{"id":31757,"date":"2024-07-04T22:00:03","date_gmt":"2024-07-05T05:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/song_of_songs-7_1-13-copy\/"},"modified":"2024-06-25T22:11:49","modified_gmt":"2024-06-26T05:11:49","slug":"song_of_songs-8_1-14","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/song_of_songs-8_1-14\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power of Loving and Being Loved"},"content":{"rendered":"

Song of Songs 8:1-14 \u00a0 (CLICK HERE FOR\u00a0BIBLE VERSES)<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

\n
\n

A NOTE FOR PARENTS AND KIDS:\u00a0 Given the nature of today\u2019s topic, we would advise parents to review this GAME sharing first before your kids do and then decide whether your kids should see it.\u00a0 Kids, if you are reading this, please ask your parent or guardian to review this GAME sharing first before you read it and ask your parent or guardian if they think you should read it now or wait until you\u2019re older.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Song of Songs 8:1-14.\u00a0 I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit\u2019s help, then read the GAME sharing below.\u00a0 Let’s go!<\/p>\n

Song<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0of<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Songs<\/em><\/strong>\u00a08<\/em><\/strong>:1 (NIV)\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n1\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0If only you were to me like a brother, who was nursed at my mother’s breasts! Then, if I found you outside, I would kiss you, and no one would despise me.<\/em>
\n2\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0I would lead you and bring you to my mother’s house– she who has taught me. I would give you spiced wine to drink, the nectar\u00a0<\/em>of\u00a0my pomegranates.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 1-2:\u00a0 Why does the wife wish that her husband was her brother so that \u201cif I found you outside, I would kiss you, and no one would despise me\u201d (v1)?\u00a0 \u00a0Keep in mind in the ancient middle east where\u00a0Song\u00a0of\u00a0Songs\u00a0was written, public displays\u00a0of\u00a0affection were frowned upon.\u00a0 Interestingly a woman kissing a man in public was acceptable if that man was her father, brother or other male relative, but not so if he was her husband. \u00a0According to some commentators, \u201cmy mother\u2019s house\u201d and \u201cmy pomegranates\u201d in verse 2 are to be taken as references to the girl\u2019s sexual organs.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this? \u00a0Often<\/strong>\u00a0when two people love one another, it is natural for them to want to be affectionate with one another both in private and in public.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Whether it\u2019s your spouse, your kids, your parents, your relatives or your Saviour Jesus, don\u2019t be ashamed\u00a0of\u00a0the one you love.<\/p>\n

Song<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0of<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Songs<\/em><\/strong>\u00a08<\/em><\/strong>:3-4 (NIV)\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n3\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0His left arm is under my head and his right arm embraces me.\u00a0<\/em>
\n4\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0Daughters\u00a0<\/em>of\u00a0Jerusalem, I charge you: Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 3-4:\u00a0 The girl had spoken these words before as an unmarried woman (2:6-7; 3:5).\u00a0 But now as a happily married woman, she can testify to the power and truth\u00a0of\u00a0those words, that it is good not to \u201cawaken love until it so desires\u201d.\u00a0 God\u2019s design for marriage and sex is truly the best.<\/p>\n

Song<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0of<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Songs<\/em><\/strong>\u00a08<\/em><\/strong>:5 (NIV)\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n5\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>Who is this coming up from the desert leaning on her lover?<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 5a: \u00a0\u00a0Before in\u00a0Song\u00a0of\u00a0Songs\u00a03:6, the chorus\u00a0of\u00a0girls asked, \u201cWho is this coming up from the desert\u201d and their focus was the guy.\u00a0 Now the chorus asks the same question but their focus in asking is on the girl, on the one \u201cleaning on her lover\u201d.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0 When a woman is happy and secure in her relationship with her husband, others can\u2019t help but notice.<\/p>\n

Song<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0of<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Songs<\/em><\/strong>\u00a08<\/em><\/strong>:5 (NIV)\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n5<\/sup><\/em>\u2026Under the apple tree I roused you; there your mother conceived you, there she who was in labor gave you birth.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 5b: \u00a0Notice here that the wife is speaking about her effect on her husband — \u201cUnder the apple tree I roused you\u201d.\u00a0 She\u2019s talking about her power as a wife to bring her husband to life.\u00a0 She even compares that power to the power her husband\u2019s mother exercised by giving birth to him years ago.\u00a0 It\u2019s as if she is saying, \u201cJust as your mom conceived you and gave birth to you, so I\u2019m responsible for making you feel reborn.\u201d<\/p>\n

In other words, through marriage the wife has become more aware\u00a0of\u00a0the power that she has over her husband.\u00a0 But we will also see in the verses that follow that the wife plans to use that power not as a weapon against her husband or as a means to control him.\u00a0 Rather she plans to use it for his good and for the good\u00a0of\u00a0their marriage.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

On verses 6-7:\u00a0 Here the wife is confident in who she is and the power that she has, confident in who her husband is and in the love that they share.\u00a0 She feels like together with her husband they are an unstoppable force, that their \u201clove is as strong as death\u201d, burning \u201clike a blazing fire, like a mighty flame\u201d (v6).\u00a0 She believes that theirs is a love that \u201cmany waters cannot quench\u201d and that rivers cannot wash away (v7a).\u00a0 She considers their love more precious than all the money in the world (v7b).<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0There is something about loving and being loved that makes a person feel like they can overcome anything.<\/strong>\u00a0 That is the power\u00a0of\u00a0love.\u00a0 Because God has poured His love into our hearts, we should often have a hopeful, can do attitude when it comes to life.\u00a0 That\u2019s why Jesus, confident in God\u2019s love, could say, \u201cAnything is possible for Him who believes\u201d (Mark 9:23).\u00a0 That\u2019s why Paul, confident in God\u2019s love, could say, \u201cI can do all things through Christ who strengthens me\u201d (Philippians 4:13).\u00a0 That\u2019s why David, confident in God\u2019s love, could say, \u201cWith your help I can advance against a troop.\u00a0 With my God I can scale a wall.\u201d (Psalm 18:28-29).\u00a0 It\u2019s because\u00a0God made us to experience loving Him and being loved by Him, and the power that comes from that kind\u00a0<\/strong>of<\/strong>\u00a0relationship.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Song<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0of<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Songs<\/em><\/strong>\u00a08<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em><\/strong>8<\/em><\/strong>-9 (NIV)\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n8<\/sup>\u00a0<\/em>\u00a0We have a young sister, and her breasts are not yet grown. What shall we do for our sister for the day she is spoken for?\u00a0<\/em>
\n9\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0If she is a wall, we will build towers\u00a0<\/em>of\u00a0silver on her. If she is a door, we will enclose her with panels\u00a0<\/em>of\u00a0cedar.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses\u00a08-9:\u00a0 What is going on in these verses?\u00a0 It is perhaps best to understand these verses as a flashback: the wife flashes back to when she was just a young girl coming\u00a0of\u00a0age and was being protected by her older brothers who were responsible for her.\u00a0 When they say, \u201cWhat shall we do for our sister for the day she is spoken for?\u201d (v8) they mean, \u201cHow will we treat her on the day she is ready to get engaged?\u201d\u00a0 \u201cIf she is a wall\u201d, meaning if she is careful about not giving her heart and body away too quickly to others, then her older brothers will praise her, honour her and respect her decisions (\u201cbuild towers\u00a0of\u00a0silver on her\u201d \u2013 v9).\u00a0 However, \u201cif she is a door\u201d, meaning if she swings open for any man who knocks, her brothers \u201cwill enclose her with panels\u00a0of\u00a0cedar\u201d (v9b) \u2013 that is, they will be especially careful to restrict her.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0 We all have leaders whose role is to watch over and protect us.\u00a0\u00a0How much freedom, power, trust and honour we are given will depend a great deal on how we live under our leaders\u2019 watch.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Song<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0of<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Songs<\/em><\/strong>\u00a08<\/em><\/strong>:10-12 (NIV)\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n10\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0I am a wall, and my breasts are like towers. Thus I have become in his eyes like one bringing contentment.\u00a0<\/em>
\n11\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0Solomon had a vineyard in Baal Hamon; he let out his vineyard to tenants. Each was to bring for its fruit a thousand shekels\u00a0<\/em>of\u00a0silver.\u00a0<\/em>
\n12\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0But my own vineyard is mine to give; the thousand shekels are for you, O Solomon, and two hundred are for those who tend its fruit.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 10-12:\u00a0 Continuing with the flashback that began in verses\u00a08-9, the girl remembers her response to her protective brothers.\u00a0 When she says in verse 10, \u201cI am a wall, and my breasts are like towers\u201d, it means that she has been careful not to give herself away so easily to anybody and has protected her virginity for her husband.<\/p>\n

Verses 11 and 12 are what many scholars consider to be the story\u00a0of\u00a0how the guy and girl first met.\u00a0 Apparently the guy owned a vineyard (v11) and rented it out to tenants.\u00a0 According to the Bible Knowledge Commentary, \u201cEach\u00a0tenant was to grow enough grapes to make 1,000 shekels\u00a0(about 25 pounds)\u00a0of\u00a0silver for the landowner. And each tenant would receive 200 shekels (about 5 pounds)\u00a0of\u00a0silver\u00a0as his wages.\u201d \u00a0It was in this context that the guy meets the girl, who was probably working in the vineyard for her brothers (1:6).\u00a0 Playing off the vineyard imagery, the girl says that she herself chose to give her \u201cvineyard\u201d completely to the guy (v12).<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0As much as we may have people watching over us and protecting us, we are responsible for the choices we make when it comes to love and relationships.<\/strong><\/p>\n

2. Notice that this flashback about the lovers\u2019 beginning happens at the very end\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Song\u00a0of\u00a0Songs.\u00a0 Why put a flashback about the beginning at the very end?\u00a0 See the last point in this GAME sharing below for an answer.<\/p>\n

Song<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0of<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Songs<\/em><\/strong>\u00a08<\/em><\/strong>:13-14 (NIV)\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n13\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0You who dwell in the gardens with friends in attendance, let me hear your voice!\u00a0<\/em>
\n14\u00a0<\/sup><\/em>\u00a0Come away, my lover, and be like a gazelle or like a young stag on the spice-laden mountains.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 13-14:\u00a0 While the girl is reminiscing about their love story with her friends, the guy calls out for her (v13).\u00a0 The girl responds by running to her husband with tender intimacy in mind (v14).\u00a0\u00a0Song\u00a0of\u00a0Songs\u00a0therefore ends on a nostalgic, carefree and happy note between a husband and a wife.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0When you think you\u2019re at the end\u00a0<\/strong>of<\/strong>\u00a0love, go back to the beginning.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Put another way,\u00a0sometimes the way to maintain or rekindle love between a husband and a wife is to remember your love story and how the both\u00a0<\/strong>of<\/strong>\u00a0you met in the first place.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

So in your marriage, make it a point to reminisce about good memories.\u00a0 Watch your wedding video, look at past photos, and re-read old letters.\u00a0\u00a0Reminiscing about old memories can help you make new ones.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The same goes for your relationship with God.\u00a0\u00a0To fuel passion today and hope for tomorrow, think about how God found you and showed you His love in the past.\u00a0 Sometimes we lose sight\u00a0<\/strong>of<\/strong>\u00a0who we are when we forget where we came from.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Father, thank You that there is nothing more powerful than love.\u00a0 Thank You for Your love that makes me strong, and that empowers every relationship in my life where You are the king.\u00a0 Just like You did before, but even more so now, come fill me today with Your love today.\u00a0 In Jesus\u2019 name, AMEN!<\/em><\/p>\n

This brings our look at\u00a0Song\u00a0of\u00a0Songs\u00a0to a close.\u00a0 It\u2019s probably up there in terms\u00a0of\u00a0being one\u00a0of\u00a0the most difficult books in the Bible to understand, but praise God for the powerful and practical lessons we can learn about marriage, love, sex and even our relationship with Jesus through it.\u00a0 I can encourage you to look back at the most important lessons you learned and keep them near\u00a0Song\u00a0of\u00a0Songs\u00a0in your Bible.\u00a0 That way every time you turn to\u00a0Song\u00a0of\u00a0Songs\u00a0you can remind yourself and share with others how God spoke to you through this book.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Copyright \u00a9 2022 Justin Lim. All rights reserved.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

A NOTE FOR PARENTS AND KIDS:\u00a0 Given the nature of today\u2019s topic, we would advise parents to review this GAME sharing first before your kids do and then decide whether your kids should see it.\u00a0 Kids, if you are reading this, please ask your parent or guardian to review this GAME sharing first before you read it and ask your parent or guardian if they think you should read it now or wait until you\u2019re older.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Song of Songs 8:1-14.\u00a0 I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit\u2019s help, then read the GAME sharing below.\u00a0 Let’s go!
\n\u00a0
\nSong\u00a0of\u00a0Songs\u00a08:1 (NIV)\u00a0
\n1\u00a0\u00a0If only you were to me like a brother, who was nursed at my mother’s breasts! Then, if I found you outside, I would kiss you, and no one would despise me.
\n2\u00a0\u00a0I would lead you and bring you to my mother’s house– she who has taught me. I would give you spiced wine to drink, the nectar\u00a0of\u00a0my pomegranates.
\n\u00a0
\nOn verses 1-2:\u00a0 Why does the wife wish that her husband was her brother so that \u201cif I found you outside, I would kiss you, and no one would despise me\u201d (v1)?\u00a0 \u00a0Keep in mind in the ancient middle east where\u00a0Song\u00a0of\u00a0Songs\u00a0was written, public displays\u00a0of\u00a0affection were frowned upon.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31759,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31757","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31757","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31757"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31757\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31760,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31757\/revisions\/31760"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31759"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31757"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31757"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31757"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}