Today we jump into the book of Hosea. I would be remiss if I didn’t give you any background before I jump into what is on my heart for today. Hosea followed Amos who prophesied about God’s judgment on Israel at the hands of an unknown enemy and Hosea identifies that enemy to be Assyria. He was the only one of the writing prophets who came from the Northern Kingdom (Israel), and he lived during the tragic final days of this kingdom.
The book of Hosea is divided into two sections. The first (ch.1-3) describes Hosea’s family life- an unfaithful while and faithful husband. The second (ch. 4-14) focus on an unfaithful nation and I faithful God. Today I am focusing on the first. God told Hosea to “take yourself an adulterous wife and children of unfaithfulness, because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery from the Lord” (1:2). Hosea’s family life was to be a symbol of God’s relation to Israel. This is both a covenant and love relationship (as is his relationship with us as we are adopted as his chosen people). I challenge you to find the places in scripture where God speaks of being a ‘husband’ to his people. Because the Israelites – and us – are in a covenant and love relationship with God, disloyalty to God is considered Spiritual adultery. Israel was worshipping Baal, they sacrificed at pagan high places, and they had forsaken God and his commands. And yet God, in an amazing display of compassion and love, cannot let Israel go.
Now, all of that being said, I want to remind you of something I briefly wrote on yesterday at the end of the blog – how God returns to us when we return to him. This is played out in Hosea’s relationship with his wife and it is a beautiful picture of how God loves us. She is adulterous – she even leaves him. Yet he not only welcome’s her back when she returns, but also woos and pursues her to bring her back.
This is one of the most beautiful and important truths that we can know – that God desires a deep, intimate relationship with us. He allows us to make our choices, and unfortunately, like an adulterous wife, we start worshipping at other alters (we each have our own idols to whom we prostitute ourselves). But God is always pursuing us, wooing us in love and compassion and drawing us back.
How does God pursue us? The answer lives in Hosea 2:14:
“Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her.”
God doesn’t pursue by leading us to a luxury resort where we are waited on hand and foot, or at a gourmet restaurant where we can eat our fill of rich food, or to the spa to be pampered. He takes us to the desert. Why the desert? No one wants to be in the desert – it doesn’t sound very alluring. But God knows better – he knows that it is in the desert where we best hear and see him. Why? Because of the things that happen in the desert.
Desert season’s in our lives are the times when we reach out to God the most, seek God the most, need God the most, and see his loving provision and compassion the most. There are things that happen in the desert that simply can’t happen anywhere else. Things that happen that remind us of the greatness of God’s love and mercy for us. In the desert:
God feeds and clothes – Deuteronomy 8:3-4 – and we see his provision
God leads us – Exodus 15:13 – and we see his direction
God guards us from enemies – Joshua 24:17-18 and we see his protection
God does not abandon us – Nehemiah 9:19 – and we see his eternal presence
God spreads a table before us – Psalm 78:19 – and we see his abundance
This is just the short list of what happens in the desert. The key thing about the desert is that in all of the things God does there; we know who the source is. The desert is but a dry and thirsty land that offers no provision or protection or direction of its own. Therefore, when we receive all of the things listed above, he knows with certainty that God is the one who has provided. And when we are reminded of the richness of God’s mercy and grace, when we are reminded of his abundant love for us and how closely we watches over us, when we once again are aware of his hand leading and guiding us, we can’t help but to fall in love with him all over again.So God may lead you into the desert, but there we see new life. Out of the desert comes new hope and a new song (2:15). There in the desert we move from seeing God as a master to loving him as a husband (2:16). We will long for no other God’s but him (2:17). In the desert we move again to living under the hand of our husband’s protection (2:18). In the desert we fall in love with the one who romances us by giving showing us his righteousness, justice, faithfulness, love, and compassion. (2:19-20). There in the desert a love relationship with God – and are very lives – are restored (2:21-22). And at the end of every desert journey is a promised land (2:23).
I know that many of us have been in the desert, some of us are in one right now, and all of us will certainly find ourselves in one again at some point in our lives. Friends, I pray that you will know in the midst of that desert that God did not abandon you there. Search for him there, knowing in confidence that you will find him to be very, very close to you. I pray that you will see his provision, direction, protection, and abundance there. I pray that you will cling tightly to God, that your love relationship will be renewed in such a way that this desert brings you to a new land. I pray that God would romance you in that desert in such a way that your desert will bring you to a land where you will live out your life always aware and delighting in his covenant relationship of love with you. I pray that at the end of your life on earth, you will be invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb, and that you will see this God who has written a romance story like no story ever written – a story that is not fiction but true. I pray that you will, on that day, see “heaven standing open and there before you will be a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True” (Rev.19:11).
Our God desires an intimate covenant relationship of love with you. I encourage you to find some time in your day to get alone with him and let him allure you.
If you are in a desert and would like us to pray for you, please share your request - it would be our pleasure.
Today's post was submitted by Carol Bartels
Come, let us return to the LORD. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us
ReplyDeletebut he will bind up our wounds. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence.
Some things take time: lives destroyed, minds shackled by the effects of sin, hearts given over to materialism and greed. The pressures come and we come to our senses and turn our hearts back to our Lord but deliverance is still days away. Don't give up. Keep walking for on the 3rd day it will arrive and the victory will be manifested. How bad do you really want to be delivered? Time will tell what is in our heart. Seek and knock and keep on seeking and knocking until the answer comes.
what else do i have but Him, he holds all the keys to what i need and want beside Him there is no-thing ,so be it
ReplyDelete