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S ONG OF S ONG – M IKE B ICKLE
SESSION 9: Divine Chastisement (3:1-5)
SONG 3:1-5
1. By night on my bed I sought the one I love; I sought him, but I did not find him.
2. "I will rise now," I said, "And go about the city; in the streets and in the squares I will seek
the one I love." I sought him, but I did not find him.
3. The watchmen who go about the city found me; I said, "Have you seen the one I love?"
4. Scarcely had I passed by them, when I found the one I love. I held him and would not let
him go, until I had brought him to the house of my mother, and into the chamber of her
who conceived me.
5. I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the does of the field, do not
stir up nor awaken love until it pleases.
I.
OVERVIEW OF SONG 3:1-5
A.
Jesus hides His face from the young Bride. In SONG 2:8-17, the Lord challenged
the Bride to come out of the comfort zone. He invited her to bridal partnership.
This was an answer to her original prayer, “Draw me after You and let us run.”
In SONG 1:5-2:17, He has been drawing her to Himself as an extravagant
worshipper. Now it is time for her to begin running with Him on the mountains.
She experienced the chastisement of a loving Father who pried her fingers off the
things that held her in bondage (Heb.12:5-12). His discipline was expressed by
removing His manifest presence from her. His presence returned when she rose
up in obedience to Him.
B.
The Father loves the young Bride too much to allow her to come up short of being
the glorious mature Bride of the Lord Jesus. He is not angry, He is jealous for
her. There is a vast difference. Jesus does not express any wrath but only tender
discipline so that she will share His values as a mature Bride. Jesus longs for
deeper partnership with us.
II.
WHEN THE LORD LEAVES – UNDERSTANDING THE TENSION
For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." (Heb. 13:5)
A.
Firstly, we understand that the Lord will never leave us in terms of our salvation.
Our salvation will never come to an end.
B.
Secondly, He will never allow a sin or a pressure so great that we can not bear it.
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S ONG OF S ONGS – M IKE B ICKLE
SESSION 9: Divine Chastisement (3:1-5)
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No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is
faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but
with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to
bear it. (1Cor.10:13)
1.
He will never leave us in terms of allowing us to bear a burden beyond our
strength. In what way does He leave us? Specifically, He leaves us in the
sense of our ability to discern His manifest presenc e. He never leaves us
in the full sense of our salvation.
2.
He orchestrates the easiest trial that effectively awakens our heart. We all
know stories about people with seemingly unbearable pressures. I
imagine the Lord saying, “I allowed the softest touch possible for the
response that I desire.” Jesus never allows the hardest trial. However, the
soft one is occasionally very difficult on the flesh, but it is designed to
awaken the deep places in our heart. Our confession is, “His banner over
me is love ” (2:4). The flag that defines the Lord's dealings in our life is
love.” In other words, they produce love and are never more severe than
is necessary. She eventually is assured that the hiding of His face in 3:1
was for her spiritual well being.
C.
The scripture sets forth God leaving us is in terms of our ability to discern his
manifest presence. We commonly refer to this dynamic when we say “I do not
feel the Lord like I used to”.
1.
In other words it is not that He actually withdraws but our ability to feel
His presence is affected.
2.
He strategically lifts the sense of his presence from our hearts to
communicate diverse things to us.
a. He humbles us causing us to be aware of our need for Him
b. He alerts us to problems
c. He awakens deeper hunger in us for himself.
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S ONG OF S ONGS – M IKE B ICKLE
SESSION 9: Divine Chastisement (3:1-5)
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III.
BEHOLDING THE LORD DIMLY IN THIS AGE.
For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I
shall know just as I also am known (1 Cor. 13:12).
A.
The apostle Paul's use of the metaphor of a mirror is one that requires
understanding of the ancient mirror. The ancient mirror was a piece of polished
metal that gave only a dim reflection. It was not like a modern mirror that gives a
clear reflection. In the age to come we see face to face. Then we will have
complete knowledge and deep revelation of God. The apostle Paul taught that in
this age, the age of faith, we look dimly as in a mirror. Currently, we only
possess a little revelation.
1.
The “dim beholding” of God in this age is a foundational principle that
causes some confusion to the people of God.
2.
It is not Biblical to teach that we can have continual “face to face”
knowledge of God now. I hear some exaggerate when they speak of the
presence of God as being so strong all the time.
B.
God has strategically ordained in this age that we walk by faith, not by feeling or
sight. Therefore, we only see God dimly.
1.
Feelings come occasionally as an encouragement but they do not come
often enough to live by them or to base our life on them.
2.
We live by confidence in God's word even when we do not feel His
presence. The pleasure of experiencing God comes for brief seasons and
then lifts again. Yet, those brief moments impact our emotional make-up
in a significant way. God releases feelings of His presence differently in
each individual life.
3.
Even the remembrance of our past pleasure in experiencing God keeps our
heart encouraged in some seasons. I have known times when God
strategically hid His face from me. I could not feel His Presence.
However, the remembrance of those former moments when God revealed
Himself to my spirit gave me courage and strength to press through the
dry seasons. Sometimes just the fragrance of His presence (the
remembrance of how sweet it was) lingers in our hearts.
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S ONG OF S ONGS – M IKE B ICKLE
SESSION 9: Divine Chastisement (3:1-5)
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4.
He is obviously never gone in the real sense when He withholds the
manifestation of His Presence. At such times, the devil tempts us saying,
“Why don’t you try drunkenness or immorality etc.” Then we remember
the sweet taste of those former moments of celebration in the banqueting
house when we could feel His nearness.
5.
The truth of God hiding His face is a vast subject. There are sophisticated
reasons in God’s mind for doing this. Walking by faith produces humility,
spiritual hunger and many dynamics that help us to overcome sin.
IV.
COMMON EXAGGERATIONS RELATED TO EXPERIENCING THE
PRESENCE OF GOD.
A.
Most of us have read books that relate exaggerated spiritual experiences. I
believe that many biographies exaggerate on the subject of communion with God.
Biographies are usually written by those who are enamored with their spiritual
hero. The nature of a biography is such that they do not purposefully lie, but
neither do they tell the whole truth. They usually do not tell many of the bad
things.
B.
In my early days with the Lord, I believed all that the biographers wrote. I
eagerly wanted to be like the person that I was reading about. These biographies
were good in that they gave me a spiritual vision for more of God. However,
some were harmful because they exaggerated, giving me unrealistic expectations.
False expectations and exaggeration can cause pain in our spiritual life.
1.
Young believers sometimes conclude that God doesn’t love them as much
as He loves others. They think of themselves as being wrong or unworthy
in a distinct way. The problem of exaggeration is that it leaves people
under the pain of feeling they are wrong in a way that nobody else is.
Such exaggerations are not helpful.
2.
The young believer expects experiences like the person in the biography,
but in truth the experience never actually occurred as it was described.
3.
The only biographies that are fully accurate are God’s biographies in the
Bible. He tells about the sin, murder, adultery, anger, and the backsliding
of His servants.
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S ONG OF S ONGS – M IKE B ICKLE
SESSION 9: Divine Chastisement (3:1-5)
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C.
One of the most common exaggerations concerns the subject of God's manifest
presence to our hearts. Some relate how God's presence rests on them night and
day without interruption. Some exaggerations teach that God's presence always
rests on a fervent believer and that it grows stronger and stronger all the time. We
imagine that some people experience face-to- face reality with God, with full
knowledge.
1.
I expected this as a new believer. But it did not happened that way in my
experience. So what did I conclude? That God did not love me. Several
years later, I concluded that the books that I was reading were
exaggerating and that God had loved me the entire time.
2.
Exaggeration condemns those who believe it. That is why it is so
important to expose them. When we exaggerate our spiritual experience
beyond what is actually happening, then it condemns others. You think,
“What is wrong with me God? You don’t love me.” No, you need to be
Biblical. Paul himself said that encountering God in a face-to-face way is
reserved for the age to come, not this age.
V.
DIVINE DISCIPLINE IS ROOTED IN DIVINE AFFECTION
A.
In times of divine discipline, God reveals His displeasure with a particular area of
our life. This is not the same thing as God's displeasure with us as a person. God
can be displeased with a certain behavior in our life without despising us.
1.
He disciplines us and yet has deep affection and enjoyment of us. Some
people mistake Divine correction for Divine rejection. The Lord’s
chastisement and correction are rooted in His affection.
2.
When someone corrects us we feel rejection. The Lord is so different.
His affection is strong even in seasons of discipline. Many of us do not
have a model for God's affectionate correction. His relational style is
difficult for some to connect with because it is so unfamiliar.
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