Song Of Solomon - Jet Tour (part 2)

do something this morning that could get me in a lot of trouble I'm going to do something this morning that in the fourth century when it was done it was condemned and the

Council of Constantinople in 15 in 553 rather condemned this guy even after he was dead for doing what

I'm going to do today I'm going to do what the

Westminster Assembly of Divines said regarding my particular view they condemned this view as a hot carnal pamphlet formed by some loose

Apollo or Cupid I'm going to teach the

Song of Solomon with a grammatical historical literal love poem since after all back in the first century some people knew that it was a love poem

Rabbi Aqaba used to condemn those who would be in the drinking houses and they would get drunk and sing some of the lyrics from the song origin said of the literal view these things in Song of Solomon seem to me to afford no profit to the reader as far as the story goes and during that time it was a super popular book do you know in the

Middle Ages in eight centuries 32 commentaries we have found were written on the

Song of Solomon while we found six on Galatians and nine on Romans today what

Luther called the best song the Song of Solomon you turn your Bibles to the

Song of Solomon we are in a three -part jet tour the Song of Solomon a biplane tour I guess

I'll amend the name to we are coming to a book of the

Bible that in the Hebrew canon follows Proverbs and then Ruth quite logically Proverbs 31 being the last book of the

Bible and then a Proverbs 31 woman Ruth and then now the love poem of a man and a woman we need this kind of preaching today when

I think about this kind of preaching I'm mad at myself I got mad at myself for two reasons this week one was the phone company guy came over and I used to be a telephone repairman so I was kind of walking around watching him and we were just talking about the old days of Ma Bell and other things and we had to go out to this little can and I knew they were going to be wasp in there and hornets and so we pop it off and he sprayed his stuff in there like a good phone company guy and I walked way back and as I walked way back a hornet came zooming right at me landed on my shirt and stung me through the shirt it's still read to this day

I thought I'm mad at myself he's getting paid to do this I'm the retired telephone repairman and then

I also got mad at myself this week because I almost want to give you an excuse for preaching the

Song of Solomon when it is a book inspired by God given to us for our profit for our help and should be proclaimed with straight face with no apologies and I thought to myself why am

I almost embarrassed to teach this book and I think the embarrassment comes because as the world has basically said let's take sex which is a good gift from God and soil it and sully it and make it dirty

Christians instead of being in the God -centered view of sex designed by God good by God ordained by God endorsed by God have gone the other way away from both the

Bible and the world to say you know here's our discussion of sex we have just one word for you don't do it it's all negative it's taboo

I got mad at myself because if this book in the canon is to be proclaimed and it's good why do we like Jerome say don't read it unless you're 30 if somebody's going to teach us about the topic of sex shouldn't it be

God who else do we go to the world magazines

TV commentaries CJ Mahaney in a book you could read and I'd encourage you to read called sex romance and the glory of God said this quote we need instruction on sexuality if marriage is immensely important to God and it is and if sex is a marvelous gift from God to a married couple which it is it's entirely appropriate for God to tell us in Scripture how to understand and enjoy it would he give us such a gift without also giving us guidance where is a

Christian couple supposed to look for a model of God glorifying sexuality if not to Scripture where I think song of Solomon is basically an exposition of what

Solomon said in Proverbs 30 he said in verse 18 there are three things which are too wonderful for me for which

I do not understand the way of an eagle in the sky the way of a serpent on a rock the way of a ship in the middle of the sea and the way of a man with a maid today the song of Solomon an unblushing poem about God's endorsement of human sexuality for all ages

I always try to tell you as a parent when your children come up to you after the service and on the way home you should be talking to them about the sermon

I Lenny shared with me yesterday I was telling the congregation the 12 words that summarize the gospel to remember those creator judge

Savior we went through the whole list of 12 and I was trying to say as a congregation if your kids can repeat those 12 you should give them a dollar well

Lenny's very liberal liberal he gave his children a dollar a word it cost him 12 bucks I want your children to talk to you after the sermon this is not some kind of veiled thing in the

Bible where we are not allowed to talk about it you the parents can then talk appropriate to age here's what

God says about this word and it is good for you and profitable and right for you to know just a few weeks ago they were concerned about my immune system and I'm laying there giving blood and the doctor has just said 10 minutes before well we're concerned about your immune system and they're drawing blood and even this week having a

CAT scan on Monday they're putting the contrast in my veins I used to sell contrast for the CAT scans and I said to the lady is it ionic or non -ionic she said well it's not ionic

I said good because the ionic stuff that I used to sell could kill a lot of people well

I sold the good stuff too but as the time has gone on it's gone to non -ionic and I said what manufacturer usually she said we're using squib

I said 320 ice of you no she said 370 I said well I don't know if I'm allergic to contrast or not but we will soon find out said how many people have died having contrast since Worcester Medical Center has been open she said only one

I thought all right good so she said are you ready I got my arms above my head and there's the contrast and I thought here we go just like with the blood test here we go

I said tell my wife and kids I love them and what all this has done for me it is confirmed and reaffirmed in my mind that if I live long enough

I will teach all the Bible to all the people that God will allow me to teach

I've been on this earth for not many good reasons in terms of I'm not a good gardener

I'm not a good this I'm not a good car mechanic but God has gifted me to preach and it is the duty it is the solemn charge of God for the pastor to preach all the

Bible including the Song of Solomon and if God doesn't blush at the Song of Solomon then

I have a question for me and for you this morning why do you I'm after your mind today is what

I'm after I'm after your mind so if you think something differently about the topic of what God says about sex that you change your mind we just call that repentance to think differently what does

God say about it and last week we talked about why it's not allegorical why it's not typological why we can have forgiveness for past sexual sins all those things and today we want to just take a look at the first part of the book that talks about courtship and then the wedding and then next time after I return from vacation by the way you preach on Song of Solomon you go on vacation for four weeks so it's all planned see

I even got mad at myself for thinking that why would I think that way here's the Bible you know one guy said well you're gonna have a you know a special like junior church for all the junior high people and the senior high people because because what there's gonna be

Bible teaching certainly it's not obscene certainly it's not a medical manual certainly it's not a how -to guide but it is

God's unblushing endorsement on sex and if God doesn't blush then

I don't want to either certainly I don't want to go too far I prayed that God would help me could watch my words but this is a major aspect of the human life and God thankfully addresses it he tells us and I have been blessed as I have studied the

Song of Songs if you look at verse 1 it's a superlative out of all the songs this is the best out of 1 ,000 songs that Solomon wrote this is the one included in the

Latin we call it canicles but that's wrong it's not sought songs it's the song out of all the songs this is the one that fits in the canon and there are three major sections of this poem and again last week

I talked a lot about poetry and parallelism and metaphors and everything else but this is just a poem and it has a general direction of courtship marriage and the maturation of the couple but it takes some little turns here there and it's it's not a narrative it doesn't tell a direct story in terms of this time of the day and then that time of the day there's a little bit of that but it's just this poem that celebrates marital love and God gives his stamp of endorsement on it and I'm going to read this book like I do every other book in a literal natural plain way understanding that it's poetry understanding that it's

Eastern poetry understanding that it's near Eastern poetry understanding that it's near Eastern love poetry understanding that it's inspired near Eastern love poetry it's a poem when

I was a kid I hated poems roses are red all that kind of stuff we had to write you know poems in school and haiku and all these other things

I have no idea what poems are well this is good for me to see how God just puts it in a language to extol human love marriage it's refreshing the fidelity and purity of these two people well last week

I basically preached from chapter 1 verse 1 through 2 7 so we're gonna go right to chapter 2 verse 8 and hopefully we'll get to 5 1 this morning that's my goal and basically what we'll see in this part of courtship a very restrained man and woman knowing that their marriage fidelity is important before marriage but their passions are growing they have a desire for each other physically emotionally and they praise one another and here the

Solomon responds to the Shulamite in verses 9 10 and 11 they begin to grow in their love in chapter 1 verse 12 and following and if you go to chapter 2 verse 8 the setting changes a little bit and now we switch to the

Shulamites home which was evidently in Lebanon on the country and their intimacy and their sense for love for one another all premaritally with pure fidelity is increasing and the

Shulamite says verse 8 listen my beloved behold he's coming climbing on the mountains leaping on the hills she's where she is and she looks out the window as it were and she sees her husband -to -be coming to see her

CJ Mahaney said near Eastern idioms professional poet do not attempt he's climbing on the mountains leaping on the hills he can't wait to see her my beloved is like a gazelle she says our young stag behold he's standing behind our wall he's looking through the windows he's peering through the lattice he is eager to see his beloved verse 10 my beloved responded and said to me now she is quoting what

Solomon said arise my darling my beautiful one and come along dear friend come let's go for a walk as it were for behold the winters past the rains over it's springtime and you're going to see in springtime in a budding relationship of romance everything is new the birds sound different the wind feels different everything in romance and spring is new and romance and spring just go together the flowers have already appeared in the land verse 12 the time has arrived for pruning the vines the voice of the turtle love has been heard in our land fig tree has ripened its figs and the vines and blossom have given forth their fragrance arise my darling my beautiful one and come along James Russell Lowell said of love quote true love is a love that shall be new and fresh each hour as is the sunsets golden mystery are the sweet coming of the evening star alike and yet most unlike every day and seeming ever best and fairest things used to be in black and white and now they're in Technicolor things used to be in 1d and now it's

Jordan's IMAX 2d or 3d everything just is new and alive and for those of you who are married and have been there you realize that's exactly what you felt like you see things that you didn't see before things that you overlook now you notice oh my dove verse 14 in the clefts of the rock in the secret place of the steep pathway let me see your form let me hear your voice for your voice is sweet and your form is lovely just want to be with you then a verse it's often misinterpreted catch the foxes for us the little foxes that are ruining the vineyards while our vineyards are in blossom most every commentator says foxes get in the vineyard and this is an illustration of some premarital troubles where there's fights and disagreements because the foxes would ruin things so to some of their arguments have ruined things

I don't think this has anything to do with that it's just a game it's chase follow me come after me

Shulamite said in verse 16 my beloved is mine and I am his he pastures his flock among the lilies we're together we're with each other alone monogamous until the cool of the day verse 17 when the shadows fleet flee away turn my beloved there's got to be restraint can't spend the night tonight as it were be like a gazelle or a young stag in the mountains of better and now in this love poem we go to some of her descriptions and some of the mutual admiration and now we go to a dream so how can there be a dream well it's a love poem and we come to a dream and you might even think it's a nightmare here's the here's the fiancee will we really get married will it really happen well something happened before that big day like I've said a million times before we were engaged for and I don't don't repeat this do not try this at home

I was engaged for 30 days to Kim because I had that fear what if something happens what if she says no when

I asked her I said Kim would you marry me and she said yes I said just to make sure I got that right I'm gonna ask you one more time would you marry me yes it was

May 6th at the time and so he said how about September one week later how about August one week later how about July one week later your dad's a pastor it's a

Tuesday Tuesday was always the day they used to get married in the old days let's get married today good idea everything was true except that last little bit was a little hyperbole

I went up to the church that day and I said to Kim that's weird it's a Tuesday morning at the church and what's this some kind of stretch limousine there what's going on oh yeah it's my man from my marriage so far it has been typified in the

Song of Solomon chapter 1 and chapter 2 restraint yet a longing now we come to chapter 3 and there's kind of a little crisis and in her dream shortly before she's married she is concerned that it might not all take place and she says on my bed night after night

I sought him who my soul loves chapter 3 verse 1 I sought him but did not find him the one that I love the one that I love the one that I love

I I must arise verse 2 and go about the city and in the streets and in the squares I must seek him whom my soul loves

I sought him but did not find him and again just in a poem in a dream poem the watchman who make the rounds in the city found me and I said have you seen him whom my soul loves real people this is just her dream scarcely had

I left them when I found him who my soul loves I found him I held on to him

I would not let him go until I had brought him to my mother's house and into the room of her who conceived me I grasped him

I held him tightly and then the refrain verse 5 I adjure you o daughters of Jerusalem by the gazelles or the hinds of the field that you will not arouse or awaken my love until she pleases there's a time for intimacy and this isn't the time now let's move to the wedding found in chapter 3 verses 6 and following by the way just to give you a little background on near Eastern weddings there was kind of several components one component was you would go in front of the elders of the community you wouldn't be getting married in the synagogue or obviously no church buildings at the time they would have a civil ceremony versus really a religious ceremony then the groom's parents

I mean before that the groom's parents would have selected the bride and all that then you have the ceremony and then there's a big processional to the house of feasting that night they'll be consummation but on their way to the house procession to have a seven -day feast after that there's all kinds of things and reminded me of when

I was in India I saw a guy riding a horse and correct me if I'm wrong Pradeep there's a guy riding on a horse and a bunch of other people just going wild and and all kinds of stuff happening and I said to my driver

I said what's going on with this man he looks so happy and everybody's following him and he was on his way to go get the bride right it's a

Hindu deal yes okay close enough Pradeep didn't say yes and so you just kind of be kind just keep going pastor all that to say there's the there's the civil and I pronounce you man and wife then there's the procession and then there's the week feast that was

I was trying to say verse 6 what is this coming up from the wilderness like columns of smoke perfumed with myrrh and frankincense with all scented powders of the merchant it's not really a what it's a who who's this is coming all the stuff is so costly myrrh and the spices here's this big commemoration

God ordained marriage and it is to be celebrated and if it is in fact Solomon being a king or a prince it would have done been done in pomp and circumstance galore if you watched princess

Diana's wedding no big deal behold is a traveling couch of Solomon he's up there perched on this couch 60 men all around him how many groomsmen did you have of the mighty men of Israel his groomsmen were probably the bodyguards all of them wielders of the sword expert in war each man has a sword at his side guarding against the terrors of the night impressive no chance of some kind of thing happening

King Solomon has made for himself a sedan chair from the timbers of Lebanon the best lumber you can get he's perched up on that and he is coming to the bridal procession he's made its post of silver its back of gold at seats of purple fabric kingly colors interior lovingly fitted by the daughters of Jerusalem nothing is to be spared for my beloved go forth

Oh daughters of Zion and gaze on King Solomon with the crown with which his mother has crowned him it's not only just the crown of the country but they have special wedding crowns on the day of his wedding on the day of his what a neat way to describe wedding gladness of heart

Solomon in all his glory just like every other groom just a side note if I can stop for a second a marriage is

God's institution and ought to be celebrated as such yes I was reading in a book quest for character and it quoted

Carl Zimmerman in his 1947 book family and civilization and it said there are eight specific patterns in the country that typified downward spirals of cultures and when a culture does these things it's going down the tubes and his first thing on the list was when marriage loses its sacredness the cultures in trouble this passage doesn't teach anything about that but this passage just confirms in my mind that marriage is from God ordained by God Genesis chapter 2 and is a big deal it is to be celebrated man and a woman obviously reflecting

Christ in the church Hebrews 13 forces marriage is to be held in what among all in all places among all people marriages to be what honored and held in honor of all honored because God came up with it honored because Christ would confirm the institution at Canaan honored because it prevents impurity honored because God is the one who's the author well now we come to the wedding night chapter 4 verses 1 and following the formal ceremonies are over it is now private between Solomon and the

Shulamite Shulamite being a place we don't know her name and what we have now is what they call a

WASF W A S F it was an Arabic term and it is a couple talking to one another before they are ready to consummate the marriage gone is the restraint the restraint that was before marriage is gone you will see in chapter 4 5 6 7 & 8 there is no restraint and here he's going to sing a rhapsody as it were about how his wife is so beautiful every part of her is wonderful this is going to kind of sound weird to us because we are just different people in a different culture and we don't understand these metaphors but he basically starts and on his wedding night he begins and he ends in verse 7 by saying to her three times total you are beautiful my darling you're beautiful how beautiful you are and then he has a list of several things starting with their eyes and working down about how beautiful she is your eyes are like doves behind your veil they didn't wear veils most the time then but on their wedding they did and so the alluring eyes are hidden behind the veil the veil that would both hide some of her face and heighten some of his desire your hair is like a flap it just sounds funny to me when

I did your hair is like a flock of goats that have descended from Mount Gilead as the goats descend from the hill far away and seem like they have a little movement you can't really see it maybe this is when she's letting her hair down for him always reminds me of the story when my sister she was just learning how to read and there was a new shampoo out supposed to make your hair all nice and smell good and everything and she read it for the first time and she said gee your hair smells terrific just always struck me it's a brand name pop culture

I can't get away from it he is lavishing his praise to her now of course as I look at the text

I don't see here oh this is God loving Israel our Christ loving the church and as I said last week it is difficult for me to say if 75 % of the discussion is the woman to the man that strikes me odd in a book that if it's supposed to be about God loving his people it should be

God talking and then the woman responding but here in some kind of way that predates any kind of feminism there are two equal people and here the

Shulamite is the one who's talking but of course as I look at this and the reason why we read John chapter 17 today is even though Jesus Christ this is not a messianic song

I just keep thinking about if this is the great marriage that's in the

Bible then there is a marriage that this points to certainly about Christ loving the church

I don't want to preach this book and say yeah a Jewish rabbi who's an unbeliever preaches the same way

I do certainly I don't think Jesus is in the Bible but he is Lord over it and it is to be preached and was

Paul was at Ephesus he was preaching this book to those people for three years and he was certainly pointed them to say if you think this is a great relationship a love relationship between a man and a woman before eternity passed there was

Christ dying the plan for Christ dying for his people marriage between man and a woman wasn't first this is just a reflection of our

God who has died for us it's been raised from the dead no more restraint here we continue in chapters 4 verse 2 and following as young Claudio said in Shakespeare's much to do about nothing in my eye she is the sweetest lady that I have ever looked upon your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn ewes which have come up from their washing all of which bear twins and not one among them has lost her young dental hygiene was tough back then no gaps in her teeth everyone matched that was what he was talking about they all have twins the top and the bottom they all match she's got a full set of teeth pretty it's a big deal back then your lips are like a scarlet thread some say ribbon but it's really thread perfect outline the shape of her lips they're alone it's in private he's talking to his wife about how beautiful she is certainly with the desire to kiss those lips your temples are like a slice of pomegranate behind your veil maybe the upper cheeks for the temple area and the color maybe pomegranates are hyper hyper easy acts aphrodisiacs this is hard to preach

I'm telling you Kim and the kids are all in California what have I done for three weeks just stayed at home and you know studied the

Song of Solomon your neck is like the

Tower of David built with rows of stones on which are hung a thousand shields all around shields of the mighty men your neck is so rugged it looks like linebacker

Teddy Brewskis no he's not saying that at all this is stately it's a mark of beauty it's about her person it's not about her she's got a long neck it's big no and even if she did that's not the point the shields were the allegiance to the the commander and she is just stately she's magnificent he just looks at her neck and even her neck is beautiful to him statuesque your two breasts are like fawns verse 5 twins of a gazelle which feed among lilies the

Bible just in language inappropriate language we know what he's saying all these metaphors of chasteness and properness and modesty almost like the veil that's in the

Holy of Holies God uses this kind of language as a veil just so it's not pornographic until the cool of the day before it was gonna be the cool of the day and you can't spend the night and now it's going to be all night long until the cool of the day we don't have to run from each other when the shadows flee and I will go my way

Solomon says to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of frankincense describing what he just was talking about in verse 5 she's graceful and tall and now there's no sleep this night mountains of myrrh something valuable mountains of myrrh just a little bit of expensive now there's mountains just all love language you are all together beautiful just like he said two times in the earlier verse verse 1 he says now there's no blemish in you isn't that true what every husband thinks on his wedding night there's nothing no flaw in your spouse and now he gives his intention verse 8 with his request come with me from Lebanon my bride may you come with me from Lebanon journey down from the summit of Amana from the summit of Sinai and mount and Herman from the dens of lions from the mountains of leopards there's no actual lions or anything else he's just calling her to himself completely concentrate on him he says in verse 9 as his adoration continues you have made my heart beat faster my sister my bride you have made my heart beat faster with a single glance of your eyes with a single strand of your necklace translation in a modern terminology my head is spinning

I am dizzy is what he's saying my heart is beating just one look from you and my heart is going wild you are taking my breath away

I am hopelessly in love with you and I could stop here and just charge the congregation as I've charged myself this week do you know that it is a gift from God to have the romantic love between a man and a woman you know it's a gift from God I did some studying this week and found out some amazing things about the body dr.

me he said God made you with over 200 bones with more than 630 muscles your body contains over 30 trillion cells 16 billion nerve endings and 4 million pain sensors your lungs have 750 million air sacs and take 24 ,000 breaths every 24 hours your blood flows 168 million miles daily supplied by your heart and beats over 100 ,000 times daily and certainly when

God declares we are filled fearfully and wonderfully made he has also made us that way and has given us romance to enjoy it's not some kind of animalistic thing no and by the way another note if I step back from this shame on the medieval church and shame on many other scholars and even churches today that says sex is only for marriage regarding procreation sex is only for marriage but there is nothing to do with procreation in this entire book high as that might have been on the list a child a male child etc etc this is just the goodness of God please he asked these can a man do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work this too

I see is from the hand of God for without God who can eat and find enjoyment contrarily with God you can find enjoyment even here between a man and a woman this is amazing the goodness of God David says praise the

Lord give thanks for the Lord for he is good the goodness of God that he would give us such a gift of romance and love and the emotions that go behind it

I had to say to myself this week Mike when was the last time you said not only

I thank you for my spouse but I thank you for our marriage

I thank you for whom my wife is and I thank you that I could just enjoy my spouse romantically you ever think to praise

God for that I think that's part of the message here I try to find songs to say where in the pimmel is a song that says like the song of Solomon I want to glorify romantic love by saying and not glorify romantic love but glorify you

God for romantic love the closest I could find is the song will sing at the very end for the beauty of the earth for the glory of the skies for the joy of human love but I don't even say husband wife it's like brother sister parent child how about brother sister parent child man and a woman this book extols love well he goes on to say how beautiful is your love my sister my bride this is the word for love that is not the equivalent to a copy in the

New Testament but eros erotic love how beautiful is your love my sister my bride now she's not his sister it's just a term of endearment back then how much better is your love than grape juice oh wait a second how much better is your love than wine and the fragrance of your oils than all kinds of spices

Spurgeon said this about wine love is better than wine because one it could be enjoyed without question two it would never turn sour three it would never produce ill effects and for it produced a sacred exhilaration that's exactly what he's talking about here your love is better than wine and the fragrance of your oils than all kinds of spices it's intoxicating your lips my bride verse 11 drip honey honey and milk are under your tongue by the way two different words for honey the first honey is from honeycomb the second honey is from fruits your lips my drop bride drink honey honey and milk are under your tongue

Canaan was a land flowing of what flowing with milk and honey the blessings and goodness of God source of blessing and joy in the land of Canaan so to now the blessings of romantic love and the fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon now the king praises the bride's purity chapter 4 verse 12 and following you see the words here they are on their wedding night a garden locked up is my sister my bride a rock garden locked a spring sealed up lot lot sealed up all great metaphors for inaccessibility praising her virginity as a garden would be private a spring would be private a rock garden would be private here he says thank you for that gift

Danny Aiken said I have never known a woman or a man for that matter who ever regretted saving sex for marriage

I have however known many who have regretted doing so what a gift verse 13 your shoots are an orchard of pomegranates with choice fruits henna and nard plants nard and saffron calamus and cinnamon with all the trees of frankincense myrrh and aloes along with the finest spices what is he doing here when a horticulturist make a garden like that and put all those things in that garden well not according to one scholar he said quote the description of the plants and trees and these two verses is a fantasy garden because no horticulturist would ever attempt to grow all these in one place the mention of saffron calamus cinnamon and aloes adds to the awareness of scent taste and color together they portray a veritable paradise of pleasures the spice of sexual delights all guys in wonderful figurative language that God deems appropriate for all verse 15 you are a garden spring a well of fresh water and streams flowing from Lebanon what do you notice about that verse different than verse 12 he is her she is his the garden is no longer locked the rock garden is no longer locked the spring is no longer sealed up she is a garden spring she is a well of fresh water and streams flowing from Lebanon she is fully accessible to him and now when you study thematically the center of the book and something week something we call chiastic structure it all tunnels down to these next two verses and these next two verses are the key to the book thematically the

Shulamite says awake Oh North wind that's what you call Solomon and come wind to the south make my garden breathe out fragrance let its spices be wafted abroad may my beloved come into his garden and eat its choice fruit

I wrote four words here I wrote proper poetic passionate and pleasing here is this unblushing poem and I wouldn't even have to describe to you what she is saying you know she is his now authorized by God himself in the one flesh union of Genesis chapter 2 and then in chapter 5 verse 1

Solomon says I have come into my garden my sister my bride

I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey

I have drunk my wine and my milk how many times do you see the word my in Song of Solomon chapter 5 verse 1

I count nine times may I read them with emphasis I have come into my garden my sister my bride

I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam I've eaten my honeycomb and my honey

I have drunk my wine and my milk a beautiful description of the consummation by a

Puritan 400 years ago said this may joyfully give cup talking about marriage couples may joyfully give due benevolence to one another as two musical instruments rightly fitted do make a most pleasant and sweet harmony in a well -tuned consort here we have the language of love and the language of consummation the beauty enrichment the satisfaction and then something interestingly at the end of verse 5 someone talks is that the daughters of Jerusalem how did they get there well it's a poem so they could they don't have to be there but instead of the daughters of the virgins of Jerusalem many commentators certainly theologically it's true would say that these are the words of God himself saying this is good and that would be my perspective it could be the daughters of Jerusalem it is certainly

God's perspective elsewhere in the Bible but here God says to these two on their honeymoon wedding bed night eat friends drink and imbibe deeply

Oh lovers isn't that amazing Glickman said two of his own have experienced love and all the beauty and fervor and purity that he intended for them in fact

God urges them on to more that is his attitude toward the giving of their love to each other and by the way that's also his attitude towards married couples today and quote now if I just have to stop for a second it got quiet in here all of a sudden it is very difficult to see this in scripture in one sense and you almost are tempted to say well this is an allegory or this is a type or see how what this represents and but you know the

Bible never talks about our relationship with God in some kind of erotic passionate way like this just never does here

God is confirming and affirming and endorsing what they're doing on their honeymoon you see the words drink and imbibe deeply

Oh lovers the first one means drink the second one means what the second one means drink fully to the point of hilarity or drunkenness

I wrote in my notes when God said this he did not stutter eat drink imbibe

Oh lovers here is his approval God has designed it who designed sex who came up with the idea who has put restrictions and hedges around it and then when it has been restricted and properly thought of then

God says enjoy that is amazing to me marriage is to be held in honor among all and the marriage bed the coitus is to be undefiled it is not dirty it is not bad it is not wrong

God endorses this and I could not believe it when I read this week a shocking illustration from the 19th century

I you'd like to think 19th century old is good we sang a song today from 1825

I thought old is good old isn't necessarily so good and you'll think it's good though when I read to you the shocking the book rather instruction and advice for the young bride on the conduct and procedure of the intimate and personal relationships of the marriage state for the greater spiritual sanctity of this blessed sacrament marriage and the glory of God boy it sounds good

I've won a bunch of those copies let's go it was written by the wife of reverend reverend

LD smithers in 1894 and her name was Ruth smithers she said many things and I'll just say these things here's her advice for the woman on her honeymoon married at this point dear reader let me concede one shocking truth some young women actually anticipate the wedding night ordeal with curiosity and pleasure beware such an attitude a selfish and sensual husband can easily take advantage of such a bride one cardinal rule of marriage should never be forgotten give little give seldom and above all give grudgingly she didn't stop there on the other hand the bride's terror need not be extreme while sex is the bet at best revolting and at worst rather painful it has to be endured and has been by women since the beginning of time and is compensated by for the monogamous home and by children produced through it it is useless in most cases for the bride to prevail upon the groom to forego the sexual initiation while the ideal husband would be one who would approach his bride only at her request and only for the purpose of beginning offspring such nobility and unselfishness cannot be expected from the average man feigned illness sleepiness and headaches are the wife's best friends in this manner how could

I make it up arguments nagging scolding and bickering also prove very effective if used late in the evening about one hour before the husband would normally commence his seduction clever wives are on the alert for new and better methods of denying and discouraging the amorous overtures of a husband

I read that for two reasons one was for effect but the other one it is absolutely antithetical to song of Solomon Proverbs 5

Genesis chapter 2 Ephesians chapter 5 and God himself saying I have created it and I give good gifts enjoy poor reverend smithers would you turn to Proverbs chapter 5 just for a moment in our time that we have left

I want to show you from one other place that God looks favorably upon sexual morality we are to abstain from sexual immorality that's

Proverbs 5 but we are to enjoy sex morality and these things in Proverbs are things to be taught dads to your sons please notice at the beginning of the

Proverbs when you go all the way back this is not some kind of you know we'll talk to you about this later as kids have questions there are appropriate answers for certain children in certain ages but if God intends something to be in the

Bible then I will teach my children the topic if my children were here they'd be in the front row listening chapter 2 of Proverbs my son chapter 3 of Proverbs my son chapter 4 of Proverbs Oh hear my sons chapter 5 of Proverbs my son he says you better watch out for the sexually immoral and then you better enjoy sexual morality because it is a gift from God God and the

Bible glorifies sexuality in marriage and I'm not gonna let the world rob me from that and let sin rob me from that when they all say here's how we've corrupted it therefore it's not good the same thing with wine for instance biblical wine is not to be condemned because people take wine and do horrible things it doesn't mean

God says wine is wrong you won't find that in the Bible you'll find drunkenness is wrong but it is something that is good and to be enjoyed and here we'll see several words that Solomon uses in the

Proverbs inspired by God to show us God looks favorably upon this of course getting back to teaching children

I remember the kids as I read through the Bible I just read it all to them and one child said to me Luke I think asked me he said dad is in front of all the kids what is a prostitute what is it what's the text at whore now

I don't have to give him all the details and certainly God gives us the details that are cloaked properly and I just said

Luke and Maddie and Gracie and Haley a prostitute or a whore is someone who for money will take off their clothes and get in bed with a man who's not her husband and then that man is allowed to do anything he wants to that woman and she allows that to be done for money my kids all went that is so bad and so parents as you talk to your children if you read the

Bible to them they will have questions and I'm not saying you know this is not Oh parents everybody who needs to have sexual education but when the questions come up can you tell them from God's perspective wisely and discerningly here's what

God should have you think about that we have this book in the Bible for a reason and look at what

Solomon was teaching his son Proverbs 5 15 the first word

I think of is exclusive verses 15 16 and 17 drink water you see some of the same imagery from Song of Solomon from your own cistern singular cistern relations only with your wife drink water from your own cistern as you drink water to quench your thirst so too with a marriage partner you slack your thirst in that desire your wife like water satisfies in other words cistern being valuable exclusive private property the wells were stupidly he says you shouldn't your springs be dispersed abroad he didn't stupidly say it but you do it if you did it you'd be stupid springs of water in the street you know how important valuable water is just gonna throw it around in the water let them be yours alone and not for strangers with you

God endorses marital fidelity all the way exclusive it goes farther than that though verse 18 not only exclusive but I have the word aesthetic let your fountain be blessed we saw some of that imagery in Song of Solomon as well and rejoice in the wife of your youth have a pleasant fulfilling marriage that kind of delight is from God God's gifts are plentiful and bountiful and then another word exhilarating verse 19 as a loving hind and a graceful doe do you see some of the same language from Song of Solomon let her breasts satisfy you at all times be exhilarated always with her love you know what that word means exhilarated ravished infatuated one commentator

Kyle Dalich that in the series said this is permissible love ecstasy like deliria delirious to be wholly captivated by so that one is no longer in his own power can no longer restrain himself the usual word for the intoxication of love and wine

Hallett the lexicon said to lose one's ability to walk straight or to stagger

BDB another Hebrew common lexicon said swerve meander reel our role in drunkenness be intoxicated with either a wine or so with love

God is not a spoil sport God is not a prude God is not saying you're married and then that's it he's saying quite the opposite and Solomon is teaching his son that first Corinthians chapter 7 it says because of immoralities let each man have his own wife and let each woman have her own husband and contrary reverend

Smyther's wife let her husband fulfill his duty to the wife and likewise also the wife to her husband present imperatives the wife does not have authority over own body but the husband does and likewise also the husband does not have an authority over his own body but the wife does stop depriving one another except for an agreement of a time so that you may devote yourself to prayer and come together again less

Satan tempt you because your lack of self -control have you recognized that it's the goodness of God for there to be marriages and you say well

I'm single well this book is still for you because you need to know about it you need to know how to pray for those people you need to know how to look for a husband you say well

I'm just a kid God wants you to know that his gifts are good and his gifts are pleasing and he's a good

God to be praised do you believe this James 1 every good and perfect gift is from above all right well let me just give you some homework here's the homework if you're me if you're married here's the homework would you just write out not poetry

I know we've got a bunch of guys who can never do the poetry thing so for just forget the poetry my challenge

I can't say this is a command because I don't have the authority of Scripture but my challenge is for you husbands and wives on your own to just write out the attributes the character of heart godliness physical looks both external internal how much you love them and why you love them and then relate that to how glad you are that God gave you that person that's what

I want you to do it's just like chapter 4 song of Solomon just to write out how wonderful that person is

I don't think we do that often enough I think here's what happens in the typical Christian marriage that might be set on the wedding night and now it's 20 years later and then it's now all ball and chain is what

I got I don't mean I got that isn't true

I'm speaking for someone else who can eat and who can have enjoyment without him with him we can eat and have enjoyment the goodness of God you are fooling yourself if you have not gotten down on your knees and said with your spouse or on your own

God thank you for my spouse thank you for my salvation thank you for this just the gift of intimacy and sexuality it is a gift from God and you are good give thanks to the

Lord for he is good why would song of Solomon be even in there so we don't talk about it so we don't deal with it or we can say

God extols human marriage relationships and people should eat and drink deeply of that you say well

I read my marriage has been wrecked by sin and shambles what do

I do we'll talk about that next time the goodness of God is that which disposes him to be kind cordial benevolent and full of goodwill toward men he is tender -hearted and of quick sympathy and his unfailing attitude towards all moral beings is open frank and friendly by his nature he is inclined to bestow blessedness and he takes holy pleasure in the happiness of his people aw tozer and may

I make an amendment in the marriage bed as well well let's pray father we come to you today

I come father sadly with nervousness wanting to make sure

I say things appropriately and father I pray for myself and these dear people that you'd help us to think biblically when we are taught

Lord that we are free in Christ and justified we know that that does not give us a license to sin and Lord so to in a different way but one that resembles it would you protect us as we have been taught these truths from your scripture give dad's wisdom and mom's wisdom as they talk or if they do talk to their children father help us as a church for husbands and wives to enjoy each other father may there be quick forgiveness and quick repentance may there be times of joy and admiration and love you would increase in the hearts of the spouses for each other here at the church may it be a time of the church to celebrate and enjoy your good gifts father made the singles here remain chased and pure for it is your will for them to be sexually pure father may you be praised for our sexual sins that have been committed in the past whether with our minds our bodies that you are a gracious God who has forgiven people and you've given us the robe of righteousness