Pursued and Chosen

Hosea 1:2-3
2 When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking theLord.” 3 So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim…

Hosea 3:1-2
And the Lord said to me, x“Go again, love a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress, even as the Lord loves the children of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love cakes of raisins.” 2 So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a yhomer and a lethech1 of barley.

I have read these passages before, and have often thought to myself why would God do this to any person? Why would he have someone pursue someone else whom he knew was going to cheat on him, play around on him, make a fool of him, leave him? I find this whole story rather disgusting at first glance.

But then I read on...

“Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt…”- Hosea 2:14-15

And I finally figure it out. Just as Gomer had left her husband, playing around on her husband, and embarrassed her husband, and disobeyed her vows to her husband, so did Israel to God. As the Israelites left Egypt, they were excited and praising their God. Then they were in the wilderness, and they started complaining and feeling sorry for themselves. They then started worshiping other idols and betrayed their God who had love them wholeheartedly. Really?  He lead them out of Egypt!  He regularly performed miracles for them as they journied in the wilderness and this is how the repayed Him? 

Now I turn around and look at myself. It's sad to think that we as Christians do not realize how much we betray God all the time. If money is our focus, if our children are our first focus, if our husbands are our first focus, if our own pleasures are our first desire, then we have betrayed God. We don't have to be a prostitute to do this, because every time we love something more than God we are doing this. That's a sad truth, and for that I ask God for forgiveness every day. When I focus more on my to do list than God I'm no better than the Israelites and the prostitute, Gomer.

Fortunately for us, we see the next part in Hosea. The part where God tells him to go and get her, forgive her, and love her just as God loves the Israelites and forgives them. You know he doesn't just love the Israelites He loves us also. He has chosen us and because he has chosen us, he is pursuing us.

Thank you Father that you continue to pursue us even when we pursue other idols instead of you. Thank you for sending Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior so that we can be forgiven of these horrible sins that we have committed against you. Sins of to do lists, sins of not giving you any time, sins of not praying for your guidance, anything that distracts us from focusing on you.

We are pursued by you and we are chosen by you father. Please help us to never wander from the path of searching, praying, glorifying, living for you and you alone.