Come Down, Lord!

  The following is taken from the first in a series of sermons on the Song of Solomon.   -- “Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth.” I want to begin by clearing up a misunderstanding that has ruined the Song of Solomon for many—a misunderstanding that has done great disservice to the Church and proved profoundly dishonouring to the One who is so gloriously pictured in this book. The Scriptures teach us that there is a greater than Solomon (Matthew 12:42), and it is this greater Solomon, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is represented by the person of Solomon in this song. Please do not mistake this for a mere love song between King Solomon and one of his many lovers. I am with Robert Hawker when he says, “I venture to believe that there is not a line in it which hath the smallest reference to Solomon king of Israel…” The timing of the book makes it impossible that this should be about him and Pharaoh’s daughter, as some have supposed (1 Kings 3:1), but the text itself...

  "The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me. Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." - Psalm 23 Remember that the Shepherd of whom this psalm speaks is Jesus. It was Jesus Himself who would later say, “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep” (John 10:11). So when we say, “The Lord is my shepherd,” we are talking about Him - the Lord of glory, Immanuel, God with us. One whom the book of Colossians says is “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn o...

When trials come one after the other, or when they are particularly severe, it is natural to ask questions. And if we believe in the sovereignty of God in these things, we should. Scripture does not discourage such questions; instead, it points us to God’s purposes. So why does God allow trials? 1. Sometimes it is for testing. We see this in the life of Abraham when God asked him to take his son and sacrifice him (Genesis 22:1–2). We see it again in the early history of Israel, after they had crossed the Jordan and entered the promised land. God said He left enemies among them to test and try them, to see what they would do (Judges 3:1–4). 2. Sometimes it is to draw His people out to prayer. We see this when Israel fought against Benjamin. They asked God whether they should go up, and He told them to go (Judges 20:18). They went — and were defeated (Judges 20:21). So they prayed and fasted, asked again, and once more God told them to go (Judges 20:26–28). This time they won (Judges ...

"And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart. He was transfigured before them, and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles—one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias (Matthew 17:1-4)." Peter had very recently confessed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. And just six days before this moment on the mountain, Jesus had begun to tell them that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders. That was when Peter began to rebuke Him - and Jesus responded by saying Peter was savouring the things of men, not of God. Peter had it all wrong. Jesus was going to die. In fact, He told them plainly: if anyone would be His disciple, he must t...

* The following is an edited excerpt from a sermon I preached several years ago. Like the older writers, I believe the Song of Solomon is allegorical. It is ultimately about the “ greater than Solomon,” who is Jesus. It gives us a picture of the relationship between the Groom -  our Saviour -  and the bride, which is His church.    What He - the beloved - says here to His bride He says to His people. One of my favourite sections is found in chapter two.  There the bride says,  “My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.   For lo the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth the time of the singing of the birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.” "Rise up and come away," He says.  Why?  Because the winter is past, the rain is over and gone, and now come the flowers and the singing of birds.  Everyone can relate to this. Some people despise the...