Hosea 6
Hālakh with the Lord
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Saturday, August 17. Please join me in wishing a happy birthday to Mason Tomboni.
In His compassion and mercy, God unrelentingly calls Israel to return to Him, so that they may be healed and redeemed back to their birthright. With destruction imminent at the hands of Assyria, “the rod of [God’s] anger” (Isaiah 10:5), the prophet called the people back to covenant faithfulness, inviting them to hālakh with the Lord in Hosea 6:1, “Come, let us return to the Lord. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.” [emphasis added] To hālakh with the Lord is to answer the call to discipleship – to become like Him and to take on His ways. This happens by being with Him, as Paul expressed in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
To hālakh with God is to be redeemed back to what He intended from the beginning, to be His image bearers, stewards of His creation (Genesis 1:26-27). Israel was being called back to their birthright, but they had to be reminded of God’s relational design for them, so God told them in Hosea 6:6-7, “For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, and in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings. But like Adam they have transgressed the covenant; there they have dealt treacherously against Me.” From the first human, Adam, God has desired intimacy with His creation, a personal relationship that would transform humanity into the image of the Creator. This is why Christ came – to redeem us back as God’s image bearers through a relationship that changes us from the inside-out!
Seize the moment and hālakh with the Lord. Jesus invites you, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29). [emphasis added]
God bless you!
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