1. THE DAYS OF VISITATION Sun, Jan 18

a. What warning echoes down to the close of probation? Hosea 9:7. “The heart of A has not been devoted to God. He has capabilities and talents for which he must render an account to the great Giver of all. His heart has been unconsecrated and his life unworthy of his profession; yet he has been closely connected with the sacred work of God for more than a score of years. What light he has had, what privileges! He has enjoyed the rarest opportunities to develop a substantial Christian character. The words of Christ when He wept over Jerusalem are applicable to him: ‘If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.’ A, the retribution of God hangs over you, ‘because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.’“B, is of the same cast of mind, but not so thoroughly selfish. Both are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God. Their course is entirely inconsistent with the Christian life. They lack stability, sobriety, and devotion to God. With B the work of grace is altogether too superficial. He desires to be a Christian, but does not strive to maintain the victory over self and act up to his convictions of right and wrong. Deeds, not idle words and empty intentions, are acceptable to God.“A, you have heard the word of God in reproofs, in counsels, in warnings, as well as in the entreaties of love. But hearing is not enough. ‘Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.’ It is easy to be borne along by the current, and to cry Hosannah with the multitude; but in the calm of everyday life, when there is no special excitement or exaltation, then comes the test of true Christianity.”—Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, pp. 187, 188.

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2. SUBTLE SNARES Mon, Jan 19

a. How does the enemy often lead believers to ruin? Hosea 9:8, 9, 17. “[Satan] seizes men and women who are selfish and unconsecrated, and makes of them sentinels to watch the faithful servants of God, to question their words, their actions, and their motives, and to find fault and murmur at their reproofs and warnings. Through them he creates suspicion and jealousy, and seeks to weaken the courage of the faithful, to please the unsanctified, and to bring to nought the labors of God’s servants.“Satan has had great power over the minds of parents through their undisciplined children. The sin of parental neglect stands marked against many Sabbathkeeping parents. The spirit of gossip and talebearing is one of Satan’s special agencies to sow discord and strife, to separate friends, and to undermine the faith of many in the truthfulness of our positions. Brethren and sisters are too ready to talk of the faults and errors that they think exist in others, and especially in those who have borne unflinchingly the messages of reproof and warning given them of God.“The children of these complainers listen with open ears and receive the poison of disaffection. Parents are thus blindly closing the avenues through which the hearts of the children might be reached. How many families season their daily meals with doubt and questionings. They dissect the characters of their friends, and serve them up as a dainty dessert.”—Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, pp. 194, 195. b. What was the root cause of Israel’s spiritual failure? Hosea 10:1; Deuteronomy 8:11–14. “The people of Israel lost sight of their high privileges as God’s representatives. They forgot God and failed to fulfill their holy mission. The blessings they received brought no blessing to the world. All their advantages they appropriated for their own glorification. They shut themselves away from the world in order to escape temptation. The restrictions that God had placed upon their association with idolaters as a means of preventing them from conforming to the practices of the heathen, they used to build up a wall of separation between themselves and all other nations. They robbed God of the service He required of them, and they robbed their fellow men of religious guidance and a holy example. “Priests and rulers became fixed in a rut of ceremonialism. They were satisfied with a legal religion, and it was impossible for them to give to others the living truths of heaven.”—The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 14, 15.

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3. SOFTENING THE SOIL Tue, Jan 20

a. What appeal does God make to His people who have become spiritually unresponsive? Hosea 10:12; James 4:8. “Our churches are to cooperate in the work of spiritual tilling, with the hope of reaping by and by. There is much perversity to be met, much thwarting of holy plans and consecrated effort, because of the evil heart of unbelief. But the work must be done. The soil is stubborn, but the fallow ground must be broken up, the seeds of righteousness must be sown. Pause not, teachers beloved by God, as though doubtful whether to prosecute a labor which will grow as performed. Fail not, neither be discouraged. They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. . . . Remember that you cannot trust in self.”—Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6, p. 420. b. How does God reveal His tender love for His people, extending His hand to us even in our waywardness? Hosea 11:1–4. “Though now He has ascended to the presence of God, and shares the throne of the universe, Jesus has lost none of His compassionate nature. Today the same tender, sympathizing heart is open to all the woes of humanity. Today the hand that was pierced is reached forth to bless more abundantly His people that are in the world. ‘And they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.’ The soul that has given himself to Christ is more precious in His sight than the whole world. The Saviour would have passed through the agony of Calvary that one might be saved in His kingdom. He will never abandon one for whom He has died. Unless His followers choose to leave Him, He will hold them fast.“Through all our trials we have a never-failing Helper. He does not leave us alone to struggle with temptation, to battle with evil, and be finally crushed with burdens and sorrow. Though now He is hidden from mortal sight, the ear of faith can hear His voice saying, Fear not; I am with you. . . . I have endured your sorrows, experienced your struggles, encountered your temptations. I know your tears; I also have wept. The griefs that lie too deep to be breathed into any human ear, I know. Think not that you are desolate and forsaken. Though your pain touch no responsive chord in any heart on earth, look unto Me, and live.”—The Desire of Ages, pp. 480–483.

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4. A LITTLE MORE TIME . . . Wed, Jan 21

a. What illustrates the depth of God’s mercy? Hosea 11:7–9; Luke 13:6–9. “Must [God] give up the people for whom such a provision has been made, even His only-begotten Son, the express image of Himself? God permits His Son to be delivered up for our offenses. He Himself assumes toward the Sin Bearer the character of a judge, divesting Himself of the endearing qualities of a father.“Herein His love commends itself in the most marvelous manner to the rebellious race. What a sight for angels to behold!”—Testimonies to Ministers, p. 246. b. Why does God use prophets­—and how are they crucial to spiritual restoration? Hosea 12:10, 13; Amos 3:7. “[The] plain utterances of the prophets and of the Master Himself, should be received by us as the voice of God to every soul.”—Prophets and Kings, p. 327. c. Even in the tragic end of Israel, what shows God is fair? Hosea 13:4–9; 14:1. “[Those] sufferings are often represented as a punishment visited upon them by the direct decree of God. It is thus that the great deceiver seeks to conceal his own work. By stubborn rejection of divine love and mercy, the Jews had caused the protection of God to be withdrawn from them, and Satan was permitted to rule them according to his will. The horrible cruelties enacted in the destruction of Jerusalem are a demonstration of Satan’s vindictive power over those who yield to his control.“We cannot know how much we owe to Christ for the peace and protection which we enjoy. It is the restraining power of God that prevents mankind from passing fully under the control of Satan. The disobedient and unthankful have great reason for gratitude for God’s mercy and long-suffering in holding in check the cruel, malignant power of the evil one. But when men pass the limits of divine forbearance, that restraint is removed. God does not stand toward the sinner as an executioner of the sentence against transgression; but He leaves the rejectors of His mercy to themselves, to reap that which they have sown.”—The Great Controversy, pp. 35, 36.

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5. WITHERED—OR FLOURISHING? Thu, Jan 22

a. How did Jesus illustrate His people’s fate as a nation? Matthew 21:19, 20. “Jesus had come to the fig tree hungry, to find food. So He had come to Israel, hungering to find in them the fruits of righteousness. He had lavished on them His gifts, that they might bear fruit for the blessing of the world. Every opportunity and privilege had been granted them, and in return He sought their sympathy and cooperation in His work of grace. He longed to see in them self-sacrifice and compassion, zeal for God, and a deep yearning of soul for the salvation of their fellow men. Had they kept the law of God, they would have done the same unselfish work that Christ did. But love to God and man was eclipsed by pride and self-sufficiency. They brought ruin upon themselves by refusing to minister to others. The treasures of truth which God had committed to them, they did not give to the world. In the barren tree they might read both their sin and its punishment. Withered beneath the Saviour’s curse, standing forth sere and blasted, dried up by the roots, the fig tree showed what the Jewish people would be when the grace of God was removed from them. Refusing to impart blessing, they would no longer receive it.”—The Desire of Ages, p. 583. b. How does the book of Hosea conclude by emphasizing God’s hope, healing, and a call to wisdom? Hosea 14:4, 5, 8, 9. “The plant grows by receiving that which God has provided to sustain its life. So spiritual growth is attained through cooperation with divine agencies. As the plant takes root in the soil, so we are to take root in Christ. As the plant receives the sunshine, the dew, and the rain, so are we to receive the Holy Spirit. If our hearts are stayed upon Christ, He will come unto us ‘as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.’ As the Sun of Righteousness, He will arise upon us ‘with healing in His wings.’ We shall ‘grow as the lily.’ We ‘shall revive as the corn, and grow as the vine.’ Hosea 6:3; Malachi 4:2; Hosea 14:5, 7.”—Education, p. 106.

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS Fri, Jan 23

1. What does God require of us in the day of His visitation? 2. Why was God not satisfied with the merely external religion of Israel? 3. What does breaking up the fallow ground of the heart do for us? 4. On what should I be focusing in these remaining moments of probation? 5. How can I be assured of being blessed rather than cut off by God?