God’s Lovingkindness

I just have to get this reflection out before it leaves me. I wanted to study a new book of the Bible that I have not studied “inductively” yet. God led me to the book of Hosea for some reason 🙂

This book is prophetic concerning Israel’s impending captivity to the Assyrians. However, there is also a true story-line concerning Hosea and his harlot of a wife, Gomer. My goodness, their children’s names tell us a whole lot about how sick and tired God is of the harlotry of the kingdom of Israel. One child is Lo-Ruhamah (meaning no more compassion) and another is Lo-ammi (meaning I am not your God). Their first born child is named Jezreel which means “God sows”.

The second chapter describes the great harlotry of Gomer. She pursues her many lovers who give her everything she wants (or so she thinks). God says He provided everything she has and He is also able to take it away from her. Gomer is not recognizing God as her provider. Of course Gomer is symbolically representing Israel and how they have strayed to other idols and no longer gives Jehovah-Jireh (the God who provides) His proper respect.

However, in His lovingkindness, God pursues the harlot to bring her back to Him so she will call Him her husband. God will have compassion on her and He will be her God! It makes me think of all the times in my life when I have gone off on a tangent and pursued my own interests. How intently I pursued a career path and I am ashamed to say that I didn’t put God first in my own life. Thanks be to God that He pursued me so that I would fall in love with Him all over again. He drew me back with His lovingkindness and I am His and He is mine! We get so caught up in what we think is the exciting life in the fast lane. Let me tell you where the excitement is folks – being in the will of God and letting Him direct our paths. We won’t stray to false idols when we are abiding in Him.

It reminds me of Romans 2:4 when Paul asks the Roman Jews: “Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?” This is exactly what God was doing for Israel in the book of Hosea. He is giving them opportunity to repent. God is giving you time to repent too friends. God’s will is that none of us perish, but that we all come to repentance! Oh love that will not let us go!