Couples: Hosea and Gomer

Hosea 1:3

So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.

I’ve heard of women who went up to men they haven’t dated and told them that the Lord said they should get married. It seems to me that’s definitely a way to scare someone off. But that could’ve been what Hosea said to Gomer when he took her as his wife.

God actually told Hosea to find an adulterous woman and marry her. This is not something God does very often. He was trying to use Hosea the prophet as an example of his love. God wanted to show the people that even though he knew of their adulterous heart, he still loved them.

Isn’t it funny that those you love have the ability to hurt you the most. When God’s people turned from him and worshipped other gods, their unfaithfulness stung God’s heart. He wanted them back, but it was necessary to get their attention through the words and actions of a prophet.

He sent Hosea to Gomer as a sign of his enduring and patient love. He made it clear that the relationship was a love relationship. It was broken and needed mending. Hosea emphasized to Gomer that she would be a wife and not a prostitute. The Lord told Hosea in chapter three, verse one, “Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods..."

God requires that we learn faithfulness so our weak love can grow into a strong, pure love. Gomer was able to learn about love and so can we.

A Good Battle Strategy

Exodus 17:9-11

Moses said to Joshua, "Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands." So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning.

In order to defend themselves in a battle against the Amalekites, Moses kept his hands raised with aid from Aaron and Hur.

How is this a good battle strategy? Did Gen. MacArthur ever do this?

The “raised hands” battle strategy isn’t what it looks like to the enemy. From the enemy’s perspective, there was an old man on a hilltop with a staff raised in his hands. It may have seemed like a strange way to view a battle. He certainly wasn’t fighting.

From Aaron and Hur’s point of view, the staff in the hands of Moses must continue to be raised in order to triumph because whenever Moses lowered his staff, the enemy was winning. Moses was unable to stand for as long as the battle raged. Aaron and Hur got a stone for Moses to sit on. When raising the staff became difficult for Moses, Aaron and Hur each took one of Moses’ arms and steadied him.

The extra strength Aaron and Hur brought to the battle was exactly what the warriors needed. The warriors fought with swords, face-to-face with the enemy, but they didn’t need Aaron and Hur to pick up weapons and join them. They depended on Aaron and Hur’s cooperation with Moses for their victory.

Moses was simply obeying God. His obedience was a sign to the warriors that violence alone doesn’t win a war. This may have been the event that persuaded Joshua to win the battle of Jericho by simply obeying God.

Sometimes our plans seem like the smart thing to do, but without obedience to God, our plans will not help us win.

Gideon and the Few Men

Judges 7:7

The LORD said to Gideon, "With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place."

Is too many men in an army a problem? It was for Gideon.

The Lord hand-picked Gideon’s army. The fearful and those who knelt to drink with their heads next to the water were sent home. The only men left to fight were those who were brave and observant. Gideon saw God’s lesson in army-building. True warriors know what’s going on around them, and they rise to the challenge.

Out of the thousands of Israelite men, only 300 made the cut. These men didn’t get to use state of the art weaponry. They used trumpets, empty jars, and torches.

All Gideon had to do was listen to God’s guidance and obey. But he wasn’t a courageous warrior, so God gave him something to do to build his courage. He sent Gideon to his enemy’s camp to listen to them.

When you’re preparing for battle and you overhear your enemy confessing that God has given you the victory, that would certainly build your courage. You’d shout with joy – at the appropriate time, of course.

Gideon followed God’s instruction and the enemy fled. Obviously, you don’t need a large army if the enemy runs away at the shout of 300 voices.

Even though I know they only had swords to fight with, my imagination has that terrified army running away and shooting behind them, not looking to see who they pointed the gun at. The enemy lost a lot of soldiers with friendly fire.

Gideon’s army was small but very effective because of God’s guidance. The lesson to learn in this battle is that the size of your enemy doesn’t matter, the size of your army doesn’t matter, but listening to and obeying God is everything.

Do you have a battle you need to win?

Unusual Battle at Jericho

Joshua 6:10

But Joshua had commanded the people, "Do not give a war cry, do not raise your voices, do not say a word until the day I tell you to shout. Then shout!"

In the thirty-third chapter of Numbers, the Lord said to Moses that the Israelites would have to drive out the inhabitants of Canaan and take possession of the land. Over the next several chapters, the Lord explained in detail how the Israelites should divide up the land and how they should live in the land the Lord would give them. So the Israelites knew that this land was theirs if they would obey the Lord and take it.

Moses died in the desert and didn’t go into the promised land, but he laid his hand on Joshua so that he was given a spirit of wisdom. As the new leader of the Israelites, Joshua had to send out spies to see what lay ahead. In the second chapter of the book of Joshua, Rahab gave shelter to the spies and told them her people had already heard about how God was taking care of them and had given the land to them. In return for hiding them, she asked the spies to remember her and her family when the Lord gives them Jericho. For three days, Joshua and his officers went to the Israelites and instructed them to carry out detailed orders about their trip into the promised land.

The Lord built up everyone’s confidence in Joshua when they crossed over the Jordan River on dry ground just as they crossed over the Red Sea under Moses’ command. After the leaders constructed a memorial so that generations of children would ask and be told about how God sent them across the Jordan on dry ground as a sign to all people that they should fear the Lord because he is powerful, they circumcised all the Israelite men in obedience to God. They remained in their camp until they were healed, without fear of the Canaanite kings along the coast because no one had enough courage to face the Israelites after hearing how God had dried up the Jordan.

The king of Jericho had closed the city so that no one came in and no one went out. He thought Jericho’s city walls were enough to protect them, but he did not know the Lord. Joshua gave instructions for the unusual battle plan. The people marched around the city for six days and on the seventh, they shouted in obedience to God. Joshua instructed the spies to go into Jericho and get Rahab and all her family, but no one else was to be spared.

The Lord prepared the people and their leaders to obey his commands and find great success in their battle. When they took the city, they were proving what God had said. The Canaanites had good reason to fear the Lord. He’s powerful and mighty and can take care of his people.

The Lord proved that no wall was a problem for him. The mighty walls of Jericho fell without the use of dynamite or other explosives. The battle was successful because of the obedience of Joshua and his people.

The Trouble With Daniel and the Lions' Den

Daniel 6:20

When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?”

This story stands out to me because of the universal idea of getting an innocent person into trouble. It seems wherever you find innocent people doing what God wants them to do, you’ll also find someone trying to make them seem less than innocent. Evil people want to be supremely powerful. When they find that people who choose to obey God have power over them, they get upset. This story of Trouble looking for a place to happen is a recurring story through the ages.

Daniel was doing everything he was supposed to do. He was obedient to God and to the king. People tried to catch him doing something wrong, but they couldn’t. When the king’s advisors couldn’t find any way of getting Daniel into trouble, they tricked the king into making a law that he couldn’t repeal. It was a law which stated that nobody could pray to anyone but the king for the next month. With that law in place, Daniel was sure to be found guilty because he prayed to God every day without fail. He didn’t even hide or deny what he was doing.

Nobody was more worried about Daniel than the king. He sat up all night worrying. He couldn’t sleep knowing he’d sent an innocent man to the lions’ den.

But Daniel wasn’t worried. Why would he worry when he was watching an angel shutting the lions’ mouths all night?

After the king raced to the den to check on Daniel the next morning, he breathed a sigh of relief as he listened to Daniel’s voice saying he was okay.

However, Daniel’s accusers were not relieved. In fact, they were breakfast.

The king knew exactly what to do with hungry lions who were tired of having their mouths shut all night. Feed them a meal of well-rested trouble-makers.

The king’s question to Daniel makes me laugh, only because I know the answer. He asked if Daniel’s God was ABLE to rescue him.

Yes. God is able. God has always been able.

The Trouble With David and King Saul

1 Samuel 18:12

Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with David but had left Saul.

After reading the story of David and Goliath in chapter 17 of 1 Samuel, I found King Saul strangely against the small hero. David had become quite popular and Saul was jealous. When an evil spirit came into the picture, Saul threw a spear at David twice.

It seemed David was invincible. He’d killed a giant, tens of thousands of men, and eluded King Saul’s spear. But did Saul have a right to be afraid?

David hadn’t done anything to harm or to even threaten King Saul. David stood up for his people and the king. What brought trouble on him was the fact that Saul wasn’t seeing what was before him. God had sent David to help out Saul and his army, but Saul saw him as a threat.

When you find yourself in trouble and you’re pretty sure you haven’t done anything wrong, ask God a few questions. Find out if you’re being seen as a threat. Find out if you’ve inadvertently made someone jealous. Find out if someone set you up to fail, but your success made them angrier.

David wouldn’t harm King Saul even though the king tried to kill David. If we leave the confusing retribution question to God, He’ll take care of it for us. God sees behind the scenes and looks at the hearts of men. If we’re careful to withdraw our judgment, but only obey God, we’ll see more successes come our way.

The Trouble With David and Goliath

1 Samuel 17:32

David said to Saul, "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him."

David left his job as a shepherd to do an errand for his dad. He took food to his brothers in the army and checked on the battle with the Philistines. When he heard Goliath spouting challenges to the Israelites, he wanted to know what would be the reward for standing up to the giant everyone was afraid of.

King Saul, who had heard about David, sent for him and tried to talk some sense into him. David was told he was too young and inexperienced to fight the giant. However, David set the king straight by telling him details of his own battles. He’d killed both a lion and a bear, so a mere giant should be no problem.

Saul couldn’t send out a boy against a giant without at least some protection, so he put his own armor on him. But David refused to wear the king’s armor because he wasn’t used to wearing man-made protection. He was used to having God as his protection. The only reason David succeeded in battle with the lion and bear was because God was with him.

When David went out to kill Goliath, the giant cursed him. So David let him know by whose power he’d be killed. Verse 46 details what David said. “This day the LORD will hand you over to me, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel.”

I think Goliath was shocked because the Israelites had been cowering at his defiance. Every eye must have been on David as he ran to the battle line with his sling in his hand. David’s courage became an epidemic among the Israelites. They joined in as soon as they saw that God had given them the battle.

The trouble with giants is that they don’t believe you when you tell them God determines the outcome. Giants tell us that we should run, but they mean run away. When God tells us we should run, He means toward the victory.

Goliath caused trouble, but because David was used to calling to God and listening for God’s guidance, David won the battle.

When you and I hear God’s instruction and we obey despite the obvious challenges, our courage and obedience affects others. When you obey God, you just might start something good that will spread to many others.

Getting Into Trouble

Genesis 37:5

Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more.

Joseph and his brothers never would have thought their future would turn out the way it did. It seemed Joseph was always getting into trouble, so it was surprising that he ended up being liked by so many.

From reading about Joseph, you might think that he was a power-hungry schemer. The dreams he told to his brothers only brought trouble on himself. He was sold into slavery, but rose in power until he was the second in command. However, the fact that he obtained positions of power didn’t speak negatively about him.

The good thing about Joseph was that he always believed God.

His rise to power was due to his consistent dedication to honoring and obeying God. His stubborn faith in God helped him receive positions of power to minister to those in need.

He was an example of how God can use someone to help large populations by giving him the power to make decisions that affect many.

Staying out of Trouble

Proverbs 4:14-15

Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way.

Have you ever been pressured by a friend to do something you wouldn’t normally do? There are people who would challenge you to do things that bring satisfaction and enlarge your world, like eating a new food or trying a new sport. These are good challenges, and they don’t lead to sin.

On the other hand, there are those who would dare you to try something, but deep down, you know it isn’t the right thing to do.

How easy are you to persuade? Can you stand up to the pressure? Is it easier to accept a challenge if you know it’s not bad? Or are you so competitive that you can’t turn down a dare, whether it’s good or bad?

God gave everyone a sense of right and wrong. It’s our job to be discerning about what we participate in. When we see evil men doing what we know is wrong, we can avoid copying them. We can choose our actions. God gave us the ability to turn from wrong choices.

Is there anyone who hasn’t been tempted? No. Even Jesus was tempted. But he overcame by the words of God.

We have the same opportunity. We have the Bible, and we can fill ourselves up with its goodness and its wisdom. The scriptures we feed on daily will strengthen us so we can stand up to even the most persuasive tempter.

Angelic Reminders

Luke 24:6

He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.”

If you read Luke 24:1-8, you’ll find women bowing in fear in the presence of an angel. The angel who spoke to the women at the grave of Jesus told them something they already knew, but had forgotten.

How many times do we gather information from what we read, hear, or experience, and then we forget it? I believe God has sent angels from time to time to remind us of what was right in front of us.

Do we sometimes forget important things when we let situations change our emotions? These women at the grave were caught up in the emotional experience of seeing the one they love die on the cross. In that situation, it may have been difficult for them to keep repeating to themselves, “He said he’d rise again. He said he’d rise again.”

God wanted his message of hope to continue through their mouths to the others, so sending an angel was a great way to make sure the reminder was memorable. I imagine the experience with the angel stayed with them until they saw their risen Lord.

When you are in a situation that looks hopeless, remember that God may have given you a message of hope already. What do you do when you hear from God?

A good way to remember what God has already spoken to you is to keep a journal of where God has taken you. Journal entries can mention how God has led you in your prayer times, specific scriptures that have stood out as important for your life at that time, or a direct word from God.

We all forget things from time to time, but keeping it written down will help you find those important messages again.

Angels Speak God's Message

Luke 2:10

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”

The angel who spoke to the shepherds about birth of Jesus had to calm them down so they would listen to the good news. Angels in the Bible were constantly telling people to stop being afraid. Even today, seeing an angel is a little out of the ordinary. Those who have seen angels don’t generally tell everyone they know.

The shepherds heard the angel mention a sign that this baby was the Christ: “You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” The shepherds left to go check out the sign. If they couldn’t find any babies in Bethlehem in a manger, then they probably would’ve headed back to the sheep quietly, wondering about what they’d seen.

They knew the baby they saw in the manger was the one the angel told about, so they went to tell others and praised God for all they had seen and heard.

Often, we keep things to ourselves when we aren’t sure if we believe what we thought we saw. But when we see something spectacular, we tell everyone. We want to share our joy just as the shepherds did.

This description of that angelic visitation is found in Luke 2:8-20. The event is memorable to many people today, even people who have never read the Bible. People who don’t go to church can hear some of these Luke 2 Bible verses sung in shopping malls during the Christmas season. People who don’t go to church or shopping malls can hear these Bible verses spoken by Linus on the Charlie Brown Christmas Special which is on TV every year.

Angels are memorable. God uses them to bring messages that He wants remembered.

Mary, who had just given birth to the Savior of all mankind, thought about all that had happened that day and treasured the memories in her heart. Can we be like her? Can we treasure the message that God wants us to remember?

We don’t really need an angelic visitation to get God’s message. We have the Bible which tells us plenty about God and about ourselves. We also have the Spirit of the Living God. God can speak into our hearts to guide us to His message for our lives.

When you finally really hear the good news of God’s message for you, will you tell someone?

The Sword of an Angel

Genesis 3:24

After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

After Adam and Even were banished from the Garden of Eden, God assigned an angel to the pathway to keep them from entering again. The angel who kept Adam and Eve out of the Garden had a flashing sword. Even though I wasn’t there, I can imagine that it was a scary sight. I figure the angel probably did his job pretty well. We don’t ever hear about Adam or Eve trying to have a sword fight with that angel.

Can you think of times in your life that it felt like God had placed that angel in front of something that tempted you? I think God gives us opportunities to walk past temptations without putting an angel there to bar the door. But I also think that there are times when he makes sure we aren’t able to fall to a certain temptation.

As a parent, I recognize that my kids can handle a certain amount of temptation successfully. If the temptation is too great, I usually step in and help remove the source of the problem.

God doesn’t set us up for failure. He wants us to succeed in everything we do.

Like it says in Deuteronomy 30:9 “Then the LORD your God will make you most prosperous in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your land.” And in Psalm 1:3 “He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.”

He wants us to prosper, but God also knows that we humans can be a bit stubborn sometimes. I know there have been times in my life where I felt drawn to do something, but I knew I shouldn’t, but I also knew I was going to do it anyway. See? He had a good reason for the scary angel with the sword.

Most of our temptations are things that we can walk past, but we don’t. We have the ability to control ourselves and turn away, but we want God to put an angel with a flaming sword in front of all our temptations.

He’s not going to do that.

He holds out his hand and offers his strength. In our relationship with God, we can overcome any temptation, not by avoiding a sword-wielding angel, but by submitting to God. According to James 4:7, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

If anything in your life seems overwhelmingly tempting and you can see yourself being sucked into the black hole of temptation, fall to your knees at that moment and submit to God. He lifts up those who are down. He strengthens the weak. With your hand in God’s, you will be able to rise up and resist the devil.

Then watch the devil flee.