Today our text was Hosea ch 13. We've been going chapter by chapter for the past couple of months and today's reading included some important and timely truths. Including these:
Hosea 13:1-4 KJV
When Ephraim spake trembling, he exalted himself in Israel; but when he offended in Baal, he died. [2] And now they sin more and more, and have made them molten images of their silver, and idols according to their own understanding, all of it the work of the craftsmen: they say of them, Let the men that sacrifice kiss the calves. [3] Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud, and as the early dew that passeth away, as the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out of the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney. [4] Yet I am the Lord thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no god but me: for there is no saviour beside me.
When the nation had the fear of God and was humble before Him, God exalted them and blessed them. But when they turned to false gods and transgressed the law of the Lord, they died. They turned from God to stupidity. How dumb is it to make a statue and call it your god? As a result, they lost their hold on that which is Permanent. Turning away from God results in becoming stupid and foolish and you lose permanence, stability, and have nothing solid to depend on. Your days are numbered, you become like the morning dew that has no lasting value, you become inconsequential. Yet God is THE ONLY SAVIOUR. Not idols, not Egypt, not Trump, not Uncle Sam, not the CDC... GOD ALONE is the ONLY deliverer there is.
Hosea 13:5-8 KJV
I did know thee in the wilderness, in the land of great drought. [6] According to their pasture, so were they filled; they were filled, and their heart was exalted; therefore have they forgotten me. [7] Therefore I will be unto them as a lion: as a leopard by the way will I observe them : [8] I will meet them as a bear that is bereaved of her whelps , and will rend the caul of their heart, and there will I devour them like a lion: the wild beast shall tear them.
Israel knew God when times were hard. They had no supply except from God. But once in the land of milk and honey they got full and fat and forgot God and became proud and arrogant. Sound familiar? There are consequences to our actions. The nation that once relied on God, then takes God's blessings and forgets God, will pay the Piper. God Himself will be your enemy if you set yourself against Him!
Hosea 13:9-11 KJV
O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help. [10] I will be thy king: where is any other that may save thee in all thy cities? and thy judges of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes? [11] I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took him away in my wrath.
But they have destroyed themselves! God isn't going around like a lion seeking who He can devour. But those who belong to God, if they turn from Him and make Him their enemy, and reap the judgment of God against iniquity, have in fact destroyed themselves. It's your own fault if you reject God and suffer the consequences! YET ALL THIS IS CORRECTIVE. God chastises, He is trying to turn people back to Him. HE will be our help. He will be our king. Nobody else can solve our problems. Not the government, not Trump, only JEHOVAH GOD. Since He is our king His Bible is the Lawbook. We don't need 28 volumes of the United States Code or however many millions of laws man has cooked up. We have the Word of God.
We hear "The Bible contains the answers to our nation's problems" but most who say it don't believe it. If the nation would FOLLOW THE BIBLE and recognise Jesus Christ as KING -
which means recognizing the Bible as the DIVINE LEGISLATION OF OUR SOCIETY - most of our problems would resolve. Homelessness? God forbids the permanent sale of one's family property. You would always have a place to live and no mortgage or rent payment to make and no property tax to pay under threat of losing your house. Gay marriage? Not lawful, period full stop. Prisons? Not lawful except while waiting for court. And so forth.
But people don't want God to be their king. So they get oppression and corruption.
Hosea 13:12-14 KJV
The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is hid. [13] The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for he should not stay long in the place of the breaking forth of children. [14] I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.
Sin brings travail and pain. But the nation chooses to prolong it instead of reaching the conclusion in repentance. God promised to redeem Israel, and that was the Gospel message. And this redemption goes beyond social ills. It reaches death itself. Because Jesus rose, we can too. Therefore we have no fear. God WILL have a ransomed redeemed immortal people. So we need not fret about society's crash and burn trajectory. The chaff will be winnowed out, and God's people will stand.
Hosea 13:15-16 KJV
Though he be fruitful among his brethren, an east wind shall come, the wind of the Lord shall come up from the wilderness, and his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up: he shall spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels. [16] Samaria shall become desolate; for she hath rebelled against her God: they shall fall by the sword: their infants shall be dashed in pieces, and their women with child shall be ripped up.
Israel had sown the wind and would reap the whirlwind. America has done much the same. Pandemic, disease, economic issues, surveillance, geopolitical problems, defeat in endless wars that go nowhere, debt upon debt, economic bubbles popping, on and on... These are just national symptoms of national sins. We can see then the only solution is repentance. And because we have that wisdom we will not be snookered by false saviours, political movements and parties and social movements and demagogues that promise to save America but which do not preach genuine repentance and a genuine return to Jesus Christ and His Word.
Only Jesus can help us, and only Jesus WILL help us. So let us trust in JESUS ONLY, our one and only hope. He is our King, our Judge, our Lawgiver, HE will save us!
Isaiah 33:22 KJV
For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us.
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