusalem
– if you find my beloved
that you tell him
that I am sick of love
Women of Jerusalem verse 9
What is your beloved more than another beloved
O you fairest among women?
What is your beloved more than another beloved
that you do so charge us?
Wife responses concerning husband verse 10- 16
My beloved is white and ruddy – the chief among ten thousand
his head is as the most fine gold
his locks are bushy and black as a raven
his eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters
washed with milk – and fitly set
his cheeks are as a bed of spices – as sweet as flowers
his lips like lilies – dropping sweet smelling myrrh
his hands are as gold rings set with the beryl
his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires
his legs are as pillars of marble – set upon sockets of fine gold
his countenance is as Lebanon – excellent as the cedars
his mouth is most sweet – yea – he is altogether lovely
This is my BELOVED – this is my FRIEND
O daughters of Jerusalem
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 2 I sleep, but my heart wakes: it is the voice of my beloved that knocks, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night. (8535 “undefiled” [tam] means healthy, complete, perfect, well-behaved, civilized, guiltless, or being complete of its kind and without defect or blemish)
DEVOTION: The husband has come to the door when his wife is sleeping and the door is shut. She is already undressed, washed her feet, and is now I bed.
There is a time lapse between verse one and two because now the couple is no longer considered newlyweds. Time has passed and the beloved has been away and now wants to come in to his bride but she is sleeping.
It is likened to the church that has married the LORD but after time the honeymoon is over and it seems to do things without thinking about the LORD or the husband of the church.
Christ is the one who founded the church but there seems to be time lapse from the beginning of the church and the church at present. The love for the LORD has gotten less and less and the works of the church are done without thoughts of what Christ expects of HIS church.
Many churches are just going through the motions and not really worshiped the LORD in spirit and in truth. The services are more entertaining rather than genuine worship from the heart of those in attendance.
God wants us to worship HIM in spirit and in truth and that is not happening in many churches today. It seems like people are more important then the LORD. Too many churches are people pleasers instead of God pleases.
CHALLENGE: If it is to be the real church it is supposed to put the LORD first and last and not be something that is just going through the motions. HE wants genuine worship which evolves Spirit and truth.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 8 I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love. (7650 “charge” [shaba] means to be complete, promise, swear, adjure, or take an oath.)
DEVOTION: The marriage continues for some time. Solomon comes to her door late at night while she is in bed. She doesn’t get up to open the door.
However, when he has left, she gets up to open to him. He is gone. She goes out to search for him. She is found by the watchmen and mistaken for a woman of the night. She is wounded. She continues the search. She asks for help to find her husband. She wants others to help find him and give him a message from her. She wants them to swear that they will help her. Again we have the phrase: “sick of love” or lovesick.
This time it is because he is missing and she wants to find him. The chapter concludes with her complimenting her husband. She mentions eleven characteristics that she admires in her husband.
In our present day there could be competition over her husband instead of help. As we live in a “me” generation, everyone is thinking only of themselves. Here Solomon’s wife wants the other women to swear on an oath that they will help her.
Wouldn’t it be great if every woman and man would swear to help keep families together? Could we promise to help marriages stay together? If even, all the Christians would commit to an oath to hold the marriage vows sacred and with the help of the LORD and others keep them sacred themselves.
One of the factors in this book is that both parties have to be madly in love with each other. Not just in a physical way but also in a spiritual way. She was so in love with him that she called it being “sick of love” or so in love it made her sick not to be in his presence.
We know so many wives feel the same way about their husbands and so do the husbands – RIGHT???? If not, we should ask the LORD for this type of relationship with our wife. When the LORD brought Eve to Adam – he said “Wow!” Do we say that when we see our wife? Now think about what you think after forty- five years? Do you say “Wow” or something else?
CHALLENGE: Ask the LORD to renew the “WOW” factor in your marriage. Do something special for your spouse this week. See what the reaction will be.
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: 10 “My beloved is white and ruddy, Chief among ten thousand.” The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982). (to look, behold. 1A (Qal) looked at, conspicuous (participle). 2 to carry a banner or standard, set up banner or standard.)
DEVOTION: When you look at your spouse or loved ones do you see someone special and unique? The individual that makes your eyes light up and the thought of her or him makes your heart skip a beat. This is what the wife is describing here after her husband has left her and went his way. She recognizes that he is the one that brings light, life and enjoyment to her life. Does the lights seem brighter when that special person comes into the room? If not then perhaps like Solomon’s wife you need to reflect and realize what the Lord has given to you and seek the vantage point of seeing your special one as you once did! Everyone changes and time brings shifts in our bodies that we may not enjoy. Even then, the beauty that drew you to the individual should be evident as beauty goes far deeper than the skin and outward appearances. Look into your beloved one eyes and see the prince or princess that swept you off your feet!
CHALLENGE: Sometimes the things that attracted you are the same things that offend you currently! Take a moment and consider the qualities that drew you to the individual and remember that the Lord brought you together for His purpose and glory! (Dr. Brian Miller – board member)
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 16 His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughter of Jerusalem. (7453 “friend” [rea] means companion, fellow, lover, one beloved, comrade, neighbor, or fellow countryman.
DEVOTION: What do we learn about God’s relationship to us from this book of the Bible? We know that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. HE designed us the way HE wanted us to look. HE loves us just the way we are. Jesus told his disciples before HE went to the cross that they were no longer just disciples but companions of HIS. HE loved them. God loves us. HE says things to us to make us feel loved.
The relationship between Christ and the church is likened to that of a bride and a bridegroom. The church has a special relationship to the LORD that will not be broken.
Solomon and the comments he makes to his bride and her comments to him represent the type of relationship we should have with the LORD in our daily conversation. The words would not be the same but the closeness would be the same. We should long to be with HIM. We should tell others about all of HIS wonderful attributes. Our communication should always be to praise HIM.
Also our communication regarding other believers should be one that shows that we love them just like the LORD loves us. Our fellow believers are to be likened to one that is beloved by us, as much as, they are loved by the LORD.
God should be altogether lovely to us. HE is our companion in our battles of life. HE is our comrade.
CHALLENGE: Do we convey to others the closeness we have to the LORD? Do our family members know how much we love the LORD and how much HE loves us? Share this truth.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Sister verse 1, 2
Spouse verse 1
Friends verse 1
Beloved verse 1, 2, 5
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Defile verse 3
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Beloved verse 1, 2, 4- 6, 8- 16
Love verse 2, 8
Undefiled verse 2
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Watchman verse 7
Keepers of the walls verse 7
Daughters of Jerusalem verse 8, 16
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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DONATIONS:
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QUOTES regarding passage
5:4 The word translated “latch-opening” is simply “opening,” and there is no evidence that some kind of latch opening is meant.117 The metaphor of the door has almost disappeared in this verse. Insomuch as the word “hand” is used in Hebrew as well as in other Semitic languages for the male member, the meaning of the line as a sexual metaphor is clear.119 The following line is rendered quite periphrastically in the NIV: “My heart began to pound for him.” “My insides were in a frenzy” would be more accurate. (Garrett, D. A. (1993). Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of songs (Vol. 14, pp. 410–411). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)
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5:3–4. She said in her dream that she had already gotten ready for bed. But this trivial excuse for not opening the door revealed her indifference or apathy toward her husband. Somehow she had grown cool toward his advances. But he did not accept her excuse. He tried to open the door but failed and then left. Then her compassion was aroused for him and she decided to open the door. The Hebrew expression translated my heart began to pound for him is used elsewhere to express pity or compassion (e.g., Isa. 16:11; Jer. 31:20). It was not used to express sexual arousal as some scholars have maintained. (Deere, J. S. (1985). Song of Songs. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 1020). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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Ver. 4. My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, &c.] To remove the bolt or bar which kept him from entering in. By the door is meant the door of her heart, which was in a great measure shut against Christ, through the prevalence of corruption; and the hole in it shews that it was not entirely shut up, there was a little love broke out from her to him; a little light broke in from him upon her; but her heart was much narrowed and straitened, her grace low in exercise, yet there were some faith, some love, &c. wherefore Christ takes the advantage of the little hole or crevice there was, and put in his hand; which is to be understood of powerful and efficacious grace, and the exertion of it on her; which is as necessary to awake a drowsy saint, and reclaim a backsliding professor, and to quicken to the exercise of grace, and performance of duty, as to the conversion of a sinner, Acts 11:22 and this is a proof of the greatness of Christ’s love to his church; that notwithstanding her rude carriage to him, he does not utterly forsake her, but left something behind that wrought upon her; as well as of his mighty power, in that what calls, knocks, raps, good words, and melting language, could not do, his hand did at once. And my bowels were moved for him; the passions of her soul; her grief and sorrow for sin, in using him in so ill a manner; her shame for being guilty of such ingratitude; her fear lest he should utterly depart from her; her love, which had been chill and cold, now began to kindle and appear in flames; her heart, and the desires of it, were in motion towards him; and a hearty concern appeared that he should be used so unfriendly by her; that his company and communion with him should be slighted, who had so greatly loved her, and endured so much for her; other effects follow. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 4, p. 667). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
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4. See Reader! the sovereignty of grace, and behold at the same time the whole source of our mercies. All calls, all entreaties, are lost upon our poor unthinking hearts, until the Lord that calls makes willing also in the day of his power. But until the voice that ere long shall wake the dead, now wakes the sinner, dead in trespasses and sins; no heart will open to him, nor feet move towards him. How blessed to see the Church having her very inside turned towards Christ, when by his Almighty love he had opened her soul. The prophet describes a beautiful instance of this, in the case of Ephraim: Jerem. 31:13–20. And the Evangelist another, in the case of the Prodigal. Luke, 15:17–24. (Hawker, R. (2013). Poor Man’s Old Testament Commentary: Proverbs–Lamentations (Vol. 5, p. 212). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.)
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5:4–7 After warming to the man’s approach, but delaying to open the door to him, the woman soon realizes he has gone and she goes in pursuit of him, at which point the watchmen find her and, unlike in 3:3, they beat her, leaving her bruised (5:7). If this were an actual event, it would be unclear why the watchmen did this. If it is part of a dream, though, it would simply be a nightmarish episode, perhaps reflecting the woman’s fear of public hostility toward the couple or toward her pursuit of him: it underscores the painfulness of their separation. (Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 1223). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.)
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. She never bothered to open the door to let him in. She had simply allowed him to stand outside a barred and bolted door in the wet and cold of the night. She confessed it now.
She tells of her silly reasons. “I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?” She had two excuses. One concerned itself with her nightly relaxation (“I have put off my coat”) and the other concerned itself with her nightly ritual (“I have washed my feet”). She said, in effect, “I cannot open the door because I am relaxed and because I do not wish to get my feet dirty by coming to the door.” What are we to make of that? It does not sound as though she loved him very much, does it?
Yet, these are the very two excuses that the church has ever made down through the ages for refusing to rise up and give the Lord Jesus total access to all of its affairs and complete control over all of its activities in this hour of the world’s darkness and night.
The church has consistently made the relaxation excuse: “I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on?” In other words, “I have done my share. I have had a busy day. I’m too tired to do any more. Why should it be me? Let somebody else do it.”
Every pastor knows the problem. Someone is asked to teach a Sunday school class, but the person asked has “put off his coat.” He doesn’t want that responsibility. It would mean being present every time the Sunday school met, and that would interfere with weekends at the cottage. Someone is asked to help with the nursery. She says, “I did that when my children were small. Let the mothers who use the nursery attend to it like we had to.” This person has “put off her coat” and is not about to put it on again. Someone is asked to help with the visitation program. He refuses. He gets home from work tired; besides, he feels that he has done his share of that kind of work. He has “put off his coat.” So the Lord’s work limps along forever lame on both its feet, like Mephibosheth of old, because those who could help and should help have invented excuses instead.
How often have we simply excused ourselves from some vital aspect of the church’s ministry, yawned, as it were, in the Lord’s face, and refused to open the door to Him? The angels must stand and stare in astonishment! A single glance from Him and any one of them, from Michael the archangel to Gabriel who stands in the presence of God, would vacate his place on high to nurse a leper, sweep a chimney, or overthrow an empire. Yet we, higher than they in the eternal order of things and infinitely nearer than they could ever be, take it into our heads to put off our coats and relax. Our Lord can knock all He wants for all we seem to care.
Then, too, the church has ever been quick and ready with the ritual excuse: “I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?” In fact, for many people in the church, the substitution of ritual for reality has long been a way of life. Many people associate “going to church” with certain stereotyped associations. To them, “going to church” means going to an elaborate building of cold stone and stained glass, a place of burning candles and burning incense. It has to do with robed ministers or priests, gowned choirs, organ music, and a fixed and formal service. It has to do with set responses to established rituals, recited prayers, and chanted anthems. These things might help some people, but, unfortunately, they become stereotypes. Multitudes are insulated by them from what real Christianity is all about. The reality is that God has invaded this planet in the person of Jesus Christ to redeem us from our sins and link us eternally to Himself.
I was not raised in a church with a long heritage of established ritual. I belonged to a fellowship that did not even have a regular minister, still less an established form of service. Our weekly Communion service was totally unstructured. The bread and wine were placed upon the table, and from then on any brother in the fellowship could lead the Lord’s people in worship. One person would give out a hymn, another would lead in prayer, a third would expound a portion of Scripture. At times, the pace of the service was slow with long pauses for meditation; at other times, one person after another would rise to his feet in rapid succession to participate. Sometimes, the hymns and prayers and Bible readings seemed to have little or no harmonious blending of thought; at other times, the pattern of worship that emerged was more splendid, more structured than if someone had deliberately preplanned exactly who would give out what hymn and what this one or that one would say in prayer.
Yet, even in such a fellowship, where any form of ritual or formalism was deeply suspect, ritualism crept in. The observance of the Lord’s Supper itself sometimes became a ritual, so much so that the test of whether a person was “in fellowship” would be whether that person was regular in attending the Lord’s Supper. Then, too, some people who would not think of missing the Lord’s Table made that observance the sum total of their commitment to the local church. They considered their spiritual obligations for the week completely discharged once they had “broken bread.” They could sit back and relax; they had “washed their feet” so to speak.
Many of Americas churches are crowded on Sunday mornings with people who are making the ritual excuse without even realizing it. I was invited to a church some time ago, and the pastor told me that the total membership of that church was about four thousand people. On Sunday morning, at the worship service, we had about fifteen hundred, which was probably closer to reality. On Sunday evening, the attendance dropped to about six hundred. Services were to continue for the next three nights. On Monday, we had about one hundred and on Tuesday about two hundred. On Wednesday, another “ritual” night, attendance bounced back up to about five hundred. I did not wonder that the pastor of this church was discouraged. He had a book membership of about four thousand people and an actual working membership of two or three hundred.
Most of the “members” of that church were observing a “Sunday-morning-only” ritual. For some people, being on a church membership roll satisfied their sense of responsibility. Others, with a little more conscience, added the ritual of Sunday morning attendance to give their consciences ease. Still others added the ritual of “prayer meeting” to make up the sum total of commitment. But, except for the hardcore faithful few, it did not take the majority in that church long to “wash their feet,” as the Shulamite put it. They would not think of making the effort to come to additional activities of the church, to get really involved, or to open the door and let Christ in to lead them to a deeper dimension of spiritual experience and commitment.
The ritual excuse, however, can be even more subtle. There is always the trap of being so worn out, so exhausted, so busy, even in the Lord’s service, that we have no time for Him! Thus, our daily quiet time either becomes neglected altogether or becomes perfunctory and sterile, a mere form. The Lord comes and knocks and calls, but we never really take the time to let Him in.
Thus the Shulamite related her silly reasons for not opening to her beloved. Next, she relates her sad reward: “My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door,” she said. Rotherham puts it, “My beloved thrust in his hand at the window.” The margin of The Companion Bible suggests the reading, “Then my beloved withdrew his hand,” commenting that the Hebrew of the verse could literally be rendered “sent his hand away.”
The shepherd seemed about to force his way in, then he changed his mind and went away quietly. Our Beloved will never force Himself upon us. If we will not open up to Him when He comes, He will leave us to ourselves. And we, poor souls—like Joseph and Mary, who spent a whole day journeying merrily on without Jesus and then spent the next three days in frantic search for Him—often do the same. Only we are so dull that we can sometimes go a whole week, a whole month, a whole year, even half a lifetime “supposing Him to be in the company” when, so far as His active fellowship is concerned, He withdrew long, long ago.
Then the Shulamite tells of her swift remorse. “My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him.” Her heart yearned for him. Her soul fainted when she heard him. Rotherham’s rendering is, “My feelings were deeply moved for him.”
Suddenly, it dawned upon the Shulamite just what she had done. In our modern vernacular, we would say that she had given him “the brush-off.” As swift as a flash, she was covered with shame.
Thank God for such a swift and sensitive response to the sudden loss of fellowship! Would that we, too, were more alert to the loss! She had raised a barrier, however, and that barrier was not to be thus easily torn down. Many a loving couple has experienced this kind of thing. One person makes a loving advance, but the other either ignores or repulses it, and the result is a swift change of atmosphere. Belated apologies, explanations, and excuses follow, but they are all lame and meaningless. Scars are not easily healed. (Phillips, J. (2009). Exploring the Love Song of Solomon: An Expository Commentary (So 5:3–4). Kregel Publications; WORDsearch Corp.)
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FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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Quiet Walk
David is anointed to be king.
INSIGHT
David is indeed an outstanding individual. As a teenager, he is known to be “skillful in playing, a mighty man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a handsome person; and the Lord is with him” (v. 18). In each of these things, David is not just lucky. David works hard at all the things for which he is known, including the fact that “the Lord is with him.”
Each of us has been given talents and abilities. Like David, if we are to achieve our God-given potential, we must be slaves to the things that advance those abilities.
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TRUE AND FALSE HAPPINESS
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Matthew 5:6
Man under the influence of alcohol may feel perfectly happy for the time being, but the question is, has he solved his problems? To place happiness before health and to regard it as the supreme good is to be guilty of a fundamental fallacy in the matter of standards.
Such unthinking procedure includes also the fallacy of failing to see that ultimately happiness depends upon health and is something that results from health. Any other type of happiness is negative and dependent only upon the absence of conditions that prevent happiness. However much we may strive to lessen our unhappiness, while there is disease, there can be no true happiness. Nothing is so fallacious, therefore, and so fatal to true happiness as to make ease and happiness ends in and of themselves.
When our Lord said, “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:6), he did not say that they would be happy who hungered and thirsted after happiness. The blessedness, the happiness, the joy is something that will result from our seeking righteousness and from our becoming righteous. It is a by-product, an end-result. We are not to place blessedness or happiness in the supreme position. We are to seek righteousness, and, having found it, we shall then find ourselves to be happy and filled with blessedness.
What ultimately accounts for the failure of the false prophet to think clearly is the fact that he is deliberately determined to defend himself and to think well of himself. Pride is the root cause of the trouble. The view of the false prophet starts with the postulate that whatever else may be the cause of the troubles in life, it is not man himself.
A Thought to Ponder
The blessedness, the happiness, the joy is something that will result from our seeking righteousness and from our becoming righteous.
From Truth Unchanged, Unchanging, pp. 48-50, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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God’s Grace
“The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” (Philippians 4:23)
The basic form of today’s verse appears 13 times in the New Testament. In Scripture, repetition is not for lack of something to say but the Holy Spirit’s intentional emphasis on something.
God extends His grace to the very creation itself by merely keeping the universe together (2 Peter 3:7), intending thereby to “speak” and supply knowledge (Psalm 19:1-4) sufficient to display His very nature and power in such a way that there can be “no excuse” about His existence and care for humanity (Romans 1:20).
In seven of the 13 times, this “grace of our Lord Jesus Christ” is focused on “you.” God’s grace is very personal. Everything that He has done is because He loves you and me beyond any grasp of our earthly imagination. No one is beyond the touch of God’s grace: “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men” (Titus 2:11). “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19).
Once, in contrast, God says some will turn “the grace of our God into lasciviousness” and deny Him who has bought and paid for all the horrible sin that they embraced to spite such grace (Jude 1:4). No wonder the apostle Paul calls such people “abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate” (Titus 1:16).
The Lord twice focuses His grace on our spirits, indicating God’s intimate knowledge of our innermost thoughts (Romans 8:26). Paul noted that God’s grace is “exceeding abundant with faith and love” (1 Timothy 1:14), and he insisted that His grace is designed to be “glorified in you” (2 Thessalonians 1:12). Like today’s verse, most of the prayers for us end in “Amen.” And that’s the way it should be. HMM III
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In Him Is No Darkness
“This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5)
Light is the most fundamental and important form of energy, and energy includes every phenomenon in the physical universe. It is appropriate for John to affirm that God is light, because everything created must reflect the character of its Creator. The term “light,” therefore, has come to be applied not only to light in the physical sense, but also to that which is true in the intellectual realm, and holy in the moral realm as well.
In terms of truth and genuine knowledge, “the entrance of thy words giveth light” (Psalm 119:130). “In thy light shall we see light” (Psalm 36:9). Without God’s truth, there is only darkness. “The god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them” (2 Corinthians 4:4). The Bible also speaks of light as moral holiness. “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light. . . . And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them” (Ephesians 5:8, 11).
There are still other analogies: “In him was life; and the life was the light of men” (John 1:4). Not only is light symbolic of life itself, but it also depicts God’s daily guidance for our lives. “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12). Since there is no darkness in God, “if we walk in the light as he is in the light” (1 John 1:7), there remains no excuse for any darkness in our lives. “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6). (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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So Right and So Wrong
Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? MATTHEW 7:3
I’m sure you’ve had a disagreement (or more than one!) with each other that turned into a stalemate or brick wall. You didn’t really care if it came to a conclusion. You just wanted a truce. You wanted this thing behind you. You were tired of fighting.
Maybe it started with an argument about the checkbook. Maybe it had something to do with the in-laws. Maybe it was a difference of opinion on a parenting issue. But somewhere along the way, the conflict turned into much more. It took on a life of its own. Now you can hardly stand to be in the same room together.
Well, are you prepared to let reconciliation start with you? Are you ready to give up the notion that you’re mostly right? Deeper still, are you willing to strive to recapture the reality of what your marriage is all about—the transcendent beauty of reflecting God’s love on Earth? I know that you may be thinking, When I’m hurt I don’t care about God’s glory.
I just want to get even.
Don’t be ruled by your emotions. Instead, do it Jesus’ way: Take the log out of your eye. No matter what your spouse has done, no matter how misguided you think he or she has been, the key to real resolution is to start removing your log. Accept full responsibility for your part in this, and place the value of your mate and your relationship above the value of your own pride and your need to be right.God wants more for you than being able to tolerate each other. He wants you to show forth His glory in the way you honor, love and respect each other.Remove the logjam. And shoot for something higher.(Moments with You Couples Devotional by Dennis and Barbara Rainey)
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MY VIEW OF THE WORLD
These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 1 John 5:13
What is my view of the world when I know for certain that I have eternal life? What is my attitude to the world in which we are all living, the world as we see it in the newspapers? Is that what interests me? What am I anxious to obtain? Or am I more interested in other things—spiritual things? According to John, Christians are men and women who have come to view the world in an entirely new manner. They see that it is governed by sin. They have come to regard it as a place in which evil forces are at work and whose whole mind is but the working of the spirit of the world. They know that it is something they have to fight, something to withstand, and they realize that unless they do so, they will be defeated by it.
Do I hate the world? A good way of answering is this: The apostle Paul, looking at his surroundings, said, “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory…for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18). In looking at “the things which are seen,” how much time do I spend in thinking about the Lord God? How much do I think about the glory that is with Him? Which do I meditate upon most—the eternal or the worldly?
A Thought to Ponder: How much do I think about the glory that is with God? Which do I meditate upon most—the eternal or the worldly? (From Life in God, pp. 97-98, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)