FORGIVENESS

Hosea 6:1-3
Acts 7: 58- 60
Luke 18: 10-14
 REALISTIC REPENTANCE (V. 1)
Repentance and faith are heavenly
twins in the experience of
conversion.
Recognises the purposes of Gods
judgements
Recognises the faithfulness of God
Involves a change of direction
 Rapid recovery (v. 2)
The speedy response that God will make towards
true penitents. The contrast is between the long
length of time they have been wandering from him
and the short space of time that it will take him to
restore them.
Moreover, the prophets words indicate the nearness
to which they will be restored they will live before
him, in his presence.
 Refreshing restoration (v. 3)

How should a restored penitent live?

Pressing on is a picture of energy and
determination to find what is valuable.
What can a restored penitent expect from the
God he has come to know?
Two illustrations from the world of nature:
Daily experience of the dawn
Spring rains that watered the ground
 Daily experience of the dawn

It means that divine light comes after the

period of darkness
The night of spiritual decay was now over. The
warmth of the new day has replaced the
coldness of the time of spiritual night
The heart that previously was cold towards
God is now melted by the rays of heavenly
sunshine that mark the arrival of a better day
in their experience.
Spring rains that watered the ground

The effects of those showers in the sense

of providing refreshing water to drink,
they were also long-term effects because
it was the spring rains that guaranteed
there would be a harvest later in the year.
The ones whose lives had been dry and
fruitless would become refreshed and
fruitful.
 CONCLUSION
The light and the rain come down from above,
they come down to us freely, they come down to
us gently, and they cause life to appear. That is
what Jesus does. So he can be our Sun and our
Satisfier, the giver of guidance and the provider of
eternal life depicted by the water. This is the
prospect that the penitent have, of experiencing the
wonderful capabilities of Jesus to lead them into
the heights of his gracious locations and there
share with him what he has provided for his people