I wanted to share some things as I was doing my devotional. I hope it blesses you and grows you and me more to Christ. 

So I was reading the book Hosea, and the word prostitution caught my attention. 

Here’s the definition of prostitution: the practice of engaging in sexual activities for money. 

Now reading it in the WORD, the word prostitution means you are selling your body for means.

In the book of Hosea, the Israelites sold themselves to idols to gain evil means, if you look at it like that. It ended up with them cheating on the LORD and being unfaithful to the LORD. This causes a lack of understanding, it makes you stupid or foolish. 

In Psalm 53, the WORD says that the fool says in his heart, there is no GOD, when clearly, there is! But for one to say this makes them seem foolish because they lack understanding and forget that the GOD of the universe made them. 

So to sell yourself to idols makes you foolish and makes you have a lack of understanding. Living in the lack of understanding this does not grow you closer to GOD. Your heart and mind are on these idols rather than the true GOD. To understand is to know GOD.

To have a lack of understanding can only be gained when you seek GOD through Jesus Christ. The WORD says in Proverbs 3:5-6, to trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your understanding; in all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your path. Who is directing your path? Who is leading you? Is it Christ or is it something else? Is GOD leading your path or are you carving your own path?

The path in Christ leads to joy, peace, love, truth, righteousness, and holiness. The path of Christ is also the narrow way, meaning that your freedom in Christ should not be used everywhere. Paul mentions that not all things are beneficial. 

The path in Christ leads to the surrender of the flesh and to walk in the Spirit. In Philippians 2:8, Paul tells us to have the same mindset as Christ Jesus…and being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death- even death on the cross! This verse tells us that Christ humbled himself to be used by GOD. 

The WORD says that we are the temple of the Holy Spirit, not the flesh, not other human beings, but the Holy Spirit!

So we should humble ourselves and surrender ourselves to GOD so that He can use us! But how can the LORD use us if we desire to pursue ungodly things? Do we have Him in our hearts? Are we truly acknowledging Him?

We are selling ourselves as prostitutes to the desires of the flesh rather than what pleases the Spirit.

For example, let’s briefly talk about fornication. It is a mutual compromise, selling yourself to the pleasure of the flesh, with its passion and desires. But this leads to death. Jesus Christ came on earth so that we may have life and life in abundance. He did not come so that we can lean on our understanding and do whatever we want while we are saved. In Romans 8:5, The WORD says those who live in accordance to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

So when you are in fornication, you are not Spirit-led but flesh-led. Again, I ask, who is leading you? Is it the Holy Spirit, or the flesh? We are to put to death the flesh and rise above it, taking authority over it. 

GOD desires us to go from glory to glory and from strength to strength, but we have to come to understand that when we are in the world, we being in the flesh will not please GOD at all. 

Going from strength to strength is having faith in GOD even if the flesh is telling you to do this and that, you tell that flesh no and you subdue it in the name of Jesus Christ. That is what carrying your cross means, crucifying the the flesh with its passion and desires and walking in the Holy Spirit. 

I do want to empathize with this: We have choices we make on how to live our lives, but are those choices Holy Spirit-led or flesh-led? Whose submission are you under? 

We are who we follow.

So how you behave, how you speak, how you think will reveal who you follow. 

And thank the LORD for grace, but let’s not abuse GOD’s grace for our own ventures.

So pursuing the things of the world will lead to death. Choose whom you’ll serve and submit to because you’ll be led to life or death. 

These may be harsh words to read, but it is not intended for that. I just hope you see the importance of loving GOD with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. If you read the book of Hosea, GOD reveals the heart of His people and how He did not like what they were doing.

It seemed like His people forgot Him as they pursued these idols that did nothing for them, but drew them further away from GOD and diminished their knowledge of Him. GOD loves His children and desires us to come to Him. Life in Christ is different from life in the world, but it is a BETTER life than living in the world. His lovingkindness is better than life itself. 

I hope this helps you in your walk with the LORD as well as in mine. Have a good or good night! Love you with the high, deep, long, and wide, love of the Most High GOD our Father.