The Call to Return to The Lord
SERIES
"RETURNING TO THE LORD"
Today's Bible Verse
Return, Israel, to the Lord your God.
Your sins have been your downfall!
(Hosea 14: 01)
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When we wander far away from the Lord's presence, and when the guilt of our sins does not allow us to look at the Holiness of God, we realise what we have lost. We see that we have come so far from the Lord. We find what a glory the Lord had shared with us and we had taken it for granted. We struggle. We do not know how to go back to the Lord. Some of us feel so guilty that we skip praying, we feel ashamed to go and talk to the Lord. We question whether we are worthy to go and stand before the Holy God. We even decide to live a sinless life for the next two days, one week, a month and then return to the Lord, but fail miserably time and again. This may be the life story of many of us for the last many years!
Throughout the Bible, in many different circumstances, we find the word "return" as a wake-up call when the people were in sin. To mention a few, Joel 02: 13 says "Now return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness and relenting of evil." In Zechariah 01: 03 we find the words, “Return to Me,” declares the Lord of hosts, “that I may return to you,” says the Lord of hosts." In Job 22: 23 we find the promise "If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored." Lamentations 03: 40 says "Let us examine and probe our ways, and let us return to the Lord. And, in Jeremiah 04: 01 we find, “If you will return, O Israel,” declares the Lord, “then you should return to Me."
Returning to the Lord is the first aid to a sinner! And today if you are feeling far away from the Lord because of your recent sins, the call is, return to the Lord!
Hosea 14 reminds us of four important things to remember when we return to the Lord. Hosea 14: 02 - 03 instructs us to "Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to him: “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips. Assyria cannot save us; we will not mount warhorses. We will never again say ‘Our gods’ to what our own hands have made, for in you the fatherless find compassion.” With God's grace and help, I am encouraged to discuss each of these four elements in detail in the following four weeks under the four different titles, making it a Series on "Returning to the Lord."
1. Returning to the Lord with Expressions of Repentance.
2. Returning to the Lord with Dependence on His Grace.
3. Returning to the Lord with Sacrifices of the Lips.
4. Returning to the Lord with Renouncement of Our Worldly Dependencies.
Today the call is to return! It may be very specific to you. You may be struggling within yourself to run back to the Lord. Your sins may be distancing you from God. Your burden of guilt that you carry may be stopping you from running back to Him. But the call is very clear. Do not think about anything but return to the Lord. I hope and pray that the series of devotions that we may be following in the coming weeks on Returning will be helpful to you. Just pause and decide to return. No more hurts, no more feelings of guilt, but only the gracious presence of the Lord. He stands with His arms open wide, and you should hear the loud and powerful word "return" from the Lord.
May the blessings of God the Father, the love and grace of Christ Jesus the Son, and the fellowship and guidance of the Holy Spirit, be with us forevermore.
May God bless you.
Yours in Christ,
Ebenezer Veerasingam
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"Return to Me"
by Don Moen
