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SOS 4:9 The Bridegroom's Snare

Preached by James R. Reynolds, Sr. September 12, 1979.

Song of Solomon 4:9— Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck

INTRODUCTION

  • Review

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    • The Mountain experience is first described in verse 8.

    Song of Solomon 4:8—Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions' dens, from the mountains of the leopards.

     

    • A call we see announced in verse 8 (‘come with me’) is from Christ to His Bride.

    Some bring the Song of Solomon down to a carnal level, but it is truly a description of the close relationship of Christ and His bride.

     

    1. “The Bridegroom’s Snare”

     

    We often think of our love for Christ, but He has a great interest in us. Evangelist and songwriter Philip Bliss 1838-1876) wrote “Jesus Loves Even Me” after being inspired by the Frederick Whitfield’s hymn “Oh, How I Love Jesus. Philip Bliss wrote his hymn with the following sentiment in mind: "I have sung long enough of my poor love to Christ and now I will sing of his love for me."

     

    CHORUS: I am so glad that Jesus loves me,

    Jesus loves me, Jesus loves me;
    I am so glad that Jesus loves me,
    Jesus loves even me.

     

    He has been caught or ensared by her. She hasn’t set a trap for Him, but she is captor to His heart and He loves her. It was His love that caused us to love Him! We were his enemies and he loved us.

     

    Song of Solomon 4:9—Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck.

    • This is the Bridegroom speaking directly to the Bride.
    • “thou hast ravished my heart” in the Hebrew means to be enclosed.

    Ensnared by the Bride’s Love

    Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse…

     

    She has caught Him with love. What does it mean to love Jesus?

     

    1. Seen in the Bride’s Dedication

     

    John 14:15—If ye love me, keep my commandments.

    We say, “I really love the Lord”, but the real measure of our love is if we do what He says. There is a demand on the Believer to DO something! She not only told Him that she loved Him, but He is ensnared by her dedication. Through the tests, hard times and trials she has SHOWED Him that she loves Him.

     “Words are cheap” but actions are priceless. She has been following him closely. Close enough to hear Him. Is the Church listening? You have to be closer than what the church is to hear Him.

    A young couple may get married and make vows to each other “for better or for worse” and miss the element of love. Here they are totally committed verbally, but when they get out in everyday life complaints come out “I didn’t know this was part of the bargain.” There certainly couldn’t have been too much real love in the verbal sentiment.

    They say that “Home is where the heart is.” Heaven is our home and should be where our heart is! Christ is the goal and we need to keep this always in mind.

    He is so taken up with the fact that she is so taken up with Him! God does find greater pleasure in those that love Him. His heart is ravished because of dedicaton.

     

    Song of Solomon 4:9—Thou hast ravished my heart,

    my sister,… FAMILY relationship

    my spouse… MARRIAGE relationship

    Not before, but from chapter 3 and verse 11 through to the end of the book she is titled in reference to the marriage contract. She has been brought into a relationship that not many know anything about. He loves the World!

    John 3:16—For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

    But He is especially taken up with her because of her love for Him and He enters into an intimate relationship with her as husband and wife. The husband and wife relationship is exclusive and close. He is ravished, enthralled, taken up with the love of the Bride—not the Church.

    ILLUSTRATION: A 50+ year old couple was in love like newlyweds. When they rode in the car they didn’t sit on opposite sides of the car but both squeezed in one side. He would leave her to go to work and call her when he got there and call her several times every day. He would come home, pick her up and they would get the groceries together. The relationship they shared was close and intimate and this is the kind of love between Christ and His Bride. He is ravished (ensnared, caught) by her love!

    This Bride relationship is not shared by Church because the Church has too many other interests. To the Bride, He is number one. He is it! There is no outside interest. And She has ensnared Him by her love just as he ensnared her by His love.

    1. Seen in the Bride’s Separation

     

    This relationship is a two-way street. Jesus is not interested in just pouring it on over and over with no return. He is looking for something. It is not difficult to give back if you get plenty to begin with. The problem is we have so much of the world and so little of him that we are dried up and we wonder why we can’t love him. The only way we can love Him is if we let Him love us! Soak it in and then you have something to give Him in return.

    She was totally separated to Him. There has been a transformation in her since she started out running after Him. She described herself in the beginning as black as the tents of Kedar and smelling like a goat. But now she is smelling like a lily and the rose of Sharon. How do you lose the goat smell? Hang around the goat pen? No! Get out amongst the lilies and the roses. Lay in his presence.

     

    2 Corinthians 6:17,18—Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

     

    He has been looking for one that smells like the lilies like Him.

    ILLUSTRATION: Go visit a group of guys working hard, sweating and getting dirty. Then come up beside them and you might say, “Whew! What a smell!” But if you had been working with them all along, you probably wouldn’t notice not only that they stink but you stink yourself! Why? Association.

    We won’t smell too bad if we get close to Him. But when we get away from Him we will start to smell. If we come into the house of God and wonder why God isn’t blessing, or speaking, maybe it is because we smell too much like the world.

    She has separated herself from everyone except Him and to Him she smells good. She is beautiful and she has ravished His heart through her dedication, separation and determination.

     

    1. Seen in the Bride’s Determination

     

    By her going on, going through, hanging on and enduring through the hard times, she has captured his heart.

    “I am determined I’ve made up my mind!”

    She has not followed after Him to simply turn and go back, but she is determined to go all the way.

    II. Ensnared by the Bride’s Eyes

    …with one of thine eyes, …

     

    He is not satisfied with “one eye” but her “singleness of eye.”

    Matthew 6:22—The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.

     

    He has caught her eye and she cannot see anything else. Some warn not become too fanatical about Christ, but there is a difference between being a fanatic and a “fan-at-it”. The church is cross-eyed from looking in two directions at once.

    How do we get this singleness of vision where we see Him and only Him?

     

    1. Seen in the Bride’s Prayer

     

    ILLUSTRATION: If you watch a bird photographer at work, you will see their thoroughness and patience. They work hard to get everything right from the subject to the focus, and angle and lighting. They don’t just pull a camera out, snap a button, call it good and feel they have captured the scene faithfully.

    We kneel down and before a moment passes we are up and on our way. How can we have vision that is full of Him when we don’t pray like that photographer tries to capture his subject?

     

    1. Seen in the Bride’s Praise

     

    Praise is not something we do wildly or simply loudly but praise springs out of the heart. Genuine praise is not necessarily loud for even a sincere whisper of anointed praise can bring down the glories of Heaven. It is not the volume, it is the content. Whether loud or soft, it must be sincerely from the heart.

     

    Too often, we pray and praise to be seen of men,

    but we need a single eye in our prayer and praise—for Him!

     

    1. Seen in the Bride’s Meditation

     

    Psalm 1:1,2—Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

     

    The Gospel is the best:

     

    • Sleeping Pill
    • Waking Pill
    • Medicine Pill

    Encouragement Pill

     

    When we pray, praise, and meditate on the Word of God we benefit ourselves, but also He is looking down and watching.

     

      III. Ensnared by the Bride’s Ornament

    …with one chain of thy neck. (“…just one chain…”)

     

    I Peter 3:1-3—Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives; 2 While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear. 3 Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel;4 But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.

     

    The ornament of chain around her neck is not something outward, but inward. Even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.

    She is contented as a cow is chewing in her cud. As a matter of fact “meditation” in the Hebrew means the same as a cow chewing her cud. Discontent people are not meditating on the word properly for the Bible is full of answers.

     

    Ga 5:22,23—But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

     

    He wants to see ALL His graces in us, but to see just one of God’s graces alone demonstrated in our lives pleases Him.

    Has there been even one? Has He placed any chains about your neck?

     

    • Love
    • Joy
    • Peace
    • Longsuffering
    • Gentleness
    • Goodness
    • Faith/Obedience
    • Meekness
    • Temperance

     

     

    CONCLUSION

     

    • Perhaps the Greatest of God’s Graces to Work in our Lives is Faith.
    • Faith Works by Love.
    • If we Love Him we will Obey Him.
    • He is totally ravished by her.
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