Grace-based Growth
Opening Prayer
Adapt and expand on Hosea’s prayer “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously” (2) based on your current life situation.
Read Hosea 14:1-9
[1] Return, Israel, to the LORD your God. Your sins have been your downfall! [2] Take words with you and return to the LORD. Say to him: “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips. [3] Assyria cannot save us; we will not mount warhorses. We will never again say ‘Our gods’ to what our own hands have made, for in you the fatherless find compassion.” [4] “I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them. [5] I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like a lily. Like a cedar of Lebanon he will send down his roots; [6] his young shoots will grow. His splendor will be like an olive tree, his fragrance like a cedar of Lebanon. [7] People will dwell again in his shade; they will flourish like the grain, they will blossom like the vine- Israel’s fame will be like the wine of Lebanon. [8] Ephraim, what more have I to do with idols? I will answer him and care for him. I am like a flourishing juniper; your fruitfulness comes from me.” [9] Who is wise? Let them realize these things. Who is discerning? Let them understand. The ways of the LORD are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them. Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
What would be the benefits of returning to the Lord?Though Israel would reject him and disobey him over and over again, the Lord’s commitment to his people stands firm: “I will…love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them” (4). God has suspended the doom of judgment for the Israelites of the day, and through Christ, he has done the same for us. The book of Hosea reveals unconditional love toward a wayward and idolatrous people. Here, in chapter 14, repentance is the response to such supernatural kindness: “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips” (2). As David said in the Psalms, it is a “broken and contrite heart” that honors God (Ps. 51:17). He will always respond to the repentant heart. He beautifies Israel and says to them, “I will answer him and care for him” (8). Idols will remain silent and unmoved, but the Lord listens, heals, and causes them to “flourish like the grain” (7). All of this comes from the hand of God. It is nearly impossible to comprehend a love that, in the face of such ongoing rebellion, remains true.
Apply
How has following Jesus made your life flourish? How are you healthier, more beautiful, more productive?
Closing prayer
Give thanks to the Lord for the fruitfulness he has given to you–and is still giving to you.
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