Shalom,
Good Thursday morning it’s July 15, 2021, I pray all is well. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
Glory to You, our God, glory to You! Heavenly King, Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, present in all places and filling all things, the treasury of blessings and Giver of life: come and abide in us. Cleanse us from all impurity and save our souls, gracious Lord.
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (3) Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen! All-holy Trinity, have mercy on us. Lord, forgive our sins. Master, pardon our transgressions. Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities, for the glory of Your name. Lord have Mercy. (3) Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen!
“Christ is our seal so both our faith and our works should reflect His image. His beauty should shine through all we do, bringing us eternal peace.” - JPCE Spiritual Talk
Song of Songs 8:1-14
8:1: Some Orthodox commentators say the Bride calling the Bridegroom a brother who could nurse at my mother’s breasts could be a symbolic reference to the Incarnation of the Son of God. In (Mark 3:34) Yeshua (Jesus) our Lord states to His followers “Here are My mother and My brothers”. St. Athanasius wrote in his 329AD Paschal Letter, writes concerning 8:1, “The God of all, the Maker of times and seasons, who knows our affairs better than we do (https://accot.stcyrils.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Sanctification-Fr-Matthias-Wahba.pdf) . In (Galatians 4:4) Saint Paul teaches us that Christ came in the “Fullness of the time.”
8:2: My mother’s house is symbolizing “The house of the LORD” (Psalm 22:6 or Psalm 23:6 depending on your version.) The Lord’s house has “many mansions” or dwellings (John 14:2); the chambers are for all of humanity. With the spiced wine we see in contrast or mystery the mixed wine consecrated in the Eucharist (https://orthodoxwiki.org/Eucharist).
8:5: John 4:35, Jesus states to his disciples, “the fields….are already white for harvest, giving us a glance at the Gentile Church. Saint Ambrose supports the understanding that seeing she who comes up as “the Church; for Solomon chose her, whose hidden love he had discerned.” St. Ambrose went on to say that he sees the mother as “Mary, and that God pierced and divided her soul” see (Luke 2:35, better to read the entire chapter for understanding).
8:6: Christ our God is the SEAL……...in the HEART we shall ever love Him, and when we read the seal and His arm, it’s telling us to always do His work. Christ our God loved us unconditionally that love offered itself to death for all of the world’s transgressions.
8:7: Nothing can stop God, not storms, water or even surging rivers cannot quench “the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38, 39)
8:8: The companions are extremely concerned for their little sister, who has no breasts- it’s clear she is immature. But one day she will be spoken for in marriage. This is a picture of the young immature Gentile Church, small numbers but grew larger overtime.
8:9-10: The wall is the bride, the Church, and St. Ambrose sees this as the believer's soul. The goal is to build upon what is already there. Christ our God calls himself the door (John 10:9) and it’s only through Him that we can enter the Kingdom of heaven (John 14:6). The Bride is linked to the door so we can’t fully know Him apart from the Church. Cedar panels are known to be both aromatic and pleasing to the eyes.
8:11-12: The location of Baal Hamon remains an unknown mystery to this day, maybe a hidden mystery. The vineyard belongs to the LORD and also remains a hidden mystery to the entire world, though present everywhere. The Keepers are the Holy Apostles and those who follow them. My vineyard is telling us that the Church first belongs to Christ, though both leaders (Solomon) and faithful together keep its fruit.
8:13-14: The Passage between the Bridegroom and the Bride is coming to a close. The Bridegroom is speaking of the time of those who dwell in the gardens of the Church, to give heed to her voice. Escape, my beloved is seen as a prophetic message of encouragement of the Ascension, Christ will come again to receive us to Himself (John14:3). (https://orthodoxwiki.org/Ascension)
Today’s Message:
Christ is our seal but following him doesn’t come easy. When Jesus stated, any man who chooses to follow me must first deny himself, and pick up his cross and follow me. Did any of that following statement sound like it was an easy road to follow Him. With Christ as our seal nothing can stop His love for us not even a surging storm with massive waves knockout his unconditional love for us.
“The seal of Christ is unbreakable. All we have to do is deny ourselves, pick up our crosses and follow him. Repent or perish, that is the seal of Christ, faith and worshiping in spirit and in truth always asking for forgiveness.” - JPCE Spiritual Talk
Closing the Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.
For Yours is the Kingdom, the power and the glory of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen.
God Bless,
Jared W. Campbell
US Army Retired
