The Promise of Spring
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While the Song of Solomon is often thought to be a rip roaring romance - there are parts that can be used to teach a relevant and powerful lesson.
Tonight I want to talk about one of those lessons.
Read: Song 2:11-12
For, lo, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone;
The flowers appear on the earth;
The time of the singing of birds is come,
And the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;
Today hummingbirds piled up on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico and somewhere around 7:00 p.m. our time tonight they took off and started heading across the Gulf of Mexico -
These little birds that weigh less than a nickle, will fly a journey pf many many miles at 40 mph in one straight shot.
Hummingbirds can’t glide - they have to constantly flap their wings in that distinct hummiongbird way for
tomorrow afternoon sometime they’ll make landfall.
Some will make it to Kansas maybe even your back yard.
The males arrive first followed by the females.
One bird enthusiast said - “the [humming] birds bring with them a feeling of hope and renewal.”
In our passage tonight we find that same type of reference and feeling.
It has been a dark and cold winter - now its time to go outside
The winter is over and past -
The flowers appear
The birds begin to sing
There is something about spring birds that just bring a sense of comfort, hope, refreshing and renewal - It’s spring time
Spring time - is associated with new start, renewal, new beginnings.
While the writer talks about the rain being over - they are talking like almost monsoon - non-stop heavy rains.
But there is something about a nice easy spring rain that brings after it a sense of cleansing and freshness.
The old saying is “April showers bring May flowers”
I believe it was the Gaithers who wrote:
The turtle doves are singing sweet songs of morning-
The leaves on the trees turn their silver cups to the sky-
The silent clouds above are beginning to gather-
The barren land is thirsty, and so am I!
At that first drop of rain that you start to hear, throw open the windows-
Call all your children together, and throw wide the door!
When the rains of the spirit are starting to fall, fill every vessal-
He who drinks his fill, will thirst no more!
It's beginning to rain- hear the voice of my Father -
He's saying who so ever will, come drink of my water-
He's promised to pour his spirit out, on your sons and your daughters-
If your thisty and dry, look up to the sky, it's beginning to rain!
I was thinking of new beginings - renewal - or we might say revival
It is so easy to push the thoughts of revival off to things we call revival
But in reality - revival is simply a drawing nearer to God and God drawing nearer to us
It is allowing every vessel in our heart to be filled to overflowing with His Spirit
to quit taking sips of the Living Water - and drink deeply of that River that will never run dry.
Shake off the ice - open up the windows - brush away the cobwebs of doubt, confusion, lethargy,
rub away the sleep from your spiritual eyes
Realize the cold long winter is passed, the flowers on the earth, the song birds fill the tree tops
It’s time to go outside and enjoy the spring.
Not just physically you understand - but spiritually - let spring come
It is quite likely that Solomon’s elaborate description has a laser focus. Springtime is universally a time for love. Falling in love is like experiencing springtime all over again and again. Everything is fresh, new, and alive. Things simply look different when you are in love. You see things and notice things that previously you missed or overlooked. For this young couple in love, winter and the rainy days were long gone. Flowers were blooming, birds were singing, spring was in the air. You could see it and smell it (v. 13). Love could be found anywhere and everywhere you looked or turned.
Akin, D. L. (2015). Exalting jesus in song of songs (D. L. Akin, D. Platt, & T. Merida, Eds.; p. 52). Holman Reference.
Craig Glickman wisely writes, One good indication of real love is the desire to communicate, a wish to discover all about this person whom you love so much. No detail seems too trivial to be related. No mood or feeling of one is unimportant to the other. And you care about the details and the feelings because you care so much about the person. That which would be insignificant or boring to even a good friend is eagerly received with genuine interest by the one who loves you.… The mere voice of the one loved is enchantingly special just in itself. One could read from the telephone book and the other would raptly listen simply for the sound of the voice. (Song, 47–48)
Akin, D. L. (2015). Exalting jesus in song of songs (D. L. Akin, D. Platt, & T. Merida, Eds.; pp. 52–53). Holman Reference.
Revival is a renewed romance - will you let me say it that way - to fall in love with Jesus again.
Remember this was an issue with two of the churches in Revelation - they lost their first love - or they let their love cool off
In our passage - there is the idea that “NOW IS THE TIME”
NOW IS WHEN WE SEE THE FLOWERS
Now is the time we return to our first love - trample underfoot any other love that would draw us away
It’s spring
The hummingbirds are on their way
The Singing birds are singing
The flowers are blooming
Now is the time to renew the romance with Christ.