Mon, Jan 23 - Memory Quiz 7a Prep & Hosea Introduced

Next Quiz/Test: Friday is Memory Quiz 7a: Hosea 6:1, 3, & 6 (NIV, 1984)
- Students have until Friday, Jan 27 to make up Memory Quiz 6b

Handouts: Friday I returned Memory Quiz 6b

Reminders:
- Service Hours: There are three things to turn in for this on April 16: Essay, Record Form, Comm. Service Evaluation Form

Instructional Time: Unit 7: 2 Kings 1-10 and...
Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Nahum, Habakkuk, & Zephaniah

Friday: No notes were posted, we simply took a test.

Journal 7-1:
- Read Hosea 6:1-6 (pg 639)
- - What do you think v1 means when it says God, has “torn us”?
- - Why might God do this?
- Hosea 6:6, says “For I desire mercy, not sacrifice”
- - Share some ways you could have shown mercy (or ‘goodness’ in general) to someone this - weekend.
- - Share some ways you could show mercy this coming week!

The Pre-Exilic Prophet Table: Hosea (pg. 636)
- From: Israel
- To: Israel
- Approx. Time: 786-746
- Major Theme: God’s Unquenchable Love
- Key Verse: Hosea 11:8-9
- Other Notes:
- - Hosea means, ‘Salvation’
- - Prophesies focus on Israel’s salvation—
- - - Only possible by turning from idol worship to God
- - Two Stories:
- - - 1) Gomer: Faithless before Hosea
- - - 2) Israel: Faithless before God

Memory Verse Quiz Preparation:
- Your Verses: Hosea 6:1, 3, 6
- Your Question: Jesus quotes Hosea 6:6 twice (Matthew 9:13 & 12:7). Based upon our classroom discussion and your thoughtful reflection of these verses—use complete sentences and your own words to thoroughly explain the main idea of these. Give a Jr. High example of what God does not desire, and also give a Jr. High example of what He does desire!
- Discussion
- - Compare the following:
- - - Hosea 6:6, "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings."
- - - Matthew 9:13, Jesus said... "But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice. 'For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
- - - Matthew 12:7, Jesus also said... "If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,'you would not have condemned the innocent."
- - You can tell this is an important lesson because Jesus brings it up twice just in the book of Matthew!
- - To summarize these verses...
- - - God doesn't want 'empty religious actions'
- - - - Sacrifices & burnt offerings were commanded by God for the people to do for a reason, to deal with the sin problem that they had & follow God more closely afterwards.
- - - - However, these became 'empty traditions' that they would do with no 'heart' behind it, doing it for the wrong reasons (because it was a 'chore' , an 'action' gained God's favor, or something to 'show off' in front of others).
- - - - Some modern 'sacrifices' we may give that could just be 'empty religious actions' include giving money to charity or church, volunteering/serving somewhere, going to church, etc...
- - - Instead, God wants a 'changed heart'
- - - - 'Mercy' is not an outward action, it is an inward character
- - - - The Hebrew word in Hosea for 'mercy' is 'cHesed', which describes the 'covenant love' (or 'loyal compassion') God has for us
- - - - Rather than empty outward acts, God wants us to have His love in our heart, which will then be demonstrated through our entire life.