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What I have to do is to mention a few things which may help some timid one to say, "My Beloved is mine," and then to do the same with regard to the second sentence in the text, "I am his." Thou askest, perhaps, "May I say, My Beloved is mine?" You know who that Beloved is; I have no need to tell you that. He is the chief among ten thousand, and the altogether lovely. First, hast thou taken hold of Christ by faith? Faith is the hand with which we grasp the Lord Jesus Christ. Hast thou believed that Jesus is the Christ, and that God hath raised Him from the dead? Dost thou trust thyself wholly to Him? Let me ask thee another helpful question. Is He truly thy Beloved, the Beloved of thy soul? I remember well a dear Christian woman, who frequently said to me, "I do love Jesus, I know I do; but does He love me?" Her question used to make me smile. "Well," I said, "that is a question that I never did put to myself, — 'If I love Him, does He love me?' No, the question that used to puzzle me was, 'Do I love Him?' When I could once settle that point, I was never again the victim of your form of doubt." If thou lovest Christ, Christ loves thee for certain, for thy love to Christ is nothing more nor less than a beam out of the Went sun of His love; and the grace that has created that love in thy heart towards Him, if thou dost indeed love Him, proves that He loves thee. Next, I would help thee with a third question. Is Jesus dear to thee above all thy possessions? I hope that many of you can say, "O sir, we would give all that we have, we would suffer all that might be suffered, we would part with the Very light and our eyes, too, if we could but be sure that we might each one truly say, 'My Beloved is mine.'" Well, if thou lovest Christ beyond all earthly things, rest assured that He is thine. Further, dost thou love Him beyond all earthly companions? Couldst thou part with your dearest ones for His sake? Say, art thou sure of this? Oh, then, He is assuredly thine! Dost thou love Him beyond all earthly objects? Aye, beyond the desire of learning, or honour, or position, or comfort, — wouldst thou let all go for His dear sake? Canst thou go that length? If thou canst, then surely He is thine. Let me further help thee by another question. Is Jesus so fully thy hope and thy trust that thou hast no other? O poor heart, if thou art clean divorced from every confidence but Christ, then I believe that thou art married unto Christ, notwithstanding that thou tremblest sometimes, and askest whether it be so or not. Let that thought also help thee. I would further help you in this way. If Christ is yours, your thoughts go after Him. You cannot say that you love a person if you never think of him. He to whom Christ belongs often thinks of Him. Again, do you do more than this? Do you long for Christ's company? If "my Beloved" is indeed mine, I shall want to see Him; I shall want to speak with Him; I shall want Him to abide with me. How is it with you? And, once more, if thy Beloved is thine, thou wilt own it to be so. Holy Bernard was wont to say, and I believe that he could say it truly, "O my Jesus, I never went from Thee without Thee!" He meant that he never left his knees, and left Christ behind him; he never went out of the house of God, and left Christ behind him; but he went through the outward act of devotion with a consciousness of the presence of Christ. Now, i f this be your habit to keep up or to labour to keep up continued communion with Christ, and if you are longing for more and more of that communion, then, dear friends, you are His, and He is yours. Further, let me help you with a still closer question. Have you ever enjoyed that communion with Christ? Didst thou ever speak with Him? Hast thou ever heard His voice? If thou knowest anything experimentally about this matter, then thou mayest conclude that thy Beloved is indeed thine. But supposing that thou art not enjoying Christ's presence, I am going to put another question to thee. Art thou cast down when He is away? If thou hast grieved His Spirit, art thou grieved? If Christ be gone, dost thou feel as if the sun. itself had ceased to shine, and the candle of thy existence had been snuffed out in utter dark ness? Oh, then, He is thine! If thou canst not bear His absence, He is thine. Stretch out the hand, of faith, and take Him, and then say without hesitation, "My Beloved is mine." "Yes, weighing everything the preacher has said and judging myself as severely. as I can, yet I dare take Christ to be mine, and to say, 'My Beloved is mine.'" If that is your case, dear friend, then you shall get confirmatory evidence of this fact by the witness of the Spirit within your soul, which will very likely come to you in the form of perfect contentment of spirit, perfect rest of heart.

( C. H. Spurgeon.)

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KJV: My beloved is mine, and I am his: he feedeth among the lilies.

WEB: My beloved is mine, and I am his. He browses among the lilies.