Song of Solomon 6:3 – “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the lilies.“

In Song of Solomon, the Bride, or Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, declares that she is her Beloved’s and that He is hers.

In his excellent treatise on Song of Solomon 4:16-6:3 called “Bowels Opened” (bowels being inner-most self, often referencing deep compassions for others), Puritan Richard Sibbes notes how we are Christ’s beloved.

He says:

  • By His Father’s gift
  • By redemption
  • By marriage
  • And by our consent

He then notes some uses of understanding these things:

  • Use 1: It brings comfort to us, in that God will not allow his own to lack anything needful
  • Use 2: It fences us from Satan’s accusations, that he can go to our Beloved with any of them
  • Use 3: We can go to Christ in times of difficulty. And that the difficulties are used to:
    • Conform the spouse to the husband in sufferings
    • To bring Christ and spouse nearer together in her seeking Him and Him indeed being there
    • And to know this time on earth of sufferings will end not long from now

And then Mr. Sibbes continues with Use 4 — to try us if we are Christ’s.

But how?

Below we pick up with answer to that. You can read this section of the treatise here, or listen to the sermon with this part in it here (it’s near the end), or listen to the entire treatise on our audio book page.

From Richard Sibbes:

4. Hence we have also an use of trial. Whosoever are Christ’s, they have hearts to give themselves to him.

As he gives himself, not his goods or his honours, but himself for his church, so the church gives herself to Christ. My delight is in him; he has myself, my heart, my love and affection, my joy and delight, and all with myself.

If I have any honour, he shall have it. I will use it for his glory. My riches I will give them to him and his church and ministry and children, as occasion shall serve. I am his, therefore all that I have is his, if he ask it at my hands.

It is said of the Macedonians, they gave themselves to Christ, and then their riches and goods, 2 Cor. 8:5. It is an easy matter to give our riches to Christ when we have given ourselves first.

A Christian, as soon as ever he becomes a Christian, and ever after, to death, and in death too, he gives up himself to Christ. They that stand with Christ, and will give this or that particular, will part only with idle things that they may spare, are they Christ’s? No. A Christian gives himself and all his to Christ.

So we see here what we should do if Christ be ours. Let us give up ourselves to him, as it is in Rom. 12:1. The issue of all that learned profound discourse in the former part of the epistle, that Christ justifies us by his righteousness and merit, and sanctifies us by his Spirit, and has predestinated and elected us, and refused others, is this, ‘I beseech you, give up your bodies and souls, and all as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God.’

In brief, these words imply renunciation and resignation. ‘I am his,’ that is, I have given up myself to him, therefore I renounce all others that stand not with his love and liking. I am not only his by way of service, which I owe him above all that call for it, but I am his by way of resignation. If he will have me die, I will die. If he will have me live here, I will. I have not myself to dispose of any longer. I have altogether alienated myself from myself. I am his to serve him, his to be disposed of by him. I have renounced all other.

Therefore here we have another answer to Satan, if he come to us and solicit us to sin. Let the Christian’s heart make this answer, I am not mine own.

What has Satan and his instruments to do with me? Is my body his to defile? Is my tongue his to swear at his pleasure? Shall I make the temple of God the member of an harlot? As the apostle reasons, ‘Shall I defile my vessel with sin?’ 1 Cor. 6:15. What says converted Ephraim? ‘What have I any more to do with idols? for I have seen and observed him?’ Hos. 14:8.

We ought to have such resolutions ready in our hearts. Indeed, when a Christian is resolute, the world counts such to be lost. He is gone. We have lost him, say your dissolute, profane persons. It is true they have lost him indeed, for he is not his own, much less theirs, any longer. But he is found to God and himself and the church.

Thus we see what springs from this, that Christ is ours, and that we are Christ’s back again. Let us carry this with us even to death; and if times should come that God should honour us by serving himself of us in our lives, if Christ will have us spend our blood, consider this, I am not mine own in life nor death, and it is my happiness that I am not my own.

For if I were mine own, what should I do with myself? I should lose myself, as Adam did. It is therefore my happiness that I am not mine own, that I am not the world’s, that I am not the devil’s, that none else hath to do with me, to claim any interest in me, but I am Christ’s.

If I do anything for others, it is for Christ’s sake. Remember this for the time to come. If there be anything that we will not part with for Christ’s sake, it will be our bane [deadly poison, destruction]. We shall lose Christ and it too. If we will not say with a perfect spirit, I am his, my life, my credit, my person is his, anything his; look what we will not give for him, at length we shall lose and part with it and him too.

May God grant us this desire for Christ above all, to have Him, to love and serve Him above all, and the desire and help to give ourselves in total to Him, for the glory of His name!

— David