March 24 – A Passionate God

“I am my lover’s and my lover is mine.” (Song of Solomon 6:3)

IN WORD:
There is quite a divergence on how Christians interpret the Song of Solomon. Many interpret it entirely as an allegory of God’s love for His people — or, more specifically, of Jesus’ love for His bride, the Church. Others interpret it purely as a divine sanction of erotic love within its appropriate boundaries. Others are able to accept it as both — God’s love expressed in a human relationship as a reflection of a greater love from above.
It is right to see all love as coming from God. The world will take that argument and say that all expressions of love — as the world defines “love” — are from God, but that is a gross distortion of biblical truth. Nevertheless, all true love is from God, whether it is the love of friends, families, or couples. God created the range of emotions that we have, and it seems logical that He never created a kind of love that He Himself has not experienced. He would not establish a sort of love that is foreign to His own mind. The romantic love expressed in Song of Solomon must also be somewhere in the heart of God. He must have first conceived romantic love before creating a romantic humanity. But if so, whom does He love so intimately?
We’re afraid to utter the answer for seeming too presumptuous, but we know what the Bible says. It is us. We are the ones for whom God has created romantic love — not just to have between ourselves, but first to have with Him. Intimate love between humans is not the prototype; it is a reflection of the divine romance.

IN DEED:
We can easily say of another person that “I am my lover’s and my lover is mine.” But, can we say it of God? Have we approached that level of intimacy with Him? Don’t be afraid. It does not profane the glory of God to approach Him this way. It actually honors Him. It values the love that flows from His heart and does not leave it tragically unanswered.

“Romance is at the heart of the universe and is the key to all existence.” -Paul Billheimer-