SCRIPTURE: Song of Solomon 3
OBSERVATION/APPLICATION:
Come out, you daughters of Zion, and look at King Solomon wearing the crown, the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding, the day his heart rejoiced. [Song 3:11]
How many young girls have dreamed about being swept away by a prince charming – actually, I’m not sure, is this something young girls dream about?
In the fairy tales they do (I am thinking of Fiona in Shrek).
I guess its easy to imagine being in love with someone who is rich, who is royalty, who is charming, who is famous.
This young girl is almost bragging about her good fortune, showing her friends how fantastic her lover is.
Would this song have been written if the lover was an Ogre (a neat question, in light of the Shrek movie again, where the prince is not charming).
You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” [Matthew 5:43-48]
Its not bad to love someone who is also charming or famous or royal or rich, but these should not be the reasons for love.
God’s kind of love does not look only at externals, it looks to the heart.
It sees each person as a child of God, no matter who they are, or what they have done or not done.
It’s not a leap to love someone that is lovable, the real stretch is loving someone that is unlovable – someone who is obnoxious, cruel, someone with a noticeable birth defect, someone who is ordinary, poor, or different.
Even pagans love the lovable; God’s love extends to the unlovable – to the princes (many of whom are unlovable) and the paupers.
This is a love worth focusing on.
Its nice to see this young girls love for her prince charming, but it is deeply inspiring to see Mother Theresa’s love for the dying, malformed leper.
This is the kind of love we are called to sing about, and to practice!
PRAYER:
Lord, love is a beautiful thing, but it is especially beautiful when it is offered to those harder to love. This is how You loved me, help me to love like this too!