Come on, let's go back to God. He hurt us, but he'll heal us. He hit us hard, but he'll put us right again. In a couple of days we'll feel better. By the third day he'll have made us brand-new, alive and on our feet, fit to face him. We're ready to study God, eager for God-knowledge. As sure as dawn breaks, so sure is his daily arrival. He comes as rain comes, as spring rain refreshing the ground.
Hosea 6:1-3
When I first read this I thought it was so beautiful. I imagined the sin in my past and saw myself saying this to God that day I was ready to make big changes in my life. I knew I was forgiven, that there might be some consequences to my choices, but there was hope for me to start all over. I was ready to know God differently. I was ready to study at His feet and change my life forever.
The problem with this passage I took from The Message is that the Israelites were not truly sorry for their sin. They knew the suffering they were experiencing was due to their sin and disobedience to God but they didn't take that seriously enough. They would withstand God's wrath for a few days and then believed it would get better for them. They thought they could say sorry and move on not changing a thing about their life. They weren't really sorry for disobeying God and for their sinful choices, they were more or less just sorry for getting caught.
Every time we repent of our wrongdoing and our disobedience to God we should be considering the changes that need to take place in our life. Like Israel do we just let repentance roll off our tongues not thinking another second about the changes that need to go along with it? Are we living like Christians or just claiming to be Christians because it sounds good? If you continue reading into verse 4 God states that the Israelites were not loyal to Him, that their love "vanishes like the morning mist and disappears like dew in the sunlight". He knew their hearts and through their actions he knew they weren't truly repentant of their sins. And so I guess my question is whether we are truly repentant when we ask God to forgive us. Are we truly sorry for the pain we caused and our disobedience to God? Or are we just sorry for getting caught? Our lives speak the answer to those questions. Our actions speak louder than any words or stories we might make up. If we are truly repentant then we will begin to change our lives. We will ask God to search our hearts and begin drawing near to Him for answers and the help we need to change. We would give up our old behavior to become more like Christ because we are true Christians.
Dear God, show me where I have hurt You. I choose this day to change my behavior and to hand over my idols so that I can be truly repentant, asking you to forgive my sins. God I am sorry for hurting You and others with my actions. I want to live a loyal life to You.
In Jesus' Holy and Precious Name, Amen
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