Finding Gomer

Burger Con Carne

Last night KK and I celebrated our 3-year anniversary. We had dinner at the Glenn just down the way.

There was a pretty major difference between our “anniversary” meals.

KK, being a vegetarian at a burger place, ordered a wedge salad. Have you seen these things? It’s a wedge of a head of lettuce. Drizzle a little dressing on it. Sprinkle a tiny bit of chopped tomatoes… enjoy.

Waitress seemed to feel bad, offered to add a little equally sad sprinkle of chopped red onion.

By contrast, my juicy red meat burger was called the “Royal” burger. That means on top of my beautiful beef patty was a slice of corned beef. That’s right, beef on beef. Then on top of that is a runny egg.

And it was messy and huge and glorious and delicious.

I guess what I’m saying is “I like meat.”

Incarnation - Con Carne

“a person who embodies in the flesh a deity, spirit, or abstract quality."

Many many years ago, Pastor Rod Henry, who was my mentor and pastor here at Next Step, brought a Christmas sermon that stuck with me.

He talked about “chili con carne” which is literally “Chili with meat.” That’s what “con carne” means. And it’s the same root we get our word “incarnation” from. Pretty much means “with meat.” And sometimes, we need God “with meat.”

There’s an oft told story:

A little boy who was frightened by a storm one night. Several times he cried out in fear and his mother would come to his room for comfort and to remind him that God was always with him. As she prepared to leave the third time her son grabbed her arm, held tight, and said, "I know Mommy, but I want God with skin-on!"

Jesus - incarnational - God himself loving his church.

What is God’s ultimate response to the sin of the world? To weakness and brokenness? To darkness?

He enters in. He takes responsibility upon his own shoulders upon his own body.

John 1:14 ESV

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

“tabernacled among us”. My favorite Christmas passage. That’s the incarnation.

While we were yet sinners Christ died for us. That is Redeeming love.

Incarnational Hosea

Hosea is incarnational in his love. He writes, sure, or we wouldn’t have this book, we wouldn’t have this story. He communicated what God was saying to him and then through him to the people of Israel.

But more than what he said… is what he lived.

Hosea 1:2–3 ESV

When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord.” So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.

And his wife, Gomer, bore three kids… and then it seems was unfaithful to him, probably repeatedly. Hosea/God burn with jealous and righteous anger.

But God commands him to go and redeem her… because that is how God loves his people.

“While we were yet sinners, God died for us.”

Hosea 3:1 ESV

And the Lord said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress, even as the Lord loves the children of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love cakes of raisins.”

And Hosea did. Redeeming love, Relentless love, Reckless? love, Restoring love, all the things.

That is how God loves us. How beautiful is that.

Before anything else, we all need to hear that message again and again. God loves you. God loves me.

But let’s walk in Hosea’s shoes for a minute. Or for years… because that’s what this was for Hosea. Gomer has three kids with Hosea, so we can say three years married, probably more.

KK and I just celebrated our three year anniversary yesterday. Probably the worst way to illustrate 3-years of marriage, pray for me.

Gomer was possibly unfaithful during those three years, but certainly unfaithful after. Likely more years after because the letter of Hosea chapter 2 reads as written to a child who could at least read!

So when God commands Hosea to go and love Gomer as an incarnational demonstration of his Redeeming love… he is talking about Hosea’s life! This isn’t a part-time stunt. This is life and love and marriage and kids and raising those kids, and persevering past when most folks would be talking divorce...

can you imagine the counseling sessions?

Hosea is the model of God’s love, so maybe he’s perfect, but probably not, he just gets to tell the good parts. Or if he is perfect, how annoying is that???

But this is the likely the darkest season of Hosea’s life, the hardest road he has ever had to work, the pain of betrayal and loss… the weakness, the shame of being cheated on… and then in that culture the embarrassment of taking her back in to his household. It was shameful before when she was a former-prostitute, now she is that and an adulteress and “where’s your pride, man?”

That is what God commands Hosea to do. Go and love her like I love my people. Live out my love.

That’s a hard mission.

The LORD said to me...

Then, as the rescued, restored, beautiful in-process saint that you are now… God has a mission for you.

We are going through the prophets based on this idea out of 1 Cor. 14:1

1 Corinthians 14:1 ESV

Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.

So, it isn’t only hearing the message that Hosea speaks… but then seeking to be like Hosea.

Good News: God loves us like Hosea loves Gomer

Hard News: We are to love … like Hosea loves Gomer. To demonstrate how God first loved us, how He loves them, how He loves all.

Now… fill in that blank.

Does God call everyone to go and marry and love a prostitute? Nope.

Does God call everyone to love… and especially to love when it’s hardest? Absolutely.

In fact, Jesus is kind of dismissive of what we usually think of as “love.” When I really really like someone and like being with them and do I just “like like” them… or do I love them.

That isn’t the model of love Jesus calls us to. He says “love like I loved you...” which includes “while you were still enemies.

From the Sermon on the Mount:

Matthew 5:43–48 ESV

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

What reward do you have? (Talking about Jesus points).

Perfect doesn’t mean “without flaw” so much as “full and complete.” This is completeness, this is the measure of Christian maturity - to love as God has loved you and has supernaturally empowered you to love others.

Luke captures it:

Luke 6:27–28 ESV

“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.

Peter remembers it:

1 Peter 3:9 ESV

Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.

Paul packs it in in his grand conclusion in Romans 12… all about how we should live in view of his mercies:

Romans 12:14 ESV

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.

Romans 12:17–18 ESV

Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

Finding Gomer

Now… you already knew this.

And yet… it’s hard.

Sometimes it is hard to think of someone as our “enemy.” They aren’t my enemy… it’s just Carol at reception and she’s so loud on the phone and just drives me CRAZY and she says the same thing over and over and I can’t take it!!!

No, not my enemy, just someone I find it CRAZY hard to love.

Or maybe you know perfectly well who your enemy is… because they hurt you, are actively hurting you, are dangerous physically or emotionally.

Sometimes God commands us to step into unsafe and vulnerable conditions. Notice, that’s an explicit command God gives Hosea “go get her.” “Go love her again.”

We have no idea what the process was, what the boundaries were, whether there was repentance from Gomer… we guess at all those details. It would be easy to twist this into a command for spouses to stay in abusive relationships, for example. That isn’t the picture here.

You can love the worst and vilest enemy, praying for them, blessing them. Living at “peace” with them as far as it is up to you.

Quite often “love” requires boundaries and structure… that’s certainly how God’s love for us operates. And we are to love as He loves us.

When we love supernaturally, in situations and circumstances, in relationships where love doesn’t make sense… that is where it has to be divine. Where it has to be God’s love. For it has gone beyond the ordinary.

That is incarnational love.

So here is the question: who is the enemy God is calling you to love?

Maybe the come to mind right away… and you keep shying away from that name because you know what’s coming next and you REALLY don’t want to do anything kind or nice or really connect or talk with them at all.

Sounds perfect.

Or, maybe you need a minute. Pay attention to the emotions you feel towards your coworkers, your friends, your neighbors. Who are you avoiding? Who are fake smiling / grinding your teeth at? It can be me, I receive that.

Find your Gomer. Who is God calling you to love “incarnationally?” To love as He has loved you.

And then, how are you going to love them?

Pro tip: Don’t marry them unless God commands you to. Or you are already married to them. ;)

How are you going to love them? At the very least, we have a list in those verses. Pray for them. Bless them… and not just when they sneeze.

To bless them is to “project good into their life...” and the usual meaning is to actually do the good, not just wish it. You bless someone by serving them, by giving to them, by meeting their need.

It is a completely backwards response to someone who has hurt you. Find a way to bless, to serve, to give, to in any way you can, to love.

The deeper they have hurt you, the harder this is. But also, the more the glory of God can be revealed in you.

That is God shining light in the darkness, in our weakness… for “his grace is sufficient for you, his power is made perfect in weakness.”

You may be the only Hosea they get. The best living representation of Jesus they have been sent. God with skin on.

Love as you have been loved.