THE LORD SPOKE (December 09)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Hosea 4-6

But “is it safe?” wonders Susan. Mr. Beaver’s response is, “You mustn’t press him. He’s wild, you know, not like a tame lion.”

“And now,” said Aslan presently, “to business. I feel I am going to roar. You had better put your fingers in your ears. And they did. And Aslan stood up and when he opened his mouth to roar his face became so terrible that they did not dare to look at it. And they saw all the trees in front of him bend before the blast of his roaring as grass bends in a meadow before the wind.

The Lion shook his mane and clapped his paws together (“Terrible paws,” thought Lucy, “if he didn’t know how to velvet them!”).

C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

How much that sounds like Hosea’s cry: “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” (Hos. 6:1). Our understanding of God must have a proper balance between His mercy and His wrath, between His love and His anger, between His restorative grace and His destructive fury. He’s not a tame Lion. He’s not a slippery judge who can be bought off. He’s not a doting grandfather, willing to overlook “little sins”.

Hosea does tell us more of what God desires from us: For I desire mercy [hesed], not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings (Hos. 6:6). The Hebrew term, hesed, is often translated “grace” and is most often used in the Old Testament as an attribute of God. Actually the semantic range is very great - love, mercy, loving-kindness, forgiveness. Here it’s used as a desired attribute of man and placed in contrast with “sacrifice”. The Hebrew poetic parallelism of the verse helps us here. The second half of the verse refers to “acknowledgment of God”. That’s a common theme in Hosea’s prophecy:

• “There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgment of God in the land.” (4:1)
• “A spirit of prostitution is in their heart; they do not acknowledge the Lord.” (5:4)
• “Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him.” (6:3)
• “For I desire...acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.” (6:6)
• c.f. 2:8, 20; 4:6

So, how exactly do/should we acknowledge God?

1. You must begin with knowing Him. That, of course, begins with conversion but goes oh so far beyond that. It means to really get to know Him. It means thinking His thoughts.
2. That comes from knowing Scripture. His thoughts have been given to us in written form. We must do more than just consider them. We must read them, meditate on them, internalize them, and make them a constant part of our own thinking.
3. That means we must set aside time on a regular (daily!) basis to do just that. Do you have a habit of reading God’s Word? Is it something that you can’t do without? If you miss it, even one day, do you feel the loss? Is there a hunger in your soul?
4. That makes it necessary to have a plan, to set the alarm just a little earlier, to have a favorite spot where all the necessary accoutrements are handy (Bible, paper, pen, basic Bible study tools, good lighting, comfortable chair, cup of coffee, etc.).

Don’t just think about it. Do it. Do it now!


Proverbs 9

Election day has arrived. After all the campaigning it has become increasingly clear that there is a large gap between the two candidates. The public really does have a clear choice between Wisdom and Folly. Both have had a high degree of visibility throughout the campaign (Prov. 9:3,14).

Folly mounted a campaign based on mud-slinging and lies (Prov. 9:13-18). She’s good at publicity (Prov. 9:14) and knows how to get her message out but it’s very important to read between the lines and examine her platform more carefully. Her campaign slogan was “Sweet and Delicious” (Prov. 9:17) but all the evidence points to “Death and the Grave” (Prov. 9:18). Her most effective appeal is to the unthinking electorate (Prov. 8:16).

Wisdom, on the other hand, has a platform set in stone (Prov. 9:1). She also appeals to the simple folk (Prov. 9:6) but even those with a higher level of education find opportunity for genuine advancement and improvement (Prov. 8:9). Her entire campaign has been based on one primary idea, expressed so well by her theme: “A Knowledge of the Holy One” (Prov. 9:10).

Rarely has an election been so clearly drawn. You know when you mark your ballot that you’re casting a vote for Right or Wrong.

• • • • •

Polling Station Survey: Significant numbers of those who have already voted have indicated that their choice went to Folly. However, there is every reason to believe that Wisdom will emerge victorious. There is evidence of “a great multitude” assembling at Wisdom’s campaign headquarters (Rev. 19:1,6) and we’ve been informed that a vast army of followers is amassing even now for the victory procession (Rev. 19:14f).

Stay tuned for the acceptance speech and inaugural ceremony. We’ve been able to obtain a partial copy of the script of the day:

Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory!
For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
And his bride has made herself ready. (Rev. 19:6-7)