God Is Loving and Faithful

Unfailing Love and Faithfulness

The Lord passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin. But I do not excuse the guilty. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren; the entire family is affected— even children in the third and fourth generations.”

Exodus 34:6‭-‬7 NLT

Hesed = unfailing love

• hesed is the combination of affection, commitment, and action

Emet = faithfulness

• consistent, faithful, reliable, steadfast
• can always count on God to act like God

God's faithfulness and his love go together. Hesed and Emet together is a stubborn and resilient love. This is different from his compassion.

Prophets in the OT we're transmitters of the message of God.

Hosea

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.”

Hosea 1:2 NLT

God wants Hosea's life to illustrate how Israel has been reacting to God.
😂 Worst ministry assignment ever!

So Hosea married Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she became pregnant and gave Hosea a son.

Hosea 1:3 NLT

Hosea ends up going back to her old ways. She goes against Hosea and her own kids.

When we let other things take the place of God, we are committing spiritual adultery.

I will make you my wife forever, showing you righteousness and justice, unfailing love and compassion. I will be faithful to you and make you mine, and you will finally know me as the Lord.

Hosea 2:19‭-‬20 NLT

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.”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.”

Hosea 3:1 NLT

So I bought her back for fifteen pieces of silver and five bushels of barley and a measure of wine. Then I said to her, “You must live in my house for many days and stop your prostitution. During this time, you will not have sexual relations with anyone, not even with me.”

Hosea 3:2‭-‬3 NLT

This is a picture of how God loves us. He pursues us and loves us even when we refuse him and turn to other things.

This shows that Israel will go a long time without a king or prince, and without sacrifices, sacred pillars, priests, or even idols! But afterward the people will return and devote themselves to the Lord their God and to David’s descendant, their king. In the last days, they will tremble in awe of the Lord and of his goodness.

Hosea 3:4‭-‬5 NLT

In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.

John 1:1‭, ‬14 NLT

Submit yourselves to God. Come near to God and he will come near to you.

God wants Gomers who will turn into Hosea's.