12 Weeks of Prayer Week 6 Day 5
BREAKING GOD'S TRUST
By Linda A. Knowles
"For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
and the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
But they, like Adam, have transgressed the covenant;
there they were unfaithful to Me."
Hosea 6:6-7
It was as if Israel and Judah's goodness was like a morning mist. One moment the goodness was there, and then, the next moment, their goodness was gone. They were vile, and they disobeyed God. They just kept disregarding God and what God had to say. Sadly, we are no different than Israel and Judah. God kept warning His children. Doesn't God warn us in His Word what will happen if we choose to sin? Doesn't God tell us that if we choose good that we will be blessed? Doesn't God tell us that if we choose to disobey that we will pay the consequences of our sin of disobedience? God wants a relationship with us. Have we broken His trust in us? We displease and hurt God when we don't obey Him. We grieve the Holy Spirit when we show disregard for God and what God considers holy and good by our actions when we choose to do things our way. It hurts when someone betrays us so much that we can no longer trust that person. Can we imagine how displeased and hurt God feels when His own children choose to disobey Him, choose to do things their own way, and choose to live in a way that will only bring them destruction?
If we feel betrayed and hurt by those who harm us in some way, can we imagine how God feels when His own children choose to disobey Him? Look again at what God said, "But they, like Adam, have transgressed the covenant; there they were unfaithful to me." God's trust in His people was broken. They broke His trust.
When we became children of God, accepting Christ as our Lord and Savior, we entered a covenant (legally binding contract) with God. This means God is our Heavenly Father and that we are His children. This means that as His children, we will live the way God would have us to live. We live by God's laws and commandments. We communicate with God through prayer. We spend time reading and studying His Word to know His thoughts and His will.
It is within the pages of Scriptures, we can see the faithfulness of our God, and we can see the warning laid out through the messages God gave the prophets of old. Our God, the Creator of the Heavens, and the Earth, does not want outward shows or appearances from us because He is not impressed with pretense and hypocrisy. We are to worship the Lord and love Him with all our heart and soul that has resulted from a transformation that has taken place inwardly.
May I suggest we take a lesson from Israel and Judah? Let us not break God's trust in us as Adam did in the Garden of Eden. Let us not break our covenant with God as Israel had broken their covenant as a nation even though God had protected them and showered them with blessings. Let us remember to not betray the God of our salvation. Judah was just as ripe for God's judgment as Israel was. May we learn from them to stay on the path God has laid out for us. We must stay on the road that the Lord has marked out for us, never leaving the narrow way.
I encourage all of us to pursue God, to seek Him first, learn of His ways and His commands, and love Him with all your heart. "The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,” Deuteronomy 31:8. Move forward in the Lord, and don't look back.
Heavenly Father, You are the God of my Salvation. Lord, my love and my heart are for You, and I don't ever want to break covenant with You. I never want to break Your trust in me as Your child. Help me to always remain steadfast in You. Help me to put my hands to the plough without looking back. Lord, I choose to hide Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You because I know, O Lord, that Your Word is truth. Your ways are perfect, and all Your ways are just. Draw me close to You, and Lord, please don't let me go. Apart from You, I can do nothing for You are my victory. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
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