At
first glance, the reading from Hosea 1:2-10 doesn't seem to make sense. Would
God really ask a prophet to marry a
prostitute? Well, the answer is yes he can, and yes he did. You see, this was
part of God's plan, and we all know that God's ways are not our ways, and
sometimes God's ways don't make sense to us because we can't see the overall
plan God has for someone or something.
God
wanted to teach Israel a lesson, so he told Hosea to marry Gomer the
prostitute. When God used the word whoredom, he was not necessarily referring
to prostitution. The word translated as whoredom is a broad term that refers to
various types of sexual misconduct. It only refers to prostitution in certain
cases. In the case of Hosea, it refers to a married woman being unfaithful to
her husband. This was a metaphor for Israel's unfaithfulness to God. Hosea's
marriage began well and ended badly, just like Israel's relationship with God
began well and had become bad by the time of Hosea.
Hosea
probably asked God, "Why are you doing this to me? I am a good man, I try
to be a godly man. All I want to do is have a family and raise children. Why
should I be married to the wrong woman? Why should I be forced to raise strange
children?" God's likely answer was, "It is because you are my prophet
that you are living through this situation. Who else could suffer like I
suffer, grieve like I grieve, and understand what I understand? Israel
abandoned me just like your wife abandoned you. You can grieve for Gomer like I
grieve for Israel."
God
knew that Gomer would be unfaithful and he used that knowledge to teach Israel
a lesson. He used the names of her children as statements of prophecy. The
first child, Jezreel, was a reflection of 1 Kings 21 where Ahab's wife Jezreel
planned to murder Naboth so that Ahab could seize Naboth's vineyard. The licking of Ahab's blood by the dogs was a
metaphor for God's future judgment of people who follow other gods.
The
name of Gomer's second child is translated as "No Mercy". Scholars
suggest that Hosea was not the father. He did not have the natural affection
that a father has for his children. This was a metaphor for the lack of love
that God had for Israel at this point in time.
The
name of Gomer's third child is translated as "Not My People", and
again scholars suggest that Hosea was not the father. It represents the
breaking of the natural bond that God made with Israel at Mt. Sinai; however,
this breaking of the bond did not
nullify the promises God made to Abraham. Like Abraham, Israel's salvation was
by grace through faith and not through
works of the law. The salvation would be offered through faith in the death and
resurrection of Jesus.
God
used Hosea's family to call Israel back to him and his teachings. Paul said the
same thing in Colossians 2:6-19. Both the Colossians and the Israelites had
been led away from God. In the case of the Colossians, they were led away by
false prophets. They were deceived. They forgot that in God and Jesus they were
living new lives after being forgiven of their sins. They were united with
Christ and shared his power over all earthly rules and authority. The only way
they had to gain spiritual maturity was to hold fast to their faith in Christ
and not to the man-made rules of the Pharisees.
The
story of Hosea and Gomer is really a story about God and the covenant people.
Hosea used his family struggles as a way to speak to Israel about its
unfaithfulness to God. Israel paid a heavy price for its unfaithfulness.
Reconciliation would not be easy, just like it was not easy for Hosea and Gomer
to reconcile. Israel had to learn a hard lesson. We as Christians have to learn
the same hard lesson when we forsake Christ for other worldly ambitions. Thank
goodness God is stubborn and pursues us even when we turn from him in sin. This
is Hosea's ultimate message: God is faithful to his promises and can't let us
go. His faithfulness to us overcomes our faithlessness to him and to each
other.
We
as modern Christians are also called to faith in Christ as a way of gaining spiritual maturity. It is not gained by the liturgy of the
church. It is not gained through
hymns, prayers or the minister unless
they are true expressions of faith. It is not
gained through the Book of Common Prayer or the Book of Alternative Services.
It is only gained through faith. Faith allows us to withstand
life's challenges. Faith will guide us to the end of our life's journey. It
will guide us into the time of Judgment Day when God will say "Welcome
Home!" Without faith, we will quite literally go to hell.
God
can't give us up as his children regardless of how unfaithful we have been. He loves us too much. At the same time, he
can't overlook our sins because of the damage sin does and will continue to do
as long as we hold on to our sins. Our closeness to God is broken because sin
offends God. Sin hurts us because sin always has negative consequences and cuts
us off from others, especially our brothers and sisters in Christ. God had to find a way to comfort us and heal
us-and the way he found was through Christ's death on the cross.
Jesus
came into the world for a purpose, and that purpose was to die on the cross,
the just for the unjust. When Jesus died for us, he took away our sins and
nailed them to the cross. He provided the redemption referred to in Hosea
1:2-10. We must not take that grace for granted like Israel did. We must not
drift so far from God that we can't cherish his grace. That's what happened to
Israel at the time of Hosea. When we accept Christ, our condition is changed
from condemnation and death to forgiveness and life. We are given a new
nature-one that wants to please God. We are then adopted into God's family, but
that adoption requires us to submit to Christ's authority. He paid for us with
his blood, and since we are now his, he has the right to rule our lives. We
have to let Jesus have complete control of every area of our lives-every
decision, every action, every word, every motive, every attitude and every
thought.
Hosea's
family provided juicy gossip for Israel. It was the Old Testament version of
our modern tabloids. If the National Inquirer had been around during Hosea's
lifetime, the story of Hosea's family would likely have made the front page. As
Israel listened to the gossip about Hosea's family, they learned about God's
undying love for his people. God's faithfulness combined with our faith in him
gives us hope that we can be changed, forgiven and saved. He wipes the slate
clean and renews the relationship he has with us. We are restored as children
of God.
In
the Letter to the Colossians Paul encourages us to be rooted in Christ. Israel
in Hosea's time didn't have those firm roots, so it's no wonder that they
drifted away from God. Once we have this firm foundation, Colossians teaches us
to continually renovate ourselves so that we become more Christ-like, but we
must not become rigid. We do not have to follow a rigid set of rules. All we
have to do is come to Christ in humble faith and prayer. Jesus gives us a good
example of a prayer to use in Luke 11:1-13.
There
are two forms of prayer: quiet contemplation or thanksgiving and petition.
Jesus used both forms of prayer to seek God's presence, guidance and provision
for both body and spirit. His prayer life reflected the life of friendship with
God. God met Jesus' needs when Jesus prayed, and he can meet our needs when we
pray.
When Jesus said, "Give us this day our daily bread", he was referring to the manna that the Israelites received every day when they wandered in the wilderness. It reminded them of their daily dependence on God for the basics of life. Bread serves the same function in a primitive, agricultural society where hunger is never far away. This might seem to be trivial in our modern, affluent society, but the term "daily bread" represents the modern essentials of our lives- for example, a car or medical care. God out Father listens to our requests but he does not blindly grant every one of them, just like good parents do not grant every one of a child's requests. To do so would please us in the short term, but it would also hurt us in the long run, just like granting every one of a child's requests would hurt the child in the long run. Instead, God provides what is needed, including limits and discipline.
When
I was doing my research for this homily, I found this prayer, which I thought
tied in quite nicely with the homily. It's a prayer we should all pray when we
don't get what we pray for. It goes like this:
I asked for strength that I might
achieve;
I was made weak that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked for health that I might do greater things;
I was given infirmity that I might do better things.
I asked for riches that I might be happy;
I was given poverty that I might be wise.
I asked for power that I might have the praise of men;
I was given weakness that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things that I might enjoy life;
I was given life that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing that I had asked for,
but everything that I had hoped for.
Almost despite myself my unspoken prayers were answered;
I am, among all men, most richly blessed.
I was made weak that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked for health that I might do greater things;
I was given infirmity that I might do better things.
I asked for riches that I might be happy;
I was given poverty that I might be wise.
I asked for power that I might have the praise of men;
I was given weakness that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things that I might enjoy life;
I was given life that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing that I had asked for,
but everything that I had hoped for.
Almost despite myself my unspoken prayers were answered;
I am, among all men, most richly blessed.
When
we turn to other people and things to meet our needs, we turn away from God
just like Israel did. There are so many people today who believe that if they
can simply do this or that, then their lives will be fulfilled. They are very
disappointed when they reach their goals and discover that the view from the
top isn't as great as they thought it would be. They try to hide their disappointment
with drugs, alcohol sex or material goods. They reached their goals without
asking God if their goals were compatible with his plans for their lives. We
only have to look at the recent death of Canadian actor Corey Monteith to see
the painful truth. He seemed to have it all: fame, a starring role in the hit
TV Series "Glee" and a relationship with one of his co-stars. These
signs of success hid a painful secret-an addiction to drugs. This addiction
combined with alcohol to cause his death in a Vancouver hotel room a couple of
weeks ago. God wants us to seek, ask and knock and in return he promises to
answer our prayers. We need to plant our roots deep in the faith of who Jesus
is and what he did for us. That way, when the storms of life hit us, we will
remain strong.
If
we are to be like Christ, we must also forgive others like God forgives us. We
as Christians are to be faithful reflections of the image and values of God.
How can the world learn of God's forgiveness if we do not forgive others?
The
story of the man who loaned the three loaves of bread is a metaphor for God's
promise to save his people. People in that area and culture took hospitality
seriously at that time. Failing to show hospitality would bring shame on the
host family because the traveller would go to other homes for help and tell
everyone about the person who refused to show hospitality. God refuses to allow
his name to be brought to shame, so he saves his people. In other words, he
keeps his promises and shows his own
version of hospitality.
So
how do we keep our faith strong in the face of our modern, secular, godless
society? One way is through studying the Scriptures and through prayer. Jesus
said that genuine prayer depends on knowing God instead of on our own efforts.
When we pray, we become God's warriors in our battered world, and our main duty
is to serve him. We fight our battles by being kind to people we come in
contact with, being godly to those who are non-believers and by being an
upright witness to the world for the glory of Christ who lives in us. Once we
are alive in Christ we must be and do for others what Christ has done for us.
In other words, we must be like Christ.
Society
is filled with people like Hosea and Gomer-people whose lives are messed up,
who don't have it together, who make poor choices and live with the
consequences. I know, because I'm one of them. When I was in university, I made
the poor choice of listening to a "sales letter" from a department
head and majoring in Economics. I've been paying a heavy price since
then-unemployment, underemployment, a return to school and now part-time work
that pays me an income that is well below the poverty line for a single person.
We might pretend that we are prefect, but behind our perfect appearances lie
deep flaws that exist in spite of our appearances to cover up our sinfulness.
Our
Christian life is not to be confined to a closet. Our belief must be revealed
in our practice. If we walk in Christ, then we must act as Christ would act
because Christ is in us-our hopes, our love, our joy and our lives. We are the
reflection of Jesus, and people will say of us, "They are like their
Master. They live like Jesus Christ".
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Inc.; 1990)
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C.F.: The Charles F. Stanley Life
Principles Bible NASB (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson inc.; 2009)
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Clendenin, PhD, "Lord, Teach Us to Pray". Retrieved from
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"If Jesus Forgave our Sins, Why Do We Ask God's Forgiveness?"
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McFadden, "Rooted in Christ". Retrieved from
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Joni
Eareckson Tada, "The Devil's Real Weapon". Retrieved from
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Begg, "The Practice of Walking". Retrieved from
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Lee Ann
Dunlop, "A 'Somebody Done Somebody Wrong' Song". Retrieved from
www.esermons.com
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Chrysanne
Timm, "A Marriage Made in Heaven?". Retrieved from www.esermons.com
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John W.
Wurster, "A Match Made in Heaven". Retrieved from www.esermons.com
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James
McLemore, "God Needs to Save This Family". Retrieved from www.esermons.com
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Charles L.
Aaron Jr., "When God Adds Insult to Injury". Retrieved from
www.esermons.com
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Clayton A.
Lord, Jr., "Changing Our New Life to Christ". Retrieved from
www.esermons.com
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The Rev.
Edward F. Markquart, "The Prophet and the Prostitute". Retrieved from
www.sermonsfromseattle.com
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Howard
Wallace, "Hosea 1:2-10, Year C, Pentecost 9". Retrieved from
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