God Loves You, Even When You Screw Up

Have you ever been asked to do something you didn’t want to do?

When the Lord first began speaking to Israel through Hosea, he said to him, “Go and marry a prostitute, so that some of her children will be conceived in prostitution. This will illustrate how Israel has acted like a prostitute by turning against the Lord and worshiping other gods.”

 Hos. 1:2

• If God asked you to marry someone who would be unfaithful to you, how would you feel?
• God may ask you to do something difficult and extraordinary, too. If He does, how will you respond?
• Will you obey Him as Hosea did; trusting that He knows everything has a special purpose for His request?
• Will you be able to accept the fact that the pain involved in obedience may benefit those you serve and not you personally?

Have you ever received a gift or something special that you in no way deserved?

When she runs after her lovers, she won’t be able to catch them. She will search for them but not find them. Then she will think, ‘I might as well return to my husband, for I was better off with him than I am now.’ She doesn’t realize it was I who gave her everything she has— the grain, the new wine, the olive oil; I even gave her silver and gold. But she gave all my gifts to Baal.

Hos. 2:7-8

We’ve all heard of the girl all the bad guys want, and Gomer was that girl to a T. Whether or not she was a prostitute when Hosea married her or simply promiscuous, she had a reputation. Not someone cut out for a long-term, lasting relationship.

• If you were Gomer, how would you feel if you were to receive a marriage proposal from a pastor?
• Do you think that, at least at first, she was so thrilled that someone like Hosea would even speak to her, let alone marry her, that she was totally dedicated to him?
• We all have things in our past we’d like to get away from, and sometimes we’re not always successful. Can you think of a time in your life where you were trying to make a change, did good for awhile, but ended up back-sliding and doing the things you were trying not to do?
• Do you suppose Gomer might have felt like that? After their first child, do you think she may have gotten ‘bored’ with her life, or was tempted by an old flame?
• How do you think Gomer felt perhaps not knowing who was the father of all her children? How do you think Hosea felt?
• Gomer ends up leaving Hosea and the children for awhile, falling full-on back into prostitution. Do you think she felt shame, and that’s why she stayed away?
• Perhaps she began to realize that Hosea had given her everything she needed, and felt too undeserving of such a good man to ever go back?

Have you ever done something really bad in your life, and when you got caught were forgiven, even though you deserved punishment or the bad consequences of your actions?

Then the Lord said to me, “Go and love your wife again, even though she commits adultery with another lover. This will illustrate that the Lord still loves Israel, even though the people have turned to other gods and love to worship them.”

So I bought her back for fifteen pieces of silver and five bushels of barley and a measure of wine.

Hos. 3:1-2

• What do you think was going through Hosea’s mind when God told him to go and buy his unfaithful wife out of the slave market?
• What do you think Hosea’s neighbors thought?
• Do you think that Hosea was mortified at having to publicly buy his wife back?
• How do you think Gomer felt, standing on the auction block, the result of her own bad decisions, to hear Hosea coming to get her?
• Do you think she felt excited? Ashamed? Unworthy? Loved?
• After this extreme act of kindness done to her, do you think she ever again wanted to be away from Hosea?

In this story of Hosea and Gomer, who do you most identify with? Which person do you think you are most like when it comes to your relationship with God?

When we are unfaithful to God, does He give up on us, or does He call us back to Him?

The Lord says, “Then I will heal you of your faithlessness; my love will know no bounds, for my anger will be gone forever. I will be to Israel like a refreshing dew from heaven. Israel will blossom like the lily; it will send roots deep into the soil like the cedars in Lebanon.  Its branches will spread out like beautiful olive trees, as fragrant as the cedars of Lebanon.  My people will again live under my shade.  They will flourish like grain and blossom like grapevines.  They will be as fragrant as the wines of Lebanon.

“O Israel, stay away from idols!  I am the one who answers your prayers and cares for you. I am like a tree that is always green; all your fruit comes from me.”

Hos. 14:4-8

Hosea tells us that we too will be called children of God. Even though our behavior is at times abhorrent to God, so much so that we may leave Him completely, He is always waiting for us with open arms, ready to comfort us and take us back. As He tells us through Hosea, He is the one who answers our prayers and cares for us, we don’t need anything else!

If you are feeling lost, reach out to God, because He is reaching out to you. You can find your way home by turning away from the sinful things dragging you down and turning back to God. And the best part is, He’ll help you and be with you every step of the way.

What an awesome God we serve!