They have dealt treacherously against the Lord
Hosea 5:7
Believer, here is a sorrowful truth! Thou art the beloved of the
Lord, redeemed by blood, called by grace, preserved in Christ Jesus,
accepted in the Beloved, on thy way to heaven, and yet, "thou hast
dealt treacherously" with God, thy best friend; treacherously with
Jesus, whose thou art; treacherously with the Holy Spirit, by whom
thou hast been quickened unto life eternal! How treacherous you have
been in the matter of vows and promises. Do you remember the love of
your espousals, that happy time--the springtide of your spiritual
life? Oh, how closely did you cling to your Master then! saying, "He
shall never charge me with indifference; my feet shall never grow
slow in the way of His service; I will not suffer my heart to wander
after other loves; in Him is every store of sweetness ineffable. I
give all up for my Lord Jesus' sake." Has it been so? Alas! if
conscience speak, it will say, "He who promised so well has performed
most ill. Prayer has oftentimes been slurred--it has been short, but
not sweet; brief, but not fervent. Communion with Christ has been
forgotten. Instead of a heavenly mind, there have been carnal cares,
worldly vanities and thoughts of evil. Instead of service, there has
been disobedience; instead of fervency, lukewarmness; instead of
patience, petulance; instead of faith, confidence in an arm of flesh;
and as a soldier of the cross there has been cowardice, disobedience,
and desertion, to a very shameful degree." "Thou hast dealt
treacherously." Treachery to Jesus! what words shall be used in
denouncing it? Words little avail: let our penitent thoughts execrate
the sin which is so surely in us. Treacherous to Thy wounds, O Jesus!
Forgive us, and let us not sin again! How shameful to be treacherous
to Him who never forgets us, but who this day stands with our names
engraven on His breastplate before the eternal throne.
