September 3–Hosea 10-14

“Yet it is I who taught Ephraim to walk, I took them in my arms. . .and bent down and fed them. . .How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I surrender you O Israel?. . my heart is turned over within Me. . .I will not execute My fierce anger”(11:3-4, 8-9).

In His holiness, God WILL abandon unrepentant people to sin-caused consequences. It is hard for us to imagine but given the clarity of Scripture on this point it is necessary that we do. God WILL give His own people (unrepentant) to severe discipline. Israel is proof.

Even so, God’s love remains. Judgement is His “strange work” (Isaiah 28:21). Never His preference. Even in His anger, God’s love is steadfast. Stubborn.

As Hosea probed the heart of God (much of it through his own personal experience of betrayal in marriage), he came to a deep understanding. God was NOT giving up Israel in any ABSOLUTE sense. It was morally impossible! Despite years of ingratitude, idolatry and unbelief, these people were still His children. Every parent understands this logic. Even when a child wanders away into God-rejecting sin, the love in the heart of the parent is permanent.

While this does not always mean exemption from consequences, it does mean that, in Christ, mercy is available to the very last. God’s love is stubborn. He actively pursues and is ready to receive the prodigal son or the thief in the cross. Or, me! Or, you!

Dear reader, should we give up on ourselves or others, if God never does? The truest truth in the universe is His stubborn love.

“Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to Him, ‘Take away all iniquity and receive us graciously, that we may present the fruit of our lips” (Hosea14:1-2).

September 2–Hosea 6-9

“Come, let us return to the Lord, for He has torn us, but He will heal us. . . What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?. . .For your loyalty is like a morning cloud and like the dew which goes away early” (6:1, 4).

There is a danger in church life. Something we should recognize. It is possible to learn the words/concepts of genuine faith, but without a true surrender of heart. No shift of loyalty from self to God. “Though right tempers cannot subsist without right opinions, yet right opinions may subsist without right tempers” (Wesley). Danger! It is possible to say (even believe) correct words with unconverted hearts.

As the promised judgments fell on Israel in Hosea 6, some in the kingdom began to call for revival. “Let us return to the Lord. He has torn us (a recognition that the difficulties they were experiencing were coming from Him). He will heal us.”

What is NOT heard, however, is any real sorrow for sin. No acknowledgement of it. No personal responsibility. The focus continues to be about their safety, their happiness.

God refuses this superficial appeal. He compares their words to dew on the morning grass. Temporary. Insufficient.

Teach your children, dear ones. Teach yourself. In the day of discipline, more will be required of us than the auto-pilot quoting of 1 John 1:9. Without true repentance and faith, neither confession nor prayer will have power to save us.

“The doctrine of justification by faith–a biblical truth, and a blessed relief from sterile legalism and unavailing self-effort–has, in our time, fallen into evil company and been interpreted by many in such a manner as actually to bar men from the knowledge of God. The whole transaction of religious conversion has been made mechanical and spiritless. Faith may now be exercised without a jar to the moral life and with no embarrassment to the Adamic ego. Christ may be ‘received’ without creating any special love for Him in the soul of the receiver. The man is ‘saved,’ but he is not hungry or thirsty for God” (A. W. Tozer).

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. . . Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” (Jesus, Matthew 5:4,6).

September 1–Hosea 1-5

“Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go again, love a woman who is loved by her husband, yet is an adulteress, even as the Lord loves the sons of Israel, even though they turn to other gods” (Hosea 3:1).

It is an ancient and powerful metaphor. Communicated in Scripture and creation. God is a husband. His people are His bride. Human marriage is a visible/physical echo of this invisible/Spiritual reality. See Ephesians 5:32.

In 700 B.C., the first (and some say the greatest) of the Minor Prophets declared the truth and the implications of this reality. (Note, please. “Minor” refers to the length the writing rather than the value of the ideas). God is faithful husband. Israel (we) are unfaithful wife.

It was a message painfully written into Hosea’s own experience! Early in life, God told this young preacher to marry a woman who would prove unfaithful. Her name was Gomer. Hosea obeyed. A rocky marriage followed. Children were born. Gomer eventually left to become a harlot. With grieved hearts, we readers observe the unraveling of this sad home. Gradually, we also realize this story is about us, our homes, our nation, our infidelity.

Amazingly, Hosea was faithful. Patiently, and with broken heart, the prophet wooed his wife and family back into his love and protection. Just as God did for Israel!

There were conditions, however. Harsh realities. The second child’s name was Lo-ruhamah (“not pitied”). The meaning? A time would come when God would NOT pity his unrepentant children, nor spare them from discipline. God faithfulness does not equal an exemption from consequences. He calls us to repentance and faith.

A perfectly balanced picture of God and His relationship to us! Severe in government. Extravagant in grace. God is.

Who can even imagine a love like this? Despite our insults, after years of our stubborn pride and ingratitude and excuses, God still loves us and bids us return to His protective arms. He is a faithful husband.

Are we faithful to Him? Will we be? As a tender and grateful bride, will we relax in God’s love, receiving Him, releasing all other identities and ambitions? The book of Hosea calls us to return home with repentant hearts. True stability and true security are found in God alone. He is our faithful husband.

“What wondrous love is this, O my soul? What wondrous love is this?”(traditional hymn).

“If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself”(2 Timothy 2:13).

August 31–Daniel 11-12

“These words are concealed and sealed up until the end of time. Many will be purged, purified and refined, but the wicked will act wickedly. . .but those who have insight will understand. . .But as for you, go your way to the end; then you will enter into your rest and rise again for your allotted portion at the end of the age”(12:9-10, 13).

He is an old man now. Scholars think he is in his nineties. He has lived a remarkable life. In service to God, Daniel has been a counselor to kings and a man of prayer. With tender care, God is now releasing him from his duties, coaching him toward death.

GO! It is a command for Daniel to travel onward toward his own death. The glory of God is most declared by saints who face the end of life with calm and obedient hearts. “To live is Christ, to die is gain,” said Paul without a trace of fear. The same surrender of will that began your walk with God must continue to the very last day. Choose God’s path. GO all the way to the end.

Go YOUR way! The path will be different for each of us. Some of us will go suddenly. Some after long struggle. In great wisdom, God determines the, “kind of death by which he would glorify God.” See John 21. Was it hard for Daniel to release the responsibilites of life? Maybe. The visions he had seen were for a future time in God’s great story. “Let go of them, release them to My care. Your task is done,”whispered the Good Shepherd.

GO WITH HOPE! In v 13, God promises Daniel (and all of His faithful children) both rest and resurrection. Death is not the end! Just as He did for Daniel, God will someday call us to come to Him in an eternal place. “I go to prepare a place for you,” says the Lord. Walking forward when He calls, stepping over the threshold without fear, we will discover rest and resurrection.

Friend, do you trust Him with the last of life? Will you face the last challenge with faith and obedience? Will you go all the way to the end?

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who. . .has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time”(1 Peter 1:4-5).

August 30–Daniel 8-10

“Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard. . .but the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days. . .now I have come to give you understanding”(10:12-14).

I was a wrestler in high school. I loved it! No hard hits, as in football. Rather, an exhausting struggle against an always-near opponent.

No wonder Paul uses this word to describe the Christian life. See Ephesians 6. We wrestle against unseen forces of Spiritual darkness. This morning, dear one, every morning, your foes come to the mat with malice. They oppose you.

We hear this same testimony in Daniel 10. Moved to mourning by the terrible spiritual condition of the people of God (some had returned to Jerusalem, many had not), Daniel invested himself in prayer. For three weeks he prayed without much success or relief. Frustrating, exhausting work.

Then, an angel came to explain. His prayers had been heard from the very first moment. In the invisible world, however, there had been great conflict and opposition. Only the intervention of Michael secured the victory, allowed the messenger to get through with God’s answer for Daniel. Dear reader, will you note the lesson on perseverance in prayer? See Luke 18.

Do you struggle in prayer? Is it difficult and frustrating at times? Do you feel like you are not being heard? Keep going! Don’t quit! Never be confused or discouraged, Prayer may take longer than you expected, but victory comes to those who wrestle.

“At the timberline where the storms strike with the most fury, the sturdiest trees are found” (Hudson Taylor).

“All things can be done by importunate prayer. It surmounts or removes all obstacles, overcomes every resisting force and gains its ends in the face of invincible hindrances” (E. M. Bounds).

“Will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night. . .however, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”(Luke 18:7-8).

August 29–Daniel 5-7

“Yet you, his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this, but you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven”(5:22-23).

When Jesus taught us to pray “Hallowed be Thy name”, He was reminding us of our FIRST duty. Our FIRST wisdom. Every day, for every person, HUMILITY is “job one”.

The humble man regards God with reverence. He acknowledges God’s superiority in rank and beauty and wisdom. The humble man sees himself in a low place relative to God’s greatness. “They did not honor Him as God or give thanks,” says Paul in Romans 1. Humility is the opposite.

In Daniel 5, God challenged Belshazzar. Ignoring the lessons his father learned from God through great pain, Belshazzar arrogantly disrespected the holy utensils (taken from the temple in Jerusalem) and used them as wine glasses at a party for his friends!

We sometimes hear the phrase “the handwriting on the wall”. It points to this story. What the hand wrote that night for Belshazzar will eventually be written on the wall of every unrepentant life.

“MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN!” Your deeds have been measured against an eternal standard of righteousness (mene, Aramaic word, “to measure”). In God’s evaluation, you have been found wanting (tekel, Aramaic word, “to weigh”). Therefore, judgement will now come (peres, Aramaic word, “to divide or break apart”).

True for king and slave, alike. Those who will not humble themselves before God will eventually be broken.

Friend, will you humble yourself before God today? On the path of life, it is job one.

“Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you”(James 4:10).

“Pride must die in you, or nothing of heaven can live in you” (Andrew Murray).

August 28–Daniel 3-4

“You will be given grass to eat like cattle, and seven periods of time will pass over you until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows on it whomever he wishes”(4:32).

God’s discipline is a gift! Even when it is painful. God disciplines me BECAUSE He loves me. Challenges my pride. Teaches humility. Insists that I learn a lesson that is alien to my fallenness.

For all of his genuine interest and profound spiritual experiences (see yesterday’s post), Nebuchadnezzar continued to be a willful, unsurrendered man. Self-promoting. Proud. Unconverted. A natural man.

Out of LOVE for this proud king, God, “upped the pressure”. First, a warning dream. Then, a devastating fall into mental illness. In grace, the Lord sent him tumbling into a dark place. Please observe how Daniel, a true friend, begged the king to repent before the stroke was applied. See 4:27.

Israel experienced similar grace. The wilderness years were designed to humble them. Teach dependence. Challenge self-sufficiency. See Deuteronomy 8:2.

In 2 Corinthians 12, God plainly tells Paul that the “thorn in the flesh” was to, “keep him from exalting himself.” Humility is essential for our progress in holiness. This being so, the Father does not hesitate to teach us this lesson, even at a painful cost.

Is God humbling you, dear one? Is it possible that He knows, and you do not, the extent to which your pride, your autonomy, your concern for self glory, your impatience and self-centeredness are hindering His blessing? Your pride has to go! God’s best requires it! As He humbles you, will you recognize and yield to His love?

“God breathed on clay and it became a man; He breathes (now) on men and they become clay” (A. W. Tozer).

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”(Matthew 5:3).

“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved by Him”(Hebrews 12:5).

August 27–Daniel 1-2

“The king answered Daniel and said, ‘Surely your God is a God of gods and a Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, since you have been able to reveal this mystery’ “(2:47).

At some level ALL men know there is a God. Creation declares His glory. Conscience adds further evidence. The testimonies of people of faith point upward to God like steeples on a church. “That which is known about God is evident within them,” says Paul in Romans 1. The first step of faith is to simply admit the fact that God exists. See Hebrews 11:6.

This being so, in every culture there are those who are seeking the true God. Following the light given, they are searching, seeking light. The Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8), the Magi (Matthew 2), Cornelius (Acts 10), the Greeks who came seeking Christ (John 12). Quickened by the Spirit, honest in conscience, these secular people are hungry for truth.

King Nebuchadnezzar was such a seeker. No fool, this king was impatient (we all should be) with religious games and players. He required the so-called spiritual guides to tell his dream and interpret it. He wanted it real or not at all. Encountering Daniel’s authentic relationship with God, the king was intrigued, fascinated, curious, attracted. Eventually he became convinced that Daniel’s God was true God.

Are there people like Nebuchadnezzar in your life? Yes! As Nebuchadnezzar was with Daniel, seekers take signals and encouragement from believers. “Let your light shine!”

Be aware, dear saint. As you seek the Lord, today, others are observing you, because they are seeking, too.

“Down a hundred highways of empty pursuit, and a thousand foolish things I went through. Didn’t know it back then, but now I do. I was lookin’ for You” (Zach Williams).

“From one man He made all the nations. . .and marked out their appointed times. . .and boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him”(Acts 17:26-27).

August 26–Ezekiel 45-48

“Then he brought me back to the door of the house; and behold, water was flowing from under the threshold of the house toward the east”(47:1).

Scripture often compares God to a river. It was a familiar metaphor in the ancient world. Wherever a river flowed, life followed. Cities developed. Blessings came. The comparison is clear. Humans need God as we need water. We flourish when He is present.

In John 7, our Lord promised a river to every believer. He declared that out of our innermost being streams of living water would flow. Clean. Infinitely renewable, His presence and power, a river of life for the world!

In Ezekiel 47, the prophet saw a similar picture. Encouraging vision! From under the restored temple flowed a river to bless the world. Small at first (at a quarter of a mile, it is only ankle-deep), the stream got deeper as it went (at one mile, it is so deep no one could stand in it).

So, God’s grace. The longer the truth of Christ is in the world, the deeper its impact. Unconquerable! Reaching every land! “Perfect, yet it floweth, fuller every day. Perfect, yet it groweth, deeper all the way” (Frances Havergal).

Friend, is a river flowing out of you? Do you recognize and receive the daily, infinitely clean renewal of Christ in the inner man? (2 Corinthians 4:16). Do you yearn for God’s blessing to “jump the banks” of your own concerns and flow out to bless others, as well?

“There is a river, and it flows from deep within. There is a fountain that frees a soul from sin. Come to this water, there is a vast supply. Come to the river, it never shall run dry” (Bill Gaither).

“Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb. . .on either side of the river was the tree of life. . .and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations”(Revelation 22:1-2).

August 25–Ezekiel 42-44

“And the glory of the Lord came into the house by the way of the gate facing toward the east. And the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house”(43:4-5).

Earlier in his prophecy, Ezekiel gave sad attention to the departure of God’s glory from the temple. See chapter 10. Glory translates the Hebrew word kabod. Literally, “weight or significance.” Often experienced as a beautiful light. Shekinah. Glory is evidence of God’s supreme importance, of His beauty, His transcendent value.

In chapter 43, the prophet sees a coming day when the glory of God will return to the temple. Great news! What mercy! At the end of their chastisement, the Eternal One proves faithful to His promise and people. He comes to dwell among them. Again, they (we) will be the beneficiaries of His strength and protection.

We presume too much on the presence of Christ, I think. “I will never leave you or forsake you,” has become a blanket promise. Too often it is set against the balancing truth that the Holy Spirit can be grieved into silence and quenched into inactivity by the unconfessed sins of God’s people. If we could see with Spiritual eyes, we would recognize MANY congregations and individuals from which His glory has departed.

In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul describes his aspiration for every New Testament church. Visitors who attend, “fall on their faces, declaring that GOD is certainly among you.” Friend, shouldn’t this be our prayer for ourselves and our churches?

“Is it not by Your going with us that we are distinguished from all the other people on the earth?” says Exodus 33. (Italics mine). Except God be present in power, the church is no different than the world. His “being with us” is our distinguishing identity.

Ezekiel 43 is, therefore, a sweet promise for the people of God. He will come. He will dwell with us and do His work through us. Glory will again fill His house!

Friend, do you pray His glory, His presence, filling His people? Will you?

“How much more will the Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”(Luke 11:13).