I wonder if the last post about the Woman’s determination to be kissed whet the appetite for more? Because at the deeper level of what’s going to happen, it all “starts with a kiss”… as the saying goes. Like a first sip of wine whose effect goes straight to the brain, a single kiss can light a new, unquenchable appetite for the Bride to not be satisfied with anything except the “full cup.”
So how perfect that the Song begins with kissing!
Kissing, from the standpoint of foreplay to sex, is a rich metaphor to explore. It is an action that happens instinctively when you love someone. You want to draw close, to taste, and to consume. In fact, Song 1:2 is structured with a unique, and creative wordplay, using the same Hebrew root word for both kissing and the act of drinking wine.
It’s no coincidence, as wine is an important metaphor in the Bible. One I hope to explore better in a future post.
“Lean in to kiss me, where the ache is most special.” – Sanober Khan
So I got to thinking this week. If there is a beginning, outward sign of an inward work happening in a people, revealing them as the Bride of Christ, what would that be? Well, for one thing, they are thirsty. And they want to kiss the Son. Yes – discontent with a surface relationship, and grieved by anything that is a cheap substitute for true intimacy, this Woman finds ways of “pushing through” to get closer to Jesus. Falling to her knees, kissing the feet of Jesus – this is only the beginning of a mature relationship. Because with no delay, such a Woman will be pulled up to behold the face of Christ directly. And it is here, face to face, that the Bride will begin to progressively connect and make Herself available to her Beloved, and others she is divinely joined to, on a genuine, submissive, and relational level.
While I’ve been meditating about “kissing,” and what it all means, something happened recently that caught me by surprise. A call came in one evening, from a young lady who I don’t hear from too often. At first I was going to let it go to voicemail, because I was in the middle of watching a movie, but instantly I got in touch with my great love for her, and knew I did not want to miss the opportunity. She said she couldn’t sleep, and wanted to pray with me. So I began, and she finished, and that was pretty much it. Short, sweet, but very intimate from a spiritual standpoint. As soon as we hung up, I sat there for a minute, basking in a lingering, warm feeling in my soul that wasn’t there before she called. And strangely, I lost interest in finishing the movie.
And then it dawned on me. I had just been kissed by God! He was missing me, too, and showed it to me through that brief encounter with another sister who reached out to me. I didn’t expect this kiss, and I didn’t feel particularly “spiritual” at the moment she called, either. But…
“I am my Beloved’s, and His desire is for me,” – Song of Songs 7:10
Isn’t that beautiful? It would be incomplete to not mention that kissing is a mutual act, and that the Bridegroom desires to kiss His Bride, even as she desires to kiss Him.
It’s something to pause over, and slowly sip on, for sure!
