Thurs., 11/2/17 Devotion (Hos. 8:14a)

Today's encouragement comes from Hosea 8:14a, where we read these words:

"For Israel has forgotten his Maker, and has built temples . . . "

At first glance, this is a strange couplet (above). Israel *forgets* God; and then goes out and *builds temples*. Here, we see the incurable religiosity of all people everywhere. Just because sinners choose to dishonor the True God, this does absolutely nothing to alleviate their need to worship *some* god, of some sort.

Let us seek to keep in mind that every lost soul we talk to today—be they al-legedly as "irreligious" as they want to pretend to be—are diligently about building temples for their false deities. We also would be in this predicament, except that God has miraculously and sovereignly brought us to Himself, and placed us in Jesus, and His church.

[Puritan quote of the day: "He that enjoys much of God in this life carries heaven about him. . . . The enjoyment of God's sweet presence here is an earnest of our enjoying Him in heaven.” —Thomas Watson, in, "A Body of Di-vinity"]