The Father’s Love - Part 2 of 2

The Baptist Bible Hour now comes to you under the direction of Elder Lacerre Bradley Jr. O for a thousand tongues to sing, my great Redeemer's praise! The glories of my God and King, the triumphs of his grace!

This is Lacerre Bradley Jr. inviting you to stay tuned in front of the message of God's sovereign grace. And all the saints shall hear. Praise, then my roaming feet! To death the heavenly Lord! And you shall find, each hour I meet, While prayers be gone to God. Praise of my soul to pray, And make my eyes o'erfold. But praise that can't be true this day, And will not let me go. Praise, all the world shall crown, Through everlasting days.

It lays in them the topmost stone, And well deserves the praise. I want to thank each of you who have taken time recently to write and let us know that you're listening to the program. We do need to hear from our listeners on a regular basis to keep going. In fact, this is a five Sunday month, which means that our expenses are particularly great. So if you can help us at this time, we'll be very thankful for it. You can go to our website and make a donation there at BaptistBibleHour.org. Our address is Baptist Bible Hour, Box 17037, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. The Lord willing, this coming Thursday evening, June 3rd through Sunday, I will be in a meeting with Grace Primitive Baptist Church, Pearl, Mississippi. Elder Andrew Huffman and I are the speakers.

Elder David Pyle is the pastor. Today, we continue our message entitled The Father's Love from Hosea Chapter 11, beginning with the first verse. When Israel was a child, then I loved him and called my son out of Egypt. As they called them, so they went from them. They sacrificed unto Balaam and burned incense to graven images. I taught Ephraim also to go, taking them by their arms, but they knew not that I healed them.

I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love, and was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws, and I laid meat upon them. So first, in looking at this passage, we have been remembering the great mercy that God bestowed upon his people. And we come to that portion today where he called them out of Egypt. The chosen sons were not left in bondage. Now in this verse, this first verse of the passage, we have something beautiful.

When Israel was a child, I loved him and called my son out of Egypt. And we get to the next verse, and frankly I admit, I thought about skipping it. I thought, maybe we can come back to it another time. Could we just have one message when we're talking about nothing but God's love and God's grace? Because there have been some depressing scenes in this book. Some have even expressed the thought, will we ever get through some of the darkness and drudgery that we had to look at? And yet, we've always been able to find a verse here or there to lift our spirits and to encourage us to believe that there is yet grace in the midst of all of the failings of God's people.

We see here a sad departure. They sacrifice to bail them. After you look at the beautiful description of grace and mercy, we think, surely Israel will now serve God with thankful hearts. A people chosen, a people delivered, a people blessed, a people favored above all the peoples on this earth. Surely they will move forward in a God-honoring way. But the verse describes their failure.

Yes, I thought, maybe we can just bask in the warmth of the brilliant rays of God's love today and take this up at a later time. But by the direction of the Holy Spirit who inspired the writing of the passage, it's where it needs to be. So after viewing God's love and God's grace and God's faithfulness, we have to face facts. And it says that they turned even from the message of the prophets. Moses was described as a prophet and Moses spoke to the people and pleaded with them and exhorted them, and yet they resisted his message. And in later times when God brought other prophets on the scene, he said, I brought them early, they spoke to you, they brought you my message, and your heart was hard and you resisted it and you turned aside and you worshiped other gods. We're appalled when we read that. How could it be? How could a people so richly blessed turn aside and worship false gods?

But they did. But we have to stop and consider the failure of our own lives. How many times after hearing the gospel message, being reminded of the grace of God and the love of God, you have failed to show your gratitude. You might have been lifted up for the moment when the message of grace was proclaimed, but you left the assembly of saints, went out to be overwhelmed by the cares of life, intrigued by that which the world had to offer, and you made idols. You made idols out of some of the things that attracted you. You made perhaps an idol out of material wealth, out of seeking some prominent place, some position, some place where you would be recognized.

You desired that prestige. You became more involved in the entertainments of the world and expressing daily by all that you said and all that you did your gratitude for God's love. How often, when even professing love for the Savior, when being willing to say, yes, I love Jesus, he is my Savior, but still you have pursued the attractions and pleasures of the world. First John chapter 1 verse 15 says, Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.

Have you been guilty? When you are set back, discouraged, appalled, to see the course taken by Israel, how could they possibly have failed so terribly? But learn the practical application. Look at your own life. Pray, Lord, search me, try me, make me to know what's within me. Help me to see the hypocrisies. Help me to see the pride. Help me to see the worldly spirit that sometimes possesses me.

Help me, Lord, to acknowledge it, to confess it, and give me grace to turn from it. So after first seeing that we are to remember great mercy, we see a sad departure, but then also a gentle teacher. I taught Ephraim to go, taking them by their arms. He taught them to go, just as a father or a mother would teach a child to walk.

And I'm sure we all can get that picture in our mind. Here's this little child that's finally reached the place that the attempt can be made for the child to walk. And so they take the child by his hands, and they gently guide him as he attempts to make a step, finally to turn loose of one hand, and then the other, but the child stumbles and falls. Now, this father who is going to teach his child to walk is going to be very patient. He's not going to immediately reprimand the child when he stumbles. He's going to pick it back up. He holds him by the hand. He's patient. He's guiding him.

He's teaching him how to go. And that's what the Lord said he did with Ephraim, with Israel, with his people, taking them by their arms. He taught them to go as a father would teach his child to walk. Now, they were indeed very childish. They were full of fears and complaints. They were taking courage to remember what God had done for them, walking always with absolute confidence in him, knowing that no matter what might come, no matter how fierce the enemy might be, all would be well because God was their God, that he was their father. He was guiding them.

He was teaching them how to go. They often feared and they often complained, particularly when they came into the wilderness. Oh, they said, if we just had the onions and the leek and the garlic like we did back in Egypt.

Can you imagine? When they were in bondage, they were crying out. They wanted to be delivered.

Now that deliverance has come, they are thinking about the dainties that were theirs back in the land of Egypt. They were grown up children. It's one thing to be patient with a little child who was learning to walk, but when people are 60 years old and they're still like little children, that's another problem. So God selected Moses, who is described as being the meekest of all men. It would take a man with a meek temperament to put up with those people. They complained about everything, yet God was gracious to them. As slaves, they didn't have to make many decisions. Their decisions were made for them. Their masters told them what they were to do. Their masters laid down the rules, laid out the activities for the day. They didn't have to think very much. But now, as little children, they are maturing.

They're to grow. And God is teaching them, taking them by the arms and teaching them in their wilderness wanderings. He taught them the greatness of his power when he set the plagues on the Egyptians.

They could never have imagined what God would do to bring them out. One after another the plagues came. The lice, the flies, the frogs, the disease in cattle, the darkness, and ultimately the death of the firstborn.

There was safety for those in Israel who had kept up the lamb for fourteen days, that it might be proven to be without spot and without blemish, to then shed its blood and sprinkle the blood upon the doorpost so that when the death angel passed through, he said, I will pass over you. But in Egypt, the firstborn in every family died. Even among the animals, there was death. Egypt was devastated. The whole nation had been affected. The river then turned to blood. What a sight.

What power God had displayed. These are my people and I'm bringing them out. And whatever it takes, I'm going to deliver them. And then as they leave, they start on their journey. They come to the Red Sea. Now you would think that having seen God's power in the ten plagues, they would have stood there by faith and said, I can't wait to see what God's going to do. I know he's going to do something.

I know not these full-grown babies. Oh, what's going to happen to us? We're going to be destroyed. But God said, Moses, stretch out your rod. And the waters parted. The waters of the sea rolled back and there's a path for them to travel upon and they come across to the other side and they didn't even get their feet wet. Yes, they were fearful when they heard the horses hoofs leading and guiding those chariots and they were fearful of what was going to be the outcome when the soldiers would catch up with them.

But what did happen? They stood on the other banks and watched as Pharaoh's host went into the place they had just safely traveled upon and the waters rolled together and drowned the army in the depths and the people shouted and praised God, the horse and his rider, have you thrown into the sea? What a lesson.

What a display of power. You'd think now surely, surely they have been taught to go, they've been taught to walk. The Lord has held them up by the arms and now they're ready to be mature. But they come into the land, they don't have water.

Oh, what are we going to do? There is out here in the wilderness we don't have water. Was God able to take care of that? He brought water out of the rock. Wouldn't be the most likely place, you'd think maybe if God was going to bring water he'd bring a spring up out of the ground, but he brought it out of the rock demonstrating the fact it was his power that produced it. Now they say, we're hungry. What are we going to do? All this great host of people in the wilderness, we shall surely starve. No, God rains manna down from heaven. There was no problem, God cared for them.

Now, let's make the application. If you're a child of God, if you by faith have come to Jesus Christ and you're trusting him, you're a part of his family, you've been adopted into his family, God has provided for you and cared for you in so many ways. You look back over your life and you can recall those special instances, those times when you may have been fearful, those times when you were full of doubt, when those times when you wondered, what's going to happen next? How am I going to survive? How am I going to get through this trouble?

How am I going to put bread on the table? All of these things may have troubled you, but you're here today as a testimony, God has cared for you. Oh, how can you ever doubt him? In our weakness, we so easily tremble, we so easily forget, and we're once more full of fear. May we learn that the God who has provided for us thus far will go with us all the way, providing our needs. May we are encouraging them to depend upon him, but they were slow learners.

May we learn more quickly. May we understand that when he is leading us, he's teaching us to walk. He's compassionate with us when we have stumbled. He sometimes is simply teaching us our weakness because we can tend to get a little independent sometimes. We can handle this situation.

I think I can figure it out. We depend on our own wisdom and on our own strength, and the Lord has to lead us in a path to remind us we're weak. When I think I'm strong, that's when I'm really weak, that's when I'm ready for a downfall. But when I'm weak, then am I strong? Why? Because I'm going to find my strength in Jesus Christ.

I'm going to trust him. How often have you stumbled, failed to keep resolutions that you made, failed to the use of your time? The hymn writer said, Much of my time has run to waste. Must we all not admit that? That we have good intentions. We make these promises. We say, Lord, I'm going to do better. I'm going to spend more time in your word. I'm going to spend more time in prayer.

I'm going to walk more closely with you. But you get distracted by the television or the smartphone or the other thing out there that consumes your interest and little time is spent in his word. But he picked you up when you've fallen.

Must you not say he has been patient with you? That he has not rewarded us according to our iniquities, but by his grace, he has cared for us and sustained us. Because they knew not that I healed them. Now he promised if they would obey him, that he would give them special care. Exodus chapter 15 verse 26 says, I am the Lord that healeth thee.

And he said, If you walk obediently, none of the diseases that plague the Egyptians will come upon you. But he says they knew not that I healed them. He protected them. He blessed them. He favored them. And they knew it not. Now sometimes they obviously recognize they had been favored.

They knew that they had prospered. They knew that there were blessings. But they did not acknowledge the source, the giver of the blessing.

They did not acknowledge that it came from God. Have you faulted in that area sometimes? God has been gracious and good to you beyond your expectations. But instead of immediately giving thanks, you took a little credit. How astute I've been. What a great planner I am.

What a hard worker I am. You want to take a little of the credit. Oh, let us recognize that when he has held us up by our arms, when he has healed us, when he has guided us and taught us that we want to acknowledge that he is the giver of every good and perfect gift. And sometimes the Lord has held us up by the arms and we didn't even know he was doing it. There are many things you can look back upon in the past and you can recount those experiences, those special days, those times that you say, yes, here is a place that God intervened in my life.

Here is a place that God blessed me and sustained me. But no doubt, there are many times he held you up and you didn't even know it. It wasn't a matter of ingratitude. It was just you were unaware of all of the providential unfoldings of the God of heaven.

You just didn't know the dangers that were around you and how God protected you and sustained you. They knew not that I healed them. May we be faithful, very quick at all times to recognize when the Lord has held us up, when the Lord has healed us, whether it's from our physical ailments or our spiritual troubles, when he has healed us, let us acknowledge he is the great physician, he is the healer. We want to thank him for it.

We want to praise him continually for his goodness and mercy. And then it said he removed the yoke and fed them. Another example of compassion, the work animal was given relief as the yoke was removed.

And then the hungry animal fed. Just so many different ways in which God's love, mercy and compassion are depicted for us in this book. He removes from us the yoke of guilt and the bondage of legalism. It says take my yoke upon you for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. And when he removed the yoke, he fed them. And when the Lord had removed from us that yoke, that burden of guilt, he feeds us. The book of Acts chapter 20, the elders of the church were told to feed the flock of God over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers. Feeding the flock.

How is the flock going to be fed? If you hunger and thirst after righteousness, if your soul is hungry, you desire to be fed. You desire to be fed gospel truth. You want to hear about Jesus Christ, his perfect life, his sacrificial death, his glorious resurrection. You want to hear about him as the friend of sinners. You want to hear about him who has promised never to leave us nor forsake us. You want to hear about his amazing grace.

You don't get tired of hearing it. You say tell me more. I want to know more.

I want to understand it better. I want to rejoice in it continually. You want to be fed. That says when Israel was a child, I loved him. How great is his grace. All glory to be given to his name.

Nothing attractive about this band of people but God said I love you and I call my son out of Egypt. In heaven all the praise is going to go to the lamb that was slain. Thou art worthy for thou was slain and that's redeemedest to God by thy own precious blood. All glory goes to his name because he chose his people. He redeemed them.

He called them and they take no credit to themselves. You were dead in sin but he gave you life. You were blind but he opened your eyes. You were filthy but he washed you. You were lost but he found you.

And there's going to be reason to sing Hallelujah in heaven to give him all the glory and the praise. Somebody might say well I came to him. Indeed you did but you came because he brought you. You said I repented Hallelujah that you repented but you repented because he granted you repentance. You say I believed on him but he gave you the faith. All praise and glory goes to his name. You have to say he loved me. He died for me.

He paid the price of redemption. I'll praise him forever. Praise him! Praise him!

Jesus our Christ and Redeemer. King of all earth, his wonderful love proclaim. Hail him! Hail him!

Fights our pages in glory. Strength and honor give through his holy name. What a wonderful expression. When Israel was a child God says I loved him. And how great is that love and grace displayed in your life. If you're one of his, a believer in Jesus Christ you know that it's because of his grace that you have been saved.

You had nothing to contribute. But because of the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ at Calvary you look forward to that great day that you will be at home with the Lord forever. If you would like to get this complete message on CD request it when writing us. Till next week at this same time may the Lord richly bless you all. Praise him! Praise him! Praise him!

Every joyful song. The Baptist Bible Hour has come to you under the direction of Elder LeSaire Bradley Jr. Address all mail to the Baptist Bible Hour, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217.

That's the Baptist Bible Hour, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. Praise him! Praise him! Jesus, our passion, redeemer!

Every cordial, bow to those that are free! Jesus, Savior, reign in forever and ever! Round him!

Round him! Prophet, reject he! Christ is coming!

Over the world victorious! Power and glory unto the Lord be gone! Praise him! Praise him! Tell his excellent greatness! Praise him! Praise him! Every joyful song.