Hosea 11:1-11
Intro: Parent in anguish over disobedient, unfaithful, even intentionally absent child.
- Image: going through picture books, or seeing pictures of the absent loved one on the walls.
o Remembering the parenting, the upbringing, the love, the promise. And feeling the pain of the child’s absence.
TiB: This anguish is God’s anguish expressed in Hosea.
- God remembers bringing the people of Israel out of Egypt and promising to be their one, true God.
o But the people turned away and toward other gods (Baals).
o This happened in Israel.
- But God remembers being a nurturing parent.
o Teaching them to walk
o Taking them up in God’s arms
o Healing them
o Leading them with kindness and love.
o Lifting them to God’s cheeks.
o Bending down to them and feeding them.
- But the people turned away. In fact ran away.
o They also turned to other protectors – not God of Israel, but Assyrian, Aram, and Egypt.
o Changes of alliances: first Aram, then Assyria, then Egypt when they broke from Assyria and needed protection from them.
o And threat of hostile takeover and destruction is looming. Aram has already been destroyed by Assyria.
- The people call to God, but not out of true faithfulness. And so God doesn’t raise them up. (v.7).
- God, as parent continues to call out to God’s children, but they continue to turn away.
TiW: Doesn’t God still anguish at us and at our world when we turn away?
- God is still the one who brought us out of slavery to sin and death (we say in our prayers of Great Thanksgiving and remember at Baptisms).
o But we too turn away from God.
o But it was difficult for the people of Israel to see where they were turning away from God – that’s why there were prophets to help people remain faithful or return to faithfulness when their errors were made apparent.
o So too is it difficult to see as we do it, the everyday ways that we turn away from God.
- Here are a few ways I notice easy temptations to turn away from God. These are ones I struggle with. Maybe you’ll relate to them.
o Absence of intentional, discipleship accountability groups.
§ Methodism was founded on them. Disciples were formed and made holier through them. But it’s a challenge to make these relationships or commit to them these days.
§ And in their place, we turn to relationships that offer no accountability. In fact, we shun accountability at all, under the guise of decorum, saying, “It’s impolite to bring up another’s shortcomings.”
o Absence of Daily prayer and Scripture reading.
§ In theory, the importance of daily prayer and scripture reading practices would seem like a no-brainer for Christians.
· Growing more like Christ, becoming more godly, requires that we spend time with God and getting to know what God is like. This, we do through prayer and scripture study.
§ Instead, it truly is all too easy to find anything else to fill our lives with. We let prayer and scripture slip one day, in favor of a quicker path out the door in the morning. Then we cut another day for a bit more time relaxing with family. Before long, we realize we’re not praying with God at all, not communing with God, not reading, not learning, not growing in Christ-likeness.
§ And the same could be said for the practice of corporate worship. Most everyone I talk to who is or was a member of a church but isn’t attending worship says something like, “We just got out of the habit.”
§ We find other things to fill our time and spend our energy on. But it is turning away nonetheless.
- The prophet’s message to the people of Israel was, “WHOA! You’ve strayed from the path and are worshipping other gods. Turn back to God!”
o Today, the prophet’s message must still be heard as truth: we have turned from God and toward ourselves in ways both little and big, but in ways that eventually will lead us completely away from God.
- Yet, the even greater message of Hosea’s specific prophecy is that God is gracious, compassionate, and waiting for the children of God to turn back to God. God still remembers being the one who nurtures us, guides us, and provides for us.
GiB and World:
- God’s internal monologue – a glimpse into the heart and character of God.
o “8How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I treat you like Zeboiim? My heart recoils within me; my compassion grows warm and tender.”
o That is, God is asking, How can I give you up? How can I let this destruction happen, even though you’ve been unfaithful and turned away from me? How can I make you like Admah and Zeboiim, cities destined for destruction like Sodom and Gomorrah?
o God is asking these questions through the prophet, though God already knows the answers. He’s asking them in a way that allows all the people to overhear, so to speak, so that we can come to realize a little more clearly who God is.
- God answers God’s own question: I won’t. I will not act on anger, even though they deserve to be punished for being unfaithful. I can’t, because I am God. I’m not a mortal who is whipped around by emotions and who holds grudges like a mortal. I am God…the Holy One in your midst, and I will not come to wrath.
o Sometimes people talk about God as two separate gods: the angry God and the loving God. But it’s not so. The God revealed in Scripture and in Christ is one God.
o God is God, and every bit of God is gracious and loving, even while still being angry at the unfaithfulness of the children of God.
- “They shall go after the LORD, who roars like a lion; when he roars, his children shall come trembling from the west. They shall come trembling like birds from Egypt, and like doves from the land of Assyria; and I will return them to their homes, says the LORD” (v.10-11).
o What a promise! In spite of unfaithfulness and turning away from God, God still promises to bring all God’s children home together.
o And when this future day happens in full, it will come with such loudness and clarity that all will recognize God’s voice and the true direction of life.
Mission:
- Hosea’s prophecy and vision into God’s character and memory doesn’t say any of this hinges on us. God’s graciousness doesn’t depend on Israel’s or our own repentance and turn to God.
- God is gracious and compassionate. God is not wrathful. We don’t manipulate God into being gracious. That’s just who God is.
- But when God roars in our midst, when prophets and preachers proclaim God’s graciousness, all of creation turns and runs to God.
- It’s like the image of the child, whom God taught to walk.
o Knowing he’s done wrong and gone far from his parent, he comes running back into the open arms of God, ready to be scooped up again and loved on.
o And he does so trembling for he knows he’s been unfaithful. And yet he runs all the same.
- So too, must we run. Not as a way of convincing God to pick us up, but as a response to God’s promise that God will always pick us up, hug us close, and whisper, It’s okay. You’re home now. Mama loves you.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment