|
Gene
Pinkney
|
|
Cues From Behind The Curtain At a loss for a suitable topic for my next column, I decided to see if I could get a cue from my indwelling “friend that sticks closer than a brother,” the Holy Spirit. This transaction was done in the realm of my thought world, nothing was spoken out loud. I thought, ‘Holy Spirit, since it is you who ‘inspire all scripture,’ and I believe, also the greatest flights of verse and prose you breathe into great writers, what lines of Shakespeare would be good ones for me to ponder for a column? Immediately Sonnet 87 came to my mind: “Farewell, Thou art too dear for my possessing,” And from there I was led to the “Song of Solomon,” and the line, “I am my beloveds and his desire is toward me.”(ch.7:10) So I had two things to mull over. Who is this person whom the bard calls “too fair for his possessing?” and who is this person in Solomon’s “Song,” to whom the beloved’s desire is directed? Hints about Shakespeare’s mystery person appear later in the sonnet: “for how do I hold thee, but by thy granting/ And for those riches, where is my deserving?”
Certainly many Christians consider themselves unworthy to be fit hosts to any divine spirits. That’s because they believe, “there is none righteous” and that “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” And for the bard, “The cause of thy fair gift in me is wanting,” implies that he also considers himself unworthy to deserve divine inspiration: “Thus have I had Thee as a dream doth flatter/ In sleep a king, but waking, no such matter.” But Solomon knew the source of his inspiration, and in chapter 6:10 we find this astonishing revelation: “I am my beloved’s, and His desire is toward me.” Few believers, under ministries that continually stress their sinful unworthiness, can truly conceive how deeply God loves them, considering each of us “His beloved.” And because Satan, the “liar and father of lies,” is always handy to mix or distort any message proclaiming the truth, that Jesus, out of love, has “born our sins and carried our transgressions,” nailing them to His cross, so that believers can truly say, “we are the righteousness of God, in Christ Jesus,” sadly, few of us can easily believe that we are “His beloved,” any more than Shakespeare could believe that he deserved to have the luxury of the Holy Spirit living within him to be his muse: “The cause of this fair gift in me is wanting;” i.e. How could I have earned such a gift? Yet another sonnet speaks of that mystical moment of inspiration: “Even so one early morn my sun did shine/ With all triumphant splendor on my brow.” (Sonnet 33) This certainly is not a reference to any human “light of the world.” Satan knows that when lost humanity discovers how deeply God loves them and wants their company, that will be a sure signal his dominion as “god of this world” which he stole from Adam, and mankind, is nearly over. Another great poet and singer was the shepherd king, David, Solomon’s father, whose psalms explore a vast range of human experience. His Psalm 51 goes deep into the guilt his affair with Bathsheba leaves with him. “For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.” But the one thing he most fears to lose is his muse, his inspiration, the Holy Spirit. “Cast me not away from my presence, and take not thy holy spirit from me.” His Psalm 16 reveals one of the “gifts of the spirit” few associate with David and that is the gift of “tongues,” which he refers to as “his glory.” The Lord is at my right hand, “Therefore “My heart is glad, my glory rejoices; my flesh also shall rest in hope. All this is echoed in Acts: 2: “Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope.” Paul’s words are nearly a direct echo of David’s with one exception, Paul substitutes “tongue” for David’s “glory.” But in the original Hebrew and Greek, the two are the same word. Since tongues help one to pray the perfect prayer when one can’t find the words, why would not the giver of that gift also be the perfect muse to inspire writers and poets seeking the best words to capture their thoughts. John Milton, another mega-poet, in the invocation to his masterpiece, Paradise Lost, doesn’t mince words: “Of man’s first disobedience, and the fruit of that forbidden tree/ Whose mortal taste brought death into the world/ And all our woe, Sing Heavenly Muse.” Of course the “Heavenly Muse” is the Holy Spirit, our teacher, our comforter and the 3rd person of the trinity Jesus sent to earth in his place to see us through our trials and tribulations until He comes. That’s why it’s so important to invite Him into your heart and life to be “Your very present “helper” in time of need.” He won’t come in unto us unless we ask him. God always totally respects our free will, our right to ask Him in or refuse him as we choose. It’s a decision that could change one’s whole life. Why stay lost, when you can have a guide, free for the asking?
Gene Pinkney 6/19/23 for The daily News
|