HIS HEART SONG…Part 6

“What Is This I See?”

(chapter 3:6-11)

  • Last time we met, we left the fair maiden sleeping once again….she had gone through the “horribleness” (probably not a real word, but I like it!) of losing the one she said “her soul loves”…she had lost Him because she would not walk in OBEDIENCE to Him…then she sought Him and found Him…now she has entered into a deep rest in Him…
  • A LITTLE REVIEW: At the very beginning of her journey…she realized how “dark” she was…how “sinful”…but yet lovely at the same time through the eyes of her Beloved. She asked Him “Where will You feed Me?”…He told her to stay connected to other “lilies” to other believers and to take care to guard the little ones that He sent to her path…He poured out loving words over her and even brought her to His banqueting table…He poured out all kind of revelation to her…as she spent time with Him, her fragrance, her worship, filled the room and ascended to God…He reminded her to have “dove eyes”…singleness of vision…as she is overwhelmed by this incredibleness of her Beloved…she rests in Him and His security
  • In this part of her journey…us included…it’s not so much about what we give to Him…because we haven’t’ quite got the obedience part down yet….but its more what we RECEIVE from Him
  • After her rest…she is confronted with FEAR….Her Beloved has asked her to come out of her comfort zone and to go with Him…He has already conquered everything that could possibly come at her…but does she trust Him?....She asks Him to “turn” and He does…and He withdraws His presence from her for a time…she realizes that she is utterly miserable without Him…she looks everywhere for Him, when she finally finds Him, she vows to never let Him go again…He reveals Himself more to her and she enters into another deep rest…
  • During this deep rest…she is MEDITATING on His Words..it is a time of REFRESHMENT and ENCOURAGEMENT for her…..It’s the same for us…when we spend time meditating on His Word (the Bible)…the Holy Spirit begins to REVEAL to us the RHEMA Word of God….it becomes ALIVE in our lives…and there is GROWTH!!!!!!
  • Check out what SMALL STRAWS just happened to say on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving…

THE TRUMPET by Bill Burns -- 11/22/2010:
Youmust enter into the rest of God and that, My children, would mean that you have presented to Me those thingswhich trouble you to such an extent of love and faith that you are able, indeed, to enter in. For, it is in this rest that you shall be perfected, encouraged andrenewed before My throne and in My presence.You will find that your hope now becomes faithwhich brings forth the manifestation of My kingdom in your life -- faiththat receives the promise and compels you to walk in the glory of My kingdom. So enter this rest today for it has been given to you for such a time as this that you might be renewed, healed and perfected in My ways and by the power of My spirit. Remember this, I am for you and not against you. This is the time of the release of My glory upon the earth. And, this release will come forth from you first. For you have been in a place of transformation and changed from glory to glory by the presence of My Spirit. Rise up with new hope. Rise upwith courage to believe that I have not only called you but that I will use you to bring forth the manifestation of My kingdom, says the Lord your God.

  • THIS is exactly what happens to the bride…….our little bride is moving FORWARD! WOO! WOO! It’s about time!
  • The spiritual eyes of the bride are being opened…she is realizing that she has nothing to fear…He is the CONQUEROR! He is her VICTORY!!!!

Song of Solomon 3:6 ”Who is this coming up from the wilderness (desert) like a cloud of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and incense made from all the spices of the merchant?”

  • THE WILDERNESS: it’s a symbol for “the world”…we come up out of the wilderness when we are delivered from the love of its sinful pleasures….when we refuse to comply with its customs and its ways….
  • The Bible warns us about staying in this wilderness….according to Exodus 14:3 the wilderness is a place of WANDERING and CONFUSION….Deuteronomy 1:19 calls it a VAST AND DREADFUL DESERT…Deuteronomy 32:10 calls it a BARREN and HOWLING WASTE…Isaiah 50:2 says it’s a place where you can ROT and LACK FOR THIRST…Ezekiel 6:14 says that it is place of DESOLATION
  • Why in the world would we even TRY to get comfortable here in the WILDERNESS…in the WORLD…we are just travelling through here…we are “…strangers, we are aliens, we are not of this world.”…that is a verse from a super old song of Stryper (A Christian band form the early 80’s! HA!)
  • Hebrews 11:13 the people of faith that are talked about in the Great Chapter of Faith all “…admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.”
  • A lot of times Christians seem to settle down here in the wilderness….they become desensitized to the little schemes of the enemy to keep us there…..but this whole entire Song is written to us so that we realize that we are NOT supposed to stay in the wilderness,….we are supposed to COME UP!!!
  • We are not meant to live ‘status quo’ lives….no stagnation here….remember our bride in the previous chapter just wanted to hang out behind the lattice…to STAGNATE…
  • Our aim is to get to Song of Solomon 8:5 where we are coming “UP from the wilderness, leaning on our beloved”
  • The DAUGHTERS OF JERUSALEM are the ones asking this question…remember how freaked out they were because she was “black” in the first part of this book???....now they are in freak out mode because of how intensely incredible she is looking….They totally did not expect to see something like this coming up out of the wilderness! SHE IS FANTABULOUS LOOKING!!!
  • They are ASTONISHED!!!!
  • This mirrors the children of Israel when they came out of the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness….they came out of it…to take the land of PROMISE!
  • Every time the WILDERNESS is mentioned in the Bible it is always in the south and close to Egypt…and Canaan…the land of Promise, is in the North…so when it says she is coming UP…she is leaving EGYPT…
  • HANG WITH ME ON THIS: What the daughters of Jerusalem are seeing ….Is this also what Balaam said of the children of Israel when they came out of the wilderness????…remember Balak had sent Balaam to curse the Israelites…but this is what Balaam said and saw…
  • Numbers 23:8-10 “How can I curse those whom God has not cursed? How can I denounce those whom the Lord has not denounced? From the rocky peaks I view them, from the heights I view them. I see a people who LIVE APART and do not consider themselves one of the nations. Who can count the dust of Jacob or number the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my end be like theirs!”…..
  • Then he says….
  • Numbers 23:21-24 “No misfortune is seen in Jacob, no misery observed in Israel. The Lord their God is with them; the shout of the King is among them. God brought them out of Egypt; they have the strength of a wild ox. There is no sorcery against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and of Israel, ‘See what God has done!” The people rise like a lioness; they rouse themselves like a lion that does not rest till he devours his prey and drinks the blood of his victim.”
  • Then again…the third time…
  • Numbers 24:3-9 “…the oracle of Balaam son of Beor, the oracle of one whose eyes sees clearly, the oracle of one who hears the words of God, who sees a vision from the Almighty, who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened: How beautiful are your tents, O Jacob, your dwelling places, O Israel! Like valleys they spread out, like gardens beside a river, like aloes planted by the Lord, like cedars beside the waters. Water will flow from their buckets; their seed will have abundant water. Their king will be greater than Agag; their kingdom will be exalted. God brought them out of Egypt; they have the strength of a wild ox. They devour hostile nations and break their bones in pieces; with their arrows they pierce them. Like a lion they crouch and lie down, like a lioness—who dares to rouse them? May those who bless you be blessed and those who curse you be cursed!”
  • COULD THIS BE WHAT THE DAUGHTERS OF JERUSALEM AND BALAAM ARE BOTH SEEING…..the CHURCH, the BRIDE…coming forth in the power of Christ!!!!????
  • The cool thing is…she “COMES UP”…where she was dry and hopeless before…now she is coming up…coming out of her hopelessness
  • SHE COMES UP LIKE PILLARS OF SMOKE….that communion between her and her Bridegroom is going straight up to heaven…..
  • Smoke is normally easily dispersed…but this is a PILLAR of smoke….thick and unshakable….a pillar is a SURE THING…mentioned in Revelation 3:20 “Hold on to what you have so that no one will take your crown. Him who overcomes I will make a PILLAR in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it”
  • FYI….when there is SMOKE…it is because a SOLID object is being burned up…the bride is no longer solid and self-contained…her selfishness and stubbornness is breaking down….and breaking down BIG TIME!
  • This pillar of smoke are FRAGRANT…sweet worship going up to Him!
  • Just like the cloud of incense going up from the Altar or the smoke of the BURNT OFFERINGS that we studied about in the Tabernacle…remember that burnt offerings are like a SWEET SAVOR to God because they are not REQUIRED…they are something we offer because we WANT TO!!!
  • She is making progress!!!! YAY BRIDE!!!
  • PERFUMED WITH MYRRH AND FRANKINCENSE and all the spices of the merchant…she is being replenished with all the graces of the Spirit …remember what happens to her as she hangs out with Him????....her perfume goes forth…she has a sweet smell about her as she fellowships with Him…(back in 1:12…
  • Remember when we talked about 2 Corinthians 2:14-15 that we are the AROMA of Christ.
  • But we can’t give out a fragrance or a perfume until we first ABSORB it…THEN we can spread it!
  • MYRRH again symbolizes suffering love….notice that this is the first thing mentioned….she is now remembering the suffering He went through for her…had she removed that sachet from between her breasts?....is that why she didn’t want to deal with the “little foxes”???....Had she forgotten the suffering of her Beloved?.....maybe if she had remembered this earlier, she wouldn’t have gotten so side-tracked?????
  • Maybe if we remembered His suffering…we would also have different PRIORITIES….we would definitely make decisions better …IF we constantly remembered the suffering He went through for us!
  • FRANKINCENSE is a very expensive white resin that is burned as fragrant incense and is also sued in the making of the holy incense used in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple in Jerusalem… to get this resin, the bark of the Boswellia tree has to be cut into….
  • It is very significant that she mentions this type of incense…..When she had refused to go with Him earlier…she caused her heart to be IMPURE…when you REFUSE to OBEY God…you are no longer pure in your love toward Him…notice that the word FRANKINCENSE means “TO BE WHITE”….her time with Him in rest and COMMUNION has caused her soul to be PURIFIED once again…to be CLEANSED
  • She had spent time with HIS WORD…How do I know this?????...Because He IS THE WORD!
  • Psalm 119:140 “Your WORD is very PURE, therefore your servant loves it.”
  • John 15:3-4a “You are already CLEAN because of the WORD I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you.”
  • THIS IS SUPER COOL: The ORDER that these incenses are mentioned are important too….first comes the MYRRH…first, we have to receive His DEATH….then we can receive the PURITY of HIS resurrected Life…………..but if you look in Matthew 2 when the magi came to visit Jesus…the Bible lists the gifts as gold, frankincense, and then myrrh…….GOLD (Kingdom glory) then FRANKINCENSE (life and purity), then MYRRH (His suffering and death)
  • WE have to DIE so that we can LIVE…..HE had to LIVE so that He could DIE for us!
  • ANOTHER IMPORTANT THING TO KNOW: INCENSE in the Bible is a type of prayer found in Revelation 8:3-5 "...another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne; and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God. Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth; and there were peals of thunder, voices, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake."
  • The church…the Bride…WE are powerful when we have been fellowshipping and having communion with Him
  • Remember how this verse starts out….WHO IS THIS??????...... they are dumb-founded…totally wowed….because NOTHING is more incredible and nothing smells as fantastic as when a BELIEVER really walks in obedience to God…it is VERY EVIDENT to others when we are walking with God…
  • It is also very evident to others when we speak one thing…and yet do another, totally opposite…
  • The verse says that she is perfumed with the spices of the MERCHANT…that means they are from afar, not from our land…they are dear…they are bought with a price….it took effort and work to grind up the different substances to make fine powders of them….the MERCHANT….our Savior…bought those for us with His own BLOOD…He travelled afar…from His heavenly throne to earth…
  • Even from onlookers….the Bride is noticed and admired…that’s what spending time with Him does…it utterly and completely changes us….it has to be a DAILY thing…because when it is…it is a CONSTANT REFRESHING THING for us…and that just pours out onto others!

Song of Solomon 3:7-8 “Behold his bed, which is Solomon’s; threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel. They all hold swords, being expert in war; every man has his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night.””

  • This verse is started off with the word BEHOLD…..
  • BEHOLD means “to gaze upon, to observe, to look at, to see”
  • STOP…..and LOOK on your Savior!...gaze upon the beauty of the Lord!
  • pal.an·quin also pal·an·keen …the BED… A covered litter carried on poles on the shoulders of four or more bearers, formerly used in eastern Asia.
  • Isn’t it super cool….how the QUESTION in verse 6 had to do with the bride/maiden…..but the ANSWER has to do with Solomon…the KING!!!
  • The BED….with Solomon lying on it symbolizes PERFECT REST…He has everything under His control
  • THE 60 MIGHTY MEN….are soldiers…they are all armed and all ready…these mighty men are EXPERIENCED….
  • THINK OF IT THIS WAY: Jesus, the Captain of the Armies of the Lord…surrounded by men and women of FAITH in every generation, serving at His side….some of these valiant ones are angels…sent to do warfare on our behalf WHEN we USE the WORD OF GOD!....they are all EXPERIENCED veterans of SPIRITUAL WARFARE!
  • These verses are simply telling us that we can REST in HIM because He has conquered the darkness…
  • 60….6…the number of man….and 10, the number of responsibility……her king has those in His service who are led by the Holy Spirit…these men can SKILLFULLY use the SWORD….and what is the SWORD….the WORD OF GOD!
  • Notice also that the verse says the “men are about it”…..that means they are close to it…close enough to hear His instructions on HOW and WHEN to use their SWORDs
  • How close are YOU to Him?....close enough to hear Him?...close enough to listen to His instructions?
  • These valiant men are also HOLDING their swords….their swords aren’t laying around in a drawer…or in the bottom of their car (if they had a car! LOL)…..they don’t pick up their swords only once a week when they are heading out to church…..we are supposed to be ready at a moment’s notice!
  • Psalm 119:11 “Thy Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee.”
  • These men are EXPERTS IN WAR…..when are we ever going to be EXPERTS in the Word of God???????.....do we really spend time in His Word, studying it, applying it to our lives?
  • 2 Timothy 2:15 “STUDY to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
  • Hebrews 5:14 “But strong meat belongs to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”
  • WE HAVE TO USE the Word of God and APPLY IT!
  • EVERY MAN HAS HIS SWORD UPON HIS THIGH…the “thigh” stands for STRENGTH and the ABILITY TO STAND…..remember a long time ago when we talked about covenants…and the people would put their hand on the other’s thigh
  • These valiant men did all this to be ready FOR FEAR IN THE NIGHT…remember how terrified she had become when she realized earlier that the presence of her Beloved had left her and she was alone in the night?...... she is NOW realizing that HIS WORD is the SWORD that protects her in the night hours…she also knows that her Beloved has mighty valiant men ready to fight for her!
  • Psalm 119:105 “Your WORD is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.”
  • Psalm 34:7 “The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.”
  • Hebrews 1:14 “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?”
  • Psalm 103:20 “Praise the LORD, all his angels, you mighty beings who carry out his orders and are ready to obey his spoken orders”
  • DO YOU SEE THIS!!!!!????....The mightiest friends fighting FOR us are INVISIBLE! Elisha prayed that the eyes of his servant might be opened…and they were…and surrounding him all over the hills were filled with chariots of fire and horses of fire!....If our spiritual eyes were opened…we’d see the same thing!
  • THERE IS NO FEAR HERE! Our Beloved’s Kingdom is one of PEACE! WOO! WOO!
  • These valiant men who surround us are here to STRENGTHEN us against our FEARS and our DOUBTS….we can REST ASSURED!
  • These VALIANT MEN are those able to use the WORD OF GOD (sword) against the evils of this age…..even though the Word says we are seated with Christ in the heavenly places…we are still subject to ATTACK from the outside and so, because of that, we need to be protected……maybe this is even speaking of the IMPORTANCE of being a part of a church or small group Bible Study where other believers know us and pray for us.?????
  • Ephesians 6:12,18 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms… And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”
  • Isaiah 62:6 “I have posted watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD, give yourselves no rest…”
  • In this procession we have Solomon and the Shulamite woman TOGETHER…in PERFECT REST!!!
  • Matthew 11:28-29 “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly I heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”
  • Psalm 121:5-8 “The Lord is your keeper; The Lord is your shade at your right hand.The sun shall not strike you by day, Nor the moon by night.The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore”

Song of Solomon 3:9-10 “King Solomon made himself a chariot of the wood of Lebanon. He made the pillars thereof of SILVER, the bottom thereof of GOLD, the covering of it of PURPLE, the midst thereof being paved with LOVE, for the daughters of Jerusalem.”