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Taking Spiritual Inventory

Hosea Chapter 7:1-16

 

Every factory and store must close for a short time to take inventory, otherwise management will not know the true condition of the firm. Christians need to take inventory also, and in this chapter, Hosea asks his people to examine themselves.

  1. “A cake not turned” (verse 8). This raises the following questions; How deep is my spiritual life? Am I a “half-baked” Christian? Does the fire of the Word go deep into my life, or is my Christian life a shallow, surface thing?
  2. The “gray hairs” (verse 9). Gray hairs are usually a sign of old age and declining powers. The people were getting old and weak and did not realize it! Like Samson, they tried to use strength that they no longer possessed (Judges 16:19-21). How strong is my spiritual life? Am I pretending to be spiritually vigorous when sin has robbed me of my power?
  3. The “silly dove” (verse 11). The prophet watched his people “flit” between Egypt and Assyria, first leaning on one, then on the other. How like some of God’s people today: one day they walk with the Lord, and the next day they run to the world. “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways,” says James 1:8. The silly dove that flits from one place to another soon finds herself without a refuge, and she is left alone. How serious is my devotion?
  4. The “deceitful bow” (verse 16). Who wants to fight with a crooked weapon that cannot be trusted. This prompts the questions, how dependable is my Christian life? Can God depend on me? Can my church depend on me?

Here are four important questions about your Christian life: How deep is it?  How strong? How serious? How dependable? The answers are important too!

 

From - “Thoughts for Men on the Move” by Warren Wiersbe