“His lovemaking is better than wine,” Song 1:2
Have you ever had a rich, spiritual conversation that increased Christ to you and left you glowing? The memory alone of which makes you feel like you could throw out wings and fly? This ‘kissing’ has a long, lasting effect that surpasses any wine glow I’ve ever experienced. There’s no greater joy than being in love. “For the joy set before Him, He endured the Cross.”
My friend and sister in Christ expressed something deep the other day. She said, “the desire for Him is so great that all I can do is cry.”
People cry for all sorts of reasons, but the tears of longing must be the most precious of all. Psalm 56:8 says the Lord bottles up our tears. According to the Hebrew definition in Strong’s, this is a “skin or leather bag” that can hold wine. Knowing the fierceness of Christ’s passion for us, the faster this flask is filled with these tears the more He must be driven to come back for us. Yes, He wants to sweep you into that place of intimacy, ”where every tear will be wiped away.”
What comes to mind is the desolate woman in Ezekiel 16. The Lord looks upon her and sees that her “time of love” had come. Lovingly He covers her nakedness with Himself and enters into a covenant with her. I’d like to stress the added word “lovingly” for a moment.
“The fulness of time” is dry doctrine without it also being, ”the time of love-making.” Coming together simply by the clock (law) without the build up and sharing of passion is reprehensible to us from a first creation standpoint. It happens all the time in what’s calling itself church, however. Without the Spirit, fellowship and intimacy is dangerous in the flesh, and impossible without bursting and destroying the wine skins. God is Love – not law, and not human agenda.
Last weekend I was struck with the revelation that we aren’t really listening to each others’ words. We are listening to hearts. The more we tune our hearts together in a submitted, listening manner, the faster the Lord will visit us in a powerful implantation of Life.
In the upper room, those who were “waiting” were filled with the Spirit and accused of being drunk with wine; both male and female were said to be “in one accord in prayer and supplication.” It was their time of love. Christ came and filled them. They were thirsting for Him.
“And the Spirit and the Bride say, Come. And let him that hears say, Come. And let him that is thirsty come.” ~ Rev. 22:17
The last words of Jesus in the bible is, “Behold I come quickly,” Revelation 22:20a. But I just discovered something interesting. The Bride actually has the last word in the bible. Following Jesus’ statement is a response of the Bride saying, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” Revelation 20:20b
Interestingly, “Come quickly, my Beloved” are the last words of a Bride in the Song of Songs too! :-)
I don’t have all the pieces to the puzzle, but am just struck with the connection between these two books, and between His coming for us and a corporate thirst for Him.
NEXT POST: Mingled Odors & Shared Anointing (Song 1:3)