The Road to Recovery

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.

I’m a native New Yorker, and so it may be no surprise that I am a lifelong NY Yankees fan. People who unreasonably despise the NY Yankees like to refer to the most dominant team in the history of baseball as “The Evil Empire.” As the saying goes, “haters gonna hate.” This week reminded me, however, that there might be another organization more worthy of that title.

I spent about an hour-and-a-half this week watching the 2019 Apple Keynote. Their new products and features were on display. And the problem, of course, is that I love Apple products. They’re on my wrist, in my pocket, and right here on this pulpit! They’re the best thing since sliced bread!

People who unreasonably despise the NY Yankees like to refer to the most dominant team in the history of baseball as “The Evil Empire.” As the saying goes, “haters gonna hate.” This week reminded me, however, that there was another organization more worthy of that title.

The problem, of course as you know, is that I love Apple products. They’re the best thing since sliced bread. So, what do I find myself doing this week? (when you’re an Apple devotee, you get all of the emails announcing the new products.) I found myself clicking on Apple’s website, checking it out. Saying, oooh, aaah, that’s nice. I want one of those. I could just put it on the credit card. Then, the voice in my head (I think it was the Holy Spirit) says, “you can’t justify spending $500 for this thing that you don’t need.” Then I felt like Abraham negotiating with the Lord to try and save his nephew Lot from destruction in Sodom & Gomorrah (of course my motives were less pure than Abraham’s).

So what do I find myself doing as I watched? I was saying, oooh, aaah, that’s nice. I want one of those. I could just put it on the credit card. Then, the voice in my head (I think it was the Holy Spirit) says, “you can’t justify spending $1000 for this thing that you don’t need.” Then I felt like Abraham negotiating with the Lord to try and save his nephew Lot from destruction in Sodom & Gomorrah (of course my motives were less pure than Abraham’s). Well, what if I just trade in my iPhone X, and get the iPhone 11 and not the iPhone 11 Pro Max? Then here comes that voice again, “Nope. You don’t need it.”

In a tongue and cheek way, I’m about to start calling Apple “The Evil Empire” because they’re so good at encouraging my idolatry. They’re so good at making addicts. But, you know, that’s the first step on the road to recovery in addictions. It’s to admit you have a problem. This is not to make light of reality of addictions. You see, the addiction that every human being shares is an addiction to sin. An addiction that leads us to search and strain for ultimate pleasure in everything but God. If you were to read you would see how Israel’s addiction to her sin exploded in idolatry that led to her destruction. And I’m grateful that Hosea’s message doesn’t end with the message of doom, gloom, destruction and devastation. Hosea ends his message by showing them and us the road to recovery.

Make no mistake about it, God reaches the inside to heal and renew addicts. The question is, can you see your addiction? This last chapter has a sandwich structure. You have these two slices of bread, a call at the beginning (vv. 1-3) and a call at the end (v. 9). The meat in the middle is the promise of God (vv. 4-8). We have a call to confession and repentance, a promise of healing and restoration, and a call to wisdom and discernment. The point is not to give you a 12 step process, but my prayer is that we would both hear and respond to God’s call and to his promise. We see the call to Repentance, the promise of Restoration, the call to Recognize the truth.

Repentance

Hosea says in v. 1, “Return O Israel to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled by your iniquity.” This is a call to repentance right? He says, y’all need to recognize that you’ve stumbled. Why have you stumbled? Because of your iniquity. Iniquity is that word that’s repeated again and again in Hosea. The city of Bethel, which means house of God, Hosea renames, “Beth-aven,” which means house of iniquity. He said to them back in 5:5, “the pride of Israel testifies to his face. Israel and Ephraim will stumble in their iniquity.” At the end of ch. 6 and the beginning of ch. 7, the LORD says,

city of Bethel, which means house of God, Hosea renames, “Beth-aven,” which means house of iniquity. He said to them back in 5:5, “the pride of Israel testifies to his face. Israel and Ephraim will stumble in their iniquity.” At the end of ch. 6 and the beginning of ch. 7, the LORD says,

“When I restore the fortunes of my people, when I heal Israel, then the iniquity of Ephraim will be exposed, and the wickedness of Samaria. For they practice falsehood. While the thief breaks in, gangs attack in the streets.”

Before restoration would come, the Lord would expose and shine a light on the ugliness of their iniquity. They wouldn’t be able to find healing until they were confronted with how desperately sick they were. And Hosea has been specific about their sin. He wasn’t generic. They practice falsehood, they are thieves, they love gang violence, they have no conscience, they rejoice over evil, they rejoice over lying, they commit adultery, they are they are alcoholics, they are mockers, they are treacherous, they’re out of control, they’re ignorant, they refuse to repent, they lack sense, they’re traitors, they are full of idolatry. And that list is just from ch. 7!

Over the course of his ministry Hosea has been calling the people to repent, to recognize their sin and turn to the Lord, “Come,” he said in 6:1, “let us return to the LORD. For he tore us that he may heal us. He has struck us down, and he will bind us up.” The people’s response throughout has been, “No. We refuse to repent.”

So, his last word is to reissue the call; to expose the fact that they’ve stumbled. Here in v. 1 he calls the people to a complete repentance, not giving God lip service. And he does it a little differently than he has in other parts of the book. And I love what he does. He leads the people in a corporate confession of sin and repentance.

He says to them in v. 2, “Take with you words.” That is, in your return to the Lord your God, take these words with you. This is what you are to say to the Lord [Irwyn’s translation],

“You take away every iniquity and receive what is good. So we vow our lips as bulls. Assyria will not save us. We will not ride upon horses. And we will not again say, “our God,” to the work of our hands. With you the orphan finds mercy.”

He dictates to them what they are to say. He puts the words of confession in their mouths. This is what you are to say. But wait a minute pastor. Isn’t that cheating? Doesn’t their confession have to be from the heart? Don’t they have to come up with their own words for it to be genuine? Of course genuine repentance has to be from the heart, and cannot be merely words we say. But notice this with me. This is a call to corporate confession. This is a call to be a confessing people.

I might privately and individually confess my sins to the Lord, but the Lord is interested in creating a community of confessors. Hosea has shown Israel that they have become a people who are defined by adultery and idolatry. He is now calling them to become a people who are defined by confession and repentance. And that’s still the call. What Jesus Christ creates in his church are communities that are defined by confession and repentance. So you will normally find plural pronouns in the Bible when it comes to this. In this confession Hosea tells Israel to say, “we vow our lips. Assyria will not save us. We will not ride on horses. We will not say, “our God,” to the work of our hands.” The apostle John will come centuries later and say to the church in , “If we way we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from every unrighteousness.” The one who cleanses and forgives is singular, the Lord. Those who confess and receive forgiveness are plural, the people of God.

What did Israel put their stock in? The put their stock in the fact that they were chosen by God. They were the elect. They operated with a pride and arrogance in their election, instead of a humility. Christians can do the same thing. Jesus says to his disciples in , you didn’t choose me, but I chose you. But if we realize how jacked up we are, being chosen by Christ should result in a deep deep humility and gratitude that overflows into an ongoing life of confession and repentance.

That’s why we take the time every Sunday in worship for corporate confession. When we do it, our desire is that they are not simply words that we repeat to get on with the service. But that the Spirit of God has, through the preaching of the word, exposed the sin and idolatry of our hearts and we come to God corporately, knowing that he hears and forgives.

That’s precisely the content of Hosea’s prayer. He begins with confessing that the Lord is forgiving, “You take away all iniquity.” Let the Lord know that you know that he accepts what is good. That is, he accepts confession from the heart. So let him know that we offer/vow the sacrifice of our lips as bulls. And in so doing, we will turn away from seeking security and salvation in anyone but you. “Assyria will not save us.” This is evidenced by not sending envoys out to them to pay tribute, make treaty’s, and become their subjects. We will reject our idolatry. “We will not call the work of our hands, ‘our god.’ We will not give divine status to anything that has been created. He ends the prayer with words that imply, “we will not boast in our status as the people of God. We are orphans and not worthy to be called sons. But we rejoice that the orphan finds compassion with you.”

Restoration

We don’t see an “Amen” at the end of Hosea’s prayer of confession in v. 3, but we might be tempted to say, “Amen,” and go home rejoicing. But not yet, because it gets better. There’s a word of assurance that comes after his confession. There is a word of promise that follows, and it comes directly from God himself. There’s a shift in the person speaking. The Lord says in v. 4, “I will heal their apostasy. I’m going to heal their backsliding. I’m going to heal their waywardness. I’m going to heal their rebelliousness.” Here’s the meat of the chapter. God’s promise of restoration. The Lord stated the problem back in ,

When Ephraim sees his sickness, and Judah his wounds, Ephraim goes to Assyria, and he appeals to the great king. But he is not able to heal you. Nor is he able to cure you of your wound.

They thought they could find their healing in Assyria. Hosea directs them to confess, “Assyria will not save us.” The Lord responds and says, “I know, but I can. I am the Lord your healer. I will heal you. You’re sick. You have a sickness that no one can heal but me.” That’s part of what makes this promise so phenomenal. There’s a call to return, but they can’t return unless the Lord acts. The Lord says, “I will love them freely. For my anger has turned away from them.” Real free love has nothing to do with the hippie movement of the sixties. Free love is God’s gracious love that he lavishes on undeserving sick folk like you and me. This book is being wrapped up with a reminder of the Lord’s promise back in ch. 2:14, back when Hosea and his marriage to Gomer were still front and center in the book, serving as a metaphor for God’s relationship with Israel. He promises in 2:14, “I myself am going to allure her. I will lead her in the wilderness, and I will speak to her heart.”

This love has to be free because we can’t earn it. It has to be free because there is nothing in us that makes us deserving of God’s love. If we don’t grasp our sickness, the Lord talking about loving people freely won’t make any sense.

That’s the problem Jesus is dealing with in from our Scripture reading. He calls Levi, the tax collector, a man of ill repute, to follow him. Levi becomes a disciple and has Jesus over to his house where other people whose reputations are as bad as his were invited. And Jesus is chillin’ with these people. He is “reclining at table.” They are enjoying a meal together. The Pharisees, who don’t understand God’s free love, say to Jesus’ disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus hears their complaint and says,

Matthew 9:12–13 ESV

12 But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

man of ill repute, to follow him. Levi becomes a disciple and has Jesus over to his house where other people whose reputations are as bad as his were invited. And Jesus is chillin’ with these people. He is “reclining at table.” They are enjoying a meal together. The Pharisees, who don’t understand God’s free love, say to Jesus’ disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus hears their complaint and says,

He responds by quoting from , “I desire mercy and not sacrifice.” I’m no here to call the righteous. I’m here to call sinners to repentance. Of course, the Pharisees had missed words of and 53 that declare, “No one does good, not even one.” They missed their own sickness.

“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” ( ESV)

Jesus comes and confirms God’s promise of restoration and healing and love in . We ought not miss the fact that this promise is nothing short of the fullness of the kingdom of God.

What does the Lord mean when he says,

Hosea 14:5–7 ESV

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.

I will be like the dew to Israel; he shall blossom like the lily; he shall take root like the trees of Lebanon; his shoots shall spread out; his beauty shall be like the olive, and his fragrance like Lebanon. 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. ( ESV)

This is a picture of provision. Without dew their agricultural season would be cut short. Although the dew burns away in the heat of the Sun, the daily morning mist over the ground was necessary for agriculture throughout most of the year. This promise is a picture of beauty and abundance and protection. The sickly, rebellious people will be healed and they will blossom like the lily. They’ll be smelling good. They will dwell under his shadow. God is making his people beautiful, he is providing for them, and he is protecting them.

This is the outworking of the Lord’s free love towards his people. It’s the type of love that beautifies from the inside out. It’s the type of love that Christ has for his church. The love the apostle Paul talks about in when he says,

Ephesians 5:25–27 ESV

25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

Hosea is saying that’s what it looks like in the kingdom of God. The promise of healing and restoration is a promise to clean us up, to bind us to himself forever. In , the Lord uses the richest agricultural terminology to describe it. Then he wraps that promise in one more word of assurance in v. 8,

Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. ( ESV)

Hosea 14:8 ESV

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.

This is a rhetorical question. What have I to do with idols? The sense of the question looks back to the beginning of their relationship with the Lord to the present. He’s asking, what have I ever to do with idols? The answer is nothing. Your fruit, your provision never came from idols. It always came from me, and it still comes from me. What this should’ve done for Israel, and what it should do for us is keep us assured of the reality of God’s promise. Remember that this promise is made in the middle of a desperate and dire situation for the nation. Their nation is going to be overrun by the Assyrians. Their once prosperous economy is in shambles. Everything is falling apart. People are going to die in warfare.

Hosea 13:16 ESV

16 Samaria shall bear her guilt, because she has rebelled against her God; they shall fall by the sword; their little ones shall be dashed in pieces, and their pregnant women ripped open.

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.

prosperous economy is in shambles. Everything is falling apart. People are going to die in warfare.

Here comes this promise of love and dew and beauty and flourishing and protection and abundance, while everything around them is saying the opposite. The Lord is saying, “I never had anything to do with idols. I still have nothing to do with idols.” You let your material prosperity drive you into false worship. The promise is sure, so don’t let the loss of your prosperity drive you into idolatry either. God’s promise of love to those who repent and turn to him is sure no matter what the circumstances look like.

Samaria shall bear her guilt, because she has rebelled against her God; they shall fall by the sword; their little ones shall be dashed in pieces, and their pregnant women ripped open. ( ESV)

Recognize

The first slice of bread in this road to recovery sandwich was a call to repentance. The meat in the middle is the assurance of God’s promise to those who repent. The final slice of bread from Hosea is a call to recognize the truth of what he’s saying in v. 9. He says… (Irwyn’s translation)

Who is wise? Let him understand these things. Whoever is discerning let him know them. For the ways of the Lord are right, and the righteous live by them, but the rebellious stumble by them.

He wraps up the entire book with a wisdom saying, a proverb if you will. In 13:13 Hosea said Ephraim was an unwise son. Why? Because he didn’t recognize his opportunity to repent and be born into a new life with God. They were saying, no thanks, we’re not interested in repentance and restoration on God’s terms. Hosea’s last call is, “don’t be a fool.” Don’t be unwise children. I’m calling for you all to have wisdom and discernment in response to the things I’ve written. When he says, “let the wise understand these things, let the discerning know them,” the “these things” is the entirety of his message. Everything from his jacked up marriage to Gomer, all the pain that was there in dealing with an unfaithful wife, addicted to a life of prostitution. How he redeemed her, went and paid money to a pimp to buy his own wife back, and instead of treating her like a worthless slave, recommitted himself to her. Hosea’s call is letting us know that you need the wisdom and the discernment that comes from God in order to make the connection that’s it’s about you not them. It’s a picture of your rebellion and the lengths to which God has gone to buy you back, to redeem you. You need the wisdom that comes from God to see clearly that this message is about the cross of Jesus Christ. It’s about God’s dissatisfaction to leave you in your rebellion, and the lengths to which he would go, the price he would be willing to pay, the death of the Son of God, so that you could receive the promise of getting beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning and sorrow.

I love his last word. Recognize that the ways of the Lord are right. That is, the ways of the Lord are straight, and smooth. The righteous walk by them/live by them. The rebellious stumble by them. Who are the righteous? The righteous are those who respond to the call to repent. The rebellious are those who reject the call to confess your sin and repent. The rebellious are those who think Jesus wasn’t talking about them when he said I came to call sinners to repentance. The rebellious are those who think he was talking about other folk. The rebellious are those who want to remain in their addition to sin. Hosea started the chapter by saying to Israel, your iniquity has caused you to stumble. He end the chapter by saying, if you want to continue to rebel and refuse to repent, then you’ll keep on stumbling.

The implication of v. 9 is that this confession and repentance is not just about making a one time decision to follow Jesus. “I’m good because I repented of my sin and put my trust in Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord.” Amen. But this call is not about getting your ticket to heaven punched. It’s about a life and lifestyle of confession and repentance. The ways of the Lord are right. They are straight. And the righteous do what? They live by them. They base their very lives on the ways of the Lord. They live daily following his ways.

call is not about getting your ticket to heaven punched. It’s about a life and lifestyle of confession and repentance. The ways of the Lord are right. They are straight. And the righteous do what? They live by them. They base their very lives on the ways of the Lord. They live daily following his ways.

Hosea ends his message with a snapshot picture of two kinds of people. He has delivered to them the word of the Lord. His message has been hard to hear, and at several points hard to understand. But he’s had a lot to say about the ways of the Lord in terms of what he’s condemned in their lifestyle. He has shown them the perils of prosperity, condemning the consumerism and materialism that dominates their minds, the adultery and prostitution that they’re satisfied to keep practicing, their injustice and lack of care for the poor, their clamoring for political position and power by deceit and treachery, their self-indulgent desire to pursue the good life by any means necessary. Hosea has said that judgement is coming because they embrace what the Lord hates, and refuse to do what the Lord loves which is to repent so that they can do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with their God.

Just like Jesus does when he speaks in parables and says, “he who has ears to hear, let him hear,” Hosea is asking do you have the wisdom that comes from God to hear my words and understand. Because the same word causes some to respond with confession, repentance and submission to the Lord, receiving restoration, reconciliation and life in his ways, while it causes others to keep on stumbling, tripped up because they’re angered and offended over the ways of the Lord. They want their ways to be the Lord’s ways instead of the other way around.

As one commentator asks, “How do you read the words of this book? Are they life or death?” Are these words to you a promise of healing and restoration that you joyfully embrace, because you recognize that they’re true? And so as your sin is exposed, you responding to your stumbling with confession and repentance. Or are these words to you simply that. Words on a page that have no application to you, make no diagnosis about you because you don’t think you have a problem? It’s them other folk who are sick. If they’d just get right we wouldn’t have problems and the world would be a better place. I ain’t no addict. I don’t need any healing or restoration…

Related Media

Related Sermons