Israel is Like...

Invocation

We give thanks to you O God, with all our hearts; before the watching world we sing your praise; We bow down and worship Christ and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word. When we call, you answered us, our strength of soul you have increased. How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land? If we forget you, O Jerusalem, let our right hand forget its skill! Let our tongue stick to the roof of our mouth, if we do not remember you, if we do not set the Jerusalem that is above as our highest joy. And now O Lord, with sincere hearts lifted up to you, conform us to the image of your Son as we worship you in Spirit and in truth. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, and the Holy Spirit, one God world without end and amen.

Confession

Isaiah 33:14–15 (ESV)

“Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?” 15 He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, who despises the gain of oppressions, who shakes his hands, lest they hold a bribe, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes from looking on evil,

Who among us can dwell with a consuming fire? What an apt question to ask and how fitting as we come this morning to worship the Lord. The prophet Isaiah has been confronted with the terrible holiness of God in Is. 6 when God called him to be a prophet. There he discovered just how unclean he was. As we consider this very short list of attributes that should characterize those who may dwell in the presence of the Lord, we realize our problem right away. Most of us won’t pass the first or second general qualifications, and even if we don’t care for the gain of oppression and cannot recall ever taking a bribe, we are silenced because we know we have not stopped our ears from hearing bloodshed or close our eyes from looking on evil, both of which often saturate our media intake. What is to be done for a people who are not of themselves qualified to be their God? Well, what did Isaiah do when he discovered his sin in the light of God’s holiness? He confessed his sin, throwing himself on the mercy of God. So too do we, now, as we come before him this morning, confess all the ways that we have failed with every part of our body to be holy as he is holy; casting ourselves on the mercy of God.

Let us confess silently, and then we will confess as body our many sins.

Stand for Gospel Lesson

Mark 12:28–34 ESV

28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. 33 And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Pastoral prayer

Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come,

Culture of evangelism

vbs

John & Sandy Supplee

Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Civil magistrate

Give us this day our daily bread

Thanks for sale of land, lead and direct us to the right building.

Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Intro

The Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor has dubbed our age "the age of authenticity." Emerging out of the Second World War, an ethic of 'authenticity' began to develop in the culture at large. It was fueled by post-war consumerism, which enabled the idea of the 'pursuit of happiness,' one of the pillars of the American dream, to take on new meanings. Taylor calls this authenticity an "understanding of life that emerges from the Romantic expressivism of the late-eighteenth century, that each one of us has his/her own way of realizing our humanity, and that it is important to find and live out one's own, as against surrendering to conformity with a model imposed on us from outside, by society, or the previous generation, or religious or political authority." (Taylor, A Secular Age, 475).

But this is a refiguring of older ideas of authenticity, which used to mean, 'faithful to an original.' It meant being genuine, or sincere. But it has been redefined to mean 'be true to yourself.' If as Christians we were seeking to define authenticity, it would not be fitting to use this newer definition, for who you are apart from Christ is totally depraved, and no one should be true to that. Rather, an authentic Christian is one who is true to the original, one who has the genuine character of Christ-likeness. But in our text this morning, we see that Israel was seeking to be true to herself, which became only an expression of her sinful nature. Using the older definition of authenticity, we would say that Israel was being inauthentic, or maybe it would be better to use the biblical language for this: Israel was insincere. Insincere in her devotion to the LORD; insincere in her repentance and love, which resulted in sin and wickedness. For only godly sincerity can produce righteousness.

The prophet Hosea, inspired by the Spirit of God, shines the light of God's word into the dark recesses of Israel's heart to expose and judge her sinful insincerity. As we see what 'Israel is like,' we are warned not to be true to ourselves. Since the LORD judges superficial faith, we must serve the LORD with godly sincerity.

Hosea 6:1-7:16

Israel's Insincere Repentance

A cursory glance at vv. 1-3 would give you the impression that Israel is repenting. It sounds like a confession of faith and a desire to return to the Lord. These verses are an instance of good theology, but when it comes from bad motives, it turns out to be insincere. When you look just below the surface of this confession of faith, and you take into account the picture the prophet has painted of Israel thus far, this is easy to see.

Remember that the prophet had just condemned them for going to the king of Assyria to have the stinking wound of their unfaithfulness cured. Now when that didn't work, they decide the last course of action would be to return to the Lord. Right away, there is a hint that this return to the Lord is not sincere. They begin to recognize that it is the Lord that has torn them, but they don't let that truth sit with them and have an effect. They quickly press on to confess that he will heal us, he will bind us up. Notice that they encourage themselves by confessing that the discipline will be short-lived. Yeah, the Lord has torn us, but he will heal us, two, three days tops, and we will be back to normal.

The apostle Paul makes a distinction between godly sorrow for sin and worldly sorrow for sin. One produces repentance that leads to salvation without regret. The other produces death. Worldly sorrow for sin is sorrow that you were caught and is sad that you can't (for now) continue to 'get away' with your sin. This confession, as orthodox as it may sound, is driven by worldly sorrow for sin, which is insincere. As we look more closely in the following verses at Israel's insincerity, we will also note what its opposite consists of, fleshing out the Lord's call to godly sincerity.

Through a series of five metaphors, the prophet Hosea exposes Israel's insincerity, showing us what Israel is like.

Israel is like...

A Morning Cloud

Occasionally on my way into work at the church in the mornings, the fog will form at the base of Montage, but as the sun rises, it disappears. The nature of this cloud is occasional and only appears when the conditions are right. This is the imagery that God uses to describe Israel's love for him. He asks, "What should I do with you?" since your love is so vapid and unsubstantial. As much as we in the Reformed tradition love logic, reason, and consistency and are allergic to emotionalism and pragmatism, which marks much of evangelical pop theology, man is not just a 'thinking-thing.' Rather, we are driven by our desires, by our affections. Put simply, we are led by our love/s. It turns out also that what you love you worship and what you worship you come to resemble. But Israel is insincere in her love for the Lord. The evidence is her insincere worship. The Lord prefers steadfast love to sacrifice, and knowledge of him to burnt offerings (6:6). That is, the Lord prefers sincere worship which is based on love.

'Steadfast love' is covenant-keeping love (Chesed); a love that never fails. It's not flighty love, or love that lasts until something better comes along. But Israel has been just like Adam in the garden, which is to say, fallen in sin, and marked by faithlessness. This has produced a people that better resemble Satan who was a liar and murderer from the beginning (Jn. 8:44).

If you are what you love, and you worship what you love, and you become like what you worship, the question is what do you love? One way to answer that is to examine your habits, especially those automatic habits we do without thinking. A love for God that is sincere will show up in your habits. (Read Col. 3:12-24). Searching our hearts, keeping our hearts, is the discipline of making sure that our affections are directed towards Christ. From this searching, examine where you spend your time, your money, your energy? Are these all aligned to the right ends - To glorify God, and enjoy him forever. Or are they drawing your love away from God?

An Oven

The next metaphor is a bit difficult to understand. The Lord laments the fact that everything he has done, whether adversity or prosperity, was designed to lead Israel to be faithful to him. Recall, Hosea lavishing his wife with gifts and her attributing those blessings as coming from her other lovers, which in Israel's case was Baal. During the reign of Jeroboam II, Israel experienced a time of blessing where the Lord “restored the fortunes” of His people.

But when he did this, the true heart of His people and their insincerity was exposed. Despite the Lord’s blessing, Israel is characterized by widespread immorality—lying and stealing. Behavior that is carried on in excess because they have failed to consider that God sees everything that they do. Israel is not denying that there is a God; they are just living as if there was no God, and as if they had not been bound to him in covenant. With its attendant requirements of obedience which promised blessing, or threatened cursing. They filled the whole place with their sin, so that wherever the Lord looks, all he sees is their sin and wicked deeds (7:2).

Instead of causing the king grief and sadness, the people’s behavior brings him joy, as he and the rest of the rulers of Israel join in the revelry. The Lord describes their penchant towards sin as “a heated oven.” They are on fire for sin, and the fuel is adultery (probably spiritual) and court intrigues, and base hedonism. All carried out by the leaders of Israel and approved by the king in line with the people. The images of a heated oven are meant to signify not only the ferocity of their passion to sin, but that sin is devouring them (v. 7). One commentator draws attention to the political climate outlined in 2 Kings.

Given the book’s setting at the demise of the northern kingdom (1:1), it is hard not to see the rash of power-hungry coups that shaped the failed last years of Samaria. After the death of Jeroboam II (c. 750), the political situation turned bleak. Jeroboam’s son Zechariah reigned for six months before being assassinated by Shallum, who in turn reigned just one month before being assassinated by Menahem from Tirzah. As for Menahem’s reign, it was remembered first of all for this: ‘Then Menahem struck Tiphsah and all who were in it and its territory from Tirzah on because they did not open (their gates). So he struck it, and all the pregnant women he ripped open’ (2 Kgs 15:16). Menahem’s son Pekahiah ruled next, only to be assassinated by Pekah, who some time later was himself assassinated by Hoshea. In short, Hosea’s imagery of the lust for power devouring kings, princes, and judges was not baseless. Yet the generalizing too must be remembered. We see a pattern here that has played out often enough up to the present day: those in power and those around them devouring one another in their lust for more power. In the end, justice disappears. From top to bottom, ‘none of them call upon’ YHWH. (Moon, Hosea, 136)

The People of God were on fire for their sin, and its burning heat devoured them. Sin has a way of presenting itself as something desirable, something that shimmers, and offers you the world. Something that seems good for food, a delight to the eyes, and to be desired to make one wise. So like Adam, you take the bait, but it is like a heated oven, you’ll never be content with just one. Driven by your desire for more and more, you will stop at nothing to have more until the very thing you sought devours you. Israel’s insincerity caused her to become the fool who says in his heart, “There is no God.”

Calling upon the Lord is one of those expressions in scripture that is so rich with meaning, like “fearing God.” On one hand, it's an expression of someone in prayer. And prayer is an expression of faith. You can’t pray to the Lord if you don’t believe that he is Lord, and believe that he has the authority to respond, and that he is worthy of worship. On the other hand, to call upon the Lord is a posture of the heart that confesses dependence and reliance on the Lord, entailing a recognition that he is God, and the rewarder of those who dilgently seek him (Heb. 11:6). A faith that is sincere is sustained by a dependence on God that is summed up in the expression “call upon the Lord.”

A Half-Baked Cake

Israel was called to be a distinct people that would stand out among the nations. God called them to be, "a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for His treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth." (Deut. 7:6). They were not to mix with the nations around them for the sole reason that it would lead them into idolatry, and to forget the covenant that God had made with them. However, as is often the case, the forbidden fruit becomes so alluring that it is all we can think about. Thus, Israel mixed with the nations, adopted their gods, gave their kings loyalty, and opened up their lands to them. But the feeling was not mutual, and what maybe Israel thought might be reciprocal turned out to be a one-sided deal.

A cake that is not turned is a cake that is burnt on one side and still raw on the other. What better way to describe a half-mixed people with half-hearted devotion to the Lord, than as a half-baked cake. Israel is like an old man, whose strength has long-diminished, who doesn’t yet know it, and tries to do something he would have done when he was younger. He ends up hurt and humiliated.

Israel is in this sad condition, because of their insincerity–they were unfaithful to the Lord. That sinful condition has blinded them from seeing how bad things really are. Worse, they keep trying to find solutions to their problems that only make things worse. Like a woman who instead of aging gracefully, had cosmetic surgery to make herself younger, but ends up just looking hideous, except she doesn’t know it, or at least won’t admit it to herself.

The Lord will never settle for half-measures and half-hearted devotion. He will have all of you, or he will reject all of you. Which is why Jesus calls his disciples to things we think are so drastic. Like cut off your hand if it offends you, or pluck out your eye. Wow, Jesus that’s a bit drastic, and kind of legalistic isn’t it?

I think the prophet nails evangelicals here. Evangelicals mix themselves with the world, so that it’s hard to distinguish one from another. Evangelicals are half-baked in their theology, which is an inch deep and a mile wide. They keep allowing bad theology, and the next great fad to creep in, which has devoured their strength. Either that or they keep trying the same tactics that worked before back in their prime, not recognizing that won’t work anymore. It is pride that keeps them from seeing their sin, and turning in repentance to seek the Lord. But their efforts don’t produce lasting fruit because their works are all done with superficial faith. Insincerity marks their labor, with only a head-nod to the Lord.

A Silly Dove

The prophet keeps going, laying on the metaphors thickly as he continues to describe an unfaithful Israel whose superficial devotion to the Lord doesn’t fool anyone.

Israel “is like a dove silly and without sense” (7:11). What the prophet describes is a homing pigeon which has an excellent sense of direction. But Israel is a stupid one, since she has forgotten where home is. Instead, she’s running off for help to Egypt, or Assyria. Egypt? Really? Things have got to be bad if you're looking for help from them. Assyria is worse since they are the most imposing force in the world at that moment, and given our hindsight, the one who will bring them ruin. The leadership is looking for quick-fix solutions to a national problem that can only be corrected by returning to the Lord and remaining faithful.

But God says, no. He will trap them in his net and discipline them. Because they have strayed and in their rebellion broke the covenant with him, he will bring on them the woes of destruction. Most likely a reference to exile, the final punishment for a wayward people who over and over again refused to return to the Lord and remain faithful.

It would have been sad enough had Israel forgotten where home was, but the idea behind the image of a silly dove is more than just naivete. Israel is not here being what Jesus later calls his disciples to be, “innocent as doves.” Rather, Israel is a simple fool, who is easily enticed (silly) to find refuge anywhere other than home.

Is it not the case with us? Are we not all prone to wander? And does the church today not study excuses, looking for anything to take refuge (comfort) in other than the ordinary means of grace? And this draws us back to the first image the prophet used to describe fickle Israel whose love was like a morning cloud, occasional and fleeting. When the compass of your heart is not weekly recalibrated in the worship of God each Lord’s day, to love what he loves and hate what he hates, then you too will call to the world, and go and search for somewhere to set your love. Godly sincerity finds a home in the redemption of Christ. He said, “I go to prepare a place for you” (Jn. 14:2), “a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens” (2 Cor. 5:1). The problem was Israel (and you and I), often fail to set our minds on the things above, “where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God” (Col. 3:1). When you do that often enough, soon all you can see is Egypt and Assyria, and you forget where home is.

A Treacherous Bow

The last image the prophet gives us is that of a treacherous bow, or a bow that never hits the target. The image we get is of Israel complaining about God because they have run out of bread and wine. They care little for the relationship, just the gifts (see Hosea 2:5, 9). Jesus faced the same problem after he fed the five thousand with a few barley loaves. After that, some of them followed only because they wanted their bellies filled again. Their desperation comes out in the fervency of their prayer, wailing and cutting themselves to try to get God to listen. They’re sincere, but not to the Lord, for the return, but not to him, they return to their rebellion. They devise evil against the Lord, although it was he who equipped them for battle.

You’re not supposed to bite the hand that feeds you, but ironically we do when we rebel against the Lord; when the fervency of our devotion is not for God, but some idol we have crafted and called God. The church is not immune to crafting idols. We do this when Jesus becomes Gentle and lowly only, and not also a judge who hates sin. A king who will return and slay the wicked with the sharp two-edged sword. Jesus is the Lamb of God, but he is also the lion of the tribe of Judah. One theology will always be deficient when we forget one or another, or pit them against each other.

Conclusion

The end of the matter, Israel is suffering the consequences of God’s judgment because of her sin, and in response, time and time again, she offers to the Lord superficial, half-hearted devotion. These insincere attempts at repentance and love don’t help but rather hinder her as she endures the judgment of God.

Galatians 6:7–9 (ESV)—7 Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

What God desires is sincerity, in love, in repentance, and in our pursuit of holiness. What Israel proves as the prophet exposed her insincerity, is how foolish it is to be true to yourself. Do not, do not, be true to yourself. If you want to be authentic, you want to be sincere in your faith? Then put on Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its lusts (Rom. 13:14). Christ is the model which we are seeking to be conformed to, since he is the image and glory of God, and we are being recreated in His image and likeness. So to be authentic in the age of authenticity, is not to seek to live out your inner desires, but to seek to live faithful to the original, in the truest sense of authenticity. So in sincerity, put on steadfast love, so that your love is as Paul describes in 1 Cor. 13, and never fails. And call upon the Lord, not as those who doubt and do so from half-hearted devotion, but with your heart inclined to seek and serve the Lord. You have to know where home is, so come each Lord’s day, have your heart recalibrated to face true north, cultivating a fervency for the God of scripture, and not just the gifts he gives.

So we end where we began, only with our hearts pointed to the Lord in godly sincerity. For we know that the stroke of God’s judgment for our insincerity fell on the Lord Jesus Christ. So:

Hosea 6:1–3 (ESV) 1 “Come, let us return to the LORD; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. 2 After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him. 3 Let us know; let us press on to know the LORD; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth.”

Prayer of John Calvin:

Commentaries on the Twelve Minor Prophets Prayer

Grant, Almighty God, that since thou hast once shone upon us by thy gospel,—O grant, that we may always be guided by this light, and so guided, that all our lusts may be restrained; and may the power of thy Spirit extinguish in us every sinful fervour, that we may not grow hot with our own perverse desires, but that all these being subdued, we may gather new fervour daily, that we may breathe after thee more and more: nor let the coldness of our flesh ever take possession of us, but may we continually advance in the way of piety, until at length we come to that blessed rest, to which thou invitest us, and which has been obtained for us by the blood of thy only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Lord’s Supper Meditation

So we come now to the Lord, and we are healed, not because we are torn, but because the Lord Jesus Christ was torn for us. For it was he who continued under the power of sin and death for three days, that Hosea speaks of; and it is his resurrection that provides the healing that allows us to be sincere; to come to God with sincere faith; to press on to know the Lord, to call upon Him, and through the power of the same Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead, who indwells you, will give life to your mortal body; that is your present body. And by life the apostle means that the Spirit has begun the process of conforming you to Christ, so that it is the Spirit which causes you to be sincere, in your repentance and your love. All those who by faith have trusted in Christ come and drink deeply from the cup of living waters that will quench your thirst. And eat the bread of heaven that will give you spiritual life so that you will always be satisfied in Him. This table is not for the wicked or the immoral, for those who come with superficial faith, God will bring on you all the judgments pictured here today from Hosea, if not in this life, then in that which is to come.

Charge

Beloved be sincere; be authentic, but do not be true to yourself. Come and return to the Lord and remain faithful, but do so with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.

Benediction

Numbers 6:24–26 ESV

24 The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.