The Church Leaning On Her Beloved Part 4

Before we leave this present joyous scene, let me describe it one last time, so that you will appreciate the further lessons I draw from it. The Shulamite is a happy girl as she returns from exile in a strange city with her true lover, having spurned the amorous advances of King Solomon. As she nears her Galilean home, she surveys the old familiar spots, dear to her childhood. She recognizes the orchard where “under the apple tree” her Beloved first won her heart, and they renew their vows there. The citizens of Shunem – perhaps including those of her own family – exclaim as she approaches, “Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved?”
It is a compelling statement, full of instruction and application to the Church, the Bride of Christ, who is helplessly dependent upon Him for both justification and sanctification. The reasons for the Shulamite's unashamedly ‘leaning' upon her beloved are the same reasons that we should be helplessly dependent upon Christ. Have you yet declared your dependence?