INTRODUCTION:

    1. Remember that we are examining the beauty & faithfulness of marital love, and by that, our relationship with
        the Lord and His church.

  I. HER DESIRE.

    A. The Instance Of Her Desire -- Vs. 1.
        1. "By night . . . I sought him  whom my soul loveth."
        2. This speaks of her desire -- she loves him so much she wants to be with him constantly.
        3. Genesis 3:16 -- "Thy desire shall be to thy husbband."
            a. DESIRE = desire strongly; take delight in.
            b. "Your delight shall be in your husband."
            c. Husbands & wives need to desire the company of their mate above all other human relations --
               Genesis 2:24.
        4. Just as a wife is to desire her husband (just as this woman desired her beloved), the Lord's churches should
            desire to please Jesus more than anything.
            a. Not seek to be men pleasers -- Gal. 1:10 ; I Thess. 2:4.
            b. Instead, seeking to do the will of God -- Acts 5:29.

    B. The Intensity Of Her Desire -- Vs. 1.
        1. She's saying, "Night after night I sought him."
            a. Speaks of seeking him continually.
            b. SOUGHT = to search (piel -- intensified).
        2. This desire for our mate should be constant, continual.
            a. Problem in a lot of marriages. This desire is not expressed.
            b. "I've got him/her. Now I don't need to attract him/her anymore."
            c. Think once they get married the desire is fulfilled. Now, on to something else.
        3. Luke 9:23.
            a. How often are we supposed to take up our cross?
            b. What are we supposed to do? "Follow me."
            c. Eph. 5:22 -- When a wife truly loves her husband, Biblical submission won't be a problem.
        4. When a church truly loves the Lord, submission won't be a problem -- John 14:15.

 II. HER DILIGENCE -- VS. 2.

    1. "I will rise now . . . " = "I must arise now . . . and seek him."
        a. She was willing to search until she found her beloved.
        b. Prov. 31:10-11 -- A virtuous woman.
            1) Her devotion is to her husband.
            2) I see in this a diligence that comes out of love.
    2. We need this sort of diligence in serving our Lord.
        a. Rev. 2:4 -- "Honeymoon" love.
        b. The problem in many marriages is that this type of love fades.
            (Gets lost in the shadows of day-to-day routine.)
    3. Do you remember what it was like to have just been saved?
        a. Need to go back to Calvary, to the foot of the cross.
        b. Need to see again what our Lord has done for us.
    4. Also need this kind of committment to the truth.
        a. II Cor. 6:14-18.
        b. I Cor. 6:19-20, 15b.

III. HER DETERMINATION.

    1. "I held on to him and would not let him go."
        a. She sought him at night.
        b. She arose and sought him in the city.
        c. When she found him, she was determined to hold him. (Like Jacob wrestling with the angel.)
    2. Husbands and wives could use such determination in their marriage relationship.
        a. (Ladies, have you forgotten the effort you put in to finding and developing your husband?)
        b. Sometimes joke: "If I ever get rid of this one, I don't want another one."
        c. Truth is: I don't want to get rid of this one!
    3. Proverbs 23:23 -- "Buy the truth and sell it not."
        a. Jesus compares the kingdom of God to -- a costly pearl, a lost coin, a lost lamb. (All valuable items.)
        b. In these, all sought diligently for the thing they desired.
        c. Sacrifice was made to obtain it.
        d. When they found it, they rejoiced with great joy.

IV.  HER DEVOTION -- VS. 4.

    1. "I brought him to my mother's house."  ("I took him home to Momma.")
        a. She is devoted to him and desires to be his.
        b. She has made a long and diligent search for him and never wants to be separated from her beloved again.
    2. Matthew 19:4-6, 8.
        a. This is more than just a verse we quote in wedding ceremonies.
        b. Here is God's will for marriage.
        c. Problem: Too many young people enter marriage like it's a 90 day option instead of a lifetime contract.
    3. This Shulamite woman is saying, "Now that I've found my beloved, I want to be his -- forever."
        a. In this thing for the "long haul."
        b. "We'll go through everything together."
    4. Too many are in the Lord's churches for the "good times" only.
        a. Seeking to be served instead of to serve.
        b. Disappear when the times get tough (II Tim. 3:12).
    5. Too many churches seek to please the world and are more devoted to it than they are to Jesus.
        a. The world didn't purchase this church with its blood!
        b. I John 2:15-16.
    6. Just as this woman's beloved is special to her, and just as husbands & wives should be special to each
        other, New Testament churches are special to the Lord and should be special to us.
    7. The necessity of this kind of devotion:
        a. Soon we'll see Solomon come along with all his wealth and try to entice her.
        b. This world, "success," etc. all seek to draw us -- as individuals and as a church -- away from Christ.

  CONCLUSION: