I was invited to teach an online Bible study. I jumped at the chance. “Of course. What is the subject you want me to share? Teaching the Bible is my most favorite thing to do.”
“Share whatever the Lord is showing you, and tell us what is on your heart.”
He is showing me simply how to be in an intimate relationship with Jesus. I’ve been on this spiritual journey for 65 years. I will meet him at the end of my days and, as David pens, “As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness” (Psalm 17:15 NKJV).
To seek Jesus is my heart’s desire. I’ve been all over the place, teaching topics, books in the Bible and how Christians are to behave in the organized church. The key subject that goes begging is a relationship with Jesus. And, the most intimate book in the Old Testament about Jesus comes from God’s heart and is the Song of Solomon.
The devil has perverted the language and message and has told people, Christian people, this is an erotic book; stay away from it. It’s too hard to understand. Song of Solomon waits to be understood. Who will unlock these pages in a simple way? I told the Bible study leader, “I can and will.”
The book of John in the New Testament is known as the Holy of Holies of the gospels. Song of Solomon, tucked away in the poetic section, is the Holy of Holies of the Old Testament. The New Testament answers the Old Testament. And the Old explains the New.
Song of Solomon is an allegory of the little Shulamite, the bride of Solomon. The story has many levels. It represents the bride of Jesus, the church, and Israel, the wife of God. The Shulamite is the prophetic image of the church.
The Passion Translation frames the words in Song of Solomon 8:2, “I long to bring you to my innermost chamber—this holy sanctuary you have formed in me. O that I might carry you within me.” The members of the church, not the church building, are that sanctuary, the temple and the holy of holies. The kingdom of heaven is within us.
In this crazy world with so many unanswered questions, I sense a hunger, more than ever, to know God. Today is different than when I first wrote a book in 1992 about Song of Solomon.
When I taught this book in women’s Bible studies, some of the women had a hard time accepting these scriptures. The teaching was not received. Some of them had been abused sexually and it was too painful to understand God’s pure love and motives in this song. They couldn’t see the love of God behind their pain.
Thirty-three years later, there are those who are more inclined to study and unlock the depths of this subject, and understand the spiritual journey they are on — letting their hearts be drawn into an even more sacred romance with Him.
Song of Songs is the centerpiece of God’s love in the Old Testament. The New Testament answers this love letter between King Solomon and His bride, the Shulamite. In 17 metaphors, the song depicts the life, death and resurrection of Jesus — the face of God.
The hunger in people’s hearts today is wanting to know God and knowing themselves. These are uncertain times, and the Song of Solomon seems to have become more relevant today. In a changing world, it will be difficult to navigate our lives without knowing Jesus in a new way.
Final brushstroke: When asked what the Lord was showing me and what was on my heart, I immediately said, “What I think about all the time is this intimate relationship with Jesus. If your students will accept it, I will teach Song of Solomon.”
After one meeting, the Bible study proved to be successful and they look forward to the next several months delving into Song of Solomon, which waits to be understood.
Send your comments to bettyslade.author@gmail.com.
Views expressed do not necessarily represent those of The SUN.
>