Raining righteusness

Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. – Hosea 10.12

You reap what you sow. How often have we heard that? If you plant carrot seeds you are not going to get sweetcorn. If you plant strawberries you are not going to get watermelons. Indeed you reap what you sow.

At this time Israel was sowing sin and unrighteousness and injustice. And they were reaping God’s judgement. God loved His people, and He would not forsake them, but He was not going to bless their sin.

So he called on the people the break up their fallow ground and start sowing righteousness. God said that if they sowed righteousness he could pour out the fruit of His mercy.

God is a God of mercy. That mercy is waiting to be poured out abundantly but sometimes we are so focused on our own desires and living our own way that we never look to Him for mercy.

It is time for all of us to seek the Lord. He is time to stop sowing wickedness and selfishness and to start sowing seeds of righteousness so that we can walk in the rain of His mercy and righteousness and let it ‘soak us down to the bones’ and one songwriter puts it.