Hosea 14:5-7 I will be as the dew to Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon.… The figure implies — I. THE POSSESSION OF A LIVING ENERGY. II. THE FIGURE AGAIN SUGGESTS THAT SOUL REVIVAL IS PROMOTED BY COMING UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF THE NECESSARY AND ADAPTED MEANS. The grain to germinate and grow and produce must be placed in congenial soil, be watered by the clouds of heaven, and warmed by the abounding rays of the sun Israel's revival is ensured by being in God's presence, with His fertilising blessings resting upon them and His gracious favours awakening their sleeping powers. Prayer, the Word of God, and the influences of the Holy Spirit are a necessity. III. SOUL REVIVAL SHALL MEAN THE INCREASE AND MULTIPLICATION OF LIFE. "Revive as the corn." How? To grow? Yes, and to multiply. When God is ours, He multiplies life through us. We live to-day, when God is ours, to live to-morrow, not only in ourselves, but in others, and become immortal both in heaven" and on earth. Immortality is inseparable from the life lived in God and nourished by Him. Its very nature, for it is Divine, ensures its perpetuation. The saints that have gone before never lived as they do to-day. They fill a larger circle, and sway a greater influence than when in the flesh. When filled with God we produce what becomes seed for greater harvests. What magnificent possibilities belong to us! (E. Aubrey.) Parallel Verses KJV: I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. |
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