Hosea 11- Our Loving Father

 ”It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the hand, but they never knew that I healed them. I led them with human cords, with ropes of love. To them I was like one who eases the yoke from their jaws; I bent down to give them food.“

‭‭Hosea‬ ‭11‬:‭3‬-‭4‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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What a tender description of how God has cared for His people.  It is just like an adoring father or mother lovingly raising their toddler.  This is not often the picture of God that is painted on the Old Testament, but much more like how Jesus helps us see Him.

What a blessing to have God as our loving, compassionate, caring and patient Father.  It’s a blessing because, I need that.  I need His patience far more often than I should as I find myself distracted from His path.  I need His care when I finally look up and realize that I am broken and need compassion.  I need His love at every moment, but it is especially necessary when I need forgiveness.

Lord, help me to know you  more as a loving Father.  Help me to comprehend your love especially when I am running to you for forgiveness.  Help me, like a child, to turn to you first in every situation.

Hosea 10- Worship of Gods Blessing

 ”Israel is a lush vine; it yields fruit for itself. The more his fruit increased, the more he increased the altars. The better his land produced, the better they made the sacred pillars…” 

“Sow righteousness for yourselves and reap faithful love; break up your unplowed ground. It is time to seek the Lord until he comes and sends righteousness on you like the rain. You have plowed wickedness and reaped injustice; you have eaten the fruit of lies. Because you have trusted in your own way and in your large number of soldiers,“

‭‭Hosea‬ ‭10‬:‭1‬, ‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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Israel is accused of following their own way once again, which resulted in producing more sin and injustice.  When they received blessing, rather than make them thankful to the one who blessed them, it made them chase harder after their sin or more accurately, it made them worship the blessing.

I know I have done this same thing in the past.  When the lord blessed me with success, suddenly all I wanted was more success.  I was so drawn to success that I was willing to sin to get more success.  That is a pretty good definition of an idol right there…willing to sacrifice what you know is right to get what you want.

Lord, help me to continue to pursue the antidote: seek You and do the work you have called me to do.  God, give me a confidence in the work You are doing, and leave the results in Your capable hands.  Allow me to live every moment in your presence so that I may know you more.

Hosea 9- Sin’s Darkness, Gospel Light

 ”They have deeply corrupted themselves as in the days of Gibeah. He will remember their iniquity; he will punish their sins. My God will reject them because they have not listened to him; they will become wanderers among the nations.“

‭‭Hosea‬ ‭9‬:‭9‬, ‭17‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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I hate to ruin the punchline, but this passage is such a stark contrast to the Gospel. Hosea’s message is intended to shock Israel from the path they are on, to get them to come to their senses and return to God! The Good News of God is these terrible consequences are immediately reversed when they begin to seek Him.

Even more exciting is the opportunity we have to seek God through Jesus!  Jesus has paid the penalty for all of our sin; past, present and even future. Not only does He take on the responsibility of our sin, but God begins changing us into people who LOVE to seek Him…who want to obey, who are blessed to spend time with His people, who are energized when they are self sacrificing, who experience peace even in stressful times and are filled with joy in hard times.

Lord I am so thankful that because of Jesus, I am not like the Israelites in this passage!  I could not stand to be rejected by you or have to take on the punishment my sin deserves…I would be crushed.  What a joy to know that you made a way for me, help me to know you more and live confidently in your peace.

Hosea 8- Identity

 ”Though I were to write out for him ten thousand points of my instruction, they would be regarded as something strange.“

‭‭Hosea‬ ‭8‬:‭12‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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This chapter is hard to read because Israel is continuing in their own way and looking for new ways to reject God.  But this verse to me is the pinnacle: even if God were to write out a step-by-step instruction manual for how to know Him, their response would be “what language is this written in?”  They are so far from Him that they have no clue who He is, or what He desires for them.

How devastating for Israel!  They are literally a people who are defined by knowing God and following His instructions.  This is the only thing that sets them apart, it is their identity…

Lord, help me to never forget who you are.  My only valuable identity is as your child, as one who seeks to know you more.  I want to know and love your instruction!  But God, I need your protection so that I don’t forget, so that I don’t get distracted, so that I don’t hold any identity as more valuable than child of God.

Hosea 7- Arrogance of Self Dependance

 ”Israel’s arrogance testifies against them, yet they do not return to the Lord their God, and for all this, they do not seek him.“

‭‭Hosea‬ ‭7‬:‭10‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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This chapter is full of heartache and continued suffering because Israel is not learning the lesson.  God has caused much discipline and inflicted punishment, yet still they are turning to others to help them.  God diagnoses their problem as arrogance…thinking so highly of themselves that they don’t need Him.

I have spent too much of my life thinking like them…I have looked at all the ways God has blessed me and WRONGLY believed that He equipped me to handle whatever was coming my way.  I even gave Him credit for the strength He gave…then tried to fix it on my own.  I looked for every possible solution, but didn’t turn to Him for help! What a fool I have been…

Lord, thank you for removing my blinders! Thank you for loving me enough to allow suffering and discipline.  Even though I hated the process, what it has yielded has been incredible.  Help me to stay dependent on You, help me to always seek You in EVERYTHING, little or life changing, I need you!

Hosea 6- Gods Faithfulness

 ”Come, let’s return to the Lord. For he has torn us, and he will heal us; he has wounded us, and he will bind up our wounds. He will revive us after two days, and on the third day he will raise us up so we can live in his presence. Let’s strive to know the Lord. His appearance is as sure as the dawn. He will come to us like the rain, like the spring showers that water the land.“

‭‭Hosea‬ ‭6‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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I love how this follows yesterday’s dark passage! These words leave no question that God intends to heal, restore and love us.  He faithfully shows up, just like the sunrise!  He brings new blessing and fresh sustenance to us as if we were a thirsty crop that is receiving rain.

What blows me away is that every action in this passage, after we return to the Lord, is something He does!  He is not asking me to heal myself before He can love me.  He is not requiring that I somehow stitch up my gaping wounds. He is not expecting me to drag myself out of depression or exhaustion. He is doing all of that! His only instruction is to return to Him and get to know Him.

Lord, help me remember that knowing you is the one thing you are asking me to do!  Show me when I am attempting to clean myself up and do the things that only you can do.  You are faithful in every way, help me to trust in you, rather than myself, because I fail every day.

Hosea 5- Consequences

 ”They go with their flocks and herds to seek the Lord but do not find him; he has withdrawn from them. …

For I am like a lion to Ephraim and like a young lion to the house of Judah. Yes, I will tear them to pieces and depart. I will carry them off, and no one can rescue them. I will depart and return to my place until they recognize their guilt and seek my face; they will search for me in their distress.“

‭‭Hosea‬ ‭5‬:‭6‬, ‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭CSB‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/1713/hos.5.CSB

This is a hard passage to read because Israel is living “according to what is right in their own eyes”.  In other words, rejecting Gods way, and doing whatever they want.  Even in how they try to worship, they reject Gods clear instruction and try their own way…it doesn’t work.

Then the surprising part, God is the one to inflict suffering as a consequence of their own choices.  I want to feel like this is unloving or unfair!  But, He finally reveals His end game: He is giving them consequences so that they will wake up and return to the blessings of knowing Him.

Lord, help me to wake up without needing to experience pain and suffering…

Help me to seek you and experience joy, peace, comfort, love and acceptance.  Show me where I am going my own way, before it leads to destruction.  I need your help because ‘my way’ always seems right, so give me wisdom and counselors to point me in the right direction.  I need you Lord!