Text: Hosea 6:1-11
What we have here is the perfect explanation of God’s discipline (vv. 1-2). He whom the Lord loves, He disciplines. In this verse, we see that the discipline of the Lord is a hard thing. May be it is someone who asks you hard questions and rebukes you. But the Lord also has the freedom to use physical means. This may seem harsh, but the material suffering that Israel experiences is His choice.
They suffered because of the bad ideas that their foolish devotion to Baal had produced. Temple prostitution, sacrificing children; that was the order of the day! To our thinking it seems impossible that the people who had the privilege of God’s Word could do such a thing. No wonder their judgement was terrible and humanly beyond measure.
But His discipline is for a loving purpose and for a very good reason! He gets our attention by any means possible so that we will repent and return to Him. Even if the discipline is painful, isn’t it worth it if we truly repent and experience real change? The Lord Jesus Christ was raised on the third day, to show to the world that life changing power is real and available. It is by His resurrection power that we can repent and truly walk with the Holy Spirit. Praise God that He pursues us with power!
Meditate on verse 1. How are you going to apply it to your life?
Ever loving Father, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ, that You heal us, bind us up and revive us. Amen.