And I said unto her, Thou shalt abide for me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be for another man: so will I also be for thee.
Hosea 3:3 (KJV)
In the last two posts, we have talked about abiding; the first is God calling us to abide with Him, and the second one is Christ calling us to abide in Him. Today we look at the third call from God; that we abide for Him. To abide for God we are called into the life of service; to worship and glorify Him in all we do.
Our verse from the minor prophecy of Hosea is part of a picture painted of Israel by the writer; at various times throughout the Old Testament Israel deserted God, serving pagan gods of those people that they lived amongst. They committed spiritual harlotry which grieved God. The story of Hosea’s wife is a type of Israel; they both lived lives of harlotry. In our verse Hosea speaks of his wife, which is also the prophetic words of God regarding Israel; and the verse is God calling out to us, His children today, to not play the harlot with the temptations of this evil world.
Dear Reader, our Father God who has redeemed us through His Son calls us; “thou shalt abide for Me…” He has bought us at a price on Calvary’s tree, the highest price. We are not our own – we must serve Him rather than any other, lest we break His heart. May we abide for Him today.
What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. 1Corinthians 6:19-20
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Devotional Treasures
