When Christ saved us and made us alive in Him, we died to sin. Sin no longer has mastery over us. Our greatest pleasure is not derived from indulging in it. Our hearts are not satisfied by embracing it.

When we trusted in Christ, we were baptized by the Holy Spirit and united with Him. In obedience, we then followed that up by being baptized with water, which serves as a visible illustration of this spiritual reality. Paul tells us here that we were baptized into His death. Christ died for our sins, and baptism shows that we openly identify with what He suffered on our behalf. And we were raised out of the water of baptism to display the fact that we who were dead and buried have now been raised to life. Christ has accomplished this for us spiritually, we have identified with His work publicly, and now we have been set free from sin's bondage to live a new life.

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Christians tend to refer to the events that events recorded in John 12 as having taken place on Palm Sunday. We may be familiar with some of the details of the story, but do we understand the significance of what Jesus was doing and the message He was attempting to convey through the actions He took?

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The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here: https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

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It wouldn't surprise me to learn that there may be someone in your life that you're presently praying for right now. Someone who is on a journey of attempting to run from the Lord when what they really need to do is repent and return to Jesus. There are certainly people in my life that I'm praying for right now who seem to be on that kind of path.

In Hosea 6, we read the words of the prophet as he prayed for the repentance of Israel during one of their severe seasons of rebellion against the Lord. The words of his prayer and the subsequent response of God are both insightful and encouraging as we lift up our heartfelt concerns for others to the Lord as well.

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If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

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The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here: https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

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To email John Stange directly, please send your message to biblestudyheadquarters@gmail.com.

Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Please visit https://www.biblestudyheadquarters.com/ for more tools and resources to help you grow in faith.

.

If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

.

The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here: https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

.

To email John Stange directly, please send your message to biblestudyheadquarters@gmail.com.

Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Please visit https://www.biblestudyheadquarters.com/ for more tools and resources to help you grow in faith.

.

If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

.

The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here: https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

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To email John Stange directly, please send your message to biblestudyheadquarters@gmail.com.

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Depravity among spiritual leaders was a common issue in Hosea's day. For starters, they had drifted from the clear teaching of the word of God. As a result, the Lord revealed through Hosea that His people were "destroyed for lack of knowledge."

The spiritual leaders weren't teaching God's word. They also weren't modeling it. Instead of feeding the people life-giving spiritual nourishment, they were feeding on the sin of the people and effectively encouraging more of it. The Lord describes these spiritual leaders as greedy and enamored with iniquity. It's a horrible image to picture.

God will hold spiritual leaders accountable for the lives they live and the nature of their influence on the lives of others.

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If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

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The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here: https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

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To email John Stange directly, please send your message to biblestudyheadquarters@gmail.com.

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If you find it particularly difficult to extend forgiveness, please understand that the Lord isn’t asking you to do something He wasn’t willing to do first. There is no greater example of forgiveness than the forgiveness we’ve been offered through the Son of God, Jesus Christ. Jesus who had done no wrong bore our sin on the cross so that we could be indwelled with His presence, gifted with His righteousness, and forgiven us of every wrong we’ve ever committed in act, attitude, or nature.

The third chapter of the book of Hosea illustrates the relational and eternal power of forgiveness in a way that can’t help but impact us.

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Please visit https://www.biblestudyheadquarters.com/ for more tools and resources to help you grow in faith.

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If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

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The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here: https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

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To email John Stange directly, please send your message to biblestudyheadquarters@gmail.com.

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I’m grateful that when I observe the hand of God in my life and in the lives of those I love, that He doesn’t quit too soon. Even though I wouldn’t blame Him for wanting to give up on us, that isn’t His pattern. And if you’ve been personally wondering if God has given up on you, I’m confident He hasn’t.

We are given a powerful example of God’s patient, long-suffering nature in the second chapter of the prophetic book of Hosea.

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Please visit https://www.biblestudyheadquarters.com/ for more tools and resources to help you grow in faith.

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If you enjoy the show and want to buy John a coffee, please click here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/johnstange

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The "Desire Jesus One Year Devotional" can be found here: https://amzn.to/41v1DKh

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To email John Stange directly, please send your message to biblestudyheadquarters@gmail.com.

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Feeling distant from God? Please take a look with me at what we're told in the book of Hosea about this very concept.

Hosea was a prophet in Israel who served in his role for roughly 60 years. His book was written sometime between 755 B.C. and 725 B.C. during a very spiritually dark season in Israel's history.

During that era, Israel was consumed with idolatry, and the nature of their idolatry was both vulgar and blasphemous. Like many people in our own generation, the people of Israel were highly consumed with the desire to gain the best of what this world can offer. It was a common belief in the paganism of the day that material prosperity and fruitful crops could be obtained by worshipping the false god Baal and participating in vulgar activities with temple prostitutes.

I can only imagine how it must have felt for God to witness this spiritual unfaithfulness among the very people He had rescued, redeemed, and called unto Himself. Sometimes, people picture God as unfeeling and distant, but that's not the image of Him that's painted for us in Scripture. We're told that He rejoices over His people. We're also told that His children can grieve His heart. The book of Hosea reveals the depth of God's emotions toward those He loves.

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