Visual Aid? - Hosea 1 (Week 7 - Post 2)

Read Hosea 1. 

I can't help but wonder what in the world Hosea thought when this message came to him from God.  He knew the message was God given.  And so he did it!  He had to have been a remarkable man of faith.  Often God used symbolism through His prophets to hammer home a lesson.  And it always required sacrifice on their part.  Think about Hosea ... think about his decision ... think about marrying and knowing what was coming.  We learn later in our book that Hosea loved Gomer. 

I suspect there may be some of you reading this that know what it means to be betrayed by a spouse ... one you loved ... one you assumed faithfulness.  The pain is almost indescribable ... but Hosea KNEW!  He knew what would be because God gave him warning ... and told him to do it anyway. 

What kind of trust is required for that kind of obedience?  I have some lessons to learn about trusting God.  I want to have absolute security in the knowledge that the God of all the earth will do right.  And even when He asks me to difficult things, to go difficult places, to walk into circumstances that I cannot explain or understand ... God can be trusted.

Has God ever asked you to do something so incredibly difficult that you thought you couldn't do it?  He even does that through scripture.  And He asks us to trust Him enough to DO IT!  For example ...

Romans 14:13 - "Therefore, let us stop passing judgment on one another.  Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way.

Romans 15: 1 - 2 - "We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves.  Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up."

Romans 15: 7 - "Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God." 

Ephesians 4: 29 - "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building other up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."

Colossians 3:9 - "Do not lie to each other ..."

Colossians 3: 12 - 13 - "As God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.  Forgive as the Lord forgave you."

We could go on and on ... the things God tells us to do.  Why?  Because we are His.  Because He has a message to speak through us.  Symbolically, we are Christ in flesh again.  The world needs to see the Lord ... and God chooses for the world to see Him through us.  Amazing ...

Requires great trust ...

Requires great sacrifice ...

Requires being women and men determined to respond to the call of God ...

Are we listening?

Hosea (Week 7 - Post 1)

The final book of the Minor Prophets that we will study this session is the book of Hosea.  It is a bit longer than the others we have considered with its 14 chapters.  Today, let's just consider some introductory things about the book.  Then, the assignment for the next couple of days is to read the book of Hosea.  Remember in an overview reading you don't need to worry about details ... you are just getting a feel for the book - its flow and progression. 

Before you read ... here is some background and historical information that will enhance the understanding of the book. 


Hosea lived and ministered in Israel in the days of the Divided Kingdom. He preached during the later years of Jeroboam II, a time of great material prosperity (about 753–723 b.c.).



Hosea’s mission was both special and painful. He was called to experience the anguish caused by an unfaithful wife: a wife whose sexual adultery mirrored the spiritual adultery of the nation Israel, which had been unfaithful to the Lord by worshiping idols and rejecting the holiness in His Law. The names of his children were chosen by God as reminders of Israel’s unfaithfulness.
(Richards, L., & Richards, L. O. (1987). The teacher's commentary. Includes index. (451). Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books.)

And from Warren Wiersbe and his expository outlines on the Old Testament. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books:



The name Hosea means “salvation.” He preached in the Northern Kingdom (Israel, also called “Ephraim”) during a period of national decline. When Hosea started his ministry, Jeroboam II was king, and it was a time of great prosperity. But the nation was rotting away inwardly and getting involved with foreign alliances instead of trusting God to lead and protect them. Hosea lived to see Israel taken captive by the Assyrians in 721 B.C. Read 2 Kings 15–17 for some of the historical background.



Hosea’s message is to the nation of Israel, exposing their sins and warning them of coming judgment. There is also a message of hope for the future, as we shall see. But the unique thing about his message is that he had to live it himself before he could preach it to the people. The prophet had to experience deep agony in his own marriage because of the sins of his wife, but all of this was a divinely sent object lesson to him and his people.


One other comment before we begin ...

There is a wonderful novel by Francine Rivers titled "Redeeming Love".  The story is based on the story we are about to encounter in the book of Hosea.  If you like to read ... check out the book.  Let me know what you think. 

Lord, we ask for wisdom as we open this book.

Teach us what You would have us know.

Give us the wisdom to see applications for our lives,

and the courage to act on what You show us.

Let us learn from Your servant, Hosea.

The Meaning of Trust - Habakkuk 3 (Week 6 - Post 2)

Read Habakkuk 3 today.  If it has been several days since you were in Habakkuk, it would be advantageous to begin at the beginning of the book to refresh your mind on the flow of the dialogue.  Then come back ...

In chapter 1 of this book, we observe Habakkuk wondering and questioning.  He doesn't doubt God, he just doesn't understand.

In chapter 2, we observe the prophet watching and waiting for God's response and activity.  He knows that the righteous live by faith and he is willing to watch and wait - to live by faith.

Then we come to chapter 3 and we see this prophet worshiping.  He has moved from the questions and confusion through the decision to watch and wait all the way to adoration and worship.  You feel the humility, the awe of God, the reference for Him.  Verses 17 - 19 constitute one of the most beautiful statements of total trust in all of scripture.  And in that trust lies the secret to joy. 

Now ... take whatever circumstance you are having to walk through right now that is difficult.  Do you have it in mind?  Walk it through these three chapters .... 1) take your questions and confusion to God.  Ask Him about it.  Tell Him you don't understand why you must see or do this thing.  Then, 2) ask yourself if you are willing to watch and wait for God to act.  If you decide that you are willing, then you must practice!  And 3) spend your time in worship.  Tell God what you know of Him ... His splendor and mighty hand, His power and His righteousness.  Can you conclude as did Habakkuk, with the statement that even if things do not go your way ... even if circumstances do not work as you would have them work out ... even if things remain hard ... I will rejoice in God my Savior.  I will find joy in the Lord, not in the circumstance.  After all, the Lord is sovereign.  The Lord is all-knowing.  The Lord is all-wisdom.  The Lord is all-love.  The Lord is all-mercy.  I will find joy.  Not only joy ... but the strength to go on.  You will gain the strength to go on to be the best, the highest, you can be as long as you are allowing the strength of God, your trust in Him, to be the force that carries you.  The strength that enables you. 

Let's memorize these 3 verses ... they need to be in the warp and woof of our psyche. 

     Though the fig tree does not bud

          and there are no grapes on the vines,

          though the olive crop fails

          and the fields produce no food,

          though there are no sheep in the pen

          and no cattle in the stalls,

     Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,

          I will be joyful in God my Savior.

     The Sovereign Lord is my strength;

          He makes my feet like the feet of a deer,

          He enables me to go on the heights.

Faithfulness - Habakkuk 2 (Week 6 - Post 1)

As we continue our reflections on the book Habakkuk ... today read Habakkuk 2.

There are two familiar phrases in this chapter.  And in the midst of the "woes" against Babylon, they are like a fresh breeze of clean air blowing through.  Let's consider them both today ...

Habakkuk's second complaint to God (1:12 - 2:1) is all about why God would use the Babylonians (Chaldeans) to discipline Judah.  They were a blood-thirsty and violent, idolatrous people.  Couldn't God find someone else - someone less wicked?  God's response is to tell Habakkuk that he is just to wait ... and to remain faithful during the waiting. 

That's hard isn't it?  The waiting on God.  Many times we are called to wait on God.  It seems that the answers to our prayers are not forthcoming ... time passes ... circumstances don't get 'fixed' or even better.  We continue to pray ... and wait.  So the question becomes, "how do you wait?"  What is your attitude in the waiting?  Are you anxious, full of doubt, fearful?  David describes the attitude during waiting in Psalm 27: 13 - 14:

I am still confident of this:

I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Wait for the Lord;

be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

God tells Habakkuk "though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay."

And then in verse 4, one of the "fresh air" phrases of this chapter appears ... and is almost as an aside in the flow of the sentence.  How refreshing it is!  "But the righteous will live by his faith"  God tells us that we can indeed live well during the time of waiting ... how, by faith! 

What about this word, "faith"?  From the Shepherd's Notes Commentary:

The Hebrew word translated "faith" in Habakkuk 2:4 means "faithfulness", "steadfastness," or "trustworthiness."  It implies a continued state of being, a deliberate and conscientious effort to walk in God's ways.  It also includes the ideas of belief and trust which are more common to the New Testament concept of faith.  Quoting this verse three times, the writers of the New Testament recognized that saving faith was faith that believed in God but also resulted in faithful living.

The three places where Habakkuk 2:4 is quoted are:

1.  Romans 1:17  "For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: 'The righteous will live by faith.'"

2.  Galatians 3:11  "Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, 'The righteous will live by faith.'"

3.  Hebrews 10: 37 - 38  "For in a very little while, 'He who is coming will come and will not delay.  But my righteous one will live by faith.'"

How about you?  Is that the way you are living today?  In your current circumstances?  The righteous do that ... they live each day by faith.

The second "fresh air" phrase appears in verse 20.  These "woes" against Babylon have filled the chapter ... there are five of them and they are bleak indeed.  And then there is the "BUT" that begins verse 20.  In spite of all the gloom and destruction that is coming ... there is something else ... that is not the end of the story.  "BUT"! 

But what?  But ... the Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.

So, rest well, my friends.  The Lord STILL resides in His holy temple ... the Lord STILL commands the silence of reverence and awe in His presence. 

We can echo the heartbeat of David as he says ... "I am still confident of this:  I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living." 

Yes, David.  Me, too. 

Observations - Habakkuk 1 (Week 5, Post 2)

After over viewing the book in Post 1, go back now and re-read Habakkuk 1.

There are 2 observations I want to make with you from this chapter.

First - from verse 5.

"Look among the nations! Observe!

Be astonished!  Wonder!

Because I am doing something in your days -

You would not believe if you were told."

I don't know if Habakkuk could identify the things that God was doing or not.  But we know that God responded to Habakkuk's questions about evil and wickedness so rampant with these words.  Do you think God would say the same thing to us today?  As we question and are so confused by the overt violence and destruction throughout the globe in our day?  Perhaps we need to hear the same response that Habakkuk heard.  Perhaps we need to quit wringing our hands and sagging our heads and look, observe.  If God is a sovereign over the earth (and I believe He is), He is doing things right now among the nations.  Nations rise and fall.  Power shifts.  Economies rise and fall.  Two things come to mind to me for application.  One is ... I can absolutely TRUST the hand of God over the world and the nations.  I may have to remind myself of that on a daily basis as my mind is bombarded with news.  But the reality is ... God is sovereign ... God is trustworthy ... God is faithful ... God is mighty ... God is able.  So we can take a deep breath.  The other is that I need to stop fretting and look around ... look for the hand of God.  None of us may feel wise enough to do that on a world stage ... but we can do it in our own lives!  Where did you see God's hand in your life yesterday?  Are you going to look for it today - or are you too busy?  God help us get our eyes off ourselves and on to You. 

The second observation I would make from chapter 1 is the phrase that describes the Babylonians at the end of verse 11:

"They whose strength is their god"

Talk about idolatry!  Both nations and individuals are prone to trust their own strength rather than God.  Where you place your trust shows you your god.  We ask ourselves the same questions that we return to so often ... where do I place my trust?  Is it in my strength ... or my income and bank account?  Could it be in a spouse or children or family?  Do I place my trust in ANY particular nation?  Or am I prone to place my trust in a religion rather than in God Himself through Christ?  Remember, religion is to be a support ... not the end itself.  I want to put my WHOLE TRUST in God alone.  And that is my prayer today ...

Oh Sovereign Lord, I don't want to be like the Babylonians ... I don't want to trust in anything other than You.  Show me where I am violating my own desire.  Show me what I am allowing to take Your place in my life.  Forgive me when I forget or get careless and lazy.  You are indeed from everlasting and You are my Holy One.  You are my rock.  I rest myself there ...

Habakkuk (Lesson 5 - Post 1)

We will spend 2 weeks studying the Minor Prophet, Habakkuk.  Three chapters only ... but so rich in foundational truth for each and every one of us. 

Kay Arthur tells us that it was the truth of this little book that influenced Martin Luther and fueled the reformation.  Luther was tormented by the idea that he served a righteous God who could not be satisfied.

And it was the truth of this little book that influenced a single woman, Hannah Hurnard, who was a missionary in Israel.  This book is what inspired her to write "Hinds' Feet on High Places" - one of the classics in Christian devotional reading. 

I wonder what it will mean to you and me?  Are we willing to truly "hear" the message and the truth that Habakkuk puts forth? 

To grasp this book it is important for us to begin by reading the whole thing at one time.  It will help you get the flow ... the sense of dialogue ... the movement of thought in through the book. 

Stop reading here ... and go to your Bible.  Then come back for a brief comment from me and that will be all for today.

Read Habakkuk



I love what seems to be the open, honest dialogue between Habakkuk and God.  Habakkuk is not afraid to take his most troubling questions to God.  The things he just cannot understand.  Are you?  Habakkuk does not seem to feel that it is inappropriate ... or sinful ... or critical of God ... or anything.  He takes his questions ... his frustrations ... even his complaints ... to God.  What better place to take them? 

We see the same trait in David ... that man of God.  Listen to him in Psalm 55: 1 - 8

Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea;

hear me and answer me.  My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught

at the voice of the enemy, at the stares of the wicked;

for they bring down suffering upon me and revile me in their anger.

My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death assail me.

Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me.

I said, "Oh, that I had the wings of a dove!

I would fly away and be at rest --

I would flee far away and stay int he desert;

I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm.

The cry continues throughout scripture ... even into the book of Revelation. 

 

When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who

  had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained.

  They called out in a loud voice, "How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you

  judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?"  (Revelation 6: 9 - 10)

Indeed!  How long, Lord? 

So ... take your most troubling questions and agonies to God ... remember to never forget in the midst of your cries to recognize that our God is indeed "holy and true".  Remember what we learned in Micah and let your attitude be one of "humility before our God".  Never arrogance - never demading.  Always trusting - always knowing God's ways are not our ways - always faithful.  Then ask ...

What do you need to ask Him today?



Justice - Nahum 3 (Week 4 - Post 3)

Read Nahum 3. 

What a sobering chapter this is.  I looked for just one verse that we could claim from this chapter for hope and encouragement.  I couldn't find one.  And as I asked God to show me what I needed to learn from this horrific description ... slowly a thought began to take root.  Nineveh had time to repent ... Jonah had been there before with a call from God for repentance.  The king and the people had responded ... but only briefly.  Evidently the idolatry, the violence, the arrogance had all returned.  And their time was finished.  God is just.  Sin must be paid for.  And the rod of justice is coming down on Assyria. 

Years ago ... when I was a young mom with three little girls ... my dad's single engine private plane went down in terrible weather in Dallas.  It was February.  That crash cost him his physical life.  He was a Godly man - a servant of God.  But he was not a perfect man - not a sinless man.  Sitting in the funeral home ... alone ... in front of a closed casket because of the accident ... I began for the first time to get a glimpse of the horror of sin.  Death is a part of this world experience because of sin.  And death is horrible.  Would that we all could be like Enoch and just be "taken away" by God.  (Genesis 5: 18 - 24)  I had not disregarded sin ... but it was all so abstract ... such religious language.  My mind could hear the comedian Flip Wilson and his "the devil made me do it!" comedy, making satan and sin an object of humor.  For the first time, I truly grieved the presence of sin in the world ... in my life ... the cause of death.  I can hear Paul in Romans 6:23 as he says, "the wages of sin is death."  The payment.  God is just.  Sin must be paid for. 

As I read Nahum 3, those same thoughts fill my mind.  The horror of sin.  The end result of sin.  God is just.  Sin must be paid for.  The picture of destruction painted by Nahum is all-inclusive.  Consuming.  Complete.  Final.  There are no sadder words in all scripture than Nahum 3:19a: 

Nothing can heal your wound;

your injury is fatal.



God is just.  Sin must be paid for. 

O my friends, deal with your sin!  It is not a source of comedy ... it is not a case of, "well, everybody else does worse than me" ... it is not abstract.  It is real and it is serious - 'deadly' serious. 

Before we give up in despair and begin to wail, there are some things you MUST remember.  Perhaps you need to hear them today with the words of Nahum echoing in your mind ...

2 Corinthians 5:21  "God made him (Jesus) who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 

Did you hear it?  Our Lord BECAME the sin ... the reason for the kind of destruction we have read about this week.  Can you hear Jesus from the cross crying out "My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?"  Jesus took it ... and He did not deserve it.  Nineveh and Assyria deserved it.  You and I deserve it.  And my Lord BECAME my sin and with that 'becoming' took the justice.  I have no words to describe that reality.  I can do nothing but fall on my face in awe, reverence, and gratitude. 

Close today with these words from Paul in Romans 8 ...

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, (are you?) because through Christ Jesus the law of the the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 

Are you free from the law of sin and death?  If you are, spend some time right now in silent adoration of a God who would pay that price to set you free. If you are not, post a comment to me about it.  All comments come to me first before any posting for open viewing occurs and can be kept confidential. 

Praise God ... there is no condemnation for those of us who are "in" Him through His Son, Jesus Christ. 

A gift from God ...

The book of Nahum has greatly increased my gratitude and awe over the reality of forgiveness in Christ.  Worship Him with me today ...