In the previous passage we saw God’s holiness on display. When God’s holiness encounters Israel’s unfaithfulness the relationship between God and His people is broken and the consequences are serious. This is not what God desires. “In that day,” declares the LORD, “you will call me ‘my husband’; you will no longer call me ‘my…
God is Holy – Hosea 2:2-13
I will punish her for the days she burned incense to the Baals; she decked herself with rings and jewelry, and went after her lovers, but me she forgot,” declares the LORD. (Hosea 2:13 NIV) Who is God and what does He want. In this passage God clearly describes that what He is illustrating with…
A Prophet’s Life – Hosea 1
When the LORD began to speak through Hosea, the LORD said to him, “Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the LORD.” 3 So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. (Hosea 1:2-3…
It’s Ok, I’ve Got Jesus – Matthew 5:10
“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way…
Cool It – Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. (Matthew 5:9 NIV) Peace to Jesus was not simply the absence of conflict. Peace to Jesus and the Jews of His day is an overwhelming sense of well-being that extends through family to the community around it. People being people, peace must be…
I Will Tell the Truth – Matthew 5:8
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. (Matthew 5:8 NIV) Absolute purity is a rarity in our world. I once got to handle a bar of gold that was 99.9999% gold. This means that there was .0001% of something else in the gold. That bar of gold is probably the closest…
I Forgive You – Matthew 5:7
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. (Matthew 5:7 NIV) The first four beatitudes deal with my relationship with God. With the fifth beatitude there is a shift. While it is possible to be merciful to myself I have no doubt that this is not what Jesus has in mind. We live…
I Will Do What’s Right – Matthew 5:6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. (Matthew 5:6 NIV) My first thought as I was studying this beatitude was that we cannot look to Jesus to find an example of what hungering and thirsting look like. Then I thought about the temptations in the wilderness and realized…
After You – Matthew 5:5
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. (Matthew 5:5 NIV) There was a time when it was easy to find modern day illustrations of meekness. The most recent illustration I can think of comes from one of my favorite television shows, Due South. The hero of the show is a Canadian Mountie…
I’m Sorry – Matthew 5:4
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. (Matthew 5:4 NIV) This beatitude presents us with a paradox. One fruit of the Spirit is joy and Paul spends the entire letter to the Philippians challenging us to rejoice always. Yet here Jesus proclaims that happy are those who mourn. In His typical fashion…