Hosea 6:1-3, 6 – “Come, let us return to the Lord; for He has torn us, that He may heal us; He has struck us down, and He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up that we may live before Him. Let us know; let us press on to know the Lord; His going out is sure as the dawn; He will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth. For I delight in steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” God’s pursuit of His people is relentless. Here in Hosea he has led the prophet Hosea into a hard and difficult family life to illustrate God’s love for Israel. Hosea’s wife was a prostitute and his children may not have been his, and yet God called him to go after her, take her back, and love ... Read More about What God Wants Most
God Won’t Stop Pursuing You
Daniel 4:1-3 – “King Nebuchadnezzar to all peoples, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you! It has seemed good to me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God has done for me. How great are His signs, how mighty are His wonders! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, His dominion endures from generation to generation.” This statement from the Babylonian Emperor Nebuchadnezzar is the culmination of years of God revealing Himself to this arrogant, pagan king. Through a series of amazing events, God was slowly drawing this man to Himself. As far as we can see, God’s great work in Nebuchadnezzar’s life began when He sent him to conquer wicked, idolatrous Judah. But this wasn’t a sudden decision on God’s part. For generations, God had ... Read More about God Won’t Stop Pursuing You
When Your Dreams Die, God’s Work May Just Be Beginning
Daniel 1:3, 6 – “Then the king commanded Ashpenaz…to bring some of the people of Israel, both of the royal family and of the nobility…Among these were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah. And the chief of the eunuchs gave them names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar, Hananiah he called Shadrach, Mishael he called Meshach, and Azariah he called Abednego.” In anyone’s book, this would be an absolute tragedy! Your nation has been conquered by a pagan nation. Your king has been captured, the temple of God has been pillaged, and some of the holy vessels have been carried away as spoils of war. And you, along with some of the brightest and best young people in your nation, are taken captive to a foreign land 900 miles away, where you don’t even speak the language. ... Read More about When Your Dreams Die, God’s Work May Just Be Beginning
God’s Will Is Not Your Enemy. It is the Christ School of God.
Ezekiel 20: 11-13a – “I gave them my statutes and made known to them my rules, by which, if a person does them he shall live. Moreover, I gave them my Sabbaths as a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them. But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness…” Most of us don’t like someone telling us what to do. Even rules and laws annoy us or in some cases, make us mad. With our independent natures we like to do what we want. That was especially true for Israel. From the time God worked miracles to bring them out of slavery in Egypt, to the time they returned from Babylonian captivity, God was pleading with them to stop rebelling against Him, to return to Him, to obey Him as their Lord, to follow Him, to do His commandments. But ... Read More about God’s Will Is Not Your Enemy. It is the Christ School of God.
Your Character is Showing
Ezekiel 17:16 – “As I live, declares the Lord God, surely in the place where the king dwells who made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant with him he broke, in Babylon he shall die.” When King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered Judah and Jerusalem, he had to deal with a rebellious people. Eventually, he placed Zedekiah on the throne of Judah. But Zedekiah wasn’t an independent king. He was a king under Babylon’s authority. When Nebuchadnezzar put Zedekiah on the throne, he made him swear an oath that he would remain faithful to Babylon and keep the agreement they had made. But there was a problem. Zedekiah’s character. He was part of a nation that had already demonstrated over and over again that they were unwilling to keep their covenant with God. And if a person ... Read More about Your Character is Showing
Who Is Really Calling the Shots?
Ezekiel 6:14b – “…then they will know that I am the Lord.” Ezekiel was one of the priests taken to Babylon when Judah was conquered the first time. That would have been difficult enough for anyone. But after living in a foreign land for a while, God called Ezekiel to be a prophet to His people who were living in captivity. And God had a message He desperately wanted them to hear. The problem was, they weren’t listening. So God had Ezekiel do some of the strangest things imaginable to get their attention. These weren’t just bizarre acts. They were living object lessons designed to pierce the hearts of people who had become spiritually deaf. God gave Ezekiel His words and told him to preach hard messages to the Jews in Babylon. He had Ezekiel build a miniature model of Jerusalem and ... Read More about Who Is Really Calling the Shots?