The Garden of the Lord — Erlo Stegen

We read from the Song of Songs, and we read from verse 1. Chapter 5. Verse 1, I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride. I am coming to my garden, my sister, my spouse. Jesus says this to his bride, to Christians around the world.

The Christian Heart as Christ’s Garden

Where he says, I've come into my garden, my sister, my spouse. He says that to the whole Christian community. My heart, your heart is his garden, and that means for every single one who has been washed in the blood of Jesus.

The heart of a Christian is the garden of Christ. He bought that heart with his own precious blood, not with silver or gold, but his blood. And he announces, I have come into it. This is my garden. Your life is his garden.

Redemption Through the Precious Blood of Christ

It is with his own precious blood, not the blood of mankind, because Joseph wasn't his real father. Not with human blood, just with the human body, which he received from Mary. Because a baby doesn't get its blood from the mother, but from the father.

Our body is that which comes from the mother. Recently, I said to men, when your child is naughty, you pass the buck. You say to the mother, this is your child. It is like you. No, God says he visits the iniquities of the fathers upon the children.

His blood being divine and not human, as you know, when he was born, the Holy Spirit came down, you could say like a cloud, upon Mary. He was conceived in Mary. The blood comes from heaven. I say it reverently, the blood of God.

That is why we conquer through the blood. With his precious blood, he has redeemed us, not with silver or gold, but with his amazing blood. And this garden that he speaks of, he bought with his own blood to be his possession.

The Spiritual Garden and Its Flowers

We take this symbolically. We take it in a spiritual sense when it speaks of the garden. Now, in a garden you find beautiful flowers of the Holy Spirit. With wonderful fragrance and different types of flowers.

Now, this isn't something that is just open to anybody. Instead, this garden is protected so that no wild animals can enter therein. Years ago, when we travelled with the choir in Europe to different countries, we arrived in Bern, the capital of Switzerland.

And then some people came and said, we want to take you into our garden. And I think I've never seen a garden such as that one, all sorts of beautiful blossoms, wonderful fragrances. And the sun would go down today with me telling you the list of the various flowers.

Of so many different colours, far more than all the different types of people in the world, from the West and from the East, are as different to each other. I remember something once said by Archbishop Tutu.

When he illustrated that when God made humankind, he put the first batch of clay in and out it came two white. After which he said, no, I mustn't take it out so quickly. Let me leave it in for longer.

But he left it in for too long and out it came dark. And then he thought, let me try and reach a reasonable middle. So he put the clay in again and halfway between the two, he took it out and out came a person from the East.

He came and said, oh, how beautiful. And he said, that's why people of the East have such eyes. That's what the Archbishop said, not me. We are all created by God, of course, not literally put into an oven.

Our hair, our skin of all wonderful different types, even though we are of exactly the same blood. We are all as God. Now, if gardens made by human beings can be so beautiful, how much more so the garden made by Jesus Christ himself?

They didn't burn. They put down chairs and benches, various benches. That people can just sit and relax and admire the beauty, the blossoming flowers. It is said of King Solomon that he even wasn't in such beautiful clothing as God made.

Reflecting the Beauty of Christ

Now, you and me, we are his garden. He has made us and the whole Church of Christ everywhere, even though mankind can make such beautiful gardens. And the lives we live should be far more beautiful than human-made gardens.

Of all different communities, of all different gatherings, nothing is as beautiful as the garden made by Jesus. And so we should reflect that beauty, his beauty in his garden, so that it far exceeds the beautiful gardens of this world which might be forgotten but his not.

The garden made by Jesus Christ is far more beautiful than human-made gardens. Even more excellent, even cooler. Some ladies are gifted with green fingers. They can make beautiful gardens, but nothing should excel the garden which Jesus has made.

It is far more excellent that which he has bought. If we take the first church right at the beginning, how beautiful it was, shining in the beauty of holiness, and then compare ourselves, do we reflect that as well?

The Unity and Generosity of the Early Church

It is said that that congregation was completely one in heart, in soul, one. Though they were thousands, but they were completely one in heart, in soul, and in word, how beautiful they were. One soul.

Though Jews, they were from different nations, of different cultures, even languages, and when Christ brought them together they were of one word. They were completely one, even you could say that in the soul, the senses, the mind, the tongue, and the feelings, everything completely one.

Can you exceed such beauty? Though of different languages, they met every day. Not one said, with this property, this is mine. Instead, they shared everything together. That's like heaven on earth. However, sometimes Satan puts his dirty foot into something that is lovely.

Ahab, Jezebel, and the Corruption of Naboth’s Vineyard

A long time ago, in the Old Testament, we read of a wicked king Ahab with his wicked wife Jezebel. One day, while Ahab was on the way to Jerusalem, he noticed a garden, a beautiful garden, in fact a vineyard, which belonged to Naboth.

He went to Naboth and said, give me your vineyard. I want to plant vegetables there. Different types, spinach. I want to plant different things there of not much value. Naboth replied, oh king, may God defend me, but I cannot sell my garden.

This is my inheritance and I cannot hand it over or sell it. Ahab was deeply disappointed. He went home, laid down on his bed, looked at the wall. Until Jezebel came, his wife, said, oh king, what is troubling you?

I am deeply troubled because I saw Naboth's garden and I wanted to plant vegetables there, but Naboth refused to sell his garden. He went home, laid down on his bed, looked at the wall, and said, oh king, what is troubling you?

I am deeply troubled because I saw Naboth's garden and I wanted to plant vegetables there, but Naboth refused to sell his garden. Jezebel said, oh king, what is troubling you? I am deeply troubled because I saw Naboth's garden and I wanted to plant vegetables there, but Naboth refused to sell his garden.

Jezebel said, oh king, do not worry, I'm going to sort the matter out. You see how important it is? Wives can lead their husbands into evil like Eve did or like Mary take their husbands into salvation.

She said, don't worry, oh king, I'm going to work it out, I'll kill him. She got a group together, with false witnesses just as it was at the trial of our Lord Jesus, with false witnesses till he was crucified.

Then she said, well, you must say, Naboth has blasphemed God and the king. Therefore, only execution remains. Lying she did. And so they came and he was killed. He was stoned to death. And he got the vineyard that he so desired.

He got the garden. Now Satan also wants to grab hold of the garden. He wants to spoil the garden of our Lord Jesus Christ. But God sent his prophet Elijah to him, who said, oh king, the wrath of God will come upon you, you, and your wife, and your whole household.

So all your generations will die because of this deed which you have done. For let's not forget everything we say, speak, think, God sees it. Nothing is hidden that shall not be revealed. Like my children who hid this day.

But after time went by, it was exposed. Nothing hidden that shall not be revealed. For Jesus said in Luke chapter 12, that what you have whispered will be shouted from the housetops. My friends, what I say today, beautiful garden, bringing joy to our Redeemer, the one who died for us on the cross.

Removing Thorns, Weeds, and Hatred

Let no thorns and weeds be found in our lives. Stubbornness, grudges, hatred, let's not take it lightly for God himself has said in his word that the one who says that he loves God, but he hates his brother is a liar.

Our gardens full of drugs, alcohol, immorality, then no longer are they the different beautiful colors, but Satan has tried to grab that garden which he has no right over to plant his seeds, his weeds and thorns.

I say today, on this my birthday, actually it's tomorrow, because I said to my children, but I wasn't born on the first, I was born on the second. But they did as was done for the Queen's birthday in England, where they chose a different day.

Repentance and the Church’s Witness

Let Jesus find you listening today, that beautiful garden, seeing all the different colors, that fragrance, that he might find it beautiful and everything in it shows beauty and not grudges and bickering against different church denominations.

Jesus says here, I have come to my garden, my sister saying it to his spouse. And if you read in revelations where Jesus speaks to the seven churches, he praises them for this and that and that. But he continues to say, however, this does not please me.

This you must repent of. Should you not repent, I will remove your candlestick. My friends, I close. You've heard that we are the garden of Christ. May it be understood that all the world might see and know there is no garden like this one.

Let not Satan come and rob and take away and spoil things, but rather that the church of Christ, his garden, would glisten with his glory to the whole world. His garden unsurpassed by any other garden that the Lord Jesus would come and it would bring joy to him that he says, I died for this.

Prayer to Radiate God’s Glory

Shall we bow our heads and pray? Lord Jesus, we've heard that we are your garden. You haven't bought us with silver or gold, but with your own precious blood to be your garden. That your beauty would be evident and radiate from us so that everyone would see and be able to say, I've never seen anything like it.

The glory, the beauty of these people. They're all religions in this world. We're the Muslims. That all would look and admit that there's no garden like this. That your people, O Lord, would be those who radiate your glory, those who bring life.

Amen.