RETURN TO ME
Old Testament prophets present a special challenge to the modern reader. Often we don’t understand the cultural circumstances that gave voice to their prophetic utterances, and we fail to comprehend the scope of the visions that God entrusted them with. The writings are frequently harsh and unsympathetic to the political correctness of our day, and we struggle to see the relevance to the church era and Christian theology. However, the prophet does represent a common expression of God’s heart that every Christian should find comforting; a call to repentance and reconciliation to Him.
At the heart of God’s relationship with all of mankind, not just the nation of Israel and Christian’s, is the need for reconciliation. From the very beginning of that relationship, man has chosen to reject God’s laws and standards in favor of his own, causing irreparable damage to the delicate communion that the creator had in mind for His creation. His heart’s cry to His creation has always been, “Come, and let us return to the LORD; For He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up.”1, and this sentiment is best exemplified by the prophetic voices of the Old Testament. In the church today, this cry for reconciliation is still just as valid as it was back in the days of the exodus, the judges, the kings, and the leaders of the post-exilic era as well. Not much has changed because man has not changed fundamentally and God hasn’t changed at all. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”2
That is very comforting to know, given the ever changing world that we live in. We can always count on the knowledge that no matter what we have done, no matter how far we have strayed, God always desires for us to return to Him, and pick up our relationship where we left it. From the Garden of Eden in Genesis to closing visions of Revelation, this is a biblical certainty that should bring great assurance to every believer. John recorded the words of Jesus as He expressed this desire to be near His Church, lamenting that, “…you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.”3. But notice how this New Testament truth, written specifically to the Church, echo’s so closely, with the expressions of love and loss that our heavenly Father emoted in the Old Testament, through His prophets, to the nation of Israel: “Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Return to Me," says the LORD of hosts, "and I will return to you," says the LORD of hosts. "Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets preached, saying, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Turn now from your evil ways and your evil deeds." ' But they did not hear nor heed Me," says the LORD.”
That is very comforting to know, given the ever changing world that we live in. We can always count on the knowledge that no matter what we have done, no matter how far we have strayed, God always desires for us to return to Him, and pick up our relationship where we left it. From the Garden of Eden in Genesis to closing visions of Revelation, this is a biblical certainty that should bring great assurance to every believer. John recorded the words of Jesus as He expressed this desire to be near His Church, lamenting that, “…you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.”3. But notice how this New Testament truth, written specifically to the Church, echo’s so closely, with the expressions of love and loss that our heavenly Father emoted in the Old Testament, through His prophets, to the nation of Israel: “Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Return to Me," says the LORD of hosts, "and I will return to you," says the LORD of hosts. "Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets preached, saying, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Turn now from your evil ways and your evil deeds." ' But they did not hear nor heed Me," says the LORD.”
Obviously, the prophets of old were used by the Lord in the past to communicate His desire to repair the broken relationship that had resulted from man’s sin and disobedience. The Holy Spirit has assumed that roll to a large degree in the Church age, but the dynamic that exists between God and His people remains the same; God speaks, man disobeys, God is grieved by man’s disobedience and sends conviction, man repents and is reconciled in his relationship to His creator. This conviction of sin may come as the result of an informed conscience, an overt prompting by the Holy Spirit, or as is often the case, a reading of an Old Testament prophet who is still able to communicate God’s heart through the eons of time, via the Spirit of God who inspired Him to speak so very long ago.
1. New King James Version, Holy Bible, Thomas Nelson, Inc. Publisher, Hosea 6:1
2. New King James Version, Holy Bible, Thomas Nelson, Inc. Publisher, Hebrews 13:8
3. New King James Version, Holy Bible, Thomas Nelson, Inc. Publisher, Rev 2:4-5
