Intimacy with GOD by Esher Shoshannah (e book reading free .txt) 📕

Husband, eternal King of my heart, I praise Your name for all the provisions of blessing and protection given to me by Your loving Father in the power of the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:3). Dear Jesus, how could I have hesitated in going with You? My entire welfare is in Your hand. You are in control! You have the power! You have the strength! You love me with all of Your heart. And so why have I been concerned about the shadows? Forgive me for having focused my eyes on the wilderness shadows instead of on the light of Your face. I will fear the night no more! Praise Your holy name Lord Jesus!"

 

V.9 "King Solomon made himself a chariot of the wood of Lebanon."

As you know "Solomon" means "peaceable". Jesus is our King Peaceable! When He is truly King of our desires then all fear must flee before Him! O this is what our resting bride needs in order to go with Him when He calls. Seeing Him in total control gives us absolute spiritual confidence to step out in faith with Him. It will happen in chapter seven.

The word "chariot" is not the usual Hebrew word. This Hebrew word is only found here in the Song of Solomon and it is a covered couch (palanquin) carried by two poles on the shoulders of two or more men. We see King Jesus resting as He is being carried. There is no battle scene here. The real battle was won at Calvary. All we need to do is appropriate it by faith. The wilderness may bring fear with its real dangers lurking about but our Bridegroom is resting on His couch. He is not worried! He is not concerned! He is the victor!

Take a careful look again at this vision. The King is being carried. In the surrendered life we carry our victorious King wherever He is leading us. We must take Him in all our circumstances. His character is to flow out of us to those in our lives.

"Lebanon" means "white" or "pure". Dear bride, why are you so fearful? Your Bridegroom's plans, purposes and power are pure. Praise God, His will is pure and He is riding in the center of it. This vision shows His will at the center of the entourage walking with Him. Is the desire to do His will at the center of all of your activities dear reader? He is the power behind His will. Nothing to fear! Cedars of Lebanon were evergreen, tall, stately, the best! There is no one greater than our Beloved King. No evil, no enemy, no hurt or pain can conquer Him. He has already won!

The Holy Spirit declares, "King Solomon made himself a chariot (covered couch)". He designed it. He will inhabit it. He will receive all the glory. Are you not designed by the Lord for His habitation (I Cor. 3:16; Eph. 2:21,22)? Praise His holy name - He will receive all the glory! This couch, carried in the wilderness, is a place of exaltation, authority and rest. Your heart is His "couch" today. For the Lord to be exalted, have authority and rest on the throne of your heart, He had to make a new one for you (Ezek. 36:26,27). Isn't He wonderful?

My friend, carry Him all through your life in the exalted position He rightly deserves. Let all see Who really is the Love and Lord of your life! It will be accomplished in all humility. This principle is taught in Philippians 2:3. "Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than themselves." Then the Holy Spirit gives us the ultimate illustration of humility.

In Phil. 2:5-8 He explains to us how our God, the Lord Jesus Christ, gave up all His power and became a humble servant. How did Jesus, the Son of Man, exalt God the Father? By humbling Himself. Do you yearn to exalt Jesus? What will be the spiritual result? Jesus was exalted by the Father (Phil. 2:9-11) so also you will be exalted in the way it was meant for you. I Peter 5:6 says so!

 

V.10 "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 (by) the daughters of Yerushalayim."

It was stated in 1:11 that "silver" represented atonement or redemption. "Gold" represented the character, glory and person of God, as well as His infinite value, purity, truth and honor. What a vision! What a dream! We are to never, never forget His person. You can hear Jesus, the Bridegroom saying to her, "Dear bride there is no reason for you to ever fear again. Remember, My will is sealed in My blood! I redeemed you so that the Holy Spirit could fulfill My glorious purposes in you. My character is the guarantee that all will turn out right if you completely humble yourself in surrender to Me. I am your God, your Redeemer in truth and purity."

 

"...the covering of it of purple..."

The couch was covered in purple, the most costly of all the colors. It took over 200,000 mollusk shellfish to make an ounce of purple dye! It was used by royalty (Judges 8:26) and by those who were rich (Prov. 31:22; Luke 16:19). In this vision she sees her Beloved as the King of her life. She sees Him as possessing all that she will ever need. He is rich in glory, mercy and grace (Eph. 1:7,18; 2:4,7; 3:8). His riches are unsearchable! They are unfathomable! They are yours! They are mine! Do you see Him as all you need (Phil. 4:19)? O to be covered spiritually by the purple: His royalty, His authority and His complete protection!

The order here is very interesting: silver, gold and then the purple. We first must be redeemed and never forget the cost with which our soul was purchased. He then must be worshiped as our God in all His power. Finally, He must be given the right to rule us without question (Rom. 14:9). Jesus died not just to be your Savior but to be your Lord! He died and rose again that He might be King of your life. Have you willingly given Him the rights to everything in your life? If not, do it now! 

"Royal robes do now invest Thee, Royal splendors crown Thy brow;

Christ of God, our souls confess Thee - King and Sovereign even now!

Thee we reverence, Thee obey - Own Thee Lord and Christ alway.

 

Anointed King, with glory crowned, Rightful heir and Lord of all!

Once rejected, scorned, disowned, E'en by those Thou cam'st to call:

Thee we honor, Thee adore, Glorious now and evermore."  R. Holden

 

"...the midst thereof paved (fitted, inlaid) with love..."

Remember her sin, she would not go with Him to be with other lilies. She wanted Him all to herself on her own terms. She had forgotten there were many others who were in love with this great King. The Holy Spirit rivets her attention on those who are involved in demonstrating their love for Him by gracious loving acts. They themselves had part in building the traveling couch. The King had the plans and the materials. Now He asks His people to be part of what He is building. They lovingly placed prepared materials on it. Is this not true concerning those who are filled with love for Him ? (Read carefully II Pet. 1:3-11).

Imagine what it must have been like for these ladies as they sewed the various fabrics into this traveling couch of their King. In working together through a loving unity of purpose, they were brought close to the King Himself. Not many in His Kingdom ever got this close to Him. Up close, while working, they heard His wisdom and intimate thoughts for only His own. They so enjoyed watching Him. He was so special! He was God's anointed. "I can't believe I am so close to Him!" each thought. There were moments that He would have a special word (rhema) for each individual worker. They would then share these revelations with each other as they fitted out the couch with their love!

Do you understand dear reader just how important it is to be unified in love for Him with other lilies? Something wonderful happens each time you are together. "...Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." (I Cor. 2:9). Read I Cor. 10:16,17. The more you walk in humility with other lilies, the more you obey the Lord, the more the Spirit will cause springs of living love to flow to Him and from Him.

 Love must permeate everything - our faith and all our activities (Gal. 5:6; I Cor. 13). We are God's glorious building that is still growing. What do we have to do with this temple, this building of which we are a part? We supply love to the joint next to us (Eph. 4:16). We become rooted and grounded in His love (Eph. 3:17); we speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15); we walk in love as He did (Eph. 5:2)! The result? By His Holy Spirit we cause this glorious building to grow in love (Eph. 4:16). Do you "pave" everything around you with love, especially your relationships with the other lilies in the church fellowship, at home and at work?

If the study of God's word, the listening to anointed tapes and Christian radio and television, the reading of Godly books, going to conferences and seminars do not cause you to love God more and love God's family more then all of the above was wasted time and in vain. Jesus declared it in Matt. 22:37-40, "...Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."

With the addition of the New Testament books we could put it this way, "On these two commandments rest the whole purpose for the study of Genesis through Revelation." Our purpose is not to just get wonderful Bible knowledge but through our Bible study we are to "...grow in the grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ...." (II Pet. 3:18)." Since He is the embodiment of love then that is exactly what we will grow in and experience.

All of the above (vs. 9-10) belonging to our Beloved has been given to us, the bride and love of His heart: His stability - "pillars" (Eph. 6:10), His redemption - "silver" (Gal. 3:13), His glory - "gold" (John 17:22), His authority to rule - "purple" (Rev. 5:10), His heart - "love" (Rom. 5:5). What a perfect, complete Husband we have! What an infinitely blessed bride we are! Hallelujah! It is one thing to know that we possess His possessions (Eph. 1:3). It is quite another thing to be spiritually possessed by Him - Holy Spirit filled and empowered. What a gift from the Lord! Her surrendered heart is maturing.

 

PRAY WITH ME: "Dear Abba Father, may the dear Holy Spirit cause me to keep my eyes on my Beloved as He is carried in triumph and love through this wilderness in which I must live. May I long to obey, love to obey, live to obey Him alone!"

 

V.11 "Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold King Solomon with the crown wherewith his mother crowned him in the day of his espousals (wedding), and in the day of the gladness of his heart."

 

"Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion..."

We must "go forth" in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake