3/21 Senior & Junior High Sunday School "Hosea"

Devotion: Jared Graves

Introduction

Instruct everyone to think of all the times that they were wronged in the last week.

There are two things to learn here. Number one, we are really bad at forgiving and forgetting. Number two, when we are wronged it sticks out. For many of us, we would rather be wronged a million times and never know it, than to be wronged once and know it, and feel the full effect of it.

Hosea is going to be the mouthpiece to the Israelites on behalf of God. He has been taught his lesson, and now he is a worthy bearer of this message. Think about it, Hosea would be a legitimate person to speak on adultery, and someone cheating on their true love. It happened to him all the time!

Before we go on today, let’s make sure that we are all on the same page. Who is Hosea? A prophet of God who was told to marry an adulterous wife. What has happened so far in the book? Hosea marries Gomer, Gomer cheats on him. God uses this as an opportunity to show how Israel has cheated on God. God shows that one day He will step down, take matters into his own hands, and reconcile Israel to Himself, and asks Hosea to do likewise with Gomer.

Lesson

Have everyone open to Hosea 4.

God’s charges against Israel:

· Hosea 4:1-9. How bad has it gotten in Israel? Even the priests are sinning against God. They are no longer holy, or setting an example for their people. Just to be honest, there are plenty of ministers out there who are serving their own wants and needs. They are simply allowing their flock do whatever they want to. There are plenty of people in the ministry for their own selfish wants. Obviously, we still haven’t learned the lessons of the past.

· Hosea 6:4-11. Ouch. Do you think God has ever said to you “Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears”? 
What do you think about the statement “I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offering.”?

· Hosea 8:2-4. The Israelites chose horrible kings, and those kings forgot God and lead the people away from Him. Kings were supposed to lead the Israelites in a godly way, keeping God first. Are there things that God has given us that we have used for our own benefit?

Application

What parallels are there between the Israel of that time and the Church of this time?