SOLUSI UNIVERSITY

A CHARTERED SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST INSTITUTION

OF HIGHER LEARNING

FACULTY OF THEOLOGY AND CHAPLAINCY

An Assignment Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the course requirements

RELP 122 HOMILETICS

WATSON MSIMANGA: #SU200028W

Question: Prepare, preach, record and send to the instructor a 5 minute sermon using a linear
approach

LECTURER: N ZVANDASARA

2ND SEMESTER 2020 REGULAR

THEME: God’s demonstration of love and grace

Romans 5:8
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

According to NIV bible it is said God demonstrated his lo

Demonstration
An act of showing or proving something (but God proved; showed his love in this way; while we
were yet sinners Christ died for us)

Love
Unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another:

The Greek word for love talked about here is “agape” (pronounced uh-gahp-ay). It’s often used
to refer to “self-sacrificial, divine love”

Point 1

Grace
 The quality or state of being considerate or thoughtful
 The word 'grace' literally means 'favour'
 To bend or stoop in kindness to another as a superior to an inferior
 In Greek it is CHARIS (and has the idea of graciousness in manner or action it comes
from a root word CHAIRO to be cheerful, happy)

APPLICATION

When used in reference to God, it is the benevolent action of Him stooping down to us in His
kindness to reach us in our need, and convey upon us a benefit. His grace has been termed
'unmerited favor' but it is more than an attitude of favor or mercy. His mercy is an expression of
His compassion toward us, but His grace is an extension of benevolence translated into action
that releases His enabling power into our lives.

Seeing that we never merit His favor, we are always indebted to Him to extend to us His Mercy
and bestow upon us His grace whereby we may respond to Him in an acceptable manner. From
beginning to end we are dependent upon Him, for life itself, for all sustenance by which we
continue to live and have our existence, and on a spiritual level from that, all energizing power
by which we progress in our walk.

Someone has written that the word grace is probably the greatest word in the Scriptures, even
greater even than “love,” because grace is love in action, and therefore includes it. It is hardly too
much to say that God has in no word uttered Himself and all that was in His heart more distinctly
than in this word grace

"In him we live and move and have our being (our existence)" Acts 17:28

Point 2
Hosea1:2, 6, 7

Demonstration

Illustration

 Hosea marries a concubine

 Children born
 God’s feeling
 Gomer ran away
 Gomer becomes hardened

Application

God commanded the prophet not to just speak for God but to demonstrate God’s love for all to
see
If the people could watch God’s heartbreak and know how much he still loved them and wanted
to transform them by his grace

God called Hosea to marry a harlot – in essence Israel had become a harlot

Gomer became the first promiscus and unfaithful wife and finally a prostitute

Three children were born; their paternity is and probably always was uncertain, for the names
chosen speaks volumes

They are a reflection on how God felt about Israel’s sin

Ellen white in the book steps to Christ says ‘God does not regard all sins as of equal magnitude;
there are degrees of guilt in his estimation, as well as in that of man; but however trifling this or
that wrong act may seem in the eyes of men, no sin is small in the sight of God. Man’s
judgement is partial imperfect; but God estimates all things as they are

God looked at the degree of the sin of the children of Israel and was grieved to a level that he had
to demonstrate the love he had for them. The gravity of the sin of Israel is reflected through the
life of Hosea and the evidence of God’s love the demonstration of it and grace comes out clear.

Hosea as a human being in this story does not represent a general human being or husband, but
the pain that he undergoes clearly pictures out something that is divine in nature. The sharpness
of God’s pain in his complaints was directly related to the majesty of the person who was
suffering

What is it with our own lives today the level of our sins gives God a heartache .Interestingly he
loves us and invites you and me to come to him regardless of our state come to him

Point 3

The language

Illustration

 Love and grace should be demonstrated

 Jesus cries out
 Patient is our father
Application

Husbands and wives and especially mothers and fathers know acute pain, it exceeds all that the
shepherd would feel for a sheep, a judge for a defendant, king for his subjects. God feels that
pain for which there is no balm

Not until Jesus cried out my my God why have you forsaken me. For Hosea it is as if God has
forsaken Hosea. It is God who said do not commit adultery and to Hosea he said go and marry an
adulterous woman. Jesus had said divorce can happen on condition that the spouse commit
adultery.

When God demonstrates his love and favor, he goes beyond human level of understanding.
Therefore we need to accept by faith the issues of salvation for they are beyond our level of
understanding

What picture of a wounded god do we get from the life of Hosea?

Away from home gomer sank to what appeared to be the depth of degeneration but then she fell
further .She lost her freedom – how many times do we find ourselves losing freedom because of
our choices

Became hardened, useless object whom no one wanted. Gomer was put up for auction there in
the center of the town where everyone knew her story. Who will buy her, how much is she
worth. What is the value of a soul? We alike Gomer have sold ourselves to the devil

Thomas Hardy told a story based on real life events in which one drunken man sold his young
wife to a sailor for five guineas. This reminds me of Adam who sold the title deeds of planet
earth to Satan

In 1833 the Abolition of slavery act went through in, it was calculated that the market value of a
slave was 37 pounds. In Gomers time through the time of Christ the value of a slave was 30
pieces of silver

I picture a dreadful auction in town’s market place as prostitutes were being sold. Red-faced or
too intoxicated men trying to stand, but without strength due to alcohol waiting to buy them
Attractive prostitutes sold first at full price, then those well past, their sale by dates fetched a
lower price. Finally there comes out haggard, worn out, useless and unattractive woman, once
upon a time she was in great demand and now years of low living had taken their toll, no one
wanted her now

She had a husband, man of God lived a miserable life because of her unfaithfulness. She had left
him to be the father and mother of children. While Hosea was home, God said to him go show
your love to your wife again, love her as the Lord loves Israel. God loves us beyond measure he
is willing that we come to him always

Back at market place, Gomer was still on auction and no was taking her and none of those were
interested in her. Immediately a certain old man comes running it is clear that he no longer have
that strength which he used to have during his golden days. Gomer looked on and saw a familiar
figure, he was shouting how much I will take her, no longer worried with the price “special price
responded the auctioneer, half price or fifteen pieces of silver and a homer and a half of barley

Everyone recognized Hosea and there was silence. Gomer is brought back. So did the Lord at
Calvary scene how much is the price, it’s worth the blood of the savior there the sun stood still, it
became dark and the sun could not give light when the son was dying. Thus the lord bought us
back like Gomer while we were yet in our sins he died for us

The severity of Hosea gives way to the language of tenderness of the Lord. The valley of trouble
had been made into gateway of hope

Appeal

For everyone regardless of educational background, socio-economic status gender age and the
like, the door of mercy is opened, on Calvary Christ paid the price of a soul. Grace costs nothing
to its recipients, it costs everything to the giver. Because of Calvary every son and daughter can
choose to come home. Oh! what love no language can express

Is it your desire to come just as you are , don’t worry of your state even if you stooped so low
despite your failures wretched as you are , God wants you back he demonstrated that some 2020
years ago why not come to him and surrender yourself to him his grace is sufficient for you

God bless you amen