Song of Solomon 5

Song of Solomon 5:1

Christ present with his church Son 5:1“I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.” In the preceding verse we see the church, the bride of Christ, making a twofold prayer. First, she asked for the gracious influence of the Holy Spirit. “Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden that the spices thereof may flow out.” Then, she asked for the manifest presence of Christ himself. “Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.” Here we have the Lord’s gracious answer to that prayer. Here the Lord Jesus Christ himself speaks and says, “I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.” Here our Lord Jesus speaks of his manifest presence with his church. We should not be greatly surprised to hear him speak in such a manner. Did he not say that if any would open to him he would come in and sup with them (Revelation 3:20)? Our all-glorious Christ is always as good as his promise. No sooner did his church throw open the doors of her heart than he entered and made himself known in sweet communion. Of this one thing we may be sure. Every heart that is prepared by God to receive Christ, and anxiously seeks and desires the presence of Christ shall have Christ (Isaiah 65:24). Certainly this is true with regard to poor, needy sinners (Hebrews 4:16). This is most assuredly true with regard to you who are the Lord’s. The fact that our hearts truly long for Christ’s presence is evidence that he is with us already. Sometimes we are like Jacob when he awoke out of his sleep, he said, “Surely, the Lord is in this place and I knew it not.” We are often like Mary; on one occasion the Lord was standing by her side in the garden, and she knew him not. George Burrowes wrote, “The fact of the existence of such desires for him, is evidence of his being with us; as in this passage, in immediate connection with the request, he adds, ‘I have already come.’ He was present in the heart, though his presence was not felt.” Christ’s presence The Lord Jesus Christ calls for us to take notice of his presence. Our prayer in the last verse of chapter four was, “Let my Beloved come into his garden.” Here he says, “I have come into my garden,” as if to say, “Look up, my beloved, I am here!” Could it be that he has come without us perceiving it? Could he be present and us, who so earnestly long for him, not know it? I am afraid that it is so. Our hearts are so much taken up with doubt and worldly concern that unless Christ advertises his coming, as he does here, he might be at our side and us fail to see him. A local church is the gathering of two or three needy souls in the name of Christ. Our Master promised that where two or three gathered together in his name, he would be present with them (Matthew 18:20). The place in which his people gather is not important. The number present is not important. The denominational name is not important. The only matter of importance is that we gather in his name. But what does it mean to gather in his name? To gather in his name is to gather believing on his name, trusting him alone as our Mediator and Savior. To gather in his name is to come together to worship him and seek his glory. To gather in his name is to come together seeking his righteousness, his will, his mercy, and the salvation of his sheep. Our Savior has promised to be with his people, those who truly worship him in Spirit and in truth, at all times (Isaiah 43:1-3; Matthew 28:18-20). He said, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:4). And our Lord Jesus Christ has promised his manifest presence to those who love him (John 14:18-23). This is the thing I am talking about. We know the doctrine of Christ’s presence. But we want to know his real, manifest presence with us. Wherever the door is opened to Christ, he comes in (Revelation 3:20). Wherever there is a heart broken and contrite before God, Christ takes up his abode in that heart (Isaiah 57:15; Isaiah 66:1-2). This personal, manifest presence of Christ among his people is an unspeakable blessing of grace. When our Lord is manifestly present in our assemblies there is life in our midst, fervency in our prayers, vitality in our songs, and blessedness in hearing his voice as his Word is read. The preaching of the gospel is the delivery of a message from God and the hearing of it is the hearing of a message from God. When he is absent, all is lifeless and dead. When He is present there is joy and peace in Jerusalem. Any who miss Christ, miss him because they will not seek him. Christ’s satisfaction Our dear Savior is ever present with his church because he finds great satisfaction in his church. His church is not a building, or a denomination. His church is his people. All true believers, considered collectively, are his church. And the Son of God finds great satisfaction in his people. He says to his church, “I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk.” Here our Lord claims the church as his own garden, his rightful possession. In this one verse he uses the personal possessive pronoun “my” nine times. Certainly this is meaningful. We rightfully belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. We are his by divine gift in eternal election (John 6:39, by lawful purchase in particular redemption (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), and by omnipotent, effectual grace in regeneration (Ezekiel 16:8). The sweet produce, which Christ finds in his garden, is the result of his own cultivation. He takes pleasure in us just as a farmer takes pleasure in his fruitful field. He finds satisfaction in us just as a mother finds satisfaction in her living, healthy baby.Without question, our Lord’s language in this place is designed to convey to us the message that he finds great satisfaction and delight in his people. What condescending grace! The Son of God comes to us! But that is not all; he even looks upon us with complacency, delight, and satisfaction!

Because of his own blood and righteousness, he accepts the sincere, though feeble, worship of our hearts (1 Peter 2:5). Our offerings are to him like the gathering of his myrrh and spice. Our prayers are like sweet-smelling myrrh to him. Our songs of praise are like spices and incense before him. Our love toward him is like honey in the honeycomb to our Redeemer. Our joy before him is like exhilarating wine.

Our daily lives are like refreshing milk to him! Imagine that.In this heavenly poetic verse, Christ is fed first, then his children are invited to eat. It seems to imply that our first concern should be for him. The first and best of everything must go to him. Christ’s invitation The Son of God gives a loving invitation to his beloved people. He says, “Eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.” He calls us to a feast of fellowship, communion, and life. It is spread not for the world, but for his own peculiar people. Notice the two words by which he tenderly calls us to the feast: “friends” and “beloved.” He calls us his friends (John 3:29; John 15:13-15; Luke 15:7). We were by nature his enemies. And we would have forever remained his enemies. But he has graciously reconciled us to himself. We are his friends! He calls us his beloved. All who are born of God are the peculiar objects of his great love. —Electing Love! —Redeeming Love! —Immutable, Unchanging Love! —Saving Love! —Preserving Love! Oh, what blessedness is heaped up in that word as it falls from our Savior’s lips, “Beloved!” Notice the two provisions for our souls to feast upon. —We are bidden to eat and drink. You know what the food of faith is, and what the delightful drink is. The food and the drink are in him. By faith, we eat his flesh and drink his blood (John 6:50-56). That is to say, we live by constantly trusting his righteousness and obedience unto death as our sin-atoning Substitute. Notice this delightful word, too, —“Abundantly.” Our Lord tells us to feast abundantly upon him. Let faith eat and drink, feeding upon Christ without end. The more your hunger and thirst is satisfied, the more you will hunger and thirst. —Feast on! This is healthy gluttony. The marginal translation of this last phrase is, “Be drunken with loves.” It is as though the Lord is saying, “Come, my friends, my beloved, drink the rich wine of my love, until your heart is drunk with my love, until you are totally under the influence of my love” (Ephesians 5:18). There is never any danger of overindulgence when it comes to preaching, feeding upon, and worshipping the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, child of God, gorge your self on Christ! Drink of him, O my soul, until you are thoroughly, completely intoxicated with him, and then drink on!

Song of Solomon 5:2-8

“I sleep, but my heart waketh” Son 5:2-8“I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night. I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them? My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him. I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock. I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.

The watchmen that went about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took away my veil from me. I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love.” What a sad but common story! Here is the church of Christ, his beloved, chosen, and redeemed Bride in her most lamentable condition. She is slothful, negligent, and indifferent. In other places the Bride speaks to Christ, but here she speaks of him, because now he had withdrawn himself. Oh, yes, he is always with us. He will never leave us, nor forsake us. How we ought to thank God for that blessed fact. His mercy is everlasting! His love is immutable! His grace is indestructible! But he does sometimes, for our souls’ good, hide himself and appears to have forsaken us altogether. We are, at times, compelled to cry out with David, “My God, my God, Why has thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?” When that is the case, when our fellowship and communion with Christ is broken, because of our base ingratitude, neglect, and indifference, the only remedy is that the Lord himself graciously return to us and revive our hearts according to his own sovereign pleasure. How often we are compelled to speak as the Church speaks in this place, “I sleep, but my heart waketh!” Sometimes this cold, this deathly indifference steals over only one or two hearts in a congregation. Sometimes it seems to engulf entire assemblies. Sometimes this black plague seems to engulf the whole church of Christ. It is an experience with which I am afraid we are all too familiar. We all know by bitter experience the deep base notes of Newton’s hymn –

How tedious and tasteless the hours when Jesus no longer I see! Sweet prospects, sweet birds, and sweet flowers, have all lost their sweetness to me. The mid-summer sun shines but dim; the fields strive in vain to look gay; But when I am happy in Him, December’s as pleasant as May.

His name yields the richest perfume, and sweeter than music His voice; His presence disperses my gloom, and makes all within me rejoice: I should, were He always thus nigh, have nothing to wish or to fear; No mortal so happy as I; my summer would last all the year.

Content with beholding His face, my all to His pleasure resigned, No changes of season or place would make any change in my mind; While blest with a sense of His love, a palace a toy would appear; And prisons would palaces prove, if Jesus would dwell with me there.

Dear Lord, if indeed I am Thine, if Thou art my sun and my song, Say, why do I languish and pine, and why are my winters so long? Oh, drive these dark clouds from my sky, thy soul cheering presence restore; Or take me unto Thee on high, where winter and clouds are no more.

There is within each of us a terrible tendency to become neglectful, indifferent, and lukewarm towards the Lord Jesus Christ. This common, sinful tendency of our nature must be marked, acknowledged and avoided.

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love: Here’s my heart, Oh, take and seal it, seal it for Thy courts above. “I sleep.” Here is a very common sin. —“I sleep.” The wise virgins often sleep with the foolish. Far too often this is the bad effect great privileges have upon our sinful hearts. When we indulge ourselves in carnal ease and security, our hearts become cold, neglectful, drowsy, and indifferent. Prayer becomes a burden. Devotion languishes. Worship sinks to nothing more than bodily exercise. Zeal dies. “But my heart waketh!” Here is a hopeful sign. —“But my heart waketh.” It is a hopeful sign that there is grace in the heart when the heart struggles against that horrid, sinful sluggishness to which we are so prone. Ours is not the sleep of death. There is life within, struggling, struggling hard against sin (Romans 7:14-22).“It is the voice of my Beloved.” Here is a very loving and tender call. —“It is the voice of my Beloved.” All is not gone. Though my heart sleeps so foolishly, yet Christ is my Beloved. Though my love is so fickle, so shameful, and so unworthy of him, I do love him. And what is more, I still hear his voice and know his voice. The Lord Jesus Christ tenderly knocks to awaken us to come and open to Him (Revelation 3:20). By his Word, by his providence, and by his Spirit, the Son of God knocks at the heart’s door of his beloved, because he will not be spurned by the object of his love. He will not leave his own. Neither will he let his own leave him. He has betrothed us unto himself forever (Hosea 2:19). He not only knocks for entrance. Our beloved Redeemer graciously calls us, wooing us to himself by his grace. Whose voice is it? “It is the voice of my Beloved that knocketh.” Who is he calling? “My Sister!” “My Love!” My Dove!” “My Undefiled!” What does he call for? “Open to me.” Why is he calling? “My head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night” the night of his agony in Gethsemane, in the judgment hall, when he was crowned with thorns, piercing his brow. “I have put off my coat!” Here is a most ungrateful excuse. —“I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?” (Son 5:3). Because of her carnal ease, she refused the Lord’s gracious invitation to communion. She did not want to trouble herself, and she did not want to be troubled, not even by him! Her heart was so cold that she preferred her ease to the fellowship of Christ. Let us be honest. We are often so wrapped up in worldly care and carnal ease that we become almost, if not altogether, indifferent to our Lord Jesus Christ! “My Beloved put in his hand!” But our Lord is gracious still. Our Redeemer’s love cannot be quenched. He is longsuffering, patient, and gracious to his people, even in our most sinful rejection and denial of him. Here is a picture of our Savior’s persevering, effectual grace. —“My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him” (Son 5:4). It is written, “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth” (Psalms 110:3). How our hearts rejoice to know that Christ will not leave his people to themselves.

As the hymn writer put it, “He will never, never leave us, nor will let us quite leave Him!” His grace is effectual. His grace is persevering. His grace is irresistible. His grace is preserving. Yes, his grace is indestructible! He knocks; but we are so cold, so indifferent, so hard that we would never open to Him.“My Beloved had withdrawn himself!” Here is a sad picture of the loving chastisement our neglect and indifference brings upon us. — “I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock. I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer. The watchmen that went about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took away my veil from me” (Son 5:5-7; Isaiah 54:9-10). Thank God for faithful watchmen who will not allow us to hide behind any veil, excusing our indifference and sin, but faithfully expose us to ourselves and point us to Christ for mercy and grace! “If ye find my Beloved…” Here is one last hope. — “I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love” (Son 5:8). She could not find Christ for herself, so she employed the help and assistance of the Lord’s people. Cherish the precious fellowship of Christ. Let nothing rob you of your rich privilege. Do nothing to drive him away (Ephesians 4:30). But when you have grieved the Spirit of God, when the Lord Jesus hides his face from you, do not despair. It is not because he has ceased to cherish you (1 John 2:1-2), but because he cherishes you so much that he is determined to make you pine for him. Are you sick of love? Does your soul long for fresh tokens of Christ’s love to you? When your soul languishes, child of God, when sin robs you of Christ’s manifest presence and sweet communion, as soon as he calls, open to him. “Today, if ye will hear his voice harden not your heart.” Go back to the cross. Confess your sinful negligence. Go on seeking him. Trust Him still (2 Samuel 23:5; Lamentations 3:18-33). Return, O Son of God return! Come knock again upon my door. Dear Savior, my Beloved, return. Possess me and depart no more!

Song of Solomon 5:9-16

Let me tell you about my belovedSon_5:9-16“What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set. His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires.

His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.” Let me tell you about my Beloved. His name is Jesus Christ, the Lord. He is my Savior, my Redeemer, my Prophet, my Priest, my King, and my All. He is my Lord; and he is my God. But he is more —Jesus Christ is the Beloved One of my heart and the Friend of my soul. He is “the chiefest among ten thousand,” and “he is altogether lovely.” Has God the Holy Spirit has created in your heart a desire to know him. This is the thing that matters. Christ is the one thing needful. It is not enough that we know about Christ. We must know Christ. It is not enough that we know the doctrine of Christ. We must know Christ himself. It is not enough that we merely know about Christ crucified on the tree, we must know the crucified Christ in our hearts. To that end, let me tell you about him. All beauty, excellence, and perfection, divine and human, dwells in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the perfect God and the perfect man. All that our souls need and all that will satisfy our hearts is found in Christ in infinite abundance. The context In Son 5:2-8 the Lord came to bless his church (his bride, his beloved) with his presence, his fellowship, and his communion (Son 5:2). But he found his church asleep, slothful and negligent. He was shamefully treated with neglect (Son 5:3). He graciously caused her to desire him, creating in her heart a longing for his presence (Son 5:4). Then the Lord withdrew himself from her (Son 5:5-6). It was not at all his desire to punish her.

He simply intended to cause her to see his preciousness to her. So, in order to make her properly value and esteem him, the Lord withdrew and hid himself from her for a while. At last we see the church, the bride of Christ, his beloved, holding him to be precious. When she had lost the sense of his presence, she saw how valuable and necessary he was to her soul. And she gave this solemn charge to those who were around her —“I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my Beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love.”The question “What is thy Beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?” (Son 5:9). There is hope for men when they begin to inquire about the beauty, the perfection, the excellence, the grace, and the glory of Christ. “What is thy Beloved more than another beloved?” That is a question believing souls delight to answer. Yet, it is a question that I can never answer fully. The answer “My Beloved is…” How can he be described? Someone wrote,

“What the hand is to the lute, What breath is to the flute, What fragrance is to the smell, What the spring is to the well, What the flower is to the bee, That is Jesus Christ to me.

What the mother is to the child, What the compass is in pathless wild, What oil is to the troubled wave, What ransom is to the slave, What water is to the sea, That is Jesus Christ to me.” His character The question is raised, “What is thy Beloved more than another beloved?” Here is a general description of his character - “My Beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand” (Son 5:10). My Beloved is one of incomparable perfection, unparalleled beauty, and infinite excellence. He is so infinitely precious above all others that he alone is Precious. His loveliness is so infinitely higher than the loveliness of others that he alone is Lovely. He has everything in himself that is pleasant, lovely, and admirable – “He is white and ruddy.” These words refer to the excellence of his Divine glory as God and the excellence of his mediatorial character as man. In him resides all the perfection of the eternal God. And in him is all that our souls need. He is the holy, immaculate, eternal Son of God. And he is made unto me wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. His love toward me makes him lovely to me. He is white in the spotless innocence of his life, and ruddy in the bloody sufferings of his death. He is white in his glory as God, and ruddy in his incarnation as man.[2] He is white in his tenderness toward his people, and ruddy in his terrible vengeance upon his enemies. [2] The name for man, “Adam,” means “red earth.”My Beloved is so infinitely above all others that there is none to compare with him. – “He is the chiefest among ten thousand.” In comparison with Christ, every other object of love and affection is but dung (Philippians 3:8). He is higher than the kings of the earth; and he has obtained a more excellent name than any in heaven, or earth, or hell (Psalms 89:27; Hebrews 1:4; Philippians 2:9-11). In his church Christ is the Chief Corner-Stone. Among the brethren Christ is the Firstborn. Among the resurrected Christ is the First-Begotten. He is the Alpha and the Omega. He is the Firstborn of every creature. God has made Christ to be pre-eminent in all things. And in the hearts of his people, He is pre-eminent (Colossians 1:14-20). The marginal translation says, “He is the Standard-Bearer among ten thousand.” He is lifted up as the Ensign, to whom his people gather. He is lifted up as the Banner, around whom we rally (Isaiah 11:10; John 12:32). The question is asked, “What is thy Beloved more than another beloved?” The bride answers, “My Beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand.” But that is not enough. A more detailed description must be given of him who ravishes her heart. She wants all to know how she beholds him.—Excellent in Beauty!—Omnipotent!—Gracious!—In every way worthy of her trust!—Fully qualified to redeem and save his people and bring them all, at last, safe to heaven! Christ is worthy of our love, our trust, and our highest admiration and esteem. He is so transcendently glorious that he is both great and gracious. His head “His head is as the most fine gold” (Son 5:11). His head speaks of our Lord’s sovereign dominion over all things (Ephesians 1:22). Like gold, the sovereignty of Christ is beautiful, strong, and precious. All who know this great King relish the fact that he is indeed King over all! His hair “His locks are bushy, and black as a raven” (Son 5:11). His hair is at the same time white and black. Whiteness denotes his eternality and wisdom (Revelation 1:14). Blackness speaks of his perpetual strength and power. His eyes “His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk and fitly set” (Son 5:12). His eyes are pure. His eyes toward us are peaceable. His eyes are penetrating. His eyes are powerful, irresistible. One look of his eye struck Peter’s heart. His eyes never blink. They are always fixed upon the objects of his love. His cheeks “His cheeks are a bed of spices, as sweet flowers” (Son 5:13). The very sight of his face, like a rich, fragrant garden, is reviving, refreshing, and pleasing. His lips “His lips are like lilies, dropping sweet-smelling myrrh” (Son 5:13). His lips are so sweet and pleasant. The words of his lips are sweeter than honey and the honeycomb. The kisses of his lips are better than wine. Grace is poured into his lips. And grace proceeds out of his lips. Grace poured out of his lips as our Surety when he pledged himself to the salvation of his chosen. Grace poured out of his lips as our Substitute at Calvary, when he said, “Father, forgive them!” and cried again in triumphant majesty, “It is finished.” Grace pours from his lips as our Savior. He comes to his own in the time of love, spreads over his redeemed the skirt of his righteousness, and says, “Live!” He declares, “I have loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.” His hands “His hands are as gold rings set with beryl” (Son 5:14). His hands, like golden rings, fitted to the finger, are fitted to accomplish their purpose —the salvation of his people (Matthew 1:21). His hands, like the king’s signet, seal the covenant of God’s grace. The piercing of his hands in death was the ratification of God’s covenant. His heart “His belly (His bowels of compassion, His heart) is as ivory overlaid with sapphires” (Son 5:14). The love of Christ’s heart for his people is as strong and firm as ivory. The many instances of his love, by which he reveals his love, are as sapphires and precious jewels.—Electing Love!—Redeeming Love!—Life-Giving Love!—Preserving Love!—Interceding Love!—Forgiving Love!—Unfailing Love!—Faithful Love!—Immutable Love!—Everlasting Love!—His Love!—There is none like it! Words can never describe it! His legs “His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold” (Son 5:15). He is The Rock! His legs are strong. His legs are stable. In other word, the Lord Jesus Christ is ever dependable. He will never be turned aside from his purpose. And he is able to accomplish it. His countenance “His countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars” (Son 5:15). In height, in strength, in power, in grace, in beauty, and in love he excels all others. There is none to rival him. His mouth “His mouth is most sweet” (Son 5:16). The words of his mouth are sweet to his people. The precepts of his Word are sweet. The principles of his Word are sweet. The promises of his Word are sweet. The kisses of his mouth, the many tokens of his love and goodness, have a transcendent sweetness in them. What more can be said? What more can I tell you about my Beloved? “He is altogether lovely!” “Unto you therefore which believe, He is precious.” He is truly lovely. He is wholly lovely. There is nothing in him but that which is lovely, and there is nothing truly lovely but that which is in him. All that our souls need is in him in infinite fulness (Psalms 73:25-26). Christ is altogether lovely. In his divinity he is lovely. In his humanity he is lovely. In his redemption he is lovely. In his salvation he is lovely. In his providence he is lovely. He is even lovely in his justice and judgment. The assurance “This is my Beloved, and this is my Friend” (Son 5:16). Matthew Henry wrote, “To see Christ, and not to see him as ours, would be rather a torture than a happiness; but to see one that is thus lovely, and to see him as ours, is complete satisfaction.” It is faith in him that gives this assurance (Hebrews 11:1). We know that Christ, in all the fulness of his grace and glory, is ours, because I trust him. Every believing heart has the right to say with Thomas to the Son of God, “My Lord and my God.” He is ours in all of his offices. He is ours in all of his works. He is ours in all of his ways. He is ours in all of his provisions. He is ours always, both now and forever. He is ours in all his possessions. He is ours, both when he openly reveals himself, and when he hides his face; both when we sense it and when we do not, he is ours. In prosperity and in adversity, in health and in sickness, in joy and in sorrow, Jesus Christ is mine, and I am his. Because Christ is ours, he is our Beloved. He loves us and we love him (1 John 4:19). He is our one true love. We have chosen him. We have willingly, deliberately given ourselves to him. Our hearts are for him, only him, and not another. And Jesus Christ the Lord, our Beloved is our Friend. O what a Friend! He is a powerful Friend. He is a sympathetic Friend. He is a patient Friend. He is an unchanging Friend. He is a wise Friend. He is a faithful Friend. He is my Friend. I have done what I can to tell you about my Beloved. I do not know whether you will ever trust him or not; but he is worthy of your trust. I do not know whether you will ever love him or not; but he is worthy of your love. I do not know whether you will ever praise him or not; but he is worthy of your praise.

Song of Solomon 5:10-16

Oh, what a friendSon_5:10-16“My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set. His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.” The wise man, Solomon, tells us that, “A man that hath friends must show himself friendly.” And I want you to see that there was never a person who showed himself so friendly as the Lord Jesus Christ. We are also told, “And there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” The Lord Jesus Christ is that Friend. “This is my Beloved, and this is my Friend.” What kind of Friend is Jesus Christ? I cannot even begin to describe him. I want to simply set before you some blessed characteristics of the sinner’s heavenly Friend. He is the truest Friend a sinner has. Excellent Christ is a Friend of transcendent excellence. The Lord Jesus Christ is a Friend who has fully demonstrated his friendship. The true extent of a man’s friendship must be measured by his deeds. Do you want a friend indeed? Christ is a Friend in deed. Tell me not what a man says, and feels, and wishes. Tell me not of his words. Tell me rather of what he does. “Friendly is as friendly does.” The things which our Lord Jesus Christ has done for his people, are the great proofs of his friendship for us. Suretyship The Son of God agreed to become our Surety in the Covenant of Grace before the world began (Proverbs 6:1-2; Hebrews 7:22). When our cause was desperate, he engaged it. When justice was ready to give us the death blow we deserved, he intervened and absorbed it. When he knew that we would become bankrupt debtors, he became our bondsman, agreeing to pay our whole debt. When he saw that we would fall into the depths of sin and misery, he undertook to bring us out, to cleanse us from all sin, to clothe us in his own righteousness, and to bring us safe to eternal glory. Was there ever such an eternal Friend as Christ? No, not one can compare with him. Incarnation For our sakes, the Lord of Glory took into union with himself our nature, and was born of a woman.—“Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, though he was rich yet for our sakes, he became poor, that we through his poverty might be made rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). For our sakes, the Christ of God lived thirty three years in this world, despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.—“He took on himself the form of a servant, and humbled himself” (Philippians 2:7-8). Substitutionary death It was for our sakes that the Son of God suffered the painful and shameful death of the cross.—“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). Though innocent and without fault, he allowed himself to be condemned and found guilty. Though he was without sin, he was made to be sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. He who was the Prince of Life was led as a Lamb to the slaughter. He poured out his soul unto death. He died for us. Behold the Christ of God, dying in your stead. Mark his sighs, his groans, his death, his victory as your Substitute, and relish this blessed claim of faith—“This is my Beloved, and this is my Friend!” Was the Lord Jesus in anyway obliged to die for us? Perish the thought! He might have summoned the help of more than twelve legions of angels, and scattered his enemies with a word. He suffered voluntarily, of his own will and purpose, to make atonement for our sins. He knew that nothing but the sacrifice of himself could satisfy God’s law. He knew that nothing but his blood could wash away our sins and make peace between sinful man and the holy Lord God. He laid down his life to pay the price of our redemption. He died that we might live. He bore our shame that we might receive his glory.—“He died the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). O matchless love! Here is unparalleled friendship. “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” But the Christ of God gives even greater evidence of his friendship, “for when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son…God commendeth his love toward us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” I ask you, was there ever such a friend who was so high and stooped so low for his friends? Was there ever a friend who gave himself at such a cost in proof of his friendship as Christ? Never was there such a friend in deed as Jesus Christ. Yet, this is not the end of his deeds for us. Mediation Christ, our Friend, has also gone to glory to take possession of it in our name, in our room, and in our stead. With his own blood he has obtained eternal redemption for us. In heaven’s glory, at the Father’s right hand, he intercedes for us unceasingly, as an Advocate with the Father. He presents our services, our sacrifices, and our prayers to the Father, bathed in his precious blood and clothed with the merit of his perfect righteousness (1 Peter 2:5). He pleads for every blessing we stand in need of. He answers all of Satan’s charges against his friends (Romans 8:33-34). Powerful For another thing, the Lord Jesus Christ is a powerful, almighty Friend. There are few in this world who possess the power to help. Many have the will to do others good, but they lack the power. They feel the sorrows of others and would gladly relieve them if they could. They weep with their friends in affliction, but they cannot remove the grief. How helpless we feel to help our friends in their sufferings! We say, “If there is anything I can do to help,” but we know that there is nothing we can do. Not so with Christ! He is a Friend who is both willing and able to help. Though man is weak, Christ is strong. “All power in heaven and earth” is given to him. No one can do so much for his friends as Christ. Others can befriend our bodies a little. Christ befriends both body and soul. Others can do a little for us in time. Christ can do everything for us in time and throughout eternity. Let me show you what power there is in this Almighty Friend. Jesus Christ has the power to pardon and save the very chief of sinners. “Thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:2-3). “The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanseth us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Christ has the power to convert the hardest of hearts and create any man anew. “As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13). “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Christ has power to break the hardest heart and give dead sinners a heart of life. Christ has power to break the most stubborn will and give his chosen a new will. Christ has power to overcome the reigning lusts of men. Christ has power to create us in his own image. Christ has power to give needy sinners repentance and faith.

Here is a Friend who has the power to preserve all who trust him unto eternal glory. “This man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:24-25). And Jesus Christ has the power to give to those who trust him and love him the best of gifts. He gives us life out of death. He gives us peace in adversity. He gives us patience in tribulation. He gives us joy in sorrow. He gives us hope in death. He gives us a crown of glory in eternity. Christ alone is such a powerful Friend. The self-righteous man has no such friend. The legalist has no such friend. The papist has no such friend. The worldling has no such friend. Love Again, the Lord Jesus Christ is a loving and affectionate Friend. Kindness is the very essence of true friendship. Money, advice, and help lose half their power and value if they are not given in a loving manner. But this Friend, the Lord Jesus Christ, is a precious Friend, because his is a “love that passeth knowledge.” The love of Christ radiates in his reception of sinners. In love and mercy our Lord stands before publicans and sinners, tenderly, affectionately calling them to come to him for life and salvation. It is the love of Christ that at last conquers our hearts, and wins us to him. His holiness made us fear. His wrath made us tremble. His law frightened us away. But his love, that love demonstrated and commended to us at Calvary, drew our hearts effectually to him. What love is this? Who can resist this love?

“Oh hope of every contrite heart! Oh joy of all the meek! To those who fall, how kind Thou art! How good to those who seek! But what to those who find? Ah! This Nor tongue nor pen can show; The love of Jesus—What it is, none but his loved ones know!”

Christ never refuses any who come to him in repentance and faith, seeking mercy. Where can the poor sinner be found who ever went to Christ, suing for mercy, crying, “God be merciful to me, I am the sinner,” and found that the gate of mercy refused to open? There are no bounds to his pity. There is no end to his compassion. There are no limitations to his mercy. There are no restraints to his love. In lovingkindness, he says, “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh unto me, I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37). Let your sins be as black and vile, abominable and wretched, as many and varied as they may be, only come to Christ in faith and you will go away saying, “Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” Read the gospel narratives again and see how our Lord dealt with sinners in love and pity. There was a woman taken in adultery. The law demanded her punishment. But the Friend of sinners said, “Neither do I condemn thee, go and sin no more.” There was a harlot who came and washed the Savior’s feet in tears of repentance. The Pharisee was indignant. But Christ was forgiving.

There was a Publican named Zachaeus, who was hated by all around him; but he was befriended, loved, and forgiven by Christ. There was a Samaritan woman, who had five husbands. The disciples marveled that Christ would stop to talk with such a woman. But he not only talked with her, he gave her the water of life. There was a dying thief who had joined others in railing against Christ. But soon his heart was broken, and in faith he prayed for mercy.

To him the Lord promised eternal paradise. Did ever a sinner meet with so loving a Friend as Christ Jesus? No, never! Churches may shut their doors against you. People may be hardened against you. Preachers may reject you and be repelled by you. But the sinner’s one, true Friend will never turn away one who seeks mercy. Go to him. Go directly to Christ, and see if he is not so loving a Friend as I have described. Yet there is more, the love of Christ is also evident in every aspect of his dealing with sinners after they are converted and become his friends. He is patient with our sins. His ear is always open to our cries. He is our escape in the time of temptation. He is our comfort in the time of trouble. He feels our sorrows and carries our griefs. He supplies our daily needs. He reveals his secrets to us.—“Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you” (John 15:15). “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant” (Psalms 25:14). There is no love in heaven above, or upon the earth beneath that can be compared to the love of Christ, our Friend. He loves us at all times. He loved us before the world began. He loved us when he created us in innocence, after the image of God, in our father Adam. He loved us when we fell in Adam. He loved us when we came forth from the womb speaking lies. He loved us when we hated him. He loved us when we were helpless, ruined, depraved, and dead in sin. He loved us when he called us to life. He loves us in spite of all our sins. He loves us perfectly and immutably. He loves us forever! And the only reason for his love is in himself. He loved us because he would love us! Never, never was there a friend so real, so true, so loving as Christ our Friend. Wisdom The Lord Jesus Christ is also a wise and prudent Friend. The friendship of men is sadly blind. We often injure those whom we love by ignorance. We often give our friends bad advice and lead them into trouble, even when we mean to help them. But the friendship of Christ is always wise and prudent. I have but one daughter.

And I love her dearly. But I have, at times, spoiled her by extravagance. That is not wise. The Lord Jesus never makes such mistakes in managing the affairs of his friends. Jesus Christ never spoils his friends by extravagant indulgence. Christ gives us all the poverty and all the wealth we need.

He gives us all the sickness and all the health we need. He gives us all the sorrow and all the joy we require. He gives us all the pain and all the comfort that is necessary for our good. Like the wise physician, the Lord Jesus mixes our bitterest cups, taking great care that we have not a drop too little, nor a drop too much. Christ faithfully and wisely rebukes us for our sins. “Open rebuke is better than secret love. Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (Proverbs 27:5-6). The Lord Jesus Christ is a friend whose company is always edifying. His fellowship is always beneficial. One day spent in the company of this heavenly Friend is better than a thousand spent with the best of earthly friends. One hour spent in private communion with Christ is better than a year in kings’ palaces. Never was there such a wise and prudent friend as Christ. Proven Moreover, the Lord Jesus Christ is a tried and proven Friend. Six thousand years have passed away since the Lord Jesus began his work of befriending mankind. During those six milleniums he has had many friends in this world. Millions have despised this Friend, and are miserably lost forever. But there is an innumerable company of men in heaven and earth who have enjoyed the blessed privilege of Christ’s friendship, and have been saved by him. They all testify that Christ is a Proven Friend. Look at the great variety of friends Christ has had and know that there was never a friend like him. He has had friends of every rank and station in life. Some of them were kings and rich men, like David, Solomon, Hezekiah, and Job. Others were very poor in this world, like the shepherds of Bethlehem, James, John, and Andrew. Christ has had friends of every age known in human history. Some of his friends were very old like Sarah and Abraham, Jacob and Moses. Some of them were but children, like Joseph and Samuel, Josiah and Timothy.

Our Lord has had friends of every possible temperament known to man. Some were plain and simple, like Isaac; some were mighty in word and deed, like Moses. Some were fervent, warm-hearted, and fiery, like Peter; others were gentle, shy, and tender, like John. Some were active and stirring, like Martha; others loved to sit quietly at the Savior’s feet, like Mary. Our Savior has had friends from every possible background and condition. Some were married, like Enoch; others were unmarried, like the Baptist.

Some were sick, like Lazarus; others were strong and healthy, like John the Beloved. Some were masters, like Cornelius; others were servants, like Onesimus. Some of them had bad servants, like Elisha; some had bad masters, like Obadiah; and others had bad families, like David. Some of Christ’s friends had been self-righteous Pharisees; others had been harlots; one had been a murderer; another had been a thief. Blessed be God, Christ Jesus stoops down to rescue the perishing scum and off scouring men of the world and make them his friends. Our Redeemer has friends of every nation, kindred, race, tribe, and tongue in the world. Go to Adam and Abel, Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, Moses and Joshua, Rahab and Deborah, David and Solomon, Isaiah and Jeremiah, Peter and John, James and Paul; go to any man or woman who has tasted that the Lord is gracious, and ask them if Jesus Christ is not a tried and proven Friend. We stand as one man and say, “This is my Beloved, and this is my Friend,” and there is none like him. Present Once more, the Lord Jesus Christ is an unfailing, present Friend. Perhaps the saddest part of all good things in this world is their instability. Riches make themselves wings and fly away. Youth and beauty are but for a few days. Bodily strength soon decays. Mind and intelligence are soon exhausted. All is perishing. All is fading away. But there is one blessed exception to this general rule, and that is the friendship of Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ is a Friend who never changes. He is “the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). He says, “I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed” (Matthew 3:16). Our all-glorious Christ will never leave his friends. He has promised, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5). He goes with us wherever we may go. And thus he fulfills his promise, “I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:20). In our afflictions, Christ is a Friend present to comfort. “Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and though the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee” (Isaiah 43:1-2). “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness” (Isaiah 41:10). When we are upon the bed of sickness, Christ is the Friend who makes the bed comfortable for us. “The Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing: thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness” (Psalms 41:3). In death, Jesus Christ is a Friend present to sustain us. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me” (Psalms 23:4). In the day of judgment, Christ will be our Friend in the court of heaven. He will stand by our side in the reckoning day, as an Advocate to plead our cause. When all other friends have failed, Jesus Christ is “a Friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” “When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up” (Psalms 27:10). Beloved Let me show you one more thing, the Lord Jesus Christ is a friend well-beloved by all who know him. “Unto you therefore who believe, he is precious.” All who can say in truth and sincerity that Christ is their Friend, will also gladly confess with all of their hearts - “This is my Beloved.” The world thinks that we are fools for making such a confession concerning Christ. They say to us, “What is thy Beloved more than another beloved?” But they have not seen him. They have not known him. They have not embraced him. They have never experienced his grace. They have never known his love. But all who know this divine Friend, rejoice to confess, “My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand…Yea, he is altogether lovely!…This is my Beloved, and this is my Friend!” Christ Jesus is a Friend loved by all who know Him, because we know who He is. Jesus Christ is a Friend beloved by us, because we have experienced his love. Now, “we love him, because he first loved us.” The Lord Jesus is a Friend beloved by all who know Him, because we know what He has done. Our heavenly Friend is beloved by us, because we know that he is soon coming to receive us.

One there is above all others, well deserves the name of Friend; His is love beyond a brother’s costly, free, and knows no end: They who once His kindness prove, find it everlasting love.

Which of all our friends to save us, could or would have shed their blood? But our Jesus died to have us reconciled, in Him to God: This was boundless love indeed! Jesus is a Friend in need.

When He lived on earth abased, Friend of sinners was His name; Now above all glory raised, He rejoices in the same. Still he calls us brethren, friends; and to all our wants attends.

Oh for grace our hearts to soften! Teach us, Lord, at length to love! We, alas, forget too often what a Friend we have above: But when home our souls are brought, we shall love thee as we ought.”

Song of Solomon 5:16

“This is my friend.”Son 5:16“His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.” “I’ve found a Friend, O such a Friend! He loved me ere I knew Him; He drew me with the cords of love, and thus He bound me to Him. I’ve found a Friend, O such a Friend! He bled and died to save me; And not alone the gift of life, but His own self He gave me.

I’ve found a Friend, O such a Friend! All power to Him is given To guard me on my onward course, and bring me safe to heaven. I’ve found a Friend, O such a Friend! So kind and true and tender, So wise a counselor and guide, so mighty a Defender!”

The Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the Friend of needy sinners. Someone once said, “Friendship is the only thing in the world concerning the usefulness of which all mankind are agreed.” A friend is one of the greatest blessings on earth. Affection is better far than gold. Sympathy is indescribably better than property. The poorest man in all the world is the man who is friendless and alone. If you would be happy in this world, you must have friends. And if you desire happiness in eternity, you must find a Friend in the Person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only Savior of poor sinners. The world is full of sorrow, because it is full of sin. It is a dark place. It is a lonely place. It is a disappointing place. The brightest sunbeam in this dark world is a friend. A friend will make our sorrows half what they would otherwise be. And a friend doubles every joy. But a real friend is a scarce and rare treasure. Many will share the bright sunshine of happiness and prosperity. Few will weep with us when we weep and stand by our sides in the dark night of adversity. The sick, the helpless, and the poor find that friends are scarce indeed. Above all, there are few who will care for our souls! The friendship of this world is as bitter as it is brittle. Trust in it, and you will have trusted a robber. Rely upon it, and you will have leaned upon a spear that will pierce your soul. The Lord Jesus Christ is a real Friend, an everlasting Friend, and a Friend in every time of need. Christ is the Friend we need. The sinner’s friend The Lord Jesus Christ is the Friend of sinners, the only true Friend sinners have. He made it his common practice to eat with publicans and sinners, so much so that he was commonly derided as the “Friend of publicans and sinners” (Matthew 9:10-13; Matthew 11:19). But that which his enemies thought was his shame is his glory. The Son of God came into this world specifically on an errand of mercy, love, and grace. He came into the world to save sinners. He lived for sinners. He died for sinners. He rose again for sinners. He intercedes for sinners. He loves sinners. He saves sinners (Romans 5:6-8). The sinner’s faithful friend The Lord Jesus Christ is the “Friend that sticketh closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24). On a purely earthly level, Solomon tells us that if we would have friends, we must show ourselves friendly. “A man that hath friends must show himself friendly.” I have never known an obviously friendly person who did not have an abundance of friends. If we would have people be thoughtful of us, we must be thoughtful of others. If we would have kindness shown to us, we must be kind to others. If we want people to speak well of us, we must speak well of others. If we want people to be generous toward us, we must be generous to others. I have observed that usually those who are most easily offended are those who think nothing of offending. Those who complain the most about doing things are those who always do as little as they can without public embarrassment. Those who are the most selfish are those who complain most about the selfishness of others. Those who are the most unfriendly are the very ones who complain that others are unfriendly. – “A man that hath friends must show himself friendly.” Look at the next line of Pro 18:24. Solomon tells us, “There is a Friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” He did not find this Friend in his unbridled pleasures, or in the wanderings of his unlimited research, but in the pavilion of the Most High, in the secret dwelling place of the Almighty, in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. I can tell you, both from the Word of God and from the experience of more than thirty-five years, that our all glorious Christ, my Lord, my God, my Redeemer, my Savior, is the greatest, best, wisest, most loving, disinterested, and faithful of Friends. How happy is that family whose family Friend is Jesus Christ! How happy and blessed is that man whose best Friend is the Son of God! “There is a Friend that sticketh closer than a brother,” and his name is Immanuel, the Christ of God. “This is my Beloved, and this is my Friend.” I have never been much of a friend to him; but, oh, what a Friend he is to me!

“Poor, weak, and worthless, though I am, I have a rich, almighty Friend; Jesus, the Savior, is His name: He freely loves, and without end.

He ransomed me from hell with blood; and by His power my foes controlled: He found me wandering far from God, and brought me to His chosen fold.

He cheers my heart, my wants supplies, and says that I shall shortly be Enthroned with Him above the skies: Oh! What a Friend is Christ to me!

But, oh! My inmost spirit mourns; and well my eyes with tears may swim, To think of my perverse returns: I’ve been a faithless friend to Him.

Sure, were I not most vile and base, I could not thus my Friend requite: And, were He not the God of grace, He’d frown and spurn me from His sight! The friend needed The Lord Jesus Christ is the one Friend we need. Yes, the Son of God is a Friend in need. And man is the most needy creature on God’s earth, because he is a sinner. There is no need so great as that of sinners. Poverty, hunger, thirst, cold, sickness, all are nothing in comparison with sin. As sinners, we need righteousness; but we have no power to get it. We need atonement; but we have no ability to make it. We need pardon; and we are utterly unable to provide it for ourselves. We need deliverance from a guilty conscience and the fear of death; but we have no power in ourselves to obtain it. Christ, is a Friend to sinners in need. He came into the world to relieve us of the great need caused by sin. He came to remove our guilt, save us from sin, and deliver us from the curse of the law. It was said of the child Jesus, “Thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). “This is a faithful saying, worthy of all acceptation, Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief!” (1 Timothy 1:15). Let me show you from the Word of God why we need Christ as our Friend. All of us by nature are poor, diseased, dying creatures From the President in the White House, to the farmer in the field, from the professor at the University, to the school-boy in kindergarten, we are all sick from the mortal disease of the soul—sin. Whether we know it or not, whether we feel it or not, we are all dying because of sin. We are as “a sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evil doers, children that are corrupters: we have forsaken the Lord, we have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, we are gone away backward…the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the soul of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in us; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment” (Isaiah 1:4-6). The plague of sin is in our hearts. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). “God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5). “Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witnesses, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man” (Matthew 15:19-20). Our problem is that we have a heart disease, a disease incurable, except by the blood of Christ and his almighty grace. The root of all sin is in your heart and mine by nature. It is the heart that must be changed. We must have a new heart implanted within us. Christ alone can change the sinner’s heart. This plague of the heart has so permeated our being that every faculty of man, both body and soul, is defiled with sin. “We have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that we are all under sin; as it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. We are all gone out of the way, we are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Our throat is an open sepulchre: with our tongues we have used deceit; the poison of asps is under our lips: our mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: Our feet are swift to shed blood: Destruction and misery are in our ways: and the way of peace have we not known: There is no fear of God before our eyes. Now we know that what things so ever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God…For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:9-19; Romans 3:23). Our understanding is so perverse that we will never seek God. Our throats are so corrupt that they are like open graves. Our tongues are deceitful weapons. Our lips are full of poisonous words. Our mouths are but vehicles to express anger, bitterness, and wrath. Our feet run to do evil. Our ways are full of misery and end in destruction. Our eyes look to do evil, having no fear of God. These things are not true of a few, very wicked and openly vile people. They are true of us all. We are all, at the very core of our beings, abominably wicked and totally depraved. There are no exceptions. This disease of sin, this plague of the heart, is an inbred, family disease, passed on from father to son, generation after generation. It is a disease which grows worse and worse, with every passing hour. Christ alone can cure our souls of the disease of sin. We could never cure ourselves. No angel or man could produce a remedy for sin. But the Lord Jesus Christ came into the world to cure us of the plague of the heart - “Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth” (Jeremiah 33:6). He came “to abolish death, and bring life and immortality to light through the gospel” (1 Timothy 1:10). All of us by nature are debtors to God We were bankrupt sinners, head over heels in debt to the Almighty. We owed our God ten thousand talents, and had not one penny with which to pay. We could never have freed ourselves from the debt of sin; but only got more deeply involved day after day. The Lord Jesus Christ came to pay our debt. He canceled the bill, paying the full requirements of God’s holy law. Jesus paid it all, all the debt I owed! O my soul, how I ought to love him! There is not a soul out of hell whose debt was so great as mine (Luke 7:40-43). All of us by nature were under the curse of the law The sentence was upon us.—“The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” We could never satisfy the demands of the law. We could not keep its precepts. We could not appease its wrath. We could not atone for sin. But Jesus Christ came to do for us what we could never do for ourselves. He kept the precepts of the law as our Representative before God. He died under the curse of the law as our Substitute, putting away sin. “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us, for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree” (Galatians 3:13). “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed” (1 Peter 2:24). All of us by nature were shipwrecked, perishing, and sliding into hell We could never, in ourselves, have reached the harbor of everlasting life. We were sinking in the midst of the waves, shiftless, hopeless, helpless, and powerless. We were tied and bound by the chain of our sins, in bonds under the burden of guilt, imprisoned under the yoke of the law, and slipping (No! Running headlong!) into hell. All this, our Lord saw and undertook to remove. He came down from heaven to “proclaim liberty tot he captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound” (Isaiah 61:1). He came “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). He came to “deliver us from going down into the pit” (Job 33:24). Yes, the Lord Jesus Christ is a Friend in need. He is the Friend I need and the Friend you need. We could never have been saved without the Lord Jesus Christ coming down from heaven. Salvation would have been an impossibility without Christ. The wisest men of Egypt, Greece, and Rome combined could never have found a way of peace with God. Without the friendship of Christ, we would all have been lost forever in hell. Could we have changed our hearts? Could we have satisfied the demands of the law? Could we have delivered ourselves from the bondage of sin? Could we have paid our debts to God? Could we have delivered ourselves from the jaws of hell? No! No! A thousand times no! Without our Friend, Christ Jesus, we would be forever damned. It was our Lord’s own free love, mercy, and pity that brought him down from heaven to save us. He was in no way obliged to do so. He came and saved us, unsought, unasked, unwanted, because he was gracious, just because he loved us! Search the history of the world. Look around the globe. Examine all of those whom you know and love. There never was such a friend as the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

“There’s not a friend like the lowly Jesus, No not one! No not one! None else could heal all our souls diseases, No not one! No not one!”

The Lord Jesus Christ is the only true Friend a sinner has. He is the one Friend who will always be our Friend, the one Friend who sticks closer than a brother. The Son of God is the Friend we need. Sinners can have this Friend unconditionally, forever. He is the Friend of all who trust him. Indeed, he is such a Friend that he takes his worst enemies into his very heart and reconciles their hearts to him, giving them faith, causing them, by the conquest of irresistible mercy, love and grace, to trust and love him. “This is my Friend!” May God the Holy Spirit make him yours.