The Daily Fountain Devotional of the Church Of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) 27 September 2023 – The Urgent Call To Seek The Lord
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TOPIC: The Urgent Call To Seek The Lord
READ: Hosea 5:8-6:7 (NKJV)
8 ” Blow the ram’s horn in Gibeah, The trumpet in Ramah! Cry aloud [at] Beth Aven, ‘[Look] behind you, O Benjamin!’
9 Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke; Among the tribes of Israel I make known what is sure.
10 “The princes of Judah are like those who remove a landmark; I will pour out my wrath on them like water.
11 Ephraim is oppressed [and] broken in judgment, Because he willingly walked by [human] precept.
12 Therefore I [will be] to Ephraim like a moth, And to the house of Judah like rottenness.
13 “When Ephraim saw his sickness, And Judah [saw] his wound, Then Ephraim went to Assyria And sent to King Jareb; Yet he cannot cure you, Nor heal you of your wound.
14 For I [will be] like a lion to Ephraim, And like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, [even] I, will tear [them] and go away; I will take [them] away, and no one shall rescue.
15 I will return again to My place Till they acknowledge their offense. Then they will seek My face; In their affliction they will earnestly seek Me.”
1 Come, and let us return to the LORD; For He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up.
2 After two days He will revive us; On the third day He will raise us up, That we may live in His sight.
3 Let us know, Let us pursue the knowledge of the LORD. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, Like the latter [and] former rain to the earth.
4 ” O Ephraim, what shall I do to you? O Judah, what shall I do to you? For your faithfulness is like a morning cloud, And like the early dew it goes away.
5 Therefore I have hewn [them] by the prophets, I have slain them by the words of My mouth; And your judgments [are like] light [that] goes forth.
6 For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7 “But like men they transgressed the covenant; There they dealt treacherously with Me.
THE MESSAGE:
In the preceding verses to our text, Ephraim had committed whoredom, and Israel was defiled. Consequently, God’s judgment was impending. Then the word of the Lord came in verse 8 of our text to blow the horn in Gibeah and the trumpet in Ramah to save Ephraim from desolation and destruction.
Like in the Bible days, we live in a time when sin and abomination is common. Fornication, adultery, lesbianism, gay marriages, corruption, perversion, kidnapping and shedding of innocent blood have taken over society. People and live as though there is no God, forgetting there are consequences of sin and the actions of men. Many, though in the Church, have backslidden and given in to the things of the world. But God in His love and mercy, who would not want his children to be destroyed, is calling us today to renew our consecration to him. We are to quickly turn away from rebellion, iniquity and sinful lifestyle and be revived. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found. The time to seek and return completely to the Lord is now.
PRAYER: Father; let Your mercy prevail over judgment in my life, in my family and in our Church. We turn to seek You. Amen.
