Hello My Friend/Guest,

Today is Sunday September 20, 2009 and we are completing our studies in the book of Hosea, please read chapters 7-14 in your Bible or Click Here to read them. http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-september-20

Today's Message: Spiritual Victory
The key to spiritual victory is to obey the Holy Spirit as He guides our lives by revealing the truth of God's Word.

Israel had foolishly put its trust in the powerful nations of Egypt and Assyria for help. This led to the Israelite's worshiping their idols and forsaking the One True God. Through Hosea, God is addressing the Israelite's whom know Him, yet continue to trust and follow the practices of these heathen nations. “When I would have healed Israel, then the iniquity of Ephraim was discovered, and the wickedness of Samaria: for they commit falsehood; and the thief cometh in, and the troop of robbers spoileth without. And they consider not in their hearts that I remember all their wickedness: now their own doings have beset them about; they are before my face. They make the king glad with their wickedness, and the princes with their lies. They are all adulterers, as an oven heated by the baker, who ceaseth from raising after he hath kneaded the dough, until it be leavened.” - Hosea 7:1-4. What God is saying here is that whatever wickedness they secretly hid was not hidden from Him, they were committing spiritual adultery and it was so severe that even though He knew who they were they were like bread that is baked before it has been allowed time to rise. When bread has not been allowed to rise before it is baked it comes out hard and inedible .

The truth is that in the midst of their troubles as a nation, they never thought of seeking help from God. With a divided heart, God's people feared the Lord and served their own gods. They would give up neither God nor idols but worshiped all of them. “Woe unto them! for they have fled from me: destruction unto them! because they have transgressed against me: though I have redeemed them, yet they have spoken lies against me. And they have not cried unto me with their heart, when they howled upon their beds: they assemble themselves for corn and wine, and they rebel against me. Though I have bound and strengthened their arms, yet do they imagine mischief against me. They return, but not to the most High: they are like a deceitful bow: their princes shall fall by the sword for the rage of their tongue: this shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.” - Hosea 7:13-16. What God is saying here is that with their altars to idols and the Temple sacrifice to God, the Israelites worship became empty words of hypocrisy. They boasted of their relationship to the God of Jacob, but did not walk in His steps. Many today have yet to learn that no one can have two masters, we can not seek help nor remain faithful to those in the world then get angry with God because things are not going our way. “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” - Matthew 6:24.

The Lord's willingness to show mercy, as He always does to any repentant sinner, was expressed when He said, “I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine anger is turned away from him. I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. His branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive tree, and his smell as Lebanon. They that dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall revive as the corn, and grow as the vine: the scent thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon.” - Hosea 14:4-7.

When we repent, turn from our sins, receive Jesus as our Savior and Lord of our lives, and let the indwelling Holy Spirit guide our lives as we read our Bible, we are freed from the power of Satan, sin, and spiritual death. “If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” - I John 1:6,7.

There are so many Christian's whom sincerely love God, yet are at a cross between doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord and putting their faith and trust in worldly family or friends in order to keep the peace or have some security in their lives. However, this is a deadly combination, not only in a physical sense, but in a spiritual and emotional sense as well. When we live amongst or put our trust with those who are of the world we are weakening our spiritual immunity, the more we are with them, the weaker we get and eventually we fall away from God all together. This then causes us to become weak physically as mixed emotions cause depression, weight gain, and all other sorts of physical problems. God will take care of us, we just need to call on Him, only He can give us spiritual victory over the problems we are facing.

Have a wonderful and blessed day/night and enjoy your week.
God Bless You,
Christina

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