Prayer
Because the primary goal of our time together is to establish relationships and learn how to walk with one another in all that God has called us to be and do, we’d like to begin by praying for one another. So, does anyone have anything you’d like us to pray for or anything to share regarding how you’ve seen God moving in your life that we can celebrate together?
Opening Question
What hobby do you enjoy in your spare time?
The Lord said to me, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.”
So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley.Then I told her, “You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will behave the same way toward you.”
For the Israelites will live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred stones, without ephod or household gods. Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the Lord and to his blessings in the last days.– Hosea 3:1-5
Fake Gods
God asked Hosea to pay the bride price again to Gomer and forgive her. Does this seem unjust or unfair to you?
In the sermon, we heard that “fake gods” (ie. the systems, ideologies, comforts, relationships, idols, etc that people entrust themselves to instead of God) don’t ask us to do anything we wouldn’t want to do. What do “fake gods” ask of us? What do they offer to us?
The book of Hosea reveals God’s desire for faithfulness from his people. What does faithfulness to God look like in our daily lives?
A Faithful God
God asks Hosea to model his love for his people in how Hosea treats his Gomer. What does God’s commitment to us say about who our God really is?
We glimpse the promise of a Messiah at the end of this chapter. If Gomer represents humanity’s need for a Savior, what does that say about what sin does to us? What does it say about God’s trustworthiness to forgive that sin?
Faithful Relationships
God asks Hosea to pay a hefty price in his relationship with Gomer. Are there any real relationships that aren’t costly, in one way or another?
What is the cost of faithful love toward our neighbors, friends, and family?
Who is God asking you to show his love to in this season of life?
Closing Thought
In your final time together, spend some time thanking God for his faithfulness toward us, and ask him for opportunities to show his love to the people in our lives.