Hosea: God's Faithfulness in Christ - We Can Return

Many of us have read Tim Keller’s book, Prodigal God. His book examines the story of the prodigal son, found in Luke 15. While the main emphasis of the story is the failure of the elder brother, directed at the self-righteous religious leaders, Keller wants us to marvel together at the patient, loving, generous Father. In the story, notice that the father acquiesced to his son’s demands and insults. The father bore his son’s damage to his reputation. The father gave generously to his son, knowing it would be wasted. Yet, the father looked every day, longing for his son’s return. When his prodigal son finally did return, he blessed him, restoring to him the privileges of being his son. The father celebrated the return of the son, without resentment for the evil the son committed against him. Look at the father in the story and see your Heavenly Father.

Our text highlights that glory. After all that Israel has done against God, He anticipates a day when Israel will repent, and He will love them freely. No matter where we are spiritually today, we can always return home to God. When we return, we find that He has been with us, even in our rebellion, and longing for us to return, even working for our repentance. As we gather this Sunday, let’s rejoice in the overflowing mercy of God through Jesus Christ.