Song of Solomon 2:4 NKJV
“He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.”
INSIGHT
-A banner is a piece of cloth bearing a name, slogan, or goal associated with a particular group or ideology. It can be used for campaigns, advertisement, sensitization. It can be a flag or emblem used for a specific purpose. King Solomon reveals that a banner of love is over him. A banner that bears the writings love. A message of God’s love for him, extending to his beautiful bride. Christ who is the Bridegroom of the church has brought us to His banqueting table, where we partake of His last supper in remembrance of Him. God has chosen us to be partakers of Him in His banquet, for He is the bread of life. God reminds us of His eternal love for us. The love that He has shown us by dying on the cross for the remission of our sins. Through the blood of Jesus we are preserved and find peace. This is exemplified in Exodus 12:22-23 where the Lord commanded the Israelites to slaughter a lamp and smear the blood on the door posts and lintels, so that when the destroyer would come during the Passover, the Lord would preserve His people. The blood of Jesus speaks for us. It speaks better things than that of Abel and we rest secure in Him. He protects us and the banner of His love is over us, evidence by His protection, preservation and salvation. The Lord has placed a mark on our foreheads, and we are persevered from eternal condemnation.
PRAYER
Lord we thank You for Your goodness, mercy and love. Lord You are Mighty and Righteous. You are Great and greatly to be praised. You are the Banner over us Jesus Christ. Thank You for Your sacrifice on the cross for us Your children. Thank You for Your blood that speaks better things than that of Abel. You are our Savior and our Shield. Thank You for protecting us from the destroyer, who comes to kill, steal and destroy. May You forgive us all our trespasses and wash us with Your precious blood dear Jesus. Thank You for You are our Bread of Life, may You give us the grace to always partake of You and find life everlasting. Life that does not fade away but lives on testifying of Your goodness. May You guide us throughout the week and grant us Your favor and grace. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us now and forevermore. Amen
Further reading: Psalm 36:7, Ezekiel 9:4-5
Numbers 2:2
“The Israelites are to camp around the tent of meeting some distance from it, each of them under their standard and holding the banners of their family.”
INSIGHT
-Moses was instructed to tell the Israelites to hold a banner of their families. This was a mark of identify. Showing where one belongs. One’s origin and heritage. Christ is the banner over our families. God requires us to identify with our families as we honor each other and be united in love. God authored the family unit and loves each one of us. The banner of love in the family unit should be held high possibly by the leader, and priest of the house, and each one of us has a role to play. We should be proud of our families, pray for one another and be quick to forgive those who offend us. We are also called to support our relatives lest we are declared worse than unbelievers (1 Timothy 5:8). Further, we should let God build our homes or else we will labor in vain. Lastly, we are called to genuinely love each other, not to show off or brag about it, but to hold fast enduring love that fails not.
PRAYER
Lord Almighty Father, You are the banner over our families, we entrust our homes to You. May You take charge of every family unit, that Your love will unite each member of our families. May Your love take charge of every parent and every child, and their relationships with each other. May You give every father wisdom and grace to lead and shepherd the homes according to Your will. May You give every mother wisdom and strength to take their place as You please Lord. May You grant every child the wisdom and favor to follow Your statutes and excel in every good work. Lord Jesus may Your purposes be accomplished by every member of the family according to Your will that is in heaven. May You bless every family and provide for all their needs. May You answer our hearts desires and prayers. May You grant each family fruitfulness biological, financially, economically, socially and spiritually dear Jesus. May You reunite every broken marriage and relationship. May You heal every scar in the family unit and may Your banner of love be present in every home. May Your gift of salvation take hold of every household that we may be liberated from every form of slavery and be corded by Your everlasting love and peace. Only You are God and none can be compared to You. Thank You for making us a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, Your own special people, that we may proclaim Your praises for You called us out of darkness into Your marvelous light. Father You remain faithful even when we become faithless, all our hopes and trust is in You. We praise You Lord and bless Your name now and forever. Amen
Further reading: Psalms 127:1-5, 1 Peter 2:9-10
Isaiah 11:12 NIV
“He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth.”
INSIGHT
-The Messiah shall stand in view of the nations and gather the exiles of Israel from the four corners of the earth, North, South, East and West. Isaiah 11:11 reveals that the Lord shall recover the remnants of His people who are left from Assyria and Egypt, Pathros and Cush, Elam and Shinar, Hamath and the islands of the sea. The Messiah is the conspicuous object around which the nations rally. The Root of Jesse, has stood as a banner to the people; for the Gentiles seek Him, and His resting place is glorious. Christ is the banner over the nations. God is King over the nations. Dominion belongs to the Lord, He rules over the nations (Psalms 22:28). He is the banner of love over the nations.
PRAYER
Jesus You are the banner of love over our nation, and all the nations of the earth. You triumphed over death and hades and took the keys, and set us free from the grasp of the enemy. We declare that no weapon fashioned against shall prevail and no tongue that has been raised against us that prevail for this is our heritage as Your servants Lord and our righteousness is from You our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. May You remove any accusations against us in the courts of heaven our Righteous Judge. We thank You for loving us and our nation, and for redeeming us with Your precious blood. May Your work of salvation be evidenced in our nation and all nations of the world, for the glory and honor of Your name. May You prosper our nation and send us Your rain and latter rains. May You increase our productivity and divine opportunities for us to grow in every sphere. May You preserve us with Your precious blood and take charge of the executive, judiciary and legislative arms of government. May You Your name be exulted and praise in our entire nation and all the nations of the world. Every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ You are Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Our Father who art in heaven; hallowed be Your name; Your Kingdom come; Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptations but deliver us from evil; for thine is the Kingdom the power and the glory; forever and ever. Amen
Further reading: Job 12:23, Isaiah 41:2
Ephesians 2:10 NIV
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
INSIGHT
-God has created us in His image and likeness to achieve the purpose for which He prepared us to do before hand. The Lord calls us to offer our bodies as a living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to His which is our true and proper worship. He has instructed us not to conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our minds that we may be able to test and approve what His good, pleasing and perfect will is (Romans 12:1-2). Since God is love and whoever does not love does not know Him, we are called to love God and one another as ourselves. To love one another as God has loved us (John 15:12). We are like walking billboards and whatever we say or do, speaks on our behalf now and in the future. The way we treat other people and conduct ourselves portrays who we are. We are the salt of the earth and have been graced to remain tasty through good works lest we are thrown out and trampled underfoot. We are the light of the world, and a town built on a hill cannot be hidden, neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, we are called to let our light shine before others, that they may see our good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven (Matthew 5:13-16). We are called to exemplify Christ with our words and conduct as His ambassadors, Who is the banner of love over us. To continually do good works without growing weary, and we will reap a reward at the appointed time.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, we come before Your throne of mercy today. We come to thank You for Your faithfulness, mercies and love. Oh Lord, we thank You for loving us and all that You have done and are doing unto us. You are so good and worthy to be praised. Thank You for who You are and all You have done. Father, we surrender our lives to You today, asking that You may forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all iniquity. Forgive us for where we have not represented Your name well. Where we have fallen short of Your glory, may You forgive us. May You cleanse us with Your precious blood Jesus and teach us Your ways. Oh Lord may You lead us in Your true ways and the paths of righteousness, and let Your glory and light shine upon us. May You prune us and mound us to be what You desire us to be for the glory and honor of Your name. May You help us to abide in You as You abide in us that we may do good works and glorify our Father in Heaven. Oh Lord help us to be Your true ambassadors in the world; to bring many to Your kingdom and turn many to You. Thank You Lord because You are able and nothing is impossible with You, You are our faithful Father. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our lives, and we shall dwell in Your house Lord forever and ever. Amen
Further reading: Romans 6:11, 2 Corinthians 5:20
Psalms 20:5 NIV
“May we shout for joy over your victory and lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests.”
INSIGHT
-The banner of love appears as a display of offering thanksgiving and praises to God. The Lord has won victory for us in all the heavens and earth, and deserves to be worshipped and exulted. Every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory and honor of God the Father.
SUMMARY
Jesus Christ is the banner of love over us. King Solomon in the book of Songs of Solomon deduces his love for his bride, which is an image of God’s love for us. He writes that God brought him to the banqueting house, and His banner over him was love (Song of Solomon 2:4). As the Bridegroom to the church, Christ has shown His church great love by giving Himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and present her to Himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless (Ephesians 5:25-27). In the same way husbands should love their wives. From the book of Numbers 2:2, we find that the foundation of the banner of love when Lord instructed the Israelites to hold the banner of their families as an exhibition of love and identity. Jesus loved us and gave up His love for us to have eternal life. Therefore, love for one another must be sincere, and we should hate what is evil, cling to what is good, be devoted to one another in love and honor one another above oneself (Romans 12:9-10), just as Christ loved us. We are called to put God first in our lives, families and all that we do. Christ should always be the banner of love over us, that He may guide us in our walk of faith. We are like walking banner or billboards, called to shine as the light and to bring taste to every situation like the salt of the earth, so that people may see our good work and glorify our Father in heaven (Matthew 5:13-16). Christ is the banner of love over the nations. In Isaiah 11:12 we find that God will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth. The Lord gathered the remnants after the Babylonian captivity and He reveals His eternal plan to gather His people together, both the Jew and the Greek, all who are in Him during the day of the Lord. Christ, the Root of Jesse is our banner of love and deserves all our praises, for all our hope and trust is in Him.
PRAYER
Lord You are good and Your mercies endures forever. Lord You are good Your love endures forever, and Your faithfulness continues throughout all generations. We give thanks to You God of gods, for Your love endures forever. We give thanks to the Lord of Lords, for Your love endures forever. To You who alone does great wonders, Your love endures forever. To You who by Your understanding made the heavens, Your love endures forever. To You who spread out the earth upon the waters, Your love endures forever. To You who made the great lights, Your love endures forever. You are our God and none can be compared to You. You are our banner of love, Your love endures forever. The banner of love over our lives, Your love endures forever. The banner of love over our families, Your love endures forever. The banner of love over our church and community, Your love endures forever. The banner of love over our nation and all the nations of the world, Your love endures forever. May You bless us and answer our prayers and heart’s desires, Your love endures forever. May You bless us Lord and keep us. May You Your face shine upon us and be gracious to us. May You lift up Your countenance upon us and give us peace. Amen
Further reading: Philippians 2:10-11, Psalms 136:1-26