Song of Solomon 2:7

(7) I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the does of the field, do not stir up nor awaken [My] love [beloved] until it pleases [Me].

Today's post is full of meaning through symbolism. The bridegroom King (Jesus) is speaking to the more immature believers in the body (the daughters of Jerusalem), charging them to not disturb His beloved until He is ready for her to awake and move forward in Him once again.

I think we have all been guilty of judging a fellow believer, thinking "They should be out working, doing things for the kingdom; praying more, serving more, doing more." Or maybe we say, "Look at them. They think they are so much holier than I am...who do they think they are?" When fellow believers are not in the same 'season' that we are in, many times we tend to judge them based on where we are in our relationship with God, and what we are doing for Him. This can be dangerous to the spiritual growth of the one we are judging.

The fact is, we are all on this spiritual journey through life, and each one of us are in different stages. But be assured, the Lord knows where each one of us are, and He is the one who will choose the time for us to move to the next phase of maturity. He does that through the conviction of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

When we try to 'move' someone into that next stage of maturity without the working of the Holy Spirit, that is when we get in trouble. Not only do we damage our own spiritual growth, but we can damage others as well. The grace of God working in our individual lives should always be our plumbline of growth.

The Lord refers to the gazelles and does in this verse, which are known to be easily distracted or startled, or easily scared. While the bride is resting in her Beloved's embrace, she can be greatly disturbed by others comments, words, and actions. When criticism comes, she is prone to be distracted from her Beloved and move out of the place of rest. This does not please our Lord. He is enjoying her rest in Him, and He is the only one who wants to awaken her out of that rest to move into greater maturity in Him.

In closing, remember everyone we meet is in a different 'season' of their spiritual journey, and our response should be to encourage and give mercy, not judgement, to whomever we come in contact with. Let's allow Holy Spirit to do His work, and be a catalyst for the love of God.

Blessings!