Imagine that you’re sitting in a room with some friends and your best friend walks in. When you stand to greet him, he turns away and pretends he doesn’t know you. Maybe he even says evil things about you while you’re standing right there, or he does wicked things to you and then laughs when others do them too. Cruel as it sounds; my guess is that many of us do the same thing to Jesus–only we’re even crueler to Him. We tell Him we love Him during prayers, or during a church service, and then we bad-mouth Him and refuse to acknowledge Him by the way we live mere moments later. Occasionally, we put a few bucks in the plate at church and somehow feel we’re “OK” with Him. Truthfully, we’re probably not worth the trouble, but like a REAL friend, He will do all He can to bring us back to a genuine relationship with Himself.
“What can I do with you Ephraim? What can I do with you Judah? Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears. Therefore I cut you into pieces with my prophets, I killed you with the words of my mouth; my judgments flashed like lightning upon you. For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.” Hosea 6:4-6
In Christ,
PastorJimKilby @Kilbin8er Jim@JamesKilby.com