Draw me; we will run after you.
The king has brought me into his chambers.
We will rejoice in you and be glad;
We will extol your love more than wine.
Rightly do they love you.
— The Song of Songs 1:4
What has stripped the seeming beauty
From the idols of the earth?
Not a sense of right or duty,
But the sight of peerless worth.
Captivated by His beauty,
Worthy tribute haste to bring;
Let His peerless worth constrain thee,
Crown Him now unrivaled King.
— Anonymous
“The king,” “his chambers,” and “love” are mentioned here in Song of Songs 1:4. The ruling in a person’s life changes when he knows Christ. Because of love, he now has a King in his heart. The King has authority over this person because of His love.
Whatever you love is your king. If movies ravish someone’s heart, movies are that person’s king. If novels ravish a person’s heart, that person gives novels the right to rule over him. If the Lord has ravished your heart, He is your King. The transition of authority from everything else to Christ comes not from “a sense of right or duty, but the sight of peerless worth,” as the hymn says. If the love of the Lord touches you, you will tell Him, “Lord, You are my King.”
In a good sense, to follow the Lord is easy. You don’t need to gnash your teeth and consecrate yourself. You just need to touch His love. Then spontaneously you will say, “Oh, Lord, I have to have You as my King. My heart is all Yours.” When you leave the Lord as your first love, you fall into the realm of “sense of duty.” When the Lord’s love is abundant in you, however, His abundant love will cause you to grow in life in the most natural way, and you will live a life taking Him as your King in everything.
Adapted from The Journey of Life, page 131.
Tomorrow: “The King’s Chambers”