Spiritual Adultery… It Has Consequences

Hosea 7-9; Psalm 128; Proverbs 29:19-20

What is spiritual adultery? In God’s way of looking at things, spiritual adultery is unfaithfulness toward Him. In other words, worshiping any god or any created thing instead of Him is spiritual adultery. Putting anything before Him is spiritual adultery.

He wants a pure relationship with His people, a relationship in which He loves His people and His people love Him back. There’s joy and expectation and excitement in a good relationship like that.

“When I found Israel, it was like finding grapes in the desert; when I saw your fathers, it was like seeing the early fruit on the fig tree.” – Hosea 9:10a

But too often God’s people commit spiritual adultery. It leaves a bitter taste in God’s mouth and makes His people much less attractive in His eyes.

“But when the came to Baal Peor, they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol and became as vile as the thing they loved.” – Hosea 9:10b

And there are consequences—real consequences that God initiates to show His people that a life of blessing is found only with Him.

“Ephraim’s glory will fly away like a bird—no birth, no pregnancy, no conception. Even if they rear children, I will bereave them of every one. Woe to them when I turn away from them! I have seen Ephraim, like Tyre, planted in a pleasant place. But Ephraim will bring out their children to the slayer.”

Give them, O LORD—what will you give them? Give them wombs that miscarry and breasts that are dry.” – Hosea 9:11-14

So many people are clamoring, in our country, for the right to abort children. Can you imagine a scene like this, where God took away our ability to have children—and if we had children, sent killers after them? Which is more valuable—the right not to have children, or the right to have children?

Spiritual adultery has real consequences, and it can even affect our ability to have children. God is not just sitting out there in space, shouting suggestions at us. He’s here, and He wants faithful people. When we aren’t faithful, He is able to disrupt our desires, our plans, our lives—and what He does here is just a small picture of His coming wrath against unfaithful people and rebels.

Father, make us faithful!

What are the warning signs that indicate to you when you’re beginning to drift away from Jesus?

Day Three

Hosea 4-6; Psalm 127; Proverbs 29:15-17

Something special happens on the third day.

Come, let us return to the LORD. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence. – Hosea 6:1-2

On the third day, the LORD restores His people so that they can live in His presence. What’s that mean? Hmmm, let’s see. What day was it that Jesus Christ was raised from the grave? Oh, yeah. The third day. On the third day, Jesus—who had been torn to pieces and injured and killed for our sins—was healed and His wounds were gone. He was revived and restored, and in His resurrection we are also revived and restored to live forever in the presence of God.

Thank You, Father!

Can anyone share a testimony about how the truth of Jesus’ resurrection led you to do as the first verse urges and “return to the LORD”?

Faithful to a Whore

Hosea 1-3; Psalm 126; Proverbs 29:12-14

God’s faithfulness puts ours to shame.

It’s understandable when men or women divorce an unfaithful spouse. But in our culture, many divorces are the result of “offenses” besides unfaithfulness. Too often the reason given for divorce is “I’m not in love anymore”—a reason that itself betrays the lack of faithfulness not in the spouse, but in the heart of the one initiating the divorce.

But it is understandable, even permitted, divorce someone who has committed adultery. God’s standard of faithfulness is even higher, though, than this!

He tells Hosea:
Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adulteress. Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes. – Hosea 3:1

The LORD loves even those who are unfaithful to Him. As long as we live, He is trying to convince us to turn back to Him, to be faithful to Him.

What a testimony it would be if more of us who are God’s children would demonstrate this degree of faithfulness to our unfaithful spouses! It would be extremely difficult, extremely painful. It would require walking by faith, trusting that God could work through our most difficult circumstances, aiming to demonstrate God’s loving faithfulness to people as Hosea did. It would require us to take Jesus’ teachings in Matthew 5:43-48 seriously: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven…. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get?... Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Father, teach us Your kind of faithfulness!

Does anyone have a story about a friend or neighbor who demonstrated this kind of faithfulness?