About two years ago, I had a conversation with a musician who had just released some latest music that focused on the character of his growing relationship with the Lord. We recorded the conversation and aired it on one in every of my podcasts, and within the years since, I’ve often considered what this man shared with me.
For several years during his twenties, he was estranged from his family and living a life that was quite distant from the Lord. He had grow to be hooked on all types of things, and as he embraced his addictions, he often found himself living in strange places, making poor selections, and spending time with others who encouraged him to maintain walking down this path.
While this was occurring, his family never stopped praying for him. They prayed for his protection. They prayed that the Lord would give him wisdom. They prayed that he would return to the Lord and sincerely repent of the unhealthy sinfulness he had embraced. This season stretched on for years, but they continued to hope that the Lord would do something miraculous in his life and open his eyes in order that he could stop embracing lies and start embracing the reality of the gospel.
One evening, after getting high once more and finding himself in a somewhat dangerous environment, this man decided he had had enough of this lifestyle. He wasn’t sure what to do about it, but knew if he called his dad, he might help. So he picked up a phone, called his father, and his father immediately got in his automotive, drove to where the person said he was, found him, embraced him, and brought him home.
By God’s grace, he repented of sin, trusted Jesus completely, and follows Him sincerely to today. Now, he uses his gift to write down and sing music that brings glory to Jesus.
This man’s story is not unique to him. It’s a story that has been lived out by many individuals throughout the course of human history. It would not surprise me to learn that there could also be someone in your life that you just’re presently praying for at once. Someone who’s on a journey of attempting to run from the Lord when what they really want to do is repent and return to Jesus. There are definitely people in my life that I’m praying for at once who appear to be on that form of path.
In Hosea 6, we read the words of the prophet as he prayed for the repentance of Israel during one in every of their severe seasons of rise up against the Lord. The words of his prayer and the next response of God are each insightful and inspiring as we lift up our heartfelt concerns for others to the Lord as well.
Pray with the understanding that God’s discipline is supposed to assist you to.
“Come, allow us to return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he’ll bind us up. 2 After two days he’ll revive us; on the third day he’ll raise us up, that we may live before him. 3 Let us know; allow us to press on to know the Lord; his going out is bound because the dawn; he’ll come to us because the showers, because the spring rains that water the earth.” – Hosea 6:1-3
During Hosea’s day, the people of Israel continued to rebel against the Lord while worshipping Baal and attributing the blessings of God to the false deity they embraced. It was a heartbreaking site to witness, particularly for those whose hearts were aligned with the Lord’s heart.
Compelled by the Holy Spirit to pen this plea, Hosea offered these words of counsel to the rebellious nation. He encouraged them to return to the Lord as their old flame. He reminded them that despite the fact that the Lord was using various means to discipline the people, this was really evidence that God loved them and desired them to be near to Him.
Hosea spoke of the Lord tearing them down but then healing them. This pattern jogs my memory of the exact same effect the gospel message tends to have on us. In certain ways, the reality of the gospel tears us down before it heals us. I often consider this when I’m preaching and have to have a look at the faces of those I’m talking to because I can see how various facets of the gospel impact our hearts as its implications grow to be clear to us.
God’s word reveals that He created humanity in His image and He desires that we now have an ideal relationship and enduring fellowship with Him, but we rejected that and idolized our own wisdom as a substitute. As a complete, humanity lives before God as sinners, rebels, and enemies who embrace spiritual death as a substitute of embracing spiritual life. That’s not a nice place to begin when speaking of these items conversationally. It hurts to listen to that.
But then God’s word speaks of the answer. The Son of God, Jesus Christ, took on flesh, lived life without sin, experienced the condemnation we deserved when He died in our place, then rose from death and offers to forgive the sins of all who trust in Him while also securing a everlasting place in His everlasting family for all who imagine.
The gospel tears us down before it heals us. It tells us we’re sinners but then offers us salvation through faith in Jesus. I see an analogous pattern within the plea Hosea presented to the people of Israel.
In the words Hosea spoke, he also prophetically looked forward to the day when Israel would experience real revival. The day is coming when they may recognize Jesus, their Messiah and Savior. I pray that day can be soon.
Pray for those you like even once they make you shake your head in sorrow.
“What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? Your love is sort of a morning cloud, just like the dew that goes early away.” – Hosea 6:4
The manner by which the center of God is expressed on this passage feels highly relatable to me. These words remind me of each time my parents and grandparents checked out me while I used to be growing up and said, “What on earth convinced you to make that form of decision?”
I believe of those moments often, particularly as I operate as a parent. I like my children, but admittedly, there have been loads of moments when I’ve needed to shake my head in confusion over their decisions, similar to my parents did with me. And the day is coming once they could also be shaking their heads at children of their very own.
Hosea records sentiments that talk of God the nations of Israel and Judah with grief as He says, “What shall I do with you?” He also describes these people as having a fickle form of love toward Him. It was love that appeared to be present for a moment but then evaporated like a cloud or some dew.
The people we love may at times, put us through an analogous experience. We may even find ourselves saying, “What am I presupposed to do with you?” But take heart. God knows how best to assist the very individuals who often puzzle us.
Pray for the justice and mercy of God to be welcomed and displayed.
“Therefore I actually have hewn them by the prophets; I actually have slain them by the words of my mouth, and my judgment goes forth as the sunshine.” – Hosea 6:5
It’s amazing to read through the pages of Scripture and consider all of the benefits the people of Israel have been given. They got the patriarchs, their very own land, prophets, miraculous signs, divine protection, the covenants, the Scriptures, the apostles, and ultimately the Savior, Jesus Christ, who so far as His earthly lineage is anxious, was born amongst them.
But the sad reality of human nature is that whatever the advantages we’re given, we will easily reject even the best of blessings. We see that pattern happening in Israel on the time of Hosea’s writing.
Instead of receiving the words of the prophets as an indication of God’s mercy, we’re told that Israel was going to be chopped to pieces because they rejected God’s counsel. They would experience judgment and be slain by the words of God’s mouth. In their pride, they’d puffed themselves up against God, but now they were literally going to be cut down in humility.
Wisdom involves listening to God without having to be cut down by the words of His mouth. Pray that those that are currently in rise up against the Lord would hearken to Him, but in the event that they won’t, pray for God to chop away whatever idols they’re embracing, even when that surgery is perhaps painful.
Pray for obedience that’s motivated by love.
“For I desire steadfast love and never sacrifice, the knowledge of God quite than burnt offerings.” – Hosea 6:6
Hosea 6:6 is such an interesting verse since it illustrates a typical trait that was present in ancient Israel while also remaining present amongst the final culture of today. It is a quite common practice amongst those that have grown up in a spiritual context to say something like, “I do know I’m not presupposed to do that, but I’ll just say sorry later.” But is that what mature faith looks like? Could that be evidence of an absence of religion in the primary place?
In the culture of Israel, they might do something similar. They would sin against the Lord, then try and justify their sin by saying, “I’ll just make a sacrifice. That should cover it.”
But the Lord desires obedience that’s fueled by love, not sacrifices that function like a heartless “get out of jail free card.” In John 14:15, Jesus specifically said, “If you like me, you’ll keep my commandments.” We also see, within the gospel of Matthew, Jesus quoted this verse from Hosea on multiple occasions to make this exact point.
“Go and learn what this implies: ‘I desire mercy, and never sacrifice.’ For I got here to not call the righteous, but sinners.” – Matthew 9:13
“And in case you had known what this implies, ‘I desire mercy, and never sacrifice,’ you wouldn’t have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.” – Matthew 12:7-8
If the Lord didn’t love the people of Israel, he wouldn’t have sent them a prophet to speak His heart and call them back to repentance. If He didn’t love the world, He wouldn’t have sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to call us unto Him, invite us to repent of our sins and trust in Him for salvation.
There are people on this world that we love, and God loves, but their lives don’t yet reveal a reciprocal love for God. But so long as we now have breath, it’s price praying for his or her repentance. They aren’t the primary individuals with hard hearts that God has needed to cope with. In this season of God’s patience, let’s proceed to lift them up before the Lord and seek His intervention of their lives.
Photo Credit: © Pexels/Ethan Jones
© John Stange, 2025.. Originally published on Bible Study Headquarters. Used with permission.© John Stange, 2025.. Originally published on Bible Study Headquarters. Used with permission.
John Stange is the Lead Pastor at Core Creek Community Church and a professor at Cairn University where he leads the Digital Media and Communication program. He also leads a web-based community called Platform Launchers where he helps people construct message-based online platforms.
John has authored over 30 books and presently hosts several podcasts on the LifeAudio podcast network. His shows have been downloaded thousands and thousands of times by listeners throughout the world.
You can learn more about John’s ministry, books, and podcasts at BibleStudyHeadquarters.com.
