The Cost of Redeeming Love

I first read Francine Rivers’ novel, Redeeming Love, as a teenager more than two decades ago. That makes me feel old! My mom is a big fan of historical fiction, and especially historical romance novels. I was a voracious reader. My mom’s Francine Rivers and Janette Oke collections were eventual targets of my teenage bookworm years.

So, I was intrigued when I saw a trailer that Redeeming Love was being adapted to the big screen and watched it recently. This isn’t a movie review. Francine Rivers’ inspiration was the story of Hosea and Gomer in the Bible. The truth behind the fiction of the novel, and now movie, is God’s redeeming love for us and what it costs.

When Redeeming Love Costs Us

While Francine Rivers based a romance from Gomer’s perspective of Hosea’s redeeming love for her, I recently studied Hosea from the prophet’s perspective. Gomer’s “romance” was Hosea’s pain. God commanded a faithful prophet, Hosea, to marry a “promiscuous woman” to illustrate Israel’s unfaithfulness to God and God’s unfailing love toward them. In Hosea 1:9, a child is born who God tells Hosea to name Lo-Ammi, which means “not my people.” Bible scholars believe this child was not Hosea’s.

Later in Hosea Chapter 3, God commands Hosea to “show love to his wife again” even though she has left him for another. In fact, Hosea had to buy Gomer for the equivalent of 30 shekels of silver (Hosea paid half in silver and half in barley), which is about 6 months wages in that time. Bible scholars say it is likely she was about to be sold into slavery due to her debts.

Let’s think about that in real terms. The average median household income in 2020 was $67,521. How happy would it make you a) to be told by God to marry an “promiscuous” person (Hosea 1:2), likely care for all their children (yours or not), and then to top it all off, pay more than $33,000 of your cheating spouse’s debts back after they left you for someone else? Then, God has the audacity to command you to show love to that person again!

Yet, the purpose of Hosea’s pain and extraordinary exhibition of love was a prophetic message about God’s great love for His people. A love that is willing to pay a great price. God’s love for them would never end, no matter what they did, how far they ran, how unfaithful they were. God’s purpose wasn’t to hurt Hosea, but to send an impactful message to His people that His love is irrevocable. His mercy endures forever.

Is Painless Christianity God’s Will?

I often think about God’s call of Paul to ministry in Acts 9:15-16, where God tells Ananias to lay hands on Paul to restore his sight and says “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” God could’ve said something similar to Hosea.

Sometimes I let myself live under the illusion that God always wants me to be happy. That sounds nice, but it doesn’t reflect truth. Pop culture Christianity seems to lay out this path that when your life is comfortable, THAT is how you know that you’re living in God’s will. Living in the divine blessing of God. Popular Christianity discounts or altogether avoids suffering.

I don’t think that being comfortable or happy is God’s purpose for our lives. Once God has our commitment to follow Him, our name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. He has achieved His ultimate goal for us as an individual member of His creation. But He has not achieved His ultimate desire that the world through Jesus Christ might be saved (John 3:17).

God is on a mission. If we truly surrender our lives to God, I believe He will use our life to save others who are perishing. God would spare no expense, not because our life no longer has meaning or value, but because He is willing to sacrifice everything for the one who is lost. He did it for me. He did it for you. This is the God who leaves the 99 to find the one (Matthew 18:10-14). God is desperate to be in relationship with His people.

Look for a God Purpose in the Pain

When in the midst of pain, look for God’s purpose not just the rescue. Definitely cry out to God for the rescue, for the healing, for the overcoming. But maybe dig a little deeper into your perspective of pain and suffering. Look at how you could be part of God’s plan.

What if enslavement, false accusations, wrongful imprisonment was the pathway to purpose? It was for Joseph. A purpose that included saving his family and nation upon nation of people. Joseph could not have been Joseph without the pain and suffering. What if your cancer diagnosis is your ministry? What if your tragic life story becomes God’s illustration of love and redemption?

God can create purpose out of pain, in pain and through pain. That some of the greatest displays of love will and have come through tribulation, suffering, and pain. Joseph, Hosea, Jesus, Paul…

Paying It Forward

Experiencing God’s redeeming love inspired Paul. Paul knew the depths of God’s forgiveness and love for him. He saw himself as the No. 1 sinner. He was a major instigator of persecution for the early church. He was a devoted enemy of Christ followers until his experience on the road to Damascus.

¹⁵ This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.

1 Timothy 1:15

Paul had been forgiven of horrific things. Then, he went on a mission, one that included suffering and the leading of countless others to experience God’s redeeming love. Somewhere in the story of our personal salvation it likely came through other’s pain. If nothing else Jesus Christ’s, but likely many others who “took up their cross and followed Him.” All for the purpose that you could know God.

I’d like to think that the outcome of experiencing redeeming love is selling ourselves out to God’s cause that everyone would experience His redeeming love.

While it makes a great novel and movie adaptation, God’s redeeming love isn’t fiction. Once we have experienced God’s redeeming love, we should lay our lives down to show it to others just like Hosea. It is our mission as believers to keep carrying that love forward.