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Hosea 2.14-15 reads (NRSV):
14Therefore, I will now persuade [lit. seduce] her,
and bring her into the wilderness,
and speak tenderly to her.
15From there I will give her her vineyards,
and make the Valley of Achor [Trouble]a door of hope.
There she shall respond as in the days of her youth,
as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt.
The Message, renders the passage well, putting the promise in terms apt for this time of celebrating Love on Valentines Day 2006:
14"And now, here's what I'm going to do:
I'm going to start all over again.
I'm taking her back out into the wilderness
where we had our first date, and I'll court her.
15I'll give her bouquets of roses.
I'll turn Heartbreak Valley into Acres of Hope.
She'll respond like she did as a young girl,
those days when she was fresh out of Egypt.
Here, God is promising to renew His Love Affair with his beloved, covenanted wife, Israel, the northern kingdom of Israel, to whom Hosea spoke in the 8th Century BCE. The Husband recalls the honeymoon of their relationship, when he had lead her, through Moses, out of Egypt.
Throughout Hosea, the Husband struggles with his feelings regarding his wife, Israel. At times, He appears to disown her and, even, promises to destroy her. But, at times, His undying Love for her breaks through, as in this passage. And, that Love wins out and full restoration of the relationship is promised to happen.
The initiatory impulse of conversion is central to the Hosea passage. Therefore, conversion of Israel, initiated by the Husband in Grace, is a sign of how God continues to work in our conversion.
But, what is conversion? Conversion is “a turning back(ward).” This turning back is indicated in the Hosea passage by a return to “the wilderness,” recalling the wilderness wanderings after the Hebrew tribes were freed from slavery in Egypt.
Certain theological realities make possible this conversion. Among them is the truth that conversion is rooted in God’s Grace. Grace appeals to the created potential in us to respond to Love.
The passage uses the first person singular, referring to the initiatory action of God in renewing of marriage fidelity with Israel. United Methodists refer to this initiatory action, based on the Nature of God as Love, by “prevenient grace,” or “a preceding grace,” meaning, Grace that precedes human response.
“Prevenient grace” derives from John Wesley’s use of “preventing grace.” Wesley, summarizing preventing, or prevenient grace, in his sermon “On Working Out Our Own Salvation,” says:
Salvation begins with what is usually termed… “preventing grace”; including the first wish to please God, the first dawn of light concerning his will, and the first slight, transient conviction of having sinned against him. All these imply some tendency toward life, some degree of salvation, the beginning of a deliverance from a blind, unfeeling heart, quite insensible of God and the things of God.
Therefore, all turning back to Love is grounded in two theological realities: the initiatory Grace of God and, second, the created capacity in us to respond to Grace.
At the heart of evangelism is the trust that God is gracious to all persons. Evangelism is not manipulating persons to become converts. Evangelism is the gracious meeting of another person, seeking to appeal to that in her already desiring and having the innate capacity to respond to Grace in Love and discover the joy of freedom of spirit.
How have you sensed Grace operating in your life, recently?
Prayer
Spirit of Grace, energize me, filling each cell of my body and enlivening my mind, while sensitizing my heart, to live in and share your Grace. As the river flows naturally into the Ocean, may my giftedness flow naturally into the world to bless it with Presence. Amen.
OneLife Ministries is a pastoral outreach and nurture ministry of the First United Methodist Church, Fort Meade, FL. For Spiritual Direction, Pastoral Counseling, spiritual formation workshops, Christian meditation retreats, or more information about OneLife, write Rev. Dr. Brian K. Wilcox at briankwilcox@comcast.net.
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