“Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field; let us lodge in the villages. Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine flourish…” Song of Solomon 7:11-12
Dear Ones:
The heart of God is unlike any other, in particular with regard to the constancy of purpose, and the scope and dimensions of its reach and desire. There is a universality about God’s heart that is incomprehensible, and yet, open for man to see. If sinful man will see it as it is, there is but one response, and it is to fall down, and bow before this One who declares Himself to be “Love.” In that very thought there is such a purpose and power, that it reaches to the farthest recesses of this world, to the most remote and isolated place, there to seek the lost and perishing. In Scripture we read of the Shepherd who leaves the ninety and nine, to go out into the mountain and wilderness to seek one lost sheep. How much more, the heart of God, of Christ, goes forth through His people, to reach that one, alone on the mountain!
In the Song of Solomon, a beautiful picture is given to us of the Bridegroom (the Husband), who speaks lovingly to His beloved. The call is to go forth with Him, secure in His love and purpose, into the field, the villages, the vineyards. Why? “To see the vine flourish…” The purpose of the vine is to produce fruit, in abundance, and of a quality that pleases the Owner of the vineyard. The purpose of Christ coming into this world was to make “his soul an offering for sin.” Why? So that He would “…see His seed,…and be satisfied.” (Is. 53:10) He would “…justify many; for He would bear their iniquities.” (v.11) God so loved the world that Christ would taste death for every man. It is then that we discover God’s unrelenting pursuit to save those for whom Christ died, all men in every place. And how will He do this? It will be through His church, His beloved, His body, going forth in fellowship with Him to seek and save that which is lost, Christ dwelling in each member of that body BY FAITH.
After the Lord Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman mentioned in John’s gospel (4:5-30), He confronts His disciples about the quiet, and yet, unceasing pursuit of those who are lost, and without Christ. The disciples come to Him, knowing that He is hungry and weary. His response to them is: “My food is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to finish His work.” (v.34) He will not be deterred nor distracted from His objective. He then instructs the disciples: “…Lift your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” (v.35) What is the call here? It is to have the same vision as that of Christ, to see with His eyes the great reality of God’s work, His harvest, His vineyard. What is the call to the individual believer, His beloved? It is a call to the fellowship of like-mindedness, readiness, willingness, and openness to all that He, the Lord, purposes, so that the most can be saved. The heart attitude of the Shepherd who goes forth alone to seek one sheep out of a hundred, is the same heart that He would put into us.
Dear Father, give us such a heart, Thy heart, which reaches so much farther that we think possible, to reach, even the one sheep in a hundred. Give us a fresh vision of Your work on Calvary, and this universal call to all men. Give us grace to go forth as Your beloved, in fellowship with You, engaged with You in this great work, for which You died. We praise Thee for Thy heart, and trust that Your heart will be our own…in power, purpose, wisdom, and love. We thank and praise Thee in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad