Intimacy with GOD by Esher Shoshannah (the unexpected everything txt) 📖

precious first fruits for Him alone and then the other blessed fruit of His fullness for us and others to enjoy. Praise God for the abundance within.

The world and the nominal Christian cannot in any measure understand or appreciate these hidden spiritual flowers. The world looks at the surrendered, separated believer and on the surface sees no real special value. They think the Gospel of the Beloved, so cherished by the bride of Christ, is utter foolishness, exclusive and narrow minded (I Cor. 1: 23-30). They cannot see for they are spiritually blind (I Corinthians 2:14; II Cor. 4:3,4).

You are the fruit of Calvary. Within your spirit resides God's holy power to produce all manner of beautiful flowers that will give forth Holy Spirit fragrances in your life. The Father (husbandman) through the precious Holy Spirit will first have "fruit", "more fruit" and then "much fruit" produced in you (the significance of the fig tree's two crops) (John 15:1-14). It is the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23)! Make an ironclad decision to yield your will to the Lord, yield your eyes to His Word, yield your mind to a private quiet time where you can just meditate on Him (a Phil. 4:8 experience), yield your hands and feet to do service for a saint or sinner, yield your spirit to fellowship with those who love Him. Fruit will be on the way!

The resurrection life of Jesus permeates her spirit. Listen to His gentle words once again pulling at her heart. He takes her by the hand and speaks so gently, ″My dove, look at you. Look how you have already changed since I gave a kiss of approval to you (1:2).″

"There are so few that have a thirst for Me as you My beautiful bride. You surrendered to Me because you desired intimate fellowship and wanted to know more about My heart. Others that belong to Me are more interested in the things I have given them to do than in Me. But you, you are the delight of My life. You are like the green figs and tender grapes - ready to grow into all the fullness of ripened fruit. Already the beauty of My holiness is evident in you (flowers). And the fragrance of My Spirit emanates from you. Now, take the next step with Me. Come with Me, I will introduce you to other surrendered lilies. Together with them the combined spiritual fragrance will bring unspeakable joy to Me and to Abba Father (II Cor. 2:1-16; Phil. 4:18)."

Active faith is the ultimate act of love for Him. Without faith it is impossible to please Him (Heb. 11:6). He is saying, take the first step of faith and then I will take over from there! Praise God! Your willingness is the step of love-faith that so pleases Him. It is love intertwined with faith that creates the most exquisite spiritual fruit and fragrance possible.

He waits, the moment feels like an eternity. There is no response. Tears in her eyes, yes. Love still radiating from her heart for Him, yes. But taking that step of faith and going with Him is absent. All of a sudden a slight chill in the air is felt and a small dark cloud appears on the horizon of her soul.

Dear reader, the Holy Spirit wants so much to be given the right to further change you into the image of the Beloved (Rom. 8:29)! How is this change to be effected in you? By walking with the Beloved! Step out in faith and obey the prompting of the Spirit of the Bridegroom from His Holy Word. The power of God will flow through you and wonderful changes will progressively take place in your habits and attitude. It begins when you hear His voice say, "Arise my love and come away with me!" Let two words be forever engraved in your spirit and you will not hesitate to go - Jesus said it would be, "WITH ME!" "WITH ME!" ″WITH ME!" You will come through everything if you realize He means what He declares! Yet a small hill of sin is rising in her heart. So subtle is all of this, so imperceptible that it will soon turn into a horrible, foreboding mountain (2:17)!

 

"...the vines with the tender grapes give a good smell..."

The Beloved of her heart speaks yet again, "My love, look around and see the abundant supply purchased for you by My blood. Behold the vines and all the grapes. Fruit is already being produced in your life because of this initial surrender. You must allow me to bring others into your life so that they may pick the tender, sweet fruit from your branch. They will grow in love. Will you come with Me and have more glorious, spiritual fruit produced in you? My beautiful one why do you hesitate? What else do I need to do to woo your heart to Me so as to have you walk by My side in intimate, fruitbearing fellowship?"

She had spoken earlier of her fervent love for Him. Yet there is no response to His simple request, how sad! What had happened? She wanted the Lord on her own terms. She wanted Him all to herself. She didn't want to leave the security of the walls. This is likened to so many believers who have never dedicated their lives to Him.

They gladly give the Lord praise and worship every time the church door is opened. But when He calls them to move out from those four walls and exercise their proclaimed praise, love and faith in the daily battles of life - they hesitate. Unfortunately they don't really mean what they are singing and declaring. Remember, it is one thing to call Him "Lord" in church (Martha) but it is quite another thing to clearly live out the Lordship of Jesus in the trials and tribulations of life (Mary). The Beloved Bridegroom never asks them to go out alone, He will always be with them (Heb. 13:5)! They fail to exercise the only thing that pleases their Bridegroom - faith (Heb. 11:6) which is the true response of love!

 

PRAY WITH ME: "Lord, how many times do You have to say it to my heart before I will actually act upon Your promises? Fill me with Your Spirit! Fill me with Your wisdom! Fill me with Your humility! Fill me with Your love! I am stepping out right now. Take over dear Lord Jesus. I want to walk step by step with You my King! In the authority of Jesus' name, amen!"

 

Will you dear reader say "yes" to the Beloved Lord of your soul? Will you respond to Him and say, "Whatever You want for my life I accept it gladly? You have shown me the fig tree and Your tender grapes, I am ready. Thank You dear Bridegroom for letting me see the results of the resurrected life in other lilies. Take me, lead me and show me Your wondrous plan as we walk hand in hand!"

It is so incomprehensible that Jesus' bride does not run quickly into His loving, secure arms! But alas, that is the sad testimony of nominal believers who give little time to Him! I look in amazement at her, yet I see me in her. For so long I knew Jesus as my Savior ignoring the prompting of His right of Lordship in my life. I look back at the first twenty-three years as a believer and wonder, "How could I have hesitated so many times?" I was so taken up with the ministry of the Lord and missed the Lord of the ministry. Now, since the moment of absolute surrender to my Beloved's arms I can say that the last nineteen years have been spiritually indescribable. He raised me up higher then I could have ever imagined.

Since that first step of full surrender to Him, I Cor. 2:9-10 is progressively being fulfilled in me. "...Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit; for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God." From year to year it is like going "...from glory to glory..." (II Cor. 3:18). I took the first step and then the Holy Spirit took over (Isa. 46:11; Phil. 2:13). At the time it all began I had no idea what was taking place. He was breaking me. Before surrender it had always been my plans for Him. I decided how I was going to serve Him. The breaking was painful, but my will had to be broken. I was a Martha. Jesus wanted me to be a Mary of Bethany.

He allowed everything in my life to be taken away. He exposed my heart's sin, in all of its debilitating subtleties and shameful nakedness. But oh what grace, oh what compassion, oh what mercy is found in His heart! He picked me up and set my feet on a glorious path of which at the time I was completely unaware of what glories were in store for this most undeserving bride of His. Four years later came the experience of this Song. I sat down early one morning before dawn to have devotions in the Song of Songs. And for one year the Holy Spirit overwhelmed me with devotional revelations in each verse. The result, an unintended book filled with Jesus’ love for His bride.

Now back to the ominous scene before us, Jesus pleads again with His bride...

 

V.14 "O my dove, thou art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs (steep place), let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely."

A brief amount of time has passed. The Beloved returns having given her time to think about His request. Close by He finds her in a meadow, where they would walk and share spiritually intimate thoughts with each other. But her heart has changed. She does not invite Him to fellowship.

There was a chill in the atmosphere. Jesus bares His heart to her once again! O the intensity! O the emotional longing! Listen to His voice pleading with her, "Remember My love, My bride, you are a dove and as a dove I remember that you had eyes only for Me. O my dove you desperately need Me! I alone am your protection! How can you hesitate one moment? My loving, nail-scarred hands are stretched out to you. With Me you will experience unspeakable joy, but you must first take My hand and, step by step, I will lead you to walk in the wonderful plan My Father has laid out for your life. You look so beautiful there in the cleft of the rock! I am your Rock and I was cleft for you at Calvary! Remember how you would sing?"

 

'Rock of ages cleft for me, let me hide myself in Thee.

Let the water and the blood from Thy riven side which flowed.

Be of sin the double cure, cleanse me from its guilt and power.'   Augustus M. Toplady 

 

"It brought Me much joy as you sang it as a love song to Me. I don't hear your sweet voice anymore. O how I listen so intently but there is just silence. O My bride, My love I miss hearing your voice of love. Do you realize, My bride, that I am that Rock (Exo. 33:22; Isa. 43:1)? Why are you hiding yourself from Me in the secret place of the stairs? That lovely image of Me which is in you, I cannot see! What's wrong My lovely bride? I do not hear your sweet voice that praised, worshiped, and adored Me so often each day. My heart aches to see you wearing those exquisite garments which I gave