Sermon (24-Jul): "God's Unfailing Love" Hosea 1:2-10

Scripture:

Hosea 1:2-10

2 When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, “Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the Lord.”

3 So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.

4 Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call him Jezreel, because I will soon punish the house of Jehu for the massacre at Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel.

5 In that day I will break Israel’s bow in the Valley of Jezreel.”

6 Gomer conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call her Lo-Ruhamah (which means “not loved”), for I will no longer show love to Israel, that I should at all forgive them.

7 Yet I will show love to Judah; and I will save them—not by bow, sword or battle, or by horses and horsemen, but I, the Lord their God, will save them.”

8 After she had weaned Lo-Ruhamah, Gomer had another son.

9 Then the Lord said, “Call him Lo-Ammi (which means “not my people”), for you are not my people, and I am not your God.

10 “Yet the Israelites will be like the sand on the seashore, which cannot be measured or counted. In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be called ‘children of the living God.’

Big Idea:

Realize God’s unfailing love for us may be unconventional at times but should provide the foundation for our lives

Introduction:

Elizabeth Edwards, the former wife of vice presidential candidate Senator John Edwards, described the agony she experienced when she learned of her husband's infidelities:

After I cried, and screamed, I went to the bathroom and threw up. And the next day John and I spoke. He wasn't coy, but it turned out he wasn't forthright either I felt that the ground underneath me had been pulled away.

I spent months learning to live with a single incidence of infidelity. And I would like to say that a single incidence is easy to overcome, but it is not. I am who I am. I am imperfect in a million ways, but I always thought I was the kind of woman, the kind of wife to whom a husband would be faithful. I had asked for fidelity, begged for it, really, when we married. I never need flowers or jewelry. I don't care about vacations or a nice car. But I need you to be faithful. Leave me, if you must, but be faithful to me if you are with me.

- It's no coincidence that God often uses the analogy of marital infidelity to describe our unfaithfulness. God doesn't react exactly like Elizabeth Edwards, but Scriptures does reveal God's intense anger and even grief when we are unfaithful and idolatrous. – Preaching Today

- Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi

- Sometimes they are looked at as the 12 or the Minor Prophets of the Old Testament

- When they are stacked up against the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, and Daniel or the Major Prophets

- But to be clear, each prophet is important in Israel’s history and for our understanding

- In fact, major and minor are only differentiated by the length of the book

- We as the church can still learn from the principles and happening of our spiritual blood lines

- The Apostle Paul reminds us that (Romans 15:4),

“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.”

- I remind myself that when I sit down to read or listen to the Old Testament

- It’s similar to learning about your family lineage

- That uncle you never knew or that branch in the family tree that nobody ever talks about

- The Bible doesn’t cover Israel’s history—the bad or the unglorious

- We see the bad along with the good

- It’s just the way that God set out for it to be

- It’s the down and dirty and shows us that humanity as a whole has been flawed since the beginning

- When you think about it,

- From the third chapter of the first book of the Bible (Genesis),

- We have been looking for a Redeemer

- We have been looking for Someone to set the record straight for our good

- We were and are in need of a Savior

- And the Bible tells us that in so many words

- Thankfully, God had a plan…from the very beginning

- His plan took into account our flawed nature

- It would seem that it took forever to get us there but God’s timetable looks nothing like ours

- God has to deal with us and all of our ways

- Yet, we see that God still has a love for us…

- A love that’s so amazing and beyond logic

- That it confounds me

- In all honesty, we have been an unfaithful people to an amazingly faithful God

- That’s where the Book of Hosea provides symbolism of how God is toward us

- The Book of Hosea shows us just how faithful God is and how much He loves us

- If there were any question as to whether God love you in spite of you,

- Look no further than this book

- We may think that God goes to the extreme with it

- But when it comes to God; He knows when, how and what extent to act

- God’s love is so much deeper than you and I could ever imagine…so much so that it is unfailing

- Hence the title of this message—God’s Unfailing Love

- The prophet Hosea finds Himself in such a crazy situation that it would have most of us shaking our heads

- God isn’t telling anyone today to do what He told Hosea to do

- But just imagine…you’re tasked to the northern kingdom of Israel between 700 and 800 B.C.

- Hosea is told to marry a promiscuous woman

- Because of His holy nature some have looked at this story as an allegory—

- A mere story with a hidden meaning that is not to be taken literally

- Many, and I happen to be one of those people, think otherwise

- It would be just like God to show His unfailing, unconditional love for Israel

- The example He uses in this book is “different” to say the least

- But God can use the “different” to show the depths of His love for us as He does here

- Hosea could have been alerted to the fact that his wife—Gomer—would not be faithful to him

- Then, when you add that they have children together

- It makes it even more difficult for Hosea

- So, Hosea and Gomer get married and they have three children together: Jezreel (son), Lo-Ruhamah (daughter) and Lo-Ammi (son)

- But, when you look at it, God points out three key things through these children that details His relationship with Israel

- Consequently, to us as well

- To be clear, we’re not Israel but we’re not excluded from what He is doing today

- In spite of how we feel or think about ourselves…(PAUSE)

- It’s funny how we see the northern kingdom—Israel—in a bad situation to begin with

- From Judgment,

- Not Loved…

- And Not His People

Transition: God sends us a miraculous message

Message:

- From Judgment,

2 When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, “Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the Lord.” 3 So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. 4 Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call him Jezreel, because I will soon punish the house of Jehu for the massacre at Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel. 5 In that day I will break Israel’s bow in the Valley of Jezreel.”

- Right out the gate, God gives Hosea this different or “crazy” instruction to take a wife

- And not just any woman but one of questionable character

-That’s definitely one aspect that is, most likely, not on your list when you are looking for a spouse

- Love, compassion, and respect would have all been much higher than a questionable character or “loose morals”

- The Bible points to some overlap between Isaiah, Amos and Hosea

- And, if I am Hosea, I would’ve been asking the question, “Why do I have to be the prophet to be the living metaphor of God’s love?

- He knows going into the marriage somewhat of what is ahead of him

-He knows that it’s going to be a long road ahead…a rather length journey

- But, the most important thing that we can glean here is his obedience to what God tells him to do

- I think of times where God has asked a lot less of me

- And I failed to carry it out

- What has He (God) asked you to do?

- Most times, these days, God is not asking us to do grand acts like He asked of Hosea

- He’s asking us to be kind to our neighbor and family—to our spouses, children and parents

- He’s asking us to show we love Him through how we deal with others in the community, market and on our jobs

- Think of it this way, God is not asking you to hit the ball out of the park every day of your lives

- But what if you walk up to the plate and bunt or swing to make it to first base?

- We see some of the major hits, so to speak, of the prophets and heroes of the Bible

- Still, I’m guessing that there was the bunts, singles and doubles that made up a good majority of their lives

- So, here, Hosea marries Gomer and we see she becomes pregnant with a son and God says—paraphrasing—

- “Name the boy Jezreel” or—in translation—God will scatter

- In other words, God has determined to judge and disperse the northern kingdom of Israel

- What a reminder every time Hosea calls his son

- One way or another, God was going to get his point across to Israel

- God loves obedience “Yes” but do you think that He wants heartless obedience

- He loves you too much for that

- He loves your heart committed to Him more

- He doesn’t want your robotic, blind obedience if your heart isn’t in it or towards Him

- Israel’s heart had waned towards Him

- And God didn’t do anything to deserve it

- Gomer’s heart had waned towards Hosea

- And we’re shown that Hosea loved her time and time again

- We’re told the story that Hosea still decides to marry her and be faithful to her

- His vows towards her meant something to Him

- God’s vows and heart towards us is so much greater than you could ever imagine

- Just when you think you have Him all figured out

- He astounds you every single time

- What we’re not told is how Hosea’s heart was hurt in the process

- And, of course, I liken that to God’s heart

- Hosea had love for his wife; God’s love for Israel and, consequently, for us is unfailing

- Israel’s pursuit of other “gods” or

- Our own pursuit of whatever stands in the way of our relationship with God…

- Well, there’s not that much of a difference between the two

- Whatever stands between you and your worship and relationship of God;

- It will always stand out to God’s eyes because He remains a jealous God

- He’s a God that is jealous of your affection and devotion

- His jealousy is indeed warranted

- As a husband or a wife that needs and desires the affection and devotion of a spouse in the most natural sense

- God isn’t any different

Transition: I can go on but God goes from signaling an end to Israel’s kingdom to showing more of His love for them

- Not Loved…Yet I Will Show Love,

6 Gomer conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call her Lo-Ruhamah (which means “not loved”), for I will no longer show love to Israel, that I should at all forgive them. 7 Yet I will show love to Judah; and I will save them—not by bow, sword or battle, or by horses and horsemen, but I, the Lord their God, will save them.”

- Israel’s love for God we find is…complicated

- And, it would seem that God’s love for Israel is the same

- When you factor in God’s wrath, you would think, as most…

- That God is an angry God

- I think that is far from the truth

- Israel, as God’s chosen people, over hundreds and thousands of years did a number of things that would anger any parent

- As much as God gave them, they always seemed to want more

- In their wilderness wanderings with Moses, they wanted something other than manna

- Though they had provision from God, they weren’t satisfied

- It’s one thing not to get what you want but an entirely different thing to dismiss your Provider;

- The One who is providing for your needs

- You may think that you have the skills and abilities to do it on your own

- But Who is the One that provided you the opportunity to get and utilize those skills and abilities

- As a parent, I am always pleased when my children come back and say, “Thank you!”

- When they got to the point that my wife and I freely give now, it makes all the difference

- It makes us want to do and give more

- And, it’s not about manipulating someone God to do or give more

- It’s the grateful heart aspect of it

- God looks at Israel in much the same way as a parent with their child(ren)

- It’s poetic in the sense when He says that He won’t show love or forgive them…but He turns around and says to them (v.7),

“Yet I will show love…and save them”

- God is showing them love to the utmost

- Love here means that He will show compassion, cherish and soothe Judah and us

- The same angry God that people say is in the Old Testament points to His mercy, love and compassion here

- We need to erase from our minds or reshape the perspective

- That the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New are so different, so diametrically opposed

- That they can’t be the same God

- No, like us, God has emotions but at the end of the day His heart is love

- We should know that He is fully, 100% for us particularly if we have placed our faith in Him and His Son Jesus

- He promises that it’s not the bow, sword or battle that make the difference but it is Him

- He is the difference maker

- One of my early pastors once said, in short,

“Examine your life before God (B.C) and after you have accepted Him (A.D)”

or

“Give Him as much time as you gave the enemy of your soul and you will find that God has indeed done more with the same or even less time”

- Life without God doesn’t exempt you from the storms that arise

- But who else would you want to be in the boat with?

Transition: He goes on to tell Hosea to name His second son Lo-Ammi (Not My People)

- And Not My People…They Will Be

8 After she had weaned Lo-Ruhamah, Gomer had another son. 9 Then the Lord said, “Call him Lo-Ammi (which means “not my people”), for you are not my people, and I am not your God. 10 “Yet the Israelites will be like the sand on the seashore, which cannot be measured or counted. In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be called ‘children of the living God.’ 11 The people of Judah and the people of Israel will come together; they will appoint one leader and will come up out of the land, for great will be the day of Jezreel.

- God juxtaposes and contrasts not my people with what the intent of what His true heart’s intention is

- It can be disappointing to thin that He doesn’t want to be our God, stunning in fact

- I don’t know how Israel might’ve felt but for me…

- It would have rubbed me the wrong way

- When God decides to end a relationship…you have to think that He’s weary of our actions and habits

- Yet, we see the redemption when He says where we once were not His people

- We are now (v.10)

“‘called ‘children of the living God.’”

Closing:

- God leaves us in a better state than He found us

- While your road and mine may look differently, look at where we are today

- Gathered in the same place, hearing the same Word

- In closing, all it took was God’s unfailing love to do it; to show us the way

- And, I understand, though we are all gathered and listening in one place that we are at different points in our journey

- Let the imprint of being called “a child of God” inspire and move you

Closing Prayer:

Heavenly Father, I ask you to forgive me for all of my sins known and unknown, I renounce them all. Lord Jesus, come into my heart. I receive you now as Lord and Savior of my life. I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He died for me and arose and sits at the right hand of God praying for me, interceding for me. Lord Jesus, I give you everything. I thank you for saving me, delivering me and setting me free, in Jesus’ name!