“How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I set you like Zeboiim? My heart churns within Me; My sympathy is stirred. I will not execute the fierceness of My anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim. For I am God, and not man, the Holy One in your midst; and I will not come with terror”. (vs8-9)
The Lord saves us, not because we are repentant and changing, but because He is merciful, even while we rebel obstinately in sin. He says, “My sympathy is stirred”.
We are blind as bats with no eyes, and we can't see how bad we are, how far we've fallen, or the beauty of the Lord (vs1-7). He says, “I taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by their arms; but they did not know that I healed them”, and again, “My people are bent on backsliding from Me. Though they call to the Most High, none at all exalt Him”. He has been gracious, we have been evil, and we are not saved because we got our act together. In love, grace, and pity, God WOULD NOT take “no” for our answer, but He drew us, called us, and guaranteed that we'd eventually yield. He put us in the Book of Life, and even our sin and rebellion were included as obstacles that He'd overcome, when He promised and guaranteed us salvation from before the world began. 2 Timothy 1:9 says, “who has saved and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began”.
Bless God. He has sympathy on us and saves us, even though we love sin and deserve death (Hos 11:8-11). He says, “My heart churns within Me; My sympathy is stirred. I will not execute the fierceness of My anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim”. He doesn't deal with us, except in mercy earned for us by the Son. He chooses to forgive, instead of punish, and He doesn't need our repentance at all. He repents and turns from His anger, doing us good undeservedly. Then, we understand, after we're corrected. He says, “Then you will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good; and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your iniquities and your abominations. Not for your sake do I do this, says the Lord God, let it be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel!” (Ezek 36:22-32). Most people think that God is only responding to their faith and love, but the gospel reveals God CAUSING faith and love, giving mercies to those who mocked and murdered Him, and giving mercy, before we even admit our guilt. He causes prayer; He does everything. He doesn't save the worthy; He mercifully saves the most unworthy, most unwilling, and the most unrepentant people by refusing to let us perish.
Finally, we'll be chastened, rightfully, but not destroyed (Hos 11:12-12:1). We read, “Ephraim feeds on the wind, and pursues the east wind; he daily increases lies and desolation. Also they make a covenant with the Assyrians, and oil [worship] is carried to Egypt”. No matter how evil we are, mercy will fetch us, and He will make us hate our sins. Be wise, children of God. Be wise, Oh unbeliever! The Lord is right in what He says, chastens justly, and He will not let us have our way. We will return, in chastening love, giving God glory, or we'll prove ourselves to be reprobate and rejected, the people whom God punishes.
Remember also, He calls you to obedience lovingly and compassionately. There is no evil in the Lord, no unwillingness to help, and no failure to all who trust Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment