Jesus loves you

@Livingwater Study 8B...He is mine. Song of song 6:2 In any true marriage the bridegroom and the bride give themselves to each other, unreservedly and for ever; and in this holy relationship of the saved sinner and the Saviour it is the same. It is not only true that I am His, but it is also gloriously true that He is mine; therefore I can be sure about three things:- (1) He is mine –- then how Safe I am! If I am His and He is mine, I must be absolutely secure for time and for eternity. This is an indissoluble union. No man, devil or angel can interfere with it or break it –- look up John 10:28-29, and compare Colossians 3:3 and Romans 8:35-39. Just as an earthly bridegroom willingly and gladly assumes the responsibility for the safe keeping of his bride, so does our Heavenly Bridegroom guarantee our protection for time and for eternity. (2) He is mine –- then how Rich I am! Think how rich the Lord Jesus is – and He is mine! In an earthly marriage the bridegroom endows his br...

@Livingwater Study 8A  I AM HIS, AND HE IS MINE THE SONG OF SOLOMON Key-verse: ““I am my lover’’s and my lover is mine”” (Song of Songs 6:3) These nine words in the Song of Songs 6:3 sum up the message and theme of the whole book. They constitute the personal testimony of the bride, and therefore of the Church and of every individual believer. Every real Christian can say, ‘”I am my lover’’s and my lover is mine.”” In this beautiful and inspired love story the Lord Jesus is presented as the Divine lover and the Church as His bride. He is spoken of over and over again as “the Lover”, and the one glorious truth which is emphasised in our key-verse is the truth of our union with Christ and His union with us. Notice, concerning this union, that:- (1) It is a Present experience –- “”I am my lover’’s and my lover is mine.”” This is something that is true now of every believer. (2) It is a Personal experience –- ““I am my lover’’s and my lover is mine.”” There are four pronouns...

@Livingwater Study 7B Christ's Love Song of song 5:16 This is the concluding part of the study7A.God bless you as you study What are the peculiarities of Christ?..... 4 . THE ATTRACTIVENESS AND THE BEAUTY OF HIS FACE Verse 13 tells us that ““His cheeks are like beds of spice yielding perfume.”” His face is like a beautifully laid out flower garden with that fragrant smell. The unsaved see no beauty in Him (Isaiah 53:2), but how beautiful He is to those who love Him and belong to Him! ” 5 . THE PURE AND TENDER EXPRESSIONS OF HIS LOVE AND GRACE In verse 13 we read: ““His lips (are) like lilies, dripping with myrrh.”” The bride here is speaking of the purity and tenderness of her lover’’s kisses. These kisses speak to us of those times when our Lord draws near to us and in the secret intimacy of fellowship we are bathed in His love and sustained by His grace (John 14:23); compare 2 Corinthians 12:9. ” 6 . THE SKILFULNESS OF HIS GUARDING , HIS GUIDING AND HIS PROVIDING I...

@Livingwater Study 7A THE LOVELINESS OF CHRIST THE SONG OF SOLOMON Key-verse: “”He is altogether lovely”” (Song of Songs 5:16) It is important to remember that the theme of this Song is the love of Jesus for His own, the love of the Bridegroom for His bride, the love of the Shepherd for His sheep, the love of the King for His queen. T we find here all the mysteries of love tenderly expressed in terms of glowing affection, as the Lord Jesus reveals Himself as the Bridegroom, the Lover, the outstanding one among ten thousand, the altogether Lovely One – look up Song of Songs 5:9-16. With this in mind notice that this chapter contains a conversation between the bride and the daughters of Jerusalem. She tells how through her laziness she had turned her bridegroom away from the door. He had been on a journey, and when he returned late at night she had been too lazy to open to him, and when at last she did open the door he had gone. The daughters of Jerusalem, astonished at her anxi...

@Livingwater Study 6B spiritual apathy Song of songs 5:2-8 The part A of this study told us vividly the negligence of the woman which make her to lose her lover,though she later searched for Him,but was not an easy task we will be focussing on the remaining part of the study,which will entails the recovery of her lover and also what she really passed through. God bless you as you study. 4 . THE RECOVERY SHE SOUGHT We get this in verses 4 and 5. A marvellous thing happened. Notice what the bridegroom did, in verse 4. In his endeavours and longing to be united with his bride he tried the door, only to find it was locked; so he put his hand through the keyhole. She saw this, but she did not at once rise to unbolt the door and let him in, and while she delayed, and because he would not force an entrance, he left. She was then overcome with contrition and sorrow, and she rose up to open the door. It seems from verse 5 that she hesitated because she wanted to anoint herself with oint...

@Livingwater Study 6A THE PERIL OF SPIRITUAL APATHY THE SONG OF SOLOMON Key-verse: ““I slept but my heart was awake:……I opened for my lover, but my lover had left; he was gone…”…” (Song of Songs 5:2-8) This section in the Song of Songs tells us how the bride, on account of apathy and neglect, lost fellowship with her bridegroom. The bride loved, and certainly belonged to, her bridegroom. That relationship could never change, but for the time being she was out of touch with him. This was due to her apathy, to her neglect of him, to her lazy carelessness. She reached a point where she sought him, ““but my lover had left, he was gone””. It was not his fault that fellowship was broken, but hers, and yet she had not intended it. She had just been careless and neglectful, she had perhaps taken his love for granted, and she had become self-occupied. It was not that she had been unfaithful and had lived as a prostitute (Jeremiah 3:1); it was not due to any wilful sin (Hebrews 10:26); it...

@Livingwater Study 5B The little foxes Song of song 2:15 4 . THE FRUIT WE ARE TO BEAR IS “ ”THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT ”” This is not “”the fruit of the spirit”” (small ‘s’), but “”the fruit of the Spirit”” (large ‘S’) – Galatians 5:22-23 which, in the Amplified Bible, reads – – ““But the fruit of the (Holy) Spirit, [the work which His presence within accomplishes] –- is love, joy (gladness), peace, patience (an even temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness; (Meekness, humility) gentleness, self-control (self-restraint, continence).”” These verses give us a vivid picture of the Christian life as our Lord intended it should be. We should be loving, joyful, restful, patient, kind, good, trustworthy, humble and disciplined. This is the fruit we should be bearing. These are the graces which should characterise us as Christians. Now notice the next point. ” 5 . THE “ ”LITTLE FOXES THAT RUIN THE VINEYARDS”” , THAT HINDER THE GROWTH AND TAKE AWAY THE TENDER ...

@Livingwater Study 5A  THE LITTLE FOXES THAT SPOIL THE VINES THE SONG OF SOLOMON Wishing you a prosperous year....... Key-verse: “”Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom”” (Song of Songs 2:15) There is one verse in the Gospel of John which tells us of the Lord’’s purpose for every one of His children. That verse is John 15:16, which contains the word of Jesus Himself – – “You did not choose me, but I have chosen you and appointed you to go and bear fruit –- fruit that will last””, and it would seem most appropriate to set the key-verse of this study against this one great declaration of our Lord. To do this will enable us to learn some lessons about fruitfulness in Christian living and in Christian service. Consider the following sequence of teaching:- ” 1 . TO BEGIN WITH , WE SEE THAT JESUS HIMSELF IS ““ THE TRUE VINE” ” We are sure of this because we are told in John 15:1 that He said of Himself, ““I am the tr...

@Livingwater Study 4B ..under His shade (concluding part) We stopped at number 3 yesterday ,this is the concluding part. To sit under his shadow is to have Him as supplier....memory verse still constant Song of Solomon 2 :3-4. 4 . IN CHRIST WE HAVE BOUNTIFUL SUPPLY We learn this from the words in verse 3: ““His fruit is sweet to my taste.”” The reference is to the fruit of the tree under which the bride was sitting with her lover. She found complete sufficiency and absolute satisfaction in his gracious provision for her. What is this sweet satisfying fruit that we, as Christians, experience and that is only ours because of our union with the Lord Jesus? It is mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23. We cannot produce this fruit; it is “”the fruit of the Holy Spirit, the work which His presence within accomplishes”” (Amplified Bible) –- look up and compare Hosea 14:8 (last phrase). How satisfying His fruit is! – – “His fruit is sweet to my taste””! ” 5 . IN CHRIST WE HAVE PERSONAL GUI...

@Livingwater Study 4 SITTING DOWN IN HIS SHADE. (Part A) THE SONG OF SOLOMON Key-verses: ““I delight to sit in his shade, and his fruit is sweet to my taste. He has taken me to the banquet hall, and his banner over me is love”” (Song of Songs 2:3-4) The Song of Songs set forth in tender symbolism the love of Christ for the Church (His Bride); and the love of the Bride (His Church), for Christ (the Bridegroom). In this small section of scripture the bride is speaking about her bridegroom, and in what she says we have a glimpse of the sufficiency of our Lord. The bride speaks of her estimate of her loved one and tells us what she possesses in him. She describes him (in verses 3,8,9,10,16) as her “”lover””, and she concludes by saying, ““My lover is mine, and I am his.”” It is exactly like this with the Lord and His people. We are married to Christ (Romans 7:3-4). How rich and how blessed we are! –- look up Romans 8:16-17; Ephesians 1:3 and 1:11; Colossians 2:9-10. Do you wonder t...

@Livingwater Happy new year..... B part of the Neglected or Abandoned vineyard.... I have discussed some point in the A part of the study....God bless you as you go through the remaining. 2 . THE DANGER WE FACE How very easy it is to serve the Lord zealously, to be on the job all the time, and yet to neglect our own inner life, our personal communion with the Lord Himself, our study of His Word and our fellowship in the secret place! How easily possible it is for the shoemaker’’s boy to be the poorest shod, and for the tailor’’s son to wear the shabbiest clothes! How sadly possible it is for the preacher to proclaim the unsearchable riches of Christ, but to fail to adorn the doctrine in his own personal and private life! –- look up Titus 2:10. This is the danger which is faced by every servant of the Lord. It is the possibility of neglecting the cultivation of one’’s own inner life of communion with the Lord Himself. We can never lift others above the level of our own spiritual...

@Livingwater Study 3 THE NEGLECTED VINEYARD THE SONG OF SOLOMON Key-verse: ““They made me take care of the vineyards; my own vineyard I have neglected”” (Song of Songs 1:6) These haunting words are most challenging to all who are engaged in the service of the Lord, and they should be read in conjunction with Proverbs 24:30-31 – – “I went past the field of the sluggard, past the vineyard of the man who lacks judgment; thorns had come up everywhere, the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall was in ruins.”” The warning which comes to us in this study may be summed up in the statement, ““Beware of the barrenness of a busy life!”” Too often public profession and activity are accompanied by inward neglect and spiritual declension. The one who confesses her neglect in this passage was not neglectful of her duties. She had been made black by the sun as she had laboured among the vines in the heat of the day; she was the keeper of the vineyards –- but she had neglected her ...

@Livingwater Study 2 PERSONAL COMMUNION WITH THE LORD THE SONG OF SOLOMON by Francis Dixon Key-verse: ““Take me away with you –- let us hurry! Let the king bring me into his chambers. We rejoice and delight in you; we will praise your love more than wine”” (Song of Songs 1:4) In this verse the bride (the believer) is speaking to her bridegroom (Christ) about her personal communion with him. What do we know of personal, day by day communion with the Lord? It is possible to know about Him and yet not to know Him; and it is also possible to know Him just a little or to know Him really well –- look up and compare John 14:9 and Philippians 3:10. This study emphasises the importance of these matters and leads us to consider the following points:- ” 1 . THE ONE WITH WHOM WE ENJOY COMMUNION IS THE KING See how the verse reads: ““Take me away with you: let the king bring me into his chambers…”…” Pause for a moment and think of the wonder of this. In this love story, Solomon is the kin...

@Livingwater Study 1 THE BRIDEGROOM AND HIS BRIDE THE SONG OF SOLOMON Key-verse and Theme of the Book: “My lover is mine and I am his” (Song of Songs 2:16) In this book we have the best of the one thousand and five songs written by King Solomon (1 Kings 4:32), and it has been incorporated into our Bible –- look up 2 Timothy 3:16. There are difficulties in connection with this book; for example, the name of God is not mentioned and it is not quoted by our Lord or by any of the writers in the New Testament; also, sometimes the language is obscure and it is not always easy to be sure who the speaker is. However, it has been a source of endless delight to the saintliest men and women all down the ages. It is a beautiful love story presented in poetic form. All through the book the love of the bridegroom for his bride, and of the bride for her bridegroom, is emphasised, and this pictures the wonderful union which exists between Christ, the Heavenly Bridegroom, and His Church, the Brid...

@Livingwater Study 1 HOW TO FIND THE TRUE GOD Key Verses: “For a long time Israel was without the true God, without a priest to teach and without the law. But in their distress they turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought Him, and He was found by them.” (2 Chronicles 15: 3-4) In this series we are to consider some of the Secrets of Successful Living. Of course, no one can begin to live successfully without knowing God, and first of all we must understand how we can come to know Him for ourselves. The subject is brought before us in 2 Chronicles 15:1-19, and it is pin-pointed in the above key verses. There is only one true God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 1:3), and the greatest blessing which anyone can experience in this life is to find the true God, but the greatest tragedy is to pass through life without ever finding Him. In our key verses we have a brief description of one phase of Israel’s history, but it also describes thousands of peo...

@Livingwater Study 10 TRIUMPHING IN TROUBLE (Scripture Portion: Psalm 142: 1-7) It was Joseph Parker, the London preacher of the 19th century, who said, “No preacher would ever lack a congregation if he preached to troubled hearts.” Of course he was right, for when we address our words to troubled hearts we are sure that we are speaking to everyone in the congregation or who reads our words, for everyone, everywhere, sooner or later experiences trouble and trial –- look up Psalm 34:19 (first part). In this 142nd psalm we find the writer, David, in great trouble; he speaks in verse 2 of “my trouble”, and the whole psalm teaches us how to be triumphant in trouble –- not how to escape trouble, but how to glorify God in the midst of trouble. 1 . WHAT ARE WE TOLD ABOUT DAVID ’ S TROUBLE ? It is important to see how David reacted to his trouble, but before we can do this, notice what he tells us about the nature of his trouble. David at this time was a fugitive and his fortunes were at...

@Livingwater Study 9 GETTING THE MISSIONARY VISION (Scripture Portion: Romans 10: 1-17) In this study we are to think of the need for every Christian and for every church to become missionary-minded and missionary-hearted. The title of our study implies that there are many Christians and churches who have little or no missionary vision. Unfortunately, this is true. Some Christians are not very concerned for the salvation of souls here at home, and they are still less concerned for the salvation of the millions of lost souls in other lands. Some even say that they “do not believe in missionary work”; others have been heard to say that, “Charity begins at home”; still others have been overwhelmed with the immensity of the task and have cried out, “The task is impossible!”; and a few uninstructed Christians have even said, “Why interfere with the heathen? They have their own religions, and we should not go and upset their culture!” A missionary vision may be defined as: “A blending o...

@Livingwater Study 8 WINNING THE LOST TO THE SAVIOUR (Scripture Portion: Acts 8: 1-8 and 26-40) The title of this study was not chosen at random. You will notice that it contains three very important words, and it is around these three words that we shall introduce the three divisions of our theme. We shall consider the great matter of soul-winning, its importance and the responsibility of every Christian to be a soul-winner, and the methods we are to adopt. 1 . First of all, let us think of the word “SAVIOUR ” Of all the names given to our blessed Lord, surely this is the most precious. It was given by divine announcement (Matthew 1:21), and Mary, the mother of Jesus, spoke of the One who was to come as “my Saviour” (Luke 1:47). Our Lord Jesus Himself made it perfectly clear that the primary purpose of His advent, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension was the salvation of men and women. Let us be absolutely sure about the fact that the one supreme purpose of His coming from h...

@Livingwater Study 7 A LESSON IN STEWARDSHIP (Scripture Portion: 2 Corinthians, Chapters 8 and 9) The key verses for this study are Proverbs 3:9-10 – “Honour the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.” In these verses we find a precept and a promise placed side by side. As Christians, we are to honour the Lord; that is, we are to give Him the first place, not only in our hearts, homes and businesses, but with regard to our money –- look up Matthew 6:33. We belong to the Lord by creation (Ezekiel 18:4), and by redemption (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). In the same way, all that we possess belongs to Him (Deuteronomy 8:18; 1 Chronicles 29:11-14; Hosea 2:8; 1 Corinthians 4:7), so that strictly speaking it is wrong to speak of our possessions as “ours” or “mine”. If we belong to Him, all our possessions belong to Him. It is very significant that the converts at Pentecost were no...

@Livingwater Study 6 THE WONDER OF GOD’S GUIDANCE (Scripture Portion: Psalm 25: 1-22) Over and over again we find the subject of God’s guidance brought before us in the Word of God. In the Old and New Testaments we have wonderful promises of guidance and examples of those who sought and found the Lord’s will for their lives. We also have a number of very clear statements which show us our need of guidance; for example, Jeremiah 10:23. In the psalm which we have chosen for the scripture reading in connection with this study, you will notice that the psalmist assumes the need for guidance, and of course not one of us would question the fact that God’s people do need guiding. They need to pray, “Show me your ways……Teach me……Guide me……” (Psalm 25:4,5,9). For examples of God’s guidance in the lives of His people we think of Abraham going out of his native country not knowing where he was going, being wholly dependent upon the guidance of God (Genesis 12:1); of Moses and the children of...