Hosea, Part X

Hmmm.  The header in my Bible say, for this passage of Scripture, "The Failure of Israel's Leaders."  If you desire to not be a role model, do not seek leadership. Period.  People look at you as well as up to you and if you are not prepared for such scrutiny, do not seek to be the lead sled dog.

I am not talking about the world here. I am talking about in the faith community.  

Jesus made it very how the world will respond to His followers:  

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. Whoever hates me hates my Father as well. If I had not done among them the works no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. As it is, they have seen, and yet they have hated both me and my Father. But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: ‘They hated me without reason.’" (John 15:18-25) 

Paul makes it very clear what our role is: 

"For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, 'Come back to God!' (2 Cor. 5:19-20) 

But to assume that even if we are deeply committed Christians, doing our best to be that sweet aroma, that loyal ambassador and a person who truly loves others, we will avoid such treatment is not correct. We will experience condemnation and backlash.  Count on it. They lashed out at Jesus, so we can't expect anything less.  But Peter makes it clear that when we suffer, it must be for Christ and not for our sin:   

Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world. If you are insulted because you bear the name of Christ, you will be blessed, for the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you. If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs. But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian...So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you. (1 Peter 4:14-16 & 19) 

Israel had that same charge: to be a blessing to all nations. How so? Israel would model a society where the sanctity of human life and a life of obedience to a just and loving God would be a powerful counter argument to the way of the pagan world, whose values were opposite. God gave that charge to Abraham: "through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.” (Gen. 22:18)

In Hosea's day, Israel had become no different from the nations around it. When we act no differently from the world around us, what's the point then of becoming a Christian in the first place? If we follow Christ, but live a life that allies with the world's values, why would people even notice us, much less care about Jesus?  Our churches become country clubs with Bibles, and our witness is compromised, making it rather useless for inviting people to consider Jesus.

Most of the time, when Christian leaders fall from the heights of their popularity, the world notices. If you or I fail, it is no less catastrophic.  The people we know, who we have talked to and have seen our walk manifested in some fashion, will look at us and say, "Was it real? Was any of it real?  Is this whole Jesus-thing real?"   

In looking at the first few verses in chapter 5, we see God accusing the priests and the royal family for ensnaring their people, for they led the people into idol worship.  But here's the sad thing:  The people went right along with it.  There have been times in history when people looked at their leaders and would not follow them; more often than not, people follow the leaders and then the leaders justify their behavior, because they can delude themselves they only giving the people what they want. 

God then goes on to say that Judah (the southern kingdom) will be no different than Israel.  Why? They are both guilty of "prostitution"--the unholy dependance and reverence for the gods of the Canaanites. 

God then says, 

“Their deeds do not permit them to return to their God.
A spirit of prostitution is in their heart;
they do not acknowledge the Lord.
Israel’s arrogance testifies against them;
the Israelites, even Ephraim, stumble in their sin;
Judah also stumbles with them.
When they go with their flocks and herds
to seek the Lord,
they will not find him;
he has withdrawn himself from them." (5:4-6) 

Will the people notice that the Lord has left them?  They seek Him, but are they sincere in their seeking?  Or do they expect Him to be there because they are the chosen ones and Yahweh picked them out of all the nations on earth? Why would He desert them?

God is very clear as to why: "They are unfaithful to the Lord" (v. 7)

They don't argue for His existence--they are willing to seek Him. They don't reject their status as the chosen people. They still possess their heritage and history, where God raised up leaders (such as Moses, Joshua and David) in times of peril.  God always came through for them--so are they banking on that again, despite all of this talk about judgment?   

God is emphatic that judgment is coming and it won't be mitigated by history, heritage, a deliverer or God relenting at the last minute. Why? God says, "The people of Israel will be crushed and broken by my judgment because they are determined to worship idols." (v. 11) 

Another way to render that second part of that verse is they are "determined to follow human commands."

Either way, the people refuse to--and here's the missing piece to all of this--humbly repent and seek God, not in the image they have created of Him, but for who He truly is.  

If they really sought God for who He truly is, they would drop idol worship immediately.  Full stop. 

But they don't.  They are determined to continue in their shameful practices, and call on gods that demand reprobate behavior.  These gods stand for everything that this evil world celebrates. 

God is having none of it. 

Once God's judgment has fallen upon them, God will wait: 

"Then I will return to my place
until they admit their guilt and turn to me.
For as soon as trouble comes,
they will earnestly search for me.” (15)

God is waiting for repentance.  God knows what we have done.  He wants to forgive us.  He wants us to repent.  But He equally wants us to own what we have done, admit our guilt and humbly asked for His  forgiveness.  

After any major catastrophe, people turn to God.  I remember people after 9/11 singing, praying and wanting God to be once more present in our national life.  It wasn't very long before America returned to business as usual.  Why?  We want God when we can't control, fix or do anything to change a situation. It is at that moment we realize how small and powerless we truly are and how only God Himself will be able to pull us out or pull us through.  

Or we delude ourselves that God won't judge us because of our history, heritage, strong military and how God has always come through for us. Why would He not do this now? 

Are we repenting in humility and sincerity or to get us out of our latest scrape?

Did the people of the northern kingdom really care at the end of the day?  

You can just hear them: Nothing bad has happened as of yet.  Hosea has been blathering on for many decades.  Warning after warning.  It's all rather boring. In fact, we even asked the king of Assyria to help us (v. 13) so why would they then destroy as Hosea keeps insisting they will? 

All of this judgment stuff is so unfair.  Yeah, we sin, but how can you deny how well taken care of this land is by its gods?  A little compromise doesn't really hurt.  If God was going to judge us, He would have a long time ago. 

Still waiting, God.

Yes, we are still waiting.  We have had a lot of indications that life here in America is not going well. But remember: God does not act quickly, but suddenly.