Cherished and flawless

“You are all fair, my love;
 there is no flaw in you.”

Song of Solomon 4:7 (RSV)

The Song of Solomon was written around 965 B.C. by King Solomon but it seems to correlate with a New Testament chapter known as the “love chapter.” The love chapter is 1st Corinthians 13, and it’s read at all Christian marriage ceremonies. 

The love chapter describes the perfect love of God, as we are encouraged to emulate it. It fits with the Song of Solomon, because it describes love as that which “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.” 

Bears, believes, hopes and endures, sounds like a rock solid commitment of devotion, even if everything around us appears to be crumbling. Since God loves us with this kind of devotion, it also pleases Him when we seek to do the same.

Both Jewish and Christian traditions across the centuries have adopted “allegorical” interpretations of the Song of Solomon, which has been read to portray the mutual love between the Lord and his people.

Christians have interpreted the Song of Solomon as the union between Christ and His bride, the Church. Jewish theologians view it as a picture of the ideal Israel, flawless, chosen and cherished by God. Both are beautiful insights into these sacred scriptures.

From the Christian perspective, the Song of Solomon, is Christ telling His bride, the church, that we are cherished and flawless in His eyes.

When Jesus looks at us, He knows us throughout, and sees the good and the bad, but it is His love for us that sees beyond our flaws. He is the one who cherishes us, who believes all things, bears all things and hopes all things. 

While we all know we have flaws, most of us don’t realize how much God loves us as we are, even before being cleansed and forgiven.

There are people who believe in God, but have doubts that He loves them. Some people were raised to believe that they are only lovable when they are good, or doing good things, but God loves us as we are, not because we are deserving. He doesn’t reserve or hold back His love from us, until we say we’re sorry. That is contrary to the truth of His word, which says, 

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

(Romans 5:8)

While we were sinners, God had passionate, relentless and unconditional love for us, long before we were remorseful or sorry for our sin. It is the love and kindness of God, that leads us to repentance in the first place.

Once we respond to the one who loves our soul, He shapes and develops us later. His Holy Spirit continually regenerates us during our life long journey of faith. If we try to see people through the same lens, that God is still transforming them, we can love better, by believing, bearing and enduring all things.

Through the Song of Solomon, we identify Jesus as the only one who loves us this perfectly, and cherishes us beyond our flaws. 

The truth that Satan keeps hidden from many well meaning Christians, is that God knows our gifts, sees our potential, and if Jesus is for us, nothing can succeed against us. 

Even if we give up on ourselves, become deeply discouraged, and are filled with doubt, God never stops believing in us, because in His eyes, we are cherished as His fair and flawless bride.

Lord, we surrender both our gifts and our flaws to you, and we ask that you shape and develop the beauty and talents that you have placed within each of us. Help us love one another as you have loved us. Amen

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