Mike Bickle emphasizes the profound love of God as depicted in Song of Solomon 8:5-7, illustrating the church's journey from the wilderness into victory through love that is stronger than death. He explains that this love empowers believers to overcome fear, persecution, and temptation, especially in the end times, where the church will face unprecedented challenges. Bickle highlights the importance of the first commandment to love God with all our heart, which is foundational for spiritual growth and resilience. He encourages believers to seek a deeper relationship with God, allowing the Holy Spirit to seal their hearts with His fiery love, which transforms and sustains them through trials. Ultimately, Bickle calls for a commitment to prioritize love for God above all else, assuring that this love will prevail against all adversities.

Verse 5 and 6 just to get the feel for the passage and we'll break it down more throughout the session The question is asked who is this coming up? from the wilderness Leaning on the ones she loves leaning on her beloved So the question somebody's Seen coming up in victory out of the wilderness not destroyed not distraught But coming up, but she's leaning on the one she loves and then the verse 6 The king says set me as a seal upon your heart for love Rather my love is as strong as death Well here in Song of Solomon chapter 5 Which is the final? Part Of her life because it's an eight chapter love song and I there's various ways to interpret this a chapter love song of Song of Solomon, but I look at it as the progression of holy passion. This is the epitome. This is the ultimate Experience that's being described in this poetic language of love But it describes the maturity of the body of Christ the bride of Christ coming up now I'm going to give a Eschatological application or that's a fancy word for in time But because this passage obviously applies at any time through history, but I believe there's a unique application of this poem on The church coming up out of the most intense season of wilderness called the great tribulation But the church is empowered in love She has a love that's stronger than the power of death Because Satan's number one weapon is the fear of death Well, he accuses us night and day But when he pulls out his most intense weapon against the church, it's the threat of death. He wants to intimidate people By the threat of killing them martyrdom and at the end of the age in that generation There will be more martyrs at that time than any other time in history But what this poem is telling us prophetically There will be an experience of love That is superior to the fear of death And this issue of the seal of love upon the heart again, that's a poetic language, but it is the Holy Spirit imparting The revelation of God's love for us and imparting love in us back to God and Then of course it overflows to other people as well this love Will be an issue of life and death meaning the church through history Hasn't faced the kind of persecution. It's gonna face One final hour that is yet future But it will be love that will be the power will be the secret power of the church Won't be just gritting our teeth and hanging in there. It will be overcome with love Where the power is greater than the escalating temptations in the culture because sin and lust will reach a Level never seen in history But there will be a people all over the earth that were their love for Jesus and their experience of love will be greater than the temptations of the lust of the culture and it will be greater than the fear of persecution and even the intimidation of death For it says in verse 6 for this love is as strong as death this has echoes of That famous passage in Revelation 12 where it says the Saints in the end of the age They will love their life even unto death. I Mean they will not love their life, but they will love Jesus even more than death they would consider it a Privilege to give their life for love is the idea paragraph be the wilderness now poetically is the wilderness of this fallen world, you know all 6,000 years of recorded human history since Adam the wilderness speaks of Temptations that lure us outside of the will of God The wilderness speaks of the persecutions that attack us because we do the will of God The wilderness speaks of our just our natural weakness as we're facing the challenges John the Apostle described The church coming up in victory at the end in Revelation 5 I'm a revelation 15 verse 2. He said I saw a great multitude on the sea of glass Standing before the throne a multitude. I mean millions and millions and millions, but here's the part I like I mean, I like being on the sea of glass. That's that's really good but it says They're standing in victory over the Antichrist the book of Revelation chapter 12 says that the Antichrist Overcomes the Saints physically not all of them, but there'll be the largest number of martyrs But the Saints overcome him spiritually because their love doesn't waver their love prevails over his threats So when you first read in the book of Revelation, it says the Antichrist overcomes the Saints you think Wow But the Saints overcome the Antichrist, which is it? They overcome the sentence the Antichrist will overcome the Saints physically Many not I don't believe it's most but I believe the number will be very significant But he won't Overcome them spiritually their love will prevail in the face of threat. They'll come up leaning on the one they love Coming up in victory out of the wilderness season. Not just all of history Yes that too, but in that particular time frame and again Walking in love the first commandment will be an issue of life and death It won't be kind of a casual thing. If you're growing in love, you'll prevail if you're not growing in love you'll be swept into The temptations of the culture and it's growing lost and the fearful threats of persecution paragraph D She's leaning That's a very important word that the bride is pictured like Jacob Remember Jacob wrestled with the Lord and then he was limping and leaning on a staff afterwards but he was transformed and so the Church is going to be transformed in one generation from a Laodicean church where compromise is very common There's going to be a tremendous Outpouring of the Spirit and a tremendous shaking in the nation's and a tremendous persecution all of them coming together and Jacob Is gonna wrestle with the Lord? Gonna be transformed as he was in Genesis 32. That's a picture of the people of God Transformed through wrestling with the Lord, but he was leaning and limping at the end But I'll add one more word she's the church's leaning on her beloved the one she loves the Lord is determined To remove the props that we lean on that give us false comforts false security false Sense of success. He wants those props. We moved removed. That's part of the shaking of the nation's that's going to happen before the Lord returns Well, let's look at Roman number two Now the Understanding of the first commandment is key to understanding this seal of love this fiery seal Because it's a seal of fire a seal of love that's put upon our heart it's a fiery flame it says and This seal of love really can only be understood in context of the first commandment The paragraph a the very familiar passage One of the most significant statements in the whole Bible Matthew chapter 22 by the words of by the mouth of Jesus You shall love the Lord your God With all of your heart your soul and your mind Then in Mark 12, he adds in all of your strength. He adds that fourth category But here in verse 38 the Lord then elaborates he goes I want you to know something This commandment to love with all of your heart is the first commandment from God's point of view And it's the great commandment from God's point of view Now the thing that one of the things that makes this declaration of Jesus so significant Is that it was his final public message before the cross? This was one of the last things he said in his public ministry Then he talked to his disciples in private and then he went to the cross paragraph B The command to love God with all of our heart. It doesn't start with us God doesn't say hey, I want you to love me with all of your heart and then we'll go from there But the command to love with all of our heart actually starts with God Long before the creation of the earth God loved God with all of his heart God the Father loved the Son God the Son loved the Spirit God the Spirit loved the Father and the Son and all the different combinations God dwelt in perfect love in the fellowship of the Trinity in eternity past This is how it was This is how God is And then God conceived of the plan because love demands by definition love demands to be multiplied the Enjoyment of love demands to be multiplied So that others are brought into the enjoyment of it The Father Son and Holy Spirit are so enjoying their relationship together in the family of God That the Father said by the very fact of love in our enjoyment of it we must multiply it and share it So he created Adam and Eve and the human race Created them in the image of God. So they had the capacity to receive in return this love paragraph C Well, God doesn't only love God with all of his heart. God loves people with all of his heart It's only later God says people I want you to respond in the way that we love we want you to enter into this grand glorious reality The passage I preach on more than any other or comment on more than any other passage in the Bible is John 15 9 you Hear it almost every week. I Just can't get over this passage Jesus Said in the way and the intensity the Father loves me. That's how I love you that what in The intensity of how the Father loves me. That's how I love you then in John 17 He says the same thing a little different. He goes in the way that the Father loves me. The Father loves you, too So he says it two ways The way the Father loves me. I love you in the way the Father loves me He loves you because God can only love with all of his heart. That's the only way God loves This is what gives us security the fact that God can't change When God loves that's the only way he loves Beloved this is the ultimate statement of our value. This is the reason we have confidence as believers Because we're relating to one that loves with all of his heart his track record is perfect He's proven it There is no change in him top of page two Well to understand the seal of love this fiery seal of love We got to get the big picture of the first commandment The call to love Because that's what the seal of love we're going to develop in a moment is all about it's understood in context of the first commandment Paragraph F The very first time God commanded people to love To love God with all of their heart was back in Deuteronomy 6 with Moses When Moses came before God God says, okay, here's the command Moses tell the people love me with all their heart This is that this was a new idea the first time ever in the scripture. It was declared This was a new idea because he you know Most of Israel was thinking they had come before God and the Mount Sinai in the mountain Trembled and smoke and fire and Israel drew back in fear and they ran away No, no, and so they had the idea of serving God in fear God says well, they don't have it. Right exactly. I want them to have the fear of the Lord But they don't really grasp what I'm after. I want them to love me with all of their heart. I Didn't really understand because God loves us with all of his heart It's like the Lord says I'm the one that started this because that's how I am but Moses will cover that later Tell them to love me with all their heart That's Deuteronomy 6, but then very important Deuteronomy 30 This is a passage you all want to know Deuteronomy 30 The Lord Elaborates on the command. It's not only an exhortation. You ought to love God Deuteronomy 6 the first time he said it This is a prophecy Not that you ought to love God, but you actually will God says I'm going to take matters into my own hands And I'm going to release such an outpouring of the Spirit and I'm going to create such an environment In the nations through the shaking of the nations through the testing of the nations of the outpouring of my spirit the whole thing He says here Deuteronomy 30 the Lord will circumcise your heart to love him He goes the Lord is going to do something to circumcise the heart man He's gonna do something in the human heart that is beyond the power of fleshly abilities God himself is gonna do something in the human heart amongst his people That is beyond their human natural abilities. God says I will do this You can be sure That my plan will not fall to the ground I will have a people forever That will love me like I love them beloved. This is our destiny. This is who we are This is the only thing that makes sense out of life actually so here Jesus is Matthew 22 the passage where he says you shall love the Lord your God his very final message to To the people of God he goes to the cross. Well, he talks to his disciples in private at the Last Supper, etc But he goes to this is it He stands before them You shall love the Lord your God He wasn't only giving an exhortation That was expressing Deuteronomy 6 he was giving a prophecy that was expressing Deuteronomy 30 as well He was looking at Israel. He says Israel you don't really know this But I told Moses and Deuteronomy 30 you will love me and I just say I think it's this kind of deal father Before I go to the cross Let me declare as the bridegroom God with authority who they are you shall love the Lord your God It shall come to pass. I think that's what he was saying Yes, he was giving an instruction but me a more than instruction He was declaring with all the authority of heaven the destiny of the people of God you shall of the Lord your God well paragraph G then Jesus added two words that he didn't tell Moses When God spoke to Moses, he just said love God with all your heart. That was it Jesus here five hundred year. I mean 1,500 years after Moses Says let me tell you something. I didn't tell Moses This is the first commandment and it's the great one Moses knew it was important, but he didn't know this From the point of view of the Father Son and Spirit This is the number one commandment in all of the kingdom of God top priority Number the second thing he says this is the commandment that God calls great Paragraph H This is the Holy Spirit's first emphasis in your life You Know our students. I hope you students they come here this next week So there'll be a few of them be here next Friday night, but the class starts. They'll be here the week after fully, but they're starting to come this week and I love to talk to the students and I kind of Do this little thing with them. I always say it publicly. So all I get is pay attention I'm giving it's a pop quiz, but I give him the answer before I give him the quiz and the answer is The most important Prophetic word and direction of the Holy Spirit for your life. Your highest calling is to love God with all of your heart So I'll talk to one say hey, I want to pray for you About your calling. I want to prophesy to you about your calling They get really excited. Oh awesome And often I ask him. Oh, what what is your calling your highest calling and often they'll talk about how much impact They're going to have You know, they're gonna lead more people to the Lord than Billy Graham and Reinhardt Bonnke combined. I Love the seal, but I go well Their highest calling isn't what you're going to do. It's what you're going to be It's what you're gonna be And I show him the verse Say the highest calling the very first to the great. That's the one that will make you great to love God. Oh Okay, we know that Oh, we thought you're gonna really prophesy go. I just did people ask You know the question what's God saying to this to the church and I'm in different leadership meetings over the years And I say I know I do a little be a little bit weird. But uh, but I mean it too. I Go, I know the number one thing God's saying to the church in the nation. The other leaders turn really Absolutely, number one no matter what they all look I do it kind of get their attention God called it first There is no priority in your life more important than this in your life right now I mean we want a breakthrough On our finance and our health and our relationships and our favor and our impact and all those things. I want all those I want a double breakthrough when I get it that I want a double breakthrough again. I Love those areas, but beloved let me be really clear Those are not the first priority of the calling of God on my life or your life The Lord's after something he's after our hearts paragraph I It's the great calling this when a person Sets their life in this trajectory to love God even before they mature This is where they're going it has the greatest impact on God's heart of anything you do When you love him in secret not that it has to always be secret But meaning nobody even pays attention. Nobody esteems it they ignore it and but you're in your heart You're setting out to love him This has a great impact on God's heart and your heart and this is what will make you great in his sight in the age to come Matthew chapter 5 Jesus says a statement that's it's a little unsettling to Western Christians. We don't really like this Matthew 5 When you read it in context, he says He's talking about believers in the kingdom in the age to come That's clearly what he's talking about. He said let me be clear with you Among those in the family of God in the New Jerusalem in the age to come Some of you will be greatest and some of you will be least you'll all be in but there will be distinctions We don't like that We would rather just everybody just be equal. I mean, we're you know Democratic nation, you know, we vote we're all equal. It's like what what and now we are equal in Our significance to God, but there will be a different response at a different Even experience of people of God in the age to come he said some of you talking to believers will be great and some of you will be least you'll all be in heaven and what he Means great. It doesn't mean that Other people you'll strut in front of them and say hey, dude, I did better than you. It's not that kind of deal It's the Lord declaring That the choices you made he esteemed them as great But you could take a person my favorite word here in Matthew 5 verse 19 isn't the word great. It's the word whoever You could take a believer Now, let me exaggerate it beyond reality Take a believer. Let me think of the worst setting he could have no friends No gifting no impact Nobody appreciates him no education. No money put ten more things on the list To really pile up and make this horrible Everything he does everyone ignores nobody will even say hi back to him Has no gifts. There's no such thing as that but just for the illustration No giftings no impact. No honor. Nothing lonely painful, but he seeks to love God and The one little person in the neighborhood about a little 12 year old boy down the street You know that he gives cookies to and he says hey what's going on? That's the only guy will listen to him, you know And he's talking about Jesus to him the only person Jesus said if you will do this and teach even if you got one person Listening, you don't have a lot. You will be called great no matter what your economics No matter what your position no matter who paid attention. I will speak up for you in that day. I promise you I Call this the great equalizer Jesus said I'm telling you this is the way to greatness. There is no mystery to this. I Think we're gonna be shocked on the last day that this is literal Some of you are going to be shocked when you find out that God looked at your life with a value more than you understood and You somewhere in the grace of God found a contentment serving him Nobody made a big deal about you There was no fanfare and most of your service got overlooked But he saw every single cup of cold water you ever gave in his name Some of you're gonna be shocked when he describes your life decisions as great in his sight and Some of you are gonna be shocked when he looks at that guy over there that you thought was just you know I don't know much about him. The Lord's gonna say. Oh, I watched him closely Nobody else paid attention to him, but he sought to love me and the two or three people he impacted Nobody else would pay attention to him. He was always urging them to obey God And he says you don't have a big following You just have to use the following you have and in encourage them to obey me. I remember one of the I Consider it the most significant day or one of the most significant days probably the most in my life as a believer And that was many years ago. I've had a couple really profound supernatural experiences in 40 years But I consider this other Experience the most significant one. I mean as a believer. I'm in the kingdom some years ago The day when the word first Became real and I looked at it. It was like a my eyes opened And the Lord says this is in the essence this is what I want first out of you from you and When the word first became real and personal it changed my entire life. I remember it vividly When I said before the Lord Lord what? Why because I would always tell stories of people who love God and God use I go. Why not me? Why don't I be a person that loves you like this I go man, I'm messed up and I got all these other things I was a young man. I said no, why not me? Why can't I make this first? More than my impact because my I mean my natural Main things I wanted a good family a good ministry good friends good I still want all those things, but there was a day a literal day when I decided Walking in the grace of God intentionally To fulfill the first commandment in my life would actually be number one over those other very legitimate important things I haven't done it. Well, and I've had to sign back up a hundreds of times But there was a day it dawned on me That was what my life was about and a light went on and it sent me on in a completely different way with the Lord And blessed is the man and the woman Who when they look at these two words great and first and it's personal to them That's what this seal of love is all about It'd be one of the greatest days of your life. I Read a quote. I forgot who said it But it said the two greatest days in your life are the day you're born and the day you Understand why you were born Those are the two greatest days of your life. Just I think it's a secular Poet type, I don't know who but wasn't an overtly Christian but the two greatest days of your life or two most important days the day you're born and the day you figure out why what Your purpose is and I know my number one purpose to walk in the first commandment Again I come up short, but at least I know where I'm aiming Well, let's look at this Roman numeral three Let's look at the whole passage here verse six and seven We know she's coming up out of the wilderness of history, but there's a unique wilderness at the end of the age So we've already established that The king is inviting her To seek to receive the seal of fire on her heart This is the Lord speaking to the church poetically put me as the seal of fire on your heart Set me as a seal upon your heart because he says I'm willing But I need your cooperation You have to invite me you have to participate with me in this and it will be progressive and I will do this in your life This is another word of saying determine the first commandment is the top priority It literally is first again the day in your life Which many of you it's already happened when it dawns on you The word first is literal and it becomes personal and it's real to you That I think is the most important day of your life after a year day of salvation verse 6 The king is speaking Poetically here set me as a seal upon your heart Then he says that a different again set me as a seal on your arm Your arm speaks of your labor in your ministry For Love speaking of God's love. I'm now interpreting this through a New Testament context Love is strong as death God's love is Like jealousy it is as it used the word cruel here But I think another word that helps us understand it's as demanding as the grave is Its flames Our flames of fire the seal the love it's like flames of fire So it's a most vehement flame. It's powerful. There's nothing equal to its power if you yield to it continually It's a flame. That's most vehement. No power in the natural order is stronger than this fire if yielded to Intentionally and consistently Doesn't mean we don't fall short a number of times in the way, but we sign back up The Lord is saying this this yielding to this love it will overpower any kind of fear lust bitterness Disappointment identity crisis you name it. This love is vehement. It's more powerful Then he goes on and Develops it more It's as many waters Can't quench this love because in the natural Water always puts out fire get enough water. The fire will go out But not this fire. This is a supernatural fire The plans the love poem goes many waters lust increasing in the culture Persecution threats of death credible pressures the shaking of nations Can't put this fire out because again in the natural water always puts out fire always except for this time Even floods a Whole flood can be released on this flame and this flame will overpower the flood of water. This is a big statement and Then he ends This powerful declaration the king It's making this statement If a man he ends it with this proverb, which we'll look at in a moment The man would give for love all the wealth of his house It would be utterly despised what that means if a man gave for love all the wealth of his house and somebody Congratulated him and says you're so amazing. You gave it for love. He would say There was nothing heroic in it because the reward of love is the ability to love And the guy would say I despise being recognized as being honorable in some unique way Don't know the power of what I did was the love itself. That's what that proverb means paragraph B I've told this story many times over the years, but I love to tell it. It's 1988 So what is that? What 20 a long time ago? How long 30 years almost 30 I guess years ago, I Was pastoring was in my office. I was reading a wedding card The wedding card had song of Solomon 8 6 Set me as a seal upon your heart a seal of fire greater than love death, etc, etc. I went. Oh, wow and Suddenly I just read it in an instant. I'd seen that verse before you know wedding cards never really paid attention to it In a particular way, but I just opened it and the Spirit of the Lord rested on me And within a one or two seconds, I had my heart is tender and I'm got this gentle weeping happening And I'm saying Jesus I did I instantly made it spiritual. I go Jesus Seal my heart with your fiery love Then a few seconds later, I mean, I'm really being touched by the Lord. I'm just gently weeping I go Put your seal of love. I don't even know I've never even paid attention to this verse But suddenly it's on me About ten minutes later a few minutes later I Pick up the phone in my office at the church and I the receptionist. I said, hey something really unusual is happening right now It's about 8 o'clock in the morning 9 o'clock in the morning. I go if anybody comes by or calls don't let anybody come by I mean don't let anybody knock on my door. The Lord's touching me in a strange way. I don't know what's happening Substance is okay That's the only time I've ever done that in 40 years called the receptionist and says no matter what even my wife No matter what no phone calls. I've never done that. I wish I had more reasons to I'm kind of ashamed I haven't had more experiences But I said at that one time And I'm there just kneeling down and the and the wedding cards on the floor and it's wet with my tears I go Jesus. I want to seal my heart with your love I want to love you like the Father loves you now. He's talking I just fell a spirit was such a beautiful beautiful moment and The phone rings I pick up the phone Like I wasn't really I couldn't believe that they Actually let someone in because I said this is the most intense thing happening. I don't know what the Lord's touching me Receptionist says I know you asked to have nobody but this is Bob Jones on the phone And he said he heard the audible voice of the Lord for you right now he goes I Figure I better let God's word. Yeah, I mean, I didn't know what to do. I don't know. Oh, that's good. That's a good job That's a good call I'm on my knees on the floor I'm just Really subdued because of what's been happening for 10 or 15 minutes just Kind of really gone kind. I mean not want to have a conversation. I didn't say anything he goes Mike Bob here. He says I only got a moment. I heard the audible voice of the Lord. I don't say anything The Lord spoke to me Song of Solomon chapter 8 verse 6. I'm Looking at it. I'm kneeling down. He goes he told me he's gonna speak to you about that today. I Didn't even say Bob. You can't believe it. I didn't have any energy to do anything. I just He said the Lord told me In Song of Solomon 8 6 he's gonna release because I heard this audibly He's gonna release an anointing for this worldwide in the church in the coming years Sovereignly, he's gonna just visit people in Asia and every all the world on this verse And I'm sure many people will have different stories like my story many many different stories He's gonna visit them and he's gonna release this anointing in the church before the Lord returns I'm listening and he goes and he wants me to tell you that he wants you to stay focused on this All the days of your life. It's probably a 60 to 90 seconds phone call. He says gotta go and he hung up I didn't say anything except for when he said hello. I go. Hello. I Didn't even he said Song of Solomon 8 6 gonna touch the body of Christ worldwide and anointing Before the Lord returns and he wants you to focus on this the rest your life. Not only this but this would be a primary focus By I didn't say any words And I just began to weep and weep before the Lord and the Spirit of the Lord's resting on me I go Lord I Wonder whatever this is this chapter this passage. I Read it, you know, I open my Bible. I go. I don't understand it all it became clear to me And I have it written here in paragraph B that it's not the book of Song of Solomon. That is my focus It's the it's the first commandment. It's the beauty of God. It's Jesus is the bridegroom King. It's that reality in the Song of Psalms a great place to be inspired But it's a whole book from Genesis to Revelation about this thing So some people said you're called to Song of Solomon I go not exactly some Solomon but to the first commandment to this passage to this truth And I know that as a spiritual family and even as our part of the prayer movement as we're interface Interfacing with people around the world one of our primary mandates as a spiritual family is to focus on the first commandment Living it experiencing it singing it declaring it praying it over and over and over again. I'm positive. I Was so excited a few minutes passed You know this lifts up for a while maybe an hour or two, I don't know and I get my breath I don't even tell Bob Jones for because he was on his way out of town for Sometime I don't even tell him what my side of the story was Because he left and went out of town somewhere I can't remember but I call my wife Diane most Amazing thing happened an hour or two ago What I was reading this passage song of so many six. Do you know it says no? And I read it I have heard that I'm weeping and the Lord's touching me and Bob Jones calls me and I don't say a word it He says the Lord spoke. He's gonna talk to you about this passage. I Go and it's the one I'm on and this is what he's gonna do in our lives Way beyond our life in our ministry. He's gonna be doing this in the body of Christ worldwide People may use different terms, but it will be the first Commandments the essence of it. Oh So excited so I hang up it Oh Fantastic day Then in the afternoon, I mean for God to give clarity like that to you that kind of focus I mean that happens once or in a life It's fantastic So I'm just so happy then I decide to read the Song of Solomon Because I'm thinking, you know, it's probably I'm gonna be missed doing stuff with the whole book It's horrified, you know body parts perfume perfume hugging body parts perfume perfume I went Finally I got to chapter 8 verse 6 the only actual verse I liked, you know, I went No, I don't know about Song of Solomon 1 to 7. There's some no No I'm not even doing that. I went home that night and my wife Diane. She greeted me. She goes. Oh, she was tell me about today I go no, but no, I got a different story now. She was well, you were so excited I go if you ever read the book she was yeah, it's amazing. I go. It's horrible. I go. I want nothing to do with that book Like I'm more life of David book of Romans book of Revelation type guy I Reminded the Lord my father was a International champion boxer and I was raised in a boxing world and I told that to the Lord He didn't change anybody says just do that book you'll be happy I Didn't hear him say that but I know that something like that couple years later It all connected and I looked back and I said Lord that was the kindest thing you ever did was give me This focus of the first commandment, but even through this poetic language it touched me I never thought it could ever touch me Matter of fact, I kind of had an attitude about it for a year or two. I read it with uh Well, you're gonna make me do this. Well, never mind. I won't go into the top of page three Just a few more moments here The seal paragraph D It's not a one-time experience, I believe it's a the Lord touching us in small ways and in big, you know, but mostly baby steps, but every now and then a Big-step, but mostly little touches little moments of inspiration over weeks and months and years The seal is our present tense relationship with the Holy Spirit The seal is not our record of failures and victories The seal on my heart in your heart isn't how good or how bad I've done The seal is my interaction with a person the Holy Spirit. He is the fire of love Look at paragraph one, you know one man calls the Holy Spirit one of the books. Well, I read the living flame of love Living flame of love It's a title for the Holy Spirit. I think it was st. John of the cross if I'm remembering right I read it years ago The seal is a person we're sealed by a person But it's again, it's not like he touched us and moves on is that it's the interaction with him and the seal grows and grows It's a poetic term. It's a poetic concept Got a little bit more on that in the notes there Paragraph II Jesus the king poetically saying set me be intentional Call me into your life He goes I'll come I'll come in the way the Word of God describes But I'm I'm gonna insist that you call me you beckon me into your into Interaction with you day by day and you make it your determined goal To grow in this love and this love will grow and increase the revelation of God's love to you But the impartation of it through you back to God and then the overflow to other people Paragraph 2 under e Paul the Apostle referred to this idea Romans 13 verse 14 put on the Lord Jesus Song of Solomon, it's the Lord saying put me on in other words interact with me Paragraph F is probably by it's very simple. We already know but it's the most practical Application of how do we put Jesus on how do we put him as a seal on our heart? Well, we seek him it's that it's that intentional interaction and in the interaction itself often is not very dynamic often it's this kind of Routine and every now and then there's a moment of inspiration and every now and then very rare There's a far more dynamic moment But most the moments are kind of they're not there. I find my interaction with the Lord often I've given the analogies like vitamins And it's like doing exercise meaning I've taken vitamins for years. There isn't Monday June 10th was the day the vitamins took I've been taking vitamins for 30 years Okay, because my wife makes me I admit it. I wouldn't take them on my own accord. But anyway And I do exercises X, you know, whatever and there isn't a day where it all takes it's over months and months It's a little one this little installments all the time It's our prayer. I love I love to say the way that you walk in the spirit is By talking to the spirit Do you want to walk in the spirit? Just talk to the spirit and the measure of your walking in the spirit It's just that simple conversation when you're just coming and going you're just talking to the indwelling spirit That is the absolute key to walking in the spirit. Just talk to it. Just keep the conversation going I don't mean all day every day But just intermittently through the day and little 10 20 30 second little interactions and little sound bites back and forth That is how you put the seal on you Cultivating that kind of interaction and sometimes you don't do it as much as you do other times and then you do it more other times When we seek him and these simple routine Seemingly weak ways prayer fasting meditation of the word obedience and small things when these activities are done in faith and They're done with confidence in grace and that's create Critical because a lot of times we'll pray and fast and obey and we're bargaining with the Lord if you'll forgive me one more time I'll go on a long fast because no throw that out. No Interact with me with confidence in the grace of God Interact with me in faith that I'm according to who I said I am and my kindness towards you in the grace of God in The power of the death and resurrection of Jesus and by doing this we position our heart before him I'd like to call it like putting our cold heart before a bonfire You put a cold heart in front of the bonfire that bonfire will tenderize the heart over time It's not one moment. Not a microwave But over time our hearts get tenderized Paragraph H prayer and fasting are not the seal The presence of God the power of God the person of the Holy Spirit he is the seal He tenderizes us Spiritual disciplines do not tenderize me spiritual disciplines put my cold heart in front of a bonfire the bonfire Tenderizes me that's the person of the Holy Spirit Talking to it. And again, it's just an analogy I use Some people put their confidence in the discipline the discipline doesn't change the heart the fire the person does that you're talking to paragraph I The poem says this love is as strong as death. What does that mean? Well death claims everything Everything that's alive dies by the laws of nature What this poem means is it's it is as Comprehensive as death meaning whatever fear whatever lost Whatever bitterness whatever disappointment Whatever area that were Wrestling with whatever area that were being tempted to compromise in This poem is saying there is a love that is so comprehensive. It will demand It will demand we yield every area to him It's as comprehensive as death doesn't let anything out of its grasp this love. It's a jealous love What's everything? It's a love that like death doesn't let anything escape. He says I want your attitudes. I want your money. I want your time I want the way you process your disappointment. I want it all brought under my leadership Top of page four if you would Paragraph K Jealousy is as cruel as the grave. It's saying the same thing. The grave demands everything He's saying the same point about strong as death. Just saying in a different way for emphasis Paragraph L. It's flames It's flames are powerful These flames are more powerful than pornography more powerful than disappointment more powerful than loneliness the flames and the little flashes of flames this Just use that. Let's just tear this part for a moment little moments of inspiration. Not just The bonfire all at one time, but you might have an experience or two over the years That is really dramatic, but mostly it's little flashes Just little moments of inspiration but over time Nothing can overpower this fire is the idea. I Mean we look at the book of Acts these fearful men they were They they all fled in fear the Apostles then the fire comes on them in the upper room They're bold and confident and joyful not afraid of death at all The fire the presence transformed them and what this verse is saying there is no loss There is no fear. There is no disappointment. There is no loneliness. There isn't a certain way in life That's more powerful than this flame when this flame is yielded to consistently May take a while Paragraph M many waters Can't put this fire out like I said Water always puts fire out, but not this fire Not this fire There's a great flood look at paragraph two under him. It's a great flood at the end of the age That flood will not put out the fire of the end time church to walk in love Roman numeral four It's come to the end here. Here's the proverb if a man would give for love all the wealth of his house It would be utterly despised the in other words the recognition that what he did was noble he would say no The highest reward of love is found in possessing the ability to love The reward of love is love To interact with him with all of our heart We'll stand before him on the last day Those of you that have thrown your life into it and your weakness and our brokenness But you threw yourself into the relationship someone say you were amazing is it no no for him The man the one who became man and then bore the wrath of God and then rose to the right hand of God and wanted Me and his side forever. That was somehow noble. I gave everything to him. Are you kidding me? He gave everything to me Don't tell me about my nobility now, this doesn't mean every time somebody gives you a compliment you got to like rebuke them That's not the point But the point is the person who gets it doesn't have a secret aspiration to be noticed in their devotion Because being noticed in the devotion isn't the reward when the love is real Those who are wealthy in love They don't look at price tags you know those guy billionaire people I Said when they walk in the store, they don't look at price tags. They go. Give me that rack Give me that rack and I've been in for many times Billionaires don't walk in stores. I go. I know let my analogy hold up But wealthy people don't look at price tags Well, that shirts $100. That was 110. Let me think about it. They don't they don't care People that are captured by the vision of love in the reality of they're not worried They're not thinking about well, if I I really give my time I'm gonna lose my real earning years These are my promotion years. I don't know if it's worth it because in my 30s and 40s, that's when I really established But the Lord told me to do this they don't care And I believe in book of Proverbs and wise choices in your life But I mean once we're captured by love and God tells you to do something contrary to the natural laws of promotion Because the Word of God was clear It doesn't matter when our hearts are captured in love doesn't matter That's what this is talking about, you know the analogy I've used over the years is you know the The man and the woman they find out that their little girl has a terminal sickness is the made-up story So don't cry and ask how she's doing And they and the doctor says we can save her life But you're good It's gonna cost all this millions of dollars and they had to sell their house empty all their bank accounts Whatever whatever whatever and they saw they get they did it all the girl lived Someone comes up to the man and the mom and dad says you're amazing parents You gave everything for your little girl. That's it. What are you talking about? Amazing parents? That's our girl We give it all again We utterly despise the idea that that's something noble this is our girl we would give it all again for her Are you kidding? Well, this is how Paul the Apostle felt worship team. Come on up This is how Paul the Apostle felt in Philippians 3. This is the exact Application. I mean, this is a really excellent application of this proverb. Paul says I suffer the loss of everything I don't care. He's worthy Not just because he's glorious in a distant Because he is glorious at a distance, but he loves me and he wants me. He gave everything for me pulses Are you kidding me? I would give up everything. It's rubbish. Don't tell me that. I'm some amazing noble person. I gave up a Career that would gain me nothing in eternity to interface with a man who gave me everything and I have no regrets Beloved we can live with no regrets By giving all to him You know, I'm gonna end here with paragraph D Anybody can quit pursuing God anybody can quit except for a person in love When a person in love is tempted to quit They got this giant obstacle Obstacle But I love God I don't mean deny the faith but not pressing in in the same way. I've watched over the years a lot of people seek God hard and I mean they believe God for revival and breakthrough and the great things in their life for Five or ten years, but the next 20 years. There's not a trace of it in their life Well, the revival didn't come I didn't get real anointed Oh Beloved regardless when the revival outwardly comes we have the ability to grow in the first commandment Regardless what happens on the national front? We could be growing in the first commandment while we're contending for the breakthrough in the nation and the nations I've seen many of them over the years go hard for five or ten years and then now Not really into that anymore Kind of settled down and do a lot more recreation a lot more this a lot more that you know There's a whole lot of effort didn't get me anywhere. What? What do you mean? What did you do the effort for? Well, I was hoping for a revival and I'd get real anointed and then my life would get happy and then it'd be really amazing No, there's there's a bigger storyline It's him and his glory and if you're never known and no one ever pays attention But you grow in love and you're part of his story. You'll never regret giving everything to him never Anybody can quit I'm talking about a believer can draw back and kick into that coasting mode is what I mean by quitting quitting the hot pursuit except if they're Have love and that's an obstacle when I get weary. I have moments of discouragement. I go Like some of those guys just coast I go, but I can't I love you Okay, okay rise up pay attention I'm weak and broken. He's amazing and beautiful. He's glorious. I got nothing. He's got everything. He wants me I'm grateful forget all that self-pity. I'm back in the game Let's stand before the Lord I Want to pray for people to be resolved Two things the first commandment tonight, you're gonna re-sign up that the first commandment is going to be number one life pursuit More than your ministry your business your impact your favor. I'm going after this You're going for those other things too, but you're gonna make them second on purpose intentionally and number two Those that are saying I want to determine never to quit I mean the hot pursuit of God never may look different in different seasons, but I'm not ever drawn back Never I love him too much. I don't care what my role is. I don't care if they treat me, right? I'm never ever drawing back. I'm pressing into God If that's you one of those two Which are nearly the same thing and you would like prayer you just say I just want to stand before God and declare it I want to fight you to come forward And again, you can do this in the chair. You don't have to come up for it But if you'd like prayer, I want to make the first Here we are My heart is yours I don't care what how they treat me I love you, Jesus. I'm going for you Holy Spirit we invite you to be a seal of fire I sign up again tonight I Seek you I'm gonna believe you I'm gonna serve you and bless others no matter what happens Ask for a revelation of the word first Lord says this is the first commandment. Do you understand? This is the first commandment? I'm speaking to you Scripture says you will baptize Even if others don't appreciate it The eyes of fire gaze upon my heart Glorious God What you feel when you look at You