Saturday, July 30, 2016

Year 6, Day 211: Hosea 11-12

Theological Commentary: Click Here


Discipleship Focus: Father

  • Father: This is the pinnacle of the Covenant Triangle.  God is the Father.  He is the creator.  He is love.  Our relationship with the Father is rooted in His love for us.  We get our identity through Him.  When the Father is in our life, obedience becomes clear.

When we take a look at Hosea 11-12, we have a distinct contrast in themes.  In Hosea 11 we hear words from God that are words of mourning.  In Hosea 12 we hear words of indictment.  It’s not that these messages are conflicting in any way.  The Hebrew people have turned away from God.  It is only natural that God would mourn their desire for sinfulness and at the same time acknowledge their guilt.  Human beings often feel this mix off emotion when the people around them sin, it makes sense that God, who made us in His image, feels this too.

This is actually the perfect lead-in to why I am focusing on the idea of Father today.  When God looks at His people, He can see their sin.  He can burn in righteous anger at the way that we treat each other and pursue our own desires rather than pursuing His desires.  After all, He knows what is best for us in the long run.  So often our own pursuits don’t end up the way we want.  Therefore, He mourns when we continue to turn and follow that which is not in our best interests.

Can you hear the words of mourning in Hosea 11?  He loves us in our childlike innocence.  He cares and nurtures us, often in ways that we completely fail to recognize.  He looks upon us with gentleness and kindness.  Yet in the midst of all of our sin, He cannot give us up.  He continues to fight for us.  He continues to desire relationship.  That’s what it’s like to be a true Father.

<><

No comments:

Post a Comment