The Danger of Forsaking God (Part Two)

Hosea 2:2-13

And I will punish her for the feast days of the Baals when she burned offerings to them and adorned herself with her ring and jewelry, and went after her lovers and forgot me, declares the Lord (2:13 ESV).

Previously, we considered that old covenant Israel abandoned the Lord by refusing to acknowledge God as the source of the blessings she enjoyed. Next, we see that Israel also abandoned the Lord by giving to her false gods what God had given to her (2:8).

You can sense the Lord’s disgust with her conduct. What a wretched woman Israel had become, taking from her husband to give to another lover. Notice her twisted thinking. She thought her blessings were the pay from her lovers, and then she returns a part of her pay for her meretricious conduct to the lover who had used her (2:13).

America, the wealthy nation, is rapidly heading for the day when she will find herself impoverished by seeking after idolatry and pantheistic forces. People refuse to look at the present misery of those who serve idols, and instead gladly welcome foolish, idolatrous ideas as the latest and greatest way to prosperity.

What should be done to a fallen woman like Israel? In this section, God uses the “powerfully tough” approach that we mentioned in our start pf this series. How would the Lord punish Israel for her sins?

First, the Lord would punish Israel by putting obstacles in her path (2:6). The Lord sometimes places “stop” or “warning” signs in the ways of sinners, because he has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. God commands all people everywhere to repent. Therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance, God now commands all people everywhere to repent (Acts 17:30). These obstacles were intended to help Israel lose her adulterous way of life. When we can’t reach satisfaction in our sinning, we should be glad. God is opening a way out of the mess we have made of our lives. Consider the story of the lost son (Luke 15:17ff). Are you experiencing dissatisfaction in your sin? Turn back to the Source of joy!

Second, the Lord would punish Israel by judging her productivity (2:3, 9, 12). The Lord threatens to take back what he had given. This is a most just judgment on those who refuse to praise God who blesses. The Lord threatens to ruin what had supplied her with happiness and sustenance.

Third, the Lord would punish Israel by exposing her wickedness (2:10). Wherever you have sinners, you will have sins. But western civilization has delighted in displaying her debauchery to a watching world. We should listen to what the rest of the world says about us. No one would be able to deliver Israel when she fell into the Lord’s hands. Let us reflect on Hebrews 10:31. People have hated the sermons of Jonathan Edwards for nearly 300 years. One day the haters of the truth will know the terror of the Lord.

Fourth, the Lord would punish Israel by ending her religious festivals (2:11). God had given Israel set times throughout the year to remember him and to thank him for the blessings he showered upon her. Every opportunity to thank God ought to be considered precious! But God would end it all. He tired of the travesty of having celebrations seemingly intended to remember him, but which were really riotous worship of idols.

Will you remember the Lord this week? Is he really precious to you? As I write, YouVersion is having a twenty-one day Bible challenge to read God’s word each day during that time. Certainly, we ought to read properly. But will you invest time in listening to God’s Word? You don’t need YouVersion. All you need is a Bible.

Grace and peace, David

The Danger of Forsaking God (Part One)

Hosea 2:2-13

Rebuke your mother; rebuke her. For she is not my wife and I am not her husband. Let her remove the promiscuous look from her face and her adultery from between her breasts. Otherwise, I will strip her naked and expose her as she was on the day of her birth. I will make her like a desert and like a parched land, and I will let her die of thirst (2:2-3 CSB).

We must always keep in mind God’s revelation of himself. Almighty, holy, sovereign and self-sufficient, God still wants to share his love and glory with people. Amazingly, God reaches out to people who have not wanted God in their lives. He does this in order to draw them into a deep relationship of love, which God sets forth in terms of marriage and family.

Sadly and tragically, people wander away from the living God, who overflows with love. In this passage, God reveals one way he responds to such conduct. This response to rejected love should not surprise us. God is surely right in bringing justice on those who despise his overflowing love. Again, the language in this section is blunt, racy, and shocking. God intends it to be. He wants us to wake up and realize that offended love responds powerfully!

How did Israel forsake the Lord? Israel abandoned the Lord by refusing to acknowledge God as the source of the blessings she enjoyed (2:5). In contrast, the godly person sees God as the supplier of what we need to sustain and enjoy life. As Paul told a group of non-Christians, who had a wrong view of God, Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them. In the past, he let all nations go their own way. Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy (Acts 14:15-17 NIV; cf. Matthew 6:25-34; James 1:15-17). God provides us with what is necessary to sustain life and to have joy in our lives.

Israel’s troubles began when she forgot the Lord, though she had been warned against so doing. And I will punish her for the feast days of the Baals when she burned offerings to them and adorned herself with her ring and jewelry, and went after her lovers and forgot me, declares the Lord (Hosea 2:13 ESV; cf. Deuteronomy 8:6-14). In our culture, where both marriage partners often work outside the home, it is easy to miss the point of the wife depending on her husband for support. How could Israel forget the husband who provided her with all she needed to live? She had forgotten the lesson of the manna.

As Israel forgot the Lord, it is not surprising that she did not acknowledge God as the source of her blessings (2:8). The average person in western society thinks that their skill and hard work or clever use of government entitlements are the source of blessings. But who gives you your abilities? Who has provided wealth to our nation? All comes from God.

Israel abandoned the Lord by taking idols as her lovers. She wrongly believed that her false gods provided her with the blessings of life. She worshipped idols like Baal as the ones who controlled nature (2:5). An error in the content of faith or doctrine leads to errors in our worldview, which leads to absurd, disgusting and immoral practices. An example of this is the different ways that people look to harmonize their environment, in order to be successful or have a sense of well-being or for other reasons.

Israel wildly pursued her false gods in her adulteries (2:7, 13). Notice the lack of purity (2:2) that led to a spiritually immoral lifestyle. When God exposes our attitudes and actions by the word, it is not the time to mutter a mere “I’m sorry,” but to have a deep change of mind. “Lord, give me the mind of Christ—an inner person of the heart that is zealous for you.”

Grace and peace, David

Naboth’s Vineyard (Part Three)

1 Kings 21:1-16

Jezebel. Her name invokes thoughts of wickedness, and she earned the reputation. She was passionate for the worship of false gods and goddesses and opposed to the true and living God and his prophets. She loved power and was not reluctant to conceive evil schemes and then carry them out. In our text, we see a clear example of what happened to anyone who stood in her way of self-gratification.

How did Jezebel devise to eliminate Naboth and seize his vineyard with the appearance of legality (21:5-10)? Her method was as follows:

  • She fed Ahab’s wounded pride (21:7). She sweetly told him to act like a king in the same breath as assuring him that his dear wife would do what she could to get him the property. With the king in her hands, she could do what she wanted with impunity.
  • She assumed a religious posture (21:9). She arranged for a fast led by the prominent men of the city. Her instructions were disguised with zeal for the Lord’s name. Let us not be gullible and assume that everyone who appears to be religious and wears the name “Christian” is really a believer. Many evil plots have been carried out in the name of Christ and “true religion”.
  • She commanded false witness (Exodus 20:16) and murder (Exodus 20:13). So much for her zeal for the glory of God and his law covenant with Israel. Jezebel showed nothing but contempt for God and his law.

Her scheme when carried out brought others deeper into sin with her (21:11-14). Notice how far the people of the northern kingdom of Israel had descended. Jezebel did not think that they would hesitate to carry out her order, and they didn’t! And they were the respectable men of the community!

They also murdered Naboth’s sons (see 2 Kings 9:26). When we once step over God’s boundary lines, we quickly become experts in transgression. One sin leads to another to “secure” (so we think) our evil desires. Don’t play with sin. You reach down to pet a lap dog and find that a dragon is eating you alive.

Her scheme was completed (21:15-16). Who would dare oppose Ahab’s claim to the property? The pile of rocks over Naboth’s body would tend to chill anyone’s zeal for truth. Ahab acted like he had won a great victory, for he went in a grand march of triumph with his military leaders behind him (cf. 2 Kings 9:25-26).

Obedience to God never insures an easy life (21:13). Listen to the words of Hebrews 11:35b-38. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated—of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth (ESV). Do not begin to think that your neighbors, your family, and your friends will be overwhelmed by your Christian profession. It took a miracle of grace to change your heart, and it will take a miracle of grace to change their hearts, too. The world will mark you down as a fool if you obey God (cf. 1 Corinthians 4:9-13). Do you want to follow Christ? Count the cost!

God does not always punish the wicked immediately for their acts of rebellion against him. Since God is eternal, he does not need to settle all accounts today. He can wait. The sinner’s doom may be more or less delayed, as in Ahab’s case. But God will finally bring justice. When I tried to understand all this, it seemed hopeless until I entered God’s sanctuary. Then I understood their destiny. Indeed, you put them in slippery places; you make them fall into ruin. How suddenly they become a desolation! They come to an end, swept away by terrors. Like one waking from a dream, Lord, when arising, you will despise their image (Psalm 73:16-20 CSB). May we who love the Lord and people completely avoid the evil paths of Ahab and Jezebel.

Grace and peace, David

An Alternative to an Empty Life

DSCN0546Luke 12:13-21

In the Four Gospels we read selected accounts of the earthly mission of our Lord Jesus Christ. He came to set us free from an empty way of life (1 Peter 1:18). Often we fail to realize the depths of that emptiness. Let’s listen to how our Redeemer revealed that emptiness in his teaching and pointed us to a better alternative.

Luke has already set the scene for this teaching session. A crowd of many thousands gathered (12:1), and it was not a calm crowd. Please do not think of a typical church service in our day where people are bored with the building, the pastor, the music, the ritual prayers, the message, and each other. No, this crowd was trampling on each other in their shared eagerness to listen to Jesus. (The time when modern churchgoers trample upon each other is to get out of the building and the parking lot.) This, however, did not mean that this crowd was filled with spiritual, godly, heavenly-minded people.

After the Lord spoke directly to his disciples (12:1-12) about the important topic of fear and worry, a question comes from the crowd. Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” [All italicized quotes are from the NIV.] Ah, there can be many people in “church”, and many of their hearts are not thinking about meeting with the living God and his dearly loved Son, but their minds are on other personal and “important” matters. People are very easily distracted from God.

The Lord Jesus, instead of brushing aside the man’s impertinent request, used it as a teaching opportunity, because he had come to make God known and to reveal what we are to us. Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” It was a dangerous course to ask Jesus questions. The man perhaps thought that Jesus would take his side out of a concern to see justice done. But Jesus unmasked the greed in the man’s heart. Though he had gathered with the crowd to hear Jesus, he was a functional idolater (Colossians 3:5). Jesus warned his hearers of getting their identity from their possessions. This is a problem in our affluent culture. It is too easy to confuse what we have with who we are. We can learn this about ourselves from how we evaluate others by where they live, what they drive, the clothes they wear, or the places they go. People might say they admire those who devote their lives to helping others, but are they willing to divest themselves of their possessions to do it? We can drift into this kind of transfer of identity, which is why Jesus calls us to be on our guard against all kinds of greed. Where should our identity come from?

Next, Jesus told a story to warn everyone about greediness. And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’” This parable is very well-known, and I will make only a few observations. First, the providence of God was working for the prosperity of this rich man. While there is skill in being a successful farmer as well as other occupations, God’s rule of the world overrides the skill of people. If there had been a couple years of drought, the rich farmer would not have had a large crop. Second, God’s blessing on his crop had brought the rich man to the need to make new choices. Prosperity and poverty require us to make decisions. What should a person do when he or she prospers? Consider Romans 2:4. Third, the rich man’s heart was filled with himself. He was proficient at using the first person pronouns. Greed is idolatry, and so is a consuming interest in oneself. Fourth, he thought he knew the future. People proudly assume that they are in charge, that they can map out their lives. The rich man’s attitude can be shared by anyone. Fifth, he lived for pleasure. Hmm, it sounds like he was a “last day’s sort of person” (cf. 2 Timothy 3:1-4). Sixth, God interrupted his plans. This is what people forget. The living God can expose our true emptiness in a moment.

Jesus made his point. “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” The Lord Christ is teaching us the nature of true repentance. We must turn from a self-focused view of life to building our life and identity in relationship to God. Being rich toward God is true wealth. We must prefer the true God over all things.

What is the question you would like to ask Jesus? Since he knows your heart, how would he answer you?

Grace and peace, David