October 11

"The king hath brought me into his chambers: we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will make mention of thy love more than of wine: rightly do they love thee." Song of Songs 1:4

A better rendering of the last clause would be, "In uprightness they love thee"; that is, "they love thee without mixture." Paul wrote to Timothy of "love out of a pure heart and good conscience and faith unfeigned," and then concluded the passage with a reminder that the Lord Jesus is the eternal King (1 Timothy 1:5, 17) That is the point. The King has brought us into communion with himself, and from that fact there springs a new and satisfying love.

There is a sense in which we can only come to recognize Christ as the beloved Bridegroom of our souls if we first yield him homage as our King. The justified sinner rightly loves his gracious Savior. Later on, as he grows closer to him, he finds that what gives unmixed quality to his devotion and love is his complete dedication to the rule of Jesus as his sovereign Lord. He is learning to love "in uprightness."