The Bible is not just a book
about God – it is also about His people and their relationship with Him. One
thing that makes the Bible so useful and relevant is that the people in it are
real people, dealing with real problems and experiencing the same temptations,
emotions, pleasures, pains, hopes and fears as ourselves. The book of Psalms
teaches us about the relationship between people and God by allowing us to
eavesdrop on their praise, petitions and (in some cases) ranting to (or at)
God. The beauty of the language of the Psalms makes them attractive, but it is
the frankness and honesty of the words that makes them so compelling. Every one
of the Psalms oozes sincerity – we are reading the words that the psalmist
wants to say to God – and not necessarily the words that he thinks God wants to
hear.
If the Psalms expose us to real
feelings of real people about their relationship with God, then the Song of
Songs deals with the relationship between men and women with equal candour. The
psalmist is not restrained in the language he uses, and neither is Solomon in
the Song of Songs. We may find the Song of Songs a little shocking or
surprising in places (and if that is the case, the problem lies not with the
Bible but with today’s cultural attitudes towards love and sex) but it shows a
straightforward honest and candid approach to our relationship with God.
(homegroup leader)