Month: June 2021

THE REDEEMED ADULTEROUS

Hosea went to see the man with whom his wife was currently living. He then covered the cost of what his wife meant to that man-essentially the price of a slave. And Hosea took Gomer home to be his faithful wife for many days.

And ^“So I purchased her for myself for fifteen shekels of silver, and a homer and a lethech of barley. Then I said to her, ‘You shall live with me for many days. You shall not play the prostitute, nor shall you have another man; so I will also be toward you.'” Hosea 3:2-3

In this passage is the description of the redemptive story of Israel that will come when they are drawn by God to believe the gospel. In Hosea 3, I also see the story of my redemption. 

Redemption is illustrated many times throughout Scripture. I see it in the book of Ruth as Boaz redeems a family by purchasing land. I see it in the book of Genesis, as Noah is chosen to redeem the human race through the ark. I see redemption in the parables of Jesus, like the parodical Son and lost sheep.

I see redemption in the chapter of my own soul as, I, a soul owned and consumed by sin, was redeemed by God’s grace. For in His mercy reached down and bought my soul from it’s possession of sin. And my Husband purchase of my soul was not fifteen shekels of silver and a lethech of barley, but with His own blood. “Knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” I Peter 1:18-19

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love  he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, Eph. 1:3-7

“Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring–not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.” Rom. 4:16

THE ADULTEROUS ROMANCED

“None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands;
no one seeks for God.” Rom 3:10-11

Left to my own demise, like a sheep, I would wander in this world in my own doomed way. I am utterly incapable to even seek after God for redemption. Unless He chooses to seek me out of the wasteland of life, I am doomed to a bitter end. It is as though my eyes are completely blind to God unless He choses to open them. 

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.” John 6:44

I am not alone in my plight, all mankind suffers the same destiny if not rigorously perused by their loving Creator, Father. We are helpless to even seek out God. God’s wooing is the only source of hope for our souls to begin to desire to seek Him. 

But thankfully, God does woo. He gently romances the heart of a desperately, self-consumed sinner. And he proves to be an irresistible Lover, for no one whom He calls, is able to resist such affectionate kindness.

God is a gentleman, He does not force His hand to win the heart of His bride. No, He plans, He prepares, and He whispers. God needs His bride alone. If she is with her lovers and gods, she will be too distracted to see the emptiness of her soul. There must be a moment of desperation for the bride to run to her Bridegroom for deliverance. Note more on her wilderness experience…

So, God takes His bride away from her comforts, from her distractions, from all the silly things she calls important. He entices her to a place alone with Him. There she can clearly see how vain her pursuit of happiness has been. And there, God speaks to her heart, gently, affectionately, and with much mercy.

“And I will punish her for the feast days of Baals when she burned offerings to them and adorned herself with her ring and jewelry, and went after her lovers and forgot me, declares the Lord. Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.” This is the romancing of God on a heart, that does not even desire to seek Him.

This is truly a breathtaking moment. The God, Creator, in His perfection and holiness, in his all-knowing wisdom and glory, does not  rush down upon his chosen bride with condemnation and fierceness as she so deserves. No, God speaks gently, tenderly, softly with his still, small voice. And so, the journey of redemption begins.

ADULTEROUS: SHOWN MERCY

Despite being a chosen bride, Gomer had yet to fall in love with her husband. She did not understand that Hosea was able to give her both satisfying love and provision for her needs, she had no need to roam for love. She was loved. She had no reason to search for provision. Provision was given her.

Gomer would go live with a man who was not her husband and say: “these are the wages which my lovers have given me” Hosea 2:6. She saw all she had as a her own doing. She sought love for money, and money for love. She thought both would fulfill her and she thought both were in her power to attain.

Israel is clearly illustrated through Gomer’s story. And even yet, the prophecy remains unfulfilled as many people of the Jewish race seek gods of their own making, and are blind to the complete satisfaction and joy to be found in Jesus. 

Looking in Gomer, I can see glimpses of my own heart. I belong to God, called by His name, yet “I will go after my lovers, who gave me my bread and my water, and my wool and my flax, and my oil and my drink” Hosea 1:10. I often seek all things that I think bring comfort and joy and satisfaction to my soul. I tend to use God’s gifts of money, home, family, marriage, friendships, and provision to sacrifice to the gods of my heart.

Yet all the time it was, and is Him. “And she did not know that is was I who gave her the grain, the wine, and the oil, and who lavished on her silver and gold, which they used for Baal” Hosea 2:8.

It is God who has provided for me. He has purchased me for His own and I am His. “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never! Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, “The two will become one flesh.” But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” I Corinthians 6:15-20

God is my Husband. It is God who has given me any cause for celebration and joy in this earth. It is God who has shown me mercy, when time after time I have praised and worshiped much, but not Him.

How easy it is to follow my own heart, to my own demise, instead of simply learning to fall in love with my Husband wherein the complete satisfaction and joy of all life resides.

What the adulterous deserves? Divorce. No one, even God, should have to put up with such unfaithfulness. But what does the gentle Husband do? He clothes. He shelters. He provides food. He even gives causes for celebration and festivities. And in all that, He shows the most mercy by staying His righteous hand from breaking His vow to His unfaithful bride.

Judgement is such a misunderstood term in today’s culture. We see it as dark and overbearing. Perhaps it is because we tend to humanize judgement instead of seeing it as designed with a wonderful purpose. There are actually three reasons I considered that affect our perception of God’s judgement.

1. We wrongly see God.
2. We take seriousness of sin lightly and not as the horrific beast it truly is.
3. We do no conceive how deeply we need God.

As my knowledge of God has grown, so has my respect for who He is grown expedientially. Knowing more God cannot be valued enough. Knowledge of God will naturally put a reverence of God in the heart of a man. I could write endlessly on the attributes nature and the nuances of what I know about God from Scripture. There are those who could write even more than that. God is simply beyond our human comprehension.

I see God’s astonishing holiness, righteousness, grace, and mercy through Hosea’s eyes, as God gently draws the children of Israel back to Himself by the mercy of His judgement. It is a beautiful picture. God begins His case in what parallels to that of a courtroom.

“Listen to the word of the Lord, you sons of Israel, Because the Lord has a case against the inhabitants of the land, For there is no faithfulness, nor loyalty, Nor knowledge of God in the land.” Hosea 4:1

The courtroom scene I see in Hosea helps sweeten my understanding of God’s judgement. God does not have to explain Himself or the wrong done Him by His created and chosen. But God takes time to explain in verse after verse, the iniquity of His people.

“And the rebels have gone deep in depravity, But I will discipline all of them. I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hidden from Me; Because now, Ephraim, you have been unfaithful, Israel has defiled itself. Their deeds will not allow them To return to their God. For a spirit of infidelity is within them, And they do not know the Lord.” Hosea 5:3-4

On their own, the wicked have no ability to turn to God. Depravity is met with more depravity. Divine assistance is needed for the depraved man to even notice that he or she is depraved. One must be placed in the wilderness, alone, with none of the comforts of life, with no souls to comfort. One must see the utter desolation of his or her life before one can even see their Hope and call out to Him for deliverance.

“I will also make her like a wilderness, Make her like desert land, And put her to death with thirst.” Hosea 2:3b

Judgement precedes restoration. This is what makes the cross so beautiful to us. Because the judgement we deserve for all our sins is an eternal judgement without hope of restoration. Instead of entering into that judgment

 “Come, let’s return to the Lord.
For He has torn us, but He will heal us;
He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.
He will revive us after two days;
He will raise us up on the third day,
That we may live before Him.
So let’s learn, let’s press on to know the Lord.
His appearance is as sure as the dawn;
And He will come to us like the rain,
As the spring rain waters the earth.” Hosea 6:1

ADULTEROUS: THE CHOSEN BRIDE

“When the LORD first spoke through Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea, “Go, take yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom” Hosea 1:2.

So, while Gomer was a pagan, self-seeking, harlot, Hosea chose her, knowing completely the pain and trouble she would repetitively bring to him. Hosea did not chose to marry Gomer because she was seeking God, or even because she showed potential of being a faithful wife someday. Hosea chose Gomer because she was hopelessly depraved, and unknowingly desperate of redemption.

As I continually see God’s choice as the only factor in the redemption of mankind. I see it in the moment God choose a people, starting with Abram.

“And Joshua said to all the people, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Long ago, your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and they served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and led him through all the land of Canaan, and made his offspring many. I gave him Isaac'” Joshua 24:2-3.

God did not choose Abram because Abram was a worshiper of God. Abram and his family were idol worshippers. It wasn’t until God called out Abram that Abram put his faith in God and left his family for a distant promise. It was God who drew Abram’s heart toward Himself, even giving Abram the necessary faith in order to make a covenant with a sinful man and giving Abram a new name…Abraham. And through Abraham, God chose Israel, a people he knew would utterly reject Him over and over, causing Him great grief.

“For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for His own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. The Lord did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any of the peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but because the Lord loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers, the Lord brought you out by a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt” Deuteronomy 7:6-8.

And now it is I, I am the one who has been chosen. As the gospel was spread to all the parts of the world to fulfill God’s plan, here I am today, several thousand years after Christ’s atoning blood was shed, rejoicing in the truth that I too am “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy” I Peter 2:9-10.

COVENANT, SACRED, HOLY, MARRIAGE

Marriage is a covenant that merely gives us, in our limited human nature, a snapshot of the deep, eternal covenant God has made with us as His eternal bride. Marriage on earth, although sacred, is temporal, and a covenant capable of being broken.

In contrast: the covenant Christ has made with us, His bride, is an impeccably sacred and pure covenant. It is an eternal covenant. And unlike earthly covenants, no amount of unfaithfulness on my part will ever break it. The covenant between Christ and the church is holy, sacred, eternal, and unbreakable. God’s covenant with me is unlike anything my earthly mind can comprehend.

In Hosea 2:19-20 we read a beautiful promise that has yet to be fulfilled for Israel, but in the promise is the words of God’s vows to His Bride. The promise God gives Israel is one that cannot be made here on earth. His commitment to His covenant is one we can only we relate to through our finite marriage vows. “And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the LORD.”

The sweetness I see is the covenant is made by an absolutely perfect, holy, and all powerful Being to very wicked, unholy, and powerless beings.

IDENTITY: ADULTEROUS

I would like to take a moment to embrace and identify with the word “adulteress.” I want to absorb the feeling of a deep and very personal form of unfaithfulness. I want to get a sense of the pain and destruction that adultery has on a sacred covenant, as it destroys trust and taints intimacy. And oh, the heartbreak, shock, insult, and damage adultery wreaks on lives people as it leaves brokenness in its trail. Adultery has dissolved many a marriage covenant. It has forever changed the course the lives of many within each family it touches. Adultery causes immense pain on multiple fronts. 

It is simple for a woman who is faithful in covenant keeping, to dissociate herself with her adulterous nature. She can pridefully think herself above such a description as adultery, as though she is not a covenant breaker. This is the place I was at as I began to read passage after passage in Hosea. 

I felt for poor Hosea as his life was spent picking up pieces from his ongoing marriage to an unfaithful woman. And then one day, my perception of the characters turned.

It is God who is pictured as in the imagery of Hosea. And it is Gomer who is the analogy of God’s people, Israel. Identifying with Hosea was the course my pride had taken me, when it is most certainly Hosea’s wife, Gomer with whom I should see myself.