Under Whose Tree Are You Sitting Today?

Under Whose Tree Are You Sitting Today?

You have a choice. You can be a partaker of the spiritual fruits of righteousness and holiness or a partaker of the fleshly, carnal, and worldly fruits of lust, immorality, and perversion.

Your choice will be based on whether or not you see Jesus as being the "Preeminent" One(Colossians 1:18) - the One exalted above all others.

The old adage says - "You are what you eat."

Based on that saying, we can easily determine under whose shade tree you have been sitting.

The Lord Jesus taught us - "Ye shall know them by their fruits"(Matthew 7:16).

Song of Solomon 2:3 tells us - "As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons..."

Here we immediately see a contrast being drawn between "the apple tree" and "the trees of the wood" or "my beloved" and "the sons."

"The apple tree" was really a generic or catch-all term for fruit and included the pomegranate, orange, apple, or citron. The image presented is a very lovely one. The fruit was a very fragrant fruit. The tree was useful and serviceable - yielding pleasant and delicious fruit - desirable fruit that was rare among the other trees.

We cannot help but think of Hebrews 1:9 at this time where Christ Jesus is exalted above all others - "Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows." He is singled out as One Who is holy, upright, harmless, and undefiled. He had been obedient to the Law of God - while supporting righteousness and truth and abhorring and suppressing all iniquity. As a reward for His righteousness and justice...as a result of His manifested love of righteousness and hatred of iniquity - God set Him above His companions - brethren, close associates, or even all believers. He was anointed, consecrated, or set apart to the offices of king, priest, and prophet - beyond all others who ever received such gifting.

Resultantly, many people's eyes are being opened to this fact, and they are choosing Him as their source of comfort, contentment, communion, and caressing care as depicted in Song of Solomon 2:3 - "As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under His shadow with great delight, and His fruit was sweet to my taste."

David had this revelation of the Lord as being the "Preeminent One" and invited all to follow him in his pursuit when he said - "O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him"(Psalm 34:8).

He described the sweet fellowship with His Lord as "trust," while Solomon described it as "sitting down under His shadow." He beckoned for all to drink deeply...judge...test by experience...take refuge in this Exalted One...and submit one's way of life to Him - and then "see" if one will not experience total satisfaction and the provision of every one of his needs. Solomon described this same sweet communion as "sitting down under His shadow" or shade "with great delight" - to be sheltered from the scorching heat(stress) of the day...to be cooled, refreshed, and revived...and to take rest from life's journeys or wanderings. In that place "under His shadow," the believer - by faith - is able to commune with his Lord and partake of His goodness, promises, privileges, mercies, and grace.

What about you, O Saint of God? Have you found this place of refuge and trust - "sitting down under His shadow" - the shadow of your Lord and Master - "the shadow of the Most High" - where all of your worries, cares, and stresses are replaced with sweet relief?

So many today are agitated and disturbed in their spirits and souls. They have no peace and are feeling miserable. Could it be that they have opted for the "shadow" of the fruitless, wild trees of this world rather than the fair and choicest "apple tree" of the Lord Jesus - Whose blossoms, fruit, and foliage are perpetual and delightful?

Instead of "fruit sweet to my taste," they are eating of "the vine of Sodom" and "the fields of Gomorrah" whose "grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter"(Deuteronomy 32:32). Instead of purity, holiness, and godliness, they are pursuing after the poison of immorality, perversion, bitterness, cruelty, and oppression.

They have fallen so low that they are even partaking - so to speak - of the "husks" that the "swine did eat"(Luke 15:16). These are the hulls of the leguminous plant - the pods of the carob or locust tree - the long sweet beans - which in the East were fed to the swine and cattle. In times of great distress, it was the nourishment of the poorest of all people.

Why would a people settle for the "husks" or the nourishment of swine when they could "sit down under" Jesus' "shadow with great delight" and enjoy the best of all fruits - food fit for a king - angel's food - if you will?

Instead of feeding on the lies of Satan, they could be partakers of God's Word as depicted in Proverbs 25:11 - "A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver." Under Jesus' shade tree, they would hear a word spoken soundly, opportunely, seasonably, and in its place...a well-circumstanced word that has a lovely effect...beautiful speech...or a word that comes naturally and runs smoothly and quickly along upon its wheels to its given end or desired destination.

But it takes determination on the individual's part to choose the Lord Jesus' "apple tree" over the world's barren, wild trees.

This fellowship is suitably depicted in Song of Solomon 7:8 - "I said, I will go up to the palm tree, I will take hold of the boughs thereof: now also thy breasts shall be as clusters of the vine, and the smell of thy nose like apples." The result is wonderful fellowship between the believer and his or her Lord. What emanates from their union is not the dreadful stench of "the vine of Sodom" or "the fields of Gomorrah" whose "grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter"(Deuteronomy 32:32). No! No! No! Because of his or her desire to "sit down under His shadow," the believer's spirit emanates with the sweet fragrance of the breath and fruits of the Spirit of God - as depicted by the "clusters of the vine" and "the apple tree" - especially "and the smell of thy nose like apples."

Under whose tree are you sitting today, O Christian?

What kind of fragrance is emanating from your spirit?

What kind of fruits are being displayed in your life - fruits which depict your union with Jesus or with the world?

Do you consider the Lord to be the "Exalted One" - the One anointed "above thy fellows"?

Then why are you not "sitting under His shadow with great delight" - enjoying His promised rest and receiving His "fitly spoken word" - designed to conform you to His image?

Just who is it that brings greater satisfaction to your soul - Jesus or the world?

Your "fruit" of holiness - which you picked from His "tree" and is exemplified in your daily walk - or the lack thereof gives the answer.

May God Bless His Word.

Connie

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