The Return

Text: Hosea 14:1-9

Children’s Bible Page: 968

Introduction: Making things super complicated when they are actually very simple

Have you ever made something super complicated that was actually really simple?

I think I have mastered this skill quite well.

As a kid, my family would go to an amusement park, and I would be so frustrated and angry because I was too afraid to ride the rollercoasters.

It bothered me how effortless it seemed for my sister and my cousins to just hop on and ride, and they seemed to be having a ton of fun,

And here I was thinking, do they not know the danger they are putting themselves in?

Are they not worried about a system malfunction, or motion sickness?

Haven’t they ever seen that story on the news where the coaster gets stuck upside down?

It seemed so difficult and complex for me but so simple for them.

I remember wanting to get my math homework done as quickly as a could,

So, I would try to do all the steps of the problem in my head to get to the solution,

But, inevitably, all the steps and numbers would get to complicated in my head,

When I should have just simplified things by just writing out my work step by step.

I’ve had times in my marriage where I have felt hurt and misunderstood and I’ve wallowed in self pity and cold toward my spouse

Because I thought my issues and our issues were so complicated and they felt impossible to sort out.

I wonder what pieces of your life feel the most complicated and difficult.

I wonder what areas you are battling and trying to sort through, but it feels so complicated, so multifaceted, so layered, that maybe you are tempted to give up hope and give up trying.

What if the answers are a lot more simple than you think?

What if me getting on that roller coaster was as simple as - I want to do it, I want to overcome my fear, God’s got me, my family is around me, let’s do it?

What if me getting my math homework done most efficiently is simply writing out the work step by step in order to relieve the pressure of having to remember and keep up with everything in my head?

What if the issues of my marriage that seemed so complicated to sort out really came down to me entrusting my heart to God who knows me fully and still loves me unconditionally, and allowing that love to spill out in love for my spouse?

I mean, unconditional really simplifies the complexity right?

Because it’s freedom to love no matter what.

I don’t know about you, but for me, Hosea chapter 4 - 13 has felt very complex.

I’ve tried to break it down into understandable parts, but it has been a difficult task because it takes ten chapters for God to lay out his full case against His people and their sin and rebellion.

The people’s sinfulness and rebellion is filled with the complexities of mixing the worship of the true God with pagan worship practices to idols,

The complexities of making and breaking political alliances in order to gain what they wanted,

The complexities of conforming to outward religious practices while rejecting the heart of true religion.

Even the complexities of God’s holy nature to punish sin fully while recoiling from His own wrath in mercy and compassion.

All the peoples’ sinful rebellion led to all these complications that finally led to the ruin and devastation of Israel at the hands of Assyrian invasion.

I want to remind us that Hosea’s own family portrait in chapters 1-3 demonstrate the same complexities that a rebellious and unfaithful wife brought to Hosea’s family.

Hosea pursuing marriage with an unfaithful woman.

Hosea raising children named punishment, no mercy, and not my people due to the complex nature of his wife’s unfaithfulness.

Hosea finally going to buy his own wife off the slave auction block after she had run away once again and given herself to other lovers who left her hopeless.

I can only imagine how complicated that situation felt when God told Hosea, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by another man.”

I can only imagine how complicated it felt for Hosea’s wife as her sin and rebellion had finally brought down on her the full weight of slavery.

I can only imagine how complicated it felt for the people of Israel as they were devastated by the Assyrian invasion and even had their very existence as a nation taken from them.

I wonder what feels hopelessly complicated in your life today?

I wonder if it’s a sin struggle, an addiction, your marriage, or even your relationship with God, whatever it is that feels so uniquely complicated that you are tempted to quit or embrace destruction.

I pray that God shows you today after all the difficulty and complexity of thirteen chapters of Hosea, the final chapter is wonderfully and stunningly simple.

And that simplicity can be summed up in one of two similar words: repent and return.

Hosea 14:1–9 (ESV)

1 Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God,

for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.

2 Take with you words

and return to the Lord;

say to him,

“Take away all iniquity;

accept what is good,

and we will pay with bulls

the vows of our lips.

3 Assyria shall not save us;

we will not ride on horses;

and we will say no more, ‘Our God,’

to the work of our hands.

In you the orphan finds mercy.”

4 I will heal their apostasy;

I will love them freely,

for my anger has turned from them.

5 I will be like the dew to Israel;

he shall blossom like the lily;

he shall take root like the trees of Lebanon;

6 his shoots shall spread out;

his beauty shall be like the olive,

and his fragrance like Lebanon.

7 They shall return and dwell beneath my shadow;

they shall flourish like the grain;

they shall blossom like the vine;

their fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

8 O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols?

It is I who answer and look after you.

I am like an evergreen cypress;

from me comes your fruit.

9 Whoever is wise, let him understand these things;

whoever is discerning, let him know them;

for the ways of the Lord are right,

and the upright walk in them,

but transgressors stumble in them.

1. Return To The Lord

It has already been established that Israel would cease to exist as a nation after the Assyrian invasion,

But now, even though Israel as a nation is finished, God calls the people to return to the Lord.

God calls any individual from the nation who has seen and experienced the devastation of their sin and rebellion to repent and return to God.

Would you notice with me how many times God has called his people back to himself throughout the book,

And now, even after the judgment, the loss of the nation, all the devastation, God is still holding out His hand of love and mercy and offering the same invitation, Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God.

After all the complexity of sin and rebellion, after all the suffering and punishment due their sin, return to the Lord your God.

I can imagine the complexity for Hosea, and His unfaithful wife on the auction block,

Yet God made it really simply: Go again, love her, bring her home.

I can imagine the grief and loss of the people now being back in slavery and exile,

Yet God simply says return to the Lord your God.

No matter the complexity of your situation, whether it be your relationship with God, your marriage, a sin struggle or whatever else,

The greatest gift God is always holding out to you in a chance to repent and return to his loving arms.

I’ve mentioned this beautiful idea a lot recently, but no matter how far gone you feel, your hope of repentance, forgiveness, and change is always only just one step away, because God comes after you, and He is near to you, all you must do is turn to him.

Verse 1 again: Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.

Are you telling me that after ten chapters of an exposition of the complexities of the peoples’ sin, rebellion, and failures,

God can now sum up the whole situation with these words: for you have stumbled because of your iniquity?

Oh church, how we should love this!

While our sin and rebellion is so varied and nuanced leading to all this complexity and difficulty, God is able to take all that mess and pack it in one box, and call it: your iniquity.

Not iniquities, but your iniquity.

Not your sins, but your sin.

While messy, and complicated, and devastating, God can put all that mess in one box and call it: your sin.

That’s good news, because if God is able to take all the messiness of all our sins and put them in one box,

He can then punish all our sin on His one and only Son, through one perfectly pleasing sacrifice, which was Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

Maybe you’ve been believing the lie that you have run too far, for too long, in too many different ways, to ever return to the Lord.

But that’s not how it works.

God will sum up your ten chapter rap sheet into one statement: you’ve stumbled because of your iniquity. Return to Me.

But what does that return look like?

Pastor, you call us to repent a lot, but how exactly do you repent?

It must be confusing and complicated. No, it’s not at all.

Look at verse 2: Take with you words and return to the Lord.

In other words, pray. Talk to God.

Believe that He is right here and ready for you to turn around and speak to Him, and talk to God.

Say to him,

“Take away my iniquity; accept what is good, and we will pay with bulls the vows of our lips.”

You see, the world complicates everything when they refuse to treat sin as the primary problem.

The reason we have to sort through all these complex theories, -isms, and philosophies, with all these complex solutions to those problems is because the world is unwilling to admit that our problem is sin and rebellion against God.

But when we in humility and the conviction of the Holy Spirit admit simply that our problem is sin, we find the love, grace, and mercy of God to be simply applied through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Accept what is good, and we will pay with bulls the vows of our lips.

What does that mean?

Do you remember earlier in Hosea, God said He takes no delight in their sacrifices?

Because they continued to outwardly perform sacrifices to God even though they were relationally so far from God.

Their heart wasn’t in it.

So, here, we are to pray, “Accept what is good, we will pay with the vows of our lips.”

Think about it: The people could no longer do the physical sacrifices since they are now exiled, but what they can do is the very thing God desired from them all along,

They could speak words of repentance, confession, worship, and gratefulness to God.

For out of the heart the mouth speaks, and God has always wanted their heart more than anything else from them.

So this beautiful return and repentance starts by speaking to God, and telling him the truth.

Confess your sin and rebellion to God. Agree with God about your sinfulness.

Take responsibility for your sin.

Then, ask God to take away your sin, and praise Him and rejoice in Him from your heart.

You see, returning to God in repentance is not just about removing sin from your life, but it is replacing that sin with joy, and love, and worship, and service to God and for others.

Some of us stumble in our repentance because we think it is all about not doing a certain thing, when it is actually replacing that thing with things that are good, right, lovely, and true.

I can’t just stop being judgmental and frustrated toward my spouse.

I need to also actively find their good qualities, and call those out, and speak words of appreciation, and let them be free to be themselves, and learn to love who they are, not who I want them to be.

So, we confess our sins, we throw ourselves on God’s mercy and grace to forgive and take away our sin, we replace sin with worship, service, and gratefulness to God.

Then, in verse 3, we acknowledge that the worldly things we have trusted in will not save us, only God can.

Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride on horses; we will say no more “Our God” to the work of our hands.

See, returning and repenting to God is simultaneously placing our full trust in God while removing the trust we had placed in other things.

The people had trusted in their alliances with Assyria, the power of their horses, and the work of their own hands.

The Bible leads us to ask ourselves over and over again, what am I trusting in?

What do I trust for security and purpose today? For my future?

If it is something other than God, even if it’s a good thing, it cannot sustain the weight of our souls. Only God can do that.

I heard someone say this week, “No one is god enough to be god for you except God alone.”

Right before Christmastime, I finally accepted the fact that I had had some low level anger and frustration about certain things in my life that had been dragging me down.

And I realized it was because I was trusting in a picture in my mind of the way I thought things should be.

Some things in my family, the church, and some other things, and God showed me right around the new year that I was trusting in this picture of how I wanted things to be in my life instead of trusting Him with what is.

It was keeping me from being grateful for what is right in front of me.

What is it that you are trusting in other than God that leaves you feeling sad, angry, or frustrated?

Would you lay it down and embrace His love and trust in Him right where He has you?

Repentance is turning to God,

talking to God,

confessing your sin,

throwing yourself on His mercy and grace to forgive you,

replacing sin and lies with truth, worship, and gratefulness,

And trusting in God while removing trust in other things.

At the end of what some commentators call a “liturgy of repentance,” in verses 1-3,

Verse 3 ends with: In you the orphan finds mercy.

You see, the people no longer had their nation Israel, so they were like orphans.

Yet, God was still holding out his mercy toward them.

He had stripped everything from them, in order to teach them to trust in Him alone.

Return to the Lord.

2. See God Turn Toward You

When you return to God, look what He does toward you.

Verse 4: I will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely, for my anger has turned from them.

The book of Ezekiel says that when we are saved, God removes our heart of stone and gives us a heart of flesh.

Anyone who is in Christ is a new creation. The old has gone, behold the new has come.

God’s anger turns from those who turn to Him, he heals their apostasy, and loves them freely.

If you are in Christ, your apostasy - which is a final rejection of God - has been healed.

Sure, you will still fall short, and stumble, and sin, but your heart has been made alive to God, and those who come to Him, he will never cast out.

And because Jesus took all the punishment for your sin on himself, there is no anger and punishment left for you.

And because of that, God loves you freely.

That means God is completely free to love you just as you are, with all your weaknesses, stumbles, and imperfections.

I remember one time, there was this guy in my class, I was probably in middle school, and this guy wasn’t really part of my friend group, he was a little odd and a bit of an outsider,

But he just really liked me a lot.

Any time he could, he wanted to hang out with me, he asked me questions about myself, he took interest in whatever I was interested in,

And I felt kind of bad because I always stayed pretty cool toward him and kept him at arms length.

But this guy still acted like I hung the moon.

Now, in a million times greater way, this is what it looks like for God to love you freely!

He doesn’t just love you on your best day and at your greatest moments.

He also loves you on your worst day and your worst moments.

As a Christian, when you feel distant with God, I promise, it is not Him giving you the cold shoulder.

God loves you.

Because of the gospel, God is free to love you no matter what.

And in your repentance and return, you experience God’s love in ways that are refreshing.

Look at verse 5: I will be like the dew to Israel.

In a parched and desert land, dew is refreshing.

You see, sin and darkness lie to us by telling us that loving Jesus is a drag, and walking in holiness sucks all the fun and excitement out of life, but it’s actually the exact opposite.

Returning to Jesus refreshes and rejuvenates our whole being.

Isaiah 40:31 (ESV)

31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;

they shall mount up with wings like eagles;

they shall run and not be weary;

they shall walk and not faint.

God replaces that dead rotten cynicism and frustration and pride with life, love, hope, and vitality.

The pursuit of holiness is joy-filled, life-giving, and adventure-seeking as you trust God and follow Him no matter what.

Notice, God makes those who return to Him fruitful and secure.

They blossom like the lilies and take root like the trees of Lebanon.

When you live a life of repentance in your walk with God, you bear good fruit.

Luke 6:43–45 (ESV)

43 “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, 44 for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. 45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

And that good fruit does not just bless your soul, but it blesses others.

When you live in the love of Jesus, you become a blessing to others.

The best gift you can give your spouse, your children, your family members, your friends, your coworkers, and your neighbors is to return to God and walk closely with Jesus.

Verse 7: They shall return and dwell beneath my shadow; they shall flourish like the grain, they shall blossom like the vine, their fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

God not only restores and refreshes you for you, but for others.

You flourish like the grain so others can eat.

You blossom like the fruit of the vine so others can drink.

The fame spoken of is not worldly fame for your own glory, it is a good name and a good reputation for the ways God has used you to bless others and show off His glory.

How much of your life is spent being a blessing to others?

Do you come to Jesus daily to be blessed so that you can then go out and be a blessing?

Do not underestimate the impact that you make on others in your everyday life.

And the truth is: you will bear fruit in your life.

The question is not: will I bear fruit?

The question is: will the fruit I bear be evil and selfish or will it be good and godly?

You do make a profound influence on others.

What kind of influence is it?

Israel was supposed to live in the blessings of trusting God and they were to be a blessing to the other nations,

Instead, they were just as evil and self seeking as the other nations and they were finally destroyed.

Do you see your whole life and existence as a conduit for blessing?

Are you walking daily experiencing God’s unconditional love and affection, grateful for all the ways He has blessed you, seeing God at work in and through all things, letting God fill you with His Spirit,

So you can then love those in your life with an unconditional love and affection (not for who you want them to be but for who they are), telling them how grateful you are for them, showing them how you see God work in and through them, encouraging, serving, being gracious, learning to be understanding, reaching out, speaking truth in love.

The only way to experience the blessings of God in the pursuit of holiness and trusting God,

And the only way to then live as a blessing to others, is to live in a daily spirit of repentance.

Because our pride and selfishness will always fight to get in the way.

Our fear that we are missing out by not engaging in the things the world does.

Our desire to be like other people not distinct and different than others.

Returning to the Lord is not a one time ceremony, it’s a daily decision.

It’s a decision made as you wake up and put your feet on the floor today.

God, you love me, you gave Jesus for me, I’m grateful for all you are to me, may I live for you and for others today.

Make me a blessing as you are a blessing to me.

The final thing God says about himself to sum up his message of Hosea to the people is, verse 8:

O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols?

It is I who answer and look after you.

I am like an evergreen cypress; from me comes your fruit.

The people had run after so many other lovers: idols, political power, and false securities,

Yet, none of those things ever made good on their promises.

The blessings they thought they would gain from the world only left them empty and in slavery.

The things of the world promise a lot, but they don’t deliver, and they are certainly not for you.

They don’t listen to you, look after you, or have your best interests in mind.

But while you were dead in your sin, God gave His only son to die for your sin in order to save you.

And if He did not spare His own son, how will he not also give you all things?

God hears you when you pray to Him.

God looks after you and cares for you even on the days that you forget to acknowledge Him.

He is God alone.

God is the evergreen, from Him comes our fruit.

God being the evergreen means He is our constant and perpetual source of life and blessing.

There is none beside him, and we need none else.

The love and romance we desired in the arms of a lover, we find in His loving arms.

The safety and security we desired from political alliances, we find in God’s forever faithfulness to us.

The gracious acceptance we looked for from others, we find in a God who speaks over us, “You are my beloved son/daughter, in whom I am well pleased.”

Apart from him, you can do nothing.

With Him, you bear the good fruit of purpose, meaning, life, blessing, and worship as you serve him until the day you see him face to face.

See God turn toward you.

3. Know and Understand The Ways Of The Lord

The final verse of the book of Hosea an invitation to all who are exposed to its message.

It’s a reminder to us that simply reading or hearing the message is not enough.

It is only if we receive, believe, and internalize the message that we reap its benefit.

Hosea 14:9 ESV

9 Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them; for the ways of the Lord are right, and the upright walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them.

Are you walking in the ways of the Lord?

Or are you stumbling in them?

Have you trusted in Jesus as your Savior?

Or are you still relying on yourself?

Are you seeing your life as a conduit of blessing, the blessings of God to you, and being a blessing to others.

Israel failed to see life that way, we have failed to see life that way, but Jesus came succeeded in every way that Israel failed.

And He gave us the gift of salvation through His death and resurrection, that we might have abundant life in Him.

May we be ones who know and understand, and joyfully live the life of repentance and we continually turn to God and see him turn to us.

Elder at couches.

Let’s pray.