An 8-Week Worship & Prayer Journey into the Song of Songs
The inspired allegory of Divine romance between Christ and His Bride, the Church
Global Presence Encounter Room
Thursdays, 6-7:30pm
(Worship will continue in the Encounter Room until 9pm.)
Within the Song of Songs lies the heartbeat of Jesus Christ and His yearning to bring forth a Bridal Partner to share His throne. If you listen carefully, you will hear His heartbeat in every chapter. Jesus wants you to be His friend, one that can enter into a mature relationship with Him. He wants to share His life, His power, and His glory with those who are determined to be His friends.
- Receive personal revelation on your identity as the Bride of Christ.
- Experience the passion Jesus has for His beloved Church.
- Embrace the process of maturing in love in every season.
- Allow your emotions to be awakened to the fire of God's love and the oceans of His grace.
How to Engage in the Journey
The worship team will sing and pray around the Scripture verses and themes, creating an atmosphere in which we receive revelation from God's heart and encounter His love in a fresh way. You are free to engage through following along in the Word, journaling, creating visual art, movement and prayer.
Divine Romance, Revelation, Fire, Grace, Passion!
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Week 1 - Jan. 17th - Song of Songs 1:1-11
Week 2 - Jan. 24th - Song of Songs 1:12-17 & 2:1-7 Week 3 - Jan. 31st - Song of Songs 2:8-17 Week 4 - Feb. 7th - Song of Songs 3:1-11 Week 5 - Feb. 14th - Song of Songs 4:1-16 & 5:1 Week 6 - Feb. 21st - Song of Songs 5:2-16 & 6:1-4 Week 7 - Feb. 28th - Song of Songs 6:5-13 & 7:1-10 Week 8 - Mar. 7th - Song of Songs 7:11-13 & 8:1-14 |
We will be journeying through the Song of Songs using The Passion Translation. (The Song of Songs is sold both individually and with The Passion Translation Bible. This translation is also available for free on the YouVersion Bible App and at biblegateway.com.)
Commentaries used will be The Sacred Journey by Brian Simmons and resources from Mike Bickle’s extensive study on the Song of Songs.
Commentaries used will be The Sacred Journey by Brian Simmons and resources from Mike Bickle’s extensive study on the Song of Songs.
How to Interpret the Song of Songs
(Adapted from Brian Simmons)
There are at least three basic schools of thought for interpreting the meaning of Solomon’s greatest song:
1. The Natural Interpretation (Validating Human Sexuality)
2. Jewish Historical Interpretation (Validating God’s Love for Israel)
3. The Allegorical Interpretation (Validating Jesus’s Love for His Bride)
God is so complex and fascinating that He has embedded in this divine allegory multiple meanings. Perhaps each could be considered as valid and helpful for our lives. But I believe the greatest way to interpret it lies in our relationship with the heavenly Bridegroom, Jesus Christ.
This figurative approach to interpreting the lyrics of Solomon’s song requires the unveiling of our hearts and the unveiling of God’s wisdom. To see in the symbols a higher reality, a glory tucked inside of metaphors and allegorical terms, will reveal the heart of Jesus Christ to us in ways never seen before.
Some of the cultural symbols that conveyed rich texture of meaning to the Hebrew speaker nearly three thousand years ago have become almost impossible to leave in its literal form, since the English speaker of today has little or no connection to those symbols. This requires that much of the hidden meanings locked into the Hebrew text be made explicit. This is why I have chosen to make this a dynamic equivalent of transferring the meaning, not just the words, into a form that many will find refreshing.
Take this example from Song of Songs 4:1, compared between New King James Version and The Passion Translation:
1. The Natural Interpretation (Validating Human Sexuality)
2. Jewish Historical Interpretation (Validating God’s Love for Israel)
3. The Allegorical Interpretation (Validating Jesus’s Love for His Bride)
God is so complex and fascinating that He has embedded in this divine allegory multiple meanings. Perhaps each could be considered as valid and helpful for our lives. But I believe the greatest way to interpret it lies in our relationship with the heavenly Bridegroom, Jesus Christ.
This figurative approach to interpreting the lyrics of Solomon’s song requires the unveiling of our hearts and the unveiling of God’s wisdom. To see in the symbols a higher reality, a glory tucked inside of metaphors and allegorical terms, will reveal the heart of Jesus Christ to us in ways never seen before.
Some of the cultural symbols that conveyed rich texture of meaning to the Hebrew speaker nearly three thousand years ago have become almost impossible to leave in its literal form, since the English speaker of today has little or no connection to those symbols. This requires that much of the hidden meanings locked into the Hebrew text be made explicit. This is why I have chosen to make this a dynamic equivalent of transferring the meaning, not just the words, into a form that many will find refreshing.
Take this example from Song of Songs 4:1, compared between New King James Version and The Passion Translation:
Behold, you are fair, my love!
Behold, you are fair!
You have dove’s eyes behind your veil.
Your hair is like a flock of goats,
Going down from Mount Gilead.
Listen, my dearest darling,
you are so beautiful—you are beauty itself to me!
Your eyes glisten with love,
like gentle doves behind your veil.
What devotion I see each time I gaze upon you.
You are like a sacrifice ready to be offered.[a]
Footnote [a]: The Hebrew text literally means “Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down Mount Gilead.” There is great symbolism in this verse. Hair is a symbol of our devotion to Christ. Mount Gilead (“hill of testimony”) is where the sacrificial animals were kept in preparation for temple sacrifices. So a goat coming down Mount Gilead was a sacrifice ready to be offered.
Behold, you are fair!
You have dove’s eyes behind your veil.
Your hair is like a flock of goats,
Going down from Mount Gilead.
Listen, my dearest darling,
you are so beautiful—you are beauty itself to me!
Your eyes glisten with love,
like gentle doves behind your veil.
What devotion I see each time I gaze upon you.
You are like a sacrifice ready to be offered.[a]
Footnote [a]: The Hebrew text literally means “Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down Mount Gilead.” There is great symbolism in this verse. Hair is a symbol of our devotion to Christ. Mount Gilead (“hill of testimony”) is where the sacrificial animals were kept in preparation for temple sacrifices. So a goat coming down Mount Gilead was a sacrifice ready to be offered.
Location
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Parking Recommendations
State Street Campus Parking Garage: $1.50 per hour
Accessible from both Frances St. and Lake St.
Street parking is free on Sundays and after 6pm every day. If you see a nearby metered spot, you may park there at no cost.
State Street Campus Parking Garage: $1.50 per hour
Accessible from both Frances St. and Lake St.
Street parking is free on Sundays and after 6pm every day. If you see a nearby metered spot, you may park there at no cost.