Catching Idle Butterflies

Love Story

Many call the Bible God’s biography as well as a history of the Hebrews, and including the New Testament, the history of the beginning of Christianity.

But it’s also a love story. It’s the story of a God consistently and relentlessly pursuing his people, desperate to draw them to his bosom. Though he punished his people for doing wrong, including the adulterous behavior of worshiping other gods instead of him, he also forgave them because of his immeasurable mercy and love.

He’s a God who loves so deeply, he gave his life so his Beloved could live.

It’s no accident he calls us his Bride and he the Bridegroom or fiancé. That relationship describes an intimacy above all others, including that of a father and child. Thinking of it that way, I’m not surprised the Story ends with a wedding. It touches the romantic in all of us. Best of all, we are all a part of this story, and not vicariously so.

At times God places his servant into circumstances that metaphorically represents what God wants to communicate to his people.

Hosea is one. God required him to “take yourself an adulterous wife and children of unfaithfulness, because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery in departing from the Lord.” (Hosea 1:2)

After rebuking his people for their sins God said, “Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her.” (2:14)

He then charged Hosea to reconcile with his own wife even after she “was loved by another and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.” (3:1)

It doesn’t matter what I’ve done. I can turn away from God and try to replace him with more worldly pursuits. Still he will pursue me, even into the desert of my despair. He will speak tenderly to me, forgive me, and take me home.

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Don't know why, but I can't end my entry there.

I kinda want to make you all smile today, so I will share something a friend's 7-year-old granddaughter said about church:

"Oh, Grandma, I love the music, I just don't like the listening."