S.S.1:5, “I am dark but lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem, like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon.”
Unfortunately, I’ve known believers who have used the phrase “I am dark but lovely “as an excuse to live a compromised life. It is true, that where sin abounds grace abounds all the more, but that is meant to be a truth to encourage those who are reaching for holiness. What people forget, is that in Romans, after Paul said where sin abounds grace abounds all the more, he added in the next chapter “Shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace might increase?” His answer to his own question is, “May it never be! How shall we who died to sin continue to live in it?” True hidden ones have already decided to pay whatever price is necessary to experience the Heights, therefore their intentions would never be to use grace as an excuse to sin. When we fail in our pursuit, and we will, grace is there to pick us up with the love of God, to keep going. The accuser of the brethren is there standing over us, condemning us and telling us to quit, but God’s unconditional love and grace are there to defeat him. For those who are reaching, and seeking, it is true that grace abounds, but those who intentionally, and unrepentantly, sin, while counting on the grace of God, have no clue what grace is all about. Grace is there for the truly repentant and broken. The truth is, it’s much harder to get away with stuff under grace than it ever was under law. What do I mean by that? When you’re under law, you’re always trying to see how far you can go; how close to the edge can get, without breaking the law. Law keepers are always trying to figure out how much they can get away with. Believers whose hearts have been captured by the grace of God; the unconditional love of God, don’t want to get away with anything. Because love is still controlling them, they don’t want to get close to the edge. They want to stay as far away from anything that would grieve the heart of God as they possibly can. This is what grace actually does in a person’s life. They know that God’s unconditional love and grace is there should they fail, but their hearts have been so wrecked by his unconditional love that their great ambition in life is to please and ravish as His heart. A true revelation of grace brings you o your knees in surrender and submission. we love because He first loved us, and once His grace-filled wins your heart you don’t want to do anything that would sadden His.Listen to a couple of things that Paul says. In Galatians 5 the says “For you for called freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh.” In Titus Chapter 2 Paul says “For the grace of God has appeared, to all men, bringing salvation; instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age.” A true understanding of grace always invokes a heart to be pleasing to God.