HOSEA 1-14 IT IS TIME TO SEEK THE LORD2013 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Hosea 1-14 It Is Time To Seek The Lord

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2013.

Well, this evening we're looking at the book of Hosea. We're going to be looking at the entire book because that's what we read this week. The book of Hosea, as I said, is the first of the minor prophets. Now, I think it's always important to point out the minor prophets are not called minor because it's not saying, you know, these are the insignificant prophets. These are called the minor prophets because they are smaller in size. And

They are grouped together because of their small size. And in fact, when the word was written on scrolls, you could fit the minor prophets all on one scroll. So they're grouped together that way. So they had the major prophets and then the minor prophets because they're smaller works that are easily grouped together. And so...

We're starting with Hosea. We read Hosea this week. This coming week, starting tomorrow, we'll be looking at the book of Joel and heading in through the book of Amos this week as well. And then on to Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. So those are the minor prophets. We're going to be studying those over the next couple of weeks. And most nights we'll be hitting a couple books a week.

Because again, they are a lot smaller and shorter in size. The book of Hosea is, of course, the recordings of Hosea's ministry and his prophecies. He ministered from about 760 to 720 BC. He was prophesying primarily to Israel, which is the northern kingdom.

Although he does make some references to Judah as well, but primarily he's dealing with Israel, who he calls Israel or Jacob or Ephraim throughout the book. His purpose is to, first of all, demonstrate God's loving relationship with his people.

Hosea, like the prophet Ezekiel, like the prophet Jeremiah, his life itself was a message to the nation. And so God is demonstrating his love and the unfaithfulness of his people through the prophet Hosea and his wife.

Secondly, he was also ministering to call Israel to repentance, to call them to get right with the Lord. Now, when Hosea was prophesying, he also had a couple guys, you know, around the same time period. Amos, Isaiah, and Micah were also ministering about the same time. So here's a quick look at the timeline for the minor prophets. You have Israel and Judah. The kingdom is split.

Hosea is prophesying right towards the end and up to the final destruction of the nation of Israel by the nation of Assyria. So the Assyrian Empire invades, conquers Israel.

Remember they attempted to conquer Judah. That was under King Hezekiah's reign. And then God sent an angel and wiped out 186,000 of the Assyrian soldiers in one night. So it's that time period that we're talking about. Hosea is ministering to the northern kingdom right before their destruction.

So remember in Jeremiah, he prophesied calling the people to repentance right up until the time that they were destroyed. Well, Hosea is that role for the northern kingdom. He's prophesying to them right up until the final destruction of the nation by Assyria. At the same time, Amos and Micah and Isaiah are prophesying as well.

Here's a quick look at the geography for the prophet Hosea. Again, the kingdom was split in two. And so he was primarily ministering to the northern kingdom. The southern kingdom, Judah, that's where Jerusalem was. They had the temple. They had some good kings. They had some revivals. But both nations as a whole were in rebellion against God and spiraling downwards. And so he was ministering to the northern kingdom.

Israel though never had a good king. They were all bad kings. They were wicked from the get-go. And so Hosea is ministering at the tail end of this nation. You know where they're the worst of the worst. Right before God brings this destruction upon them.

Here's another timeline you can kind of see and get some perspective here. So in 933 is when Israel was divided into two kingdoms. That was after Solomon's reign. Then in 782, Jeroboam II began to reign in Israel. And so Hosea began to prophesy during his reign.

And he goes on to prophesy all the way until shortly after Assyria conquers Israel. So covering quite a few kings for the nation of Israel, as well as the nation of Judah, his ministry, you know, was that final call to repentance as this destruction was coming. So now we start in chapter 1, verse 2 is the key verse. And it says, When the Lord began to speak by Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea,

So in verses 1 through 3, Hosea marries Gomer.

It tells us in verse 1, the time frame for Hosea's ministry. It tells us that it happened in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, who were the kings of Judah, as well as in the days of Jeroboam, the king of Israel. So that's where we get the time frame from that Hosea was ministering. So it's in this time frame, the final days of the nation of Israel, and God speaks to Hosea.

He began his ministry this way. He began to speak to Hosea this way. He says, take yourself a wife of harlotry. And so Hosea is obedient. And he goes out. He finds a woman named Gomer. And he marries her. And then...

She gives birth to a son. Now, we're going to be talking about harlotry throughout the whole book of Hosea because this is how God began his ministry and it was the general message of Hosea the prophet or really the message of the Lord through Hosea the prophet. And so this idea of harlotry...

In marriage, this unfaithfulness of harlotry, God is saying this is a picture of the nation's unfaithfulness to God. We've often seen this in the scriptures, right? Marriage is a picture of the relationship that God desires to have with each person.

Marriage is that picture of that love relationship between us and God. It's the same kind of love, the same kind of commitment. Now, in this marriage relationship, we need to understand that God requires an exclusive relationship. Just as in marriage, it's required that the relationship be exclusive, it's

In walking with God, the requirement is that it be exclusive. Israel was not worshiping only God, but they were also worshiping other gods.

And so Hosea the prophet is there to call the people to repent of idolatry, which is likened to harlotry. And so as we go through this this evening, I'm going to be asking you if you need to repent of idolatry. Do you? Do you need to repent? Is there idolatry in your life and in your heart?

Now, I'm not suggesting that you're bowing down before images of, you know, wood or stone or gold. But the real question is, and you can evaluate it this way, what do you trust in? Where is your heart at in your trust? What are you resting upon? Or you could also evaluate if you are involved in idolatry by answering, where do you get your counsel from? Where do you...

go to hear wisdom or counsel. What are you receiving in order for you to make decisions? What's determining the course that you take in your life? What's determining the steps do you take? Or maybe another way to evaluate whether or not you're involved in idolatry is by considering the question, what do you worry about? If you're worrying about things, then

There's a, I mean, that's a good indication that there's some idolatry going on. What are you worried about? What are you consumed with? What are you anxious about? There is a real need for us to evaluate this question. Do I need to repent of idolatry? We could easily dismiss it and say, oh no, you know, there's nothing like that. And yet,

It so easily creeps into our lives. Our hearts are divided and turned to other things. And we begin to trust in other things. We begin to seek counsel from other things. We begin to worry about things because we're not trusting God. We're not hearing from God and we're not walking with God. And that was the condition of the nation of Israel.

They were not trusting in God. They were not hearing from God. They were not walking with God. And so they were worried about all kinds of things because they were separated from God. Because that's what idolatry is all about. And so God begins this message to the nation through Hosea saying,

You're going to model this. You're going to model the harlotry, spiritual harlotry that is going on by marrying a harlot, by marrying someone who is a prostitute. And God is saying, in the same way, I am married to the nation of Israel and they are unfaithful. They are harlots, spiritually speaking, in the same way that Hosea's wife was a harlot, quite literally.

Well, then in verses 4 through 9, God names Hosea's children. So the example and the message through Hosea extends to his family. And now the names of his children are meaningful. And it's a message from God. And we'll come back and look at those in the next couple moments and what those different names mean. Then in verses 10 and 11, he says that Judah and Israel shall be gathered together. Now this is beautiful because

He does this throughout the book. We've seen this also in other passages. God often gives promises of blessings alongside of the announcement of judgment because he wants people to know. God says, when I judge, it's not my way of saying goodbye. When I bring judgment, we might feel that way, but God's saying, no, when I bring judgment, it's not because I'm done with you or because I want nothing more to do with you.

God still has his plans for a future and a hope. He still wants to work.

And so he wants them to know, yes, I'm bringing this judgment because of your wickedness, but I'm not done with you. In verse 10 it says, Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered, and it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them, You are not my people. There it shall be said to them, You are the sons of the living God. God says to them, You're unfaithful.

Spiritually speaking, you're a harlot and you deserve this judgment that is coming, but I'm going to gather you together and you're going to be multiplied as the sand of the sea. And although right now you're known as not being my people, you will be my people one day. And so God is giving a glimmer of hope to let the people know, I'm not done yet.

Now Hosea had three children that was recorded here. He could have had more, we don't know. But Hosea and Gomer had first of all a son. God says, name him Jezreel. And he explains why. He says, I'm going to avenge the bloodshed of Jezreel on the house of Jehu. Now that goes back to 2 Kings, I think chapters 9 and 10.

where Jehu is used by the Lord and commanded by the Lord to bring vengeance for the iniquity that had been going on. But he takes it farther than what God had instructed. And so God is now avenging the bloodshed on the house of Jehu. And so he tells Hosea to name his son Jezreel to indicate that. Then he has a daughter. The daughter is named Lo-Ruhamah.

Her name literally means no mercy. And so the message that God is giving by naming the daughter that way, he says, I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel. Now remember, mercy is the withholding of judgment that is deserved. And so God is saying, I've been withholding judgment. I'm not going to any longer. And he gives that message through the daughter of Hosea.

Well, and then they have a son. He says, name the son Lo-Ami. Literally, his name means not my people. And God says, this is the message. You are not my people and I will not be your God. And so you see this separation taking place. You are not my people, God says. Now, not because God has unchosen them, but because they have refused God.

To choose God. To walk with God. And so he's declaring the reality of their condition. They are not his people. And so he is not their God. Because they have chosen to not be his people. And that's the message of the children of Hosea and Gomer. Well now in chapter 2 verse 13 it says...

I will punish her for the days of the Baals to which she burned incense. She decked herself with her earrings and jewelry and went after her lovers. But me, she forgot, says the Lord. In verses 1 through 13, God says, let her put away her harlotries, lest I strip her naked. He says, let her turn away from the sin or she will be ashamed of her sin.

In verse 2 he says, He says, He says,

And verse 5 he says, you know, your mother has played the harlot. Saying, I'm going to go after my lovers. And these are my lovers who give me bread and water. And wool and linen. And oil and drink. And I'm going to go after those who can provide me those things. Now again, this prompts us to consider, do I need to repent of idolatry? I was reading an article this week that was talking about money.

and money problems specifically. And the author was stating that money problems are pretty much always the result of idolatry. And I thought that was a pretty interesting thought to consider. You know, money problems are the result of idolatry. Typically, we would think of money problems and idolatry being tied to having too much money. But

When you consider it, when you're consumed with not having enough money, that can be idolatry as well. There's an issue there and it's very likely that you don't have enough money because of the idolatry that you practice, the idolatry that's going on. And so it's very appropriate for us to consider, maybe just looking at your finances, do I need to repent of this?

idolatry. Maybe I don't have that much money because I have an idolatry issue. But again you could consider who do I trust in? Who do I get counsel from? Who am I looking to for bread and water and wool and linen and oil and drink? Who am I looking to to provide for my needs? To meet my needs and to provide the things that I need? Or what am I worrying about? Am I worrying about these provisions?

Again, these are indications that there's idolatry going on, that we're not trusting the Lord. And so God says she's pursuing all these things to get these things. And he says in verse 6, I'm going to hide her lovers from her. And then in verse 7, he says she's going to try to turn back to me, but she's not going to find me. And God explains in verse 8 that she didn't know that he was the one providing for her.

So here's Israel pursuing these false gods, trusting in these other nations, trusting in these other things instead of God. And they think, look, it's working. We have the things that we need. But Israel was misled. God was still providing the things that they needed, even though they were involved in spiritual harlotry, idolatry, and chasing after things that were not of God. God still met their needs. God still was providing for them for a season.

And Israel didn't recognize this is God providing. They thought, look, we've come up with some clever solutions to our problems. We've, you know, got this God here. We've got that provision there. We've got this, you know, political arrangement here. We've done pretty well for ourselves. And God says, no, I'm going to take it away. I'm going to remove my provision so that you can recognize that those gods are not able to provide it for you. You know, what's interesting about this is that

It points out, it highlights the issue that we cannot rebel against God unless we use the resources he has given us. The only way that you and I can rebel against the Lord is with what he has given us. If you're going to rebel against the Lord, it's with his resources. And so it's like a double insult. They're taking what God has given and then they're offering it to idols.

They're spending it on things that are not of God. Now, think about that. Can you imagine buying your spouse or maybe someone special to you? You buy them something nice for Christmas. And they say, oh, thank you so much. I was wanting this, you know, so I could go and cheat on you and be with somebody else. That's kind of what's going on. God's providing for them. They're taking his resources and they're practicing harlotry. They're

Uniting their hearts to things that are not the Lord. But again, God gives a glimmer of hope in verses 14 through 23. He says, I will betroth you to me forever. So you're a harlot, you're idolatrous, yet I will betroth you to me forever. He says in verse 16, it shall be in that day, says the Lord, that you will call me my husband and no longer call me my master.

In verse 23 he says, Then I will sow her for myself in the earth, and I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy. Then I will say to those who are not my people, you are my people, and they shall say, you are my God. You see there's a reversal. Remember the names of Hosea's kids? There's a reversal of what God has delivered, that message that God delivered through Hosea's children. Before they were not going to have mercy.

But in that day, he says, they will have mercy. Before they were not my people, God says, but now they're going to be my people and I will be their God. Now this is what we're looking forward to still for the nation of Israel. This has not yet been fulfilled. It will be fulfilled during the millennial kingdom when Israel will have the full relationship with God that it's meant to have. But the point here is it's amazing how merciful God is.

Even though Israel has taken God's resources and used them to pursue other gods, he still says, I will be betrothed to you. We're going to be united. I still have a future and a hope for you. Well, that brings us now to chapter 3, verse 1. It says, Then the Lord said to me, Go again, love a woman who is loved by a lover and is committing adultery.

Now take a moment here and put yourself in Hosea's shoes or sandals. Marrying a harlot was probably not his dream as he was growing up.

Right? He didn't think about that and think, wow. You know, some people go to, you know, like the singles ministry or college ministries, you know, around Southern California. There's a couple guys, you know, you can think about who do that. And they go and they try to find, you know, girls. It's like, hey, it's a good place to hook up and, you know, find a woman who loves the Lord, you know. And so they're like, it's a, you know, good spot to pick someone out.

Hosea wasn't thinking, you know, I'm going to go to the corners where the prostitutes are to try to find a wife. That's not his dream. But that's what God told him to do. And so he goes. He goes. He gets married. They have three kids. And then she runs back into prostitution. Back into harlotry. Now Hosea definitely is hurt. Right? Who wouldn't be hurt? Of course he's hurt. Now maybe he's not too surprised because...

That's who she was when he found her, when God told him to marry her. So maybe not too surprised, but still hurt. Hurt deeply, hurt greatly by this betrayal, by what has gone on. But now God says, hey Hosea, your wife, she's back enslaved again in prostitution. You need to buy her out. Buy her out, bring her home, and love her again.

I mean, I don't know what goes through your mind when you read things like this or consider things like this, but I think if I was Hosea, I'd put on my running shoes and I'd say, hey Jonah, let's go for a run. Let's get out. How do you expect me to go bring her back and love her again? We see a great example here in the prophet Hosea. Are you willing to obey God like that? Are you willing? Really think about this, okay? If God...

told you to do what he told Hosea to do, would you be willing to do it? Now, let me just tell you, you should be willing to do what Hosea did. Your heart needs to be changed. You need to be right with the Lord to such a degree that you are willing to obey God, even if he tells you to do what he told Hosea to do. Listen, Christian marriages would be radically different.

If we were willing to obey God like that. Churches would be radically different. The world would be radically different. If we were willing to obey God in the same way that Hosea did. God tells Hosea to go back and bring her home. Because in verses 1 through 5 he says, Israel shall return and seek the Lord. God has such amazing grace and mercy and patience with

He says, afterwards, they're going to return and seek the Lord. And I'm going to love them even though they were unfaithful. And so Hosea, show them that by bringing your wife, buy her out of her prostitution, bring her home, and love her again, just as I will do to the nation of Israel. Amazing, amazing grace that God demonstrates through Hosea. Well, chapter 4 now, verse 12.

My people ask counsel from their wooden idols and their staff informs them for the spirit of harlotry has caused them to stray and they have played the harlot against their God. Now again I ask, do you need to repent of idolatry? And one way to evaluate that is to consider where do you get counsel from? How do you make decisions? God says of Israel that they seek counsel from wooden idols and their staff informs them.

They're getting their information and their direction, not from God, but from the things that they've chosen to pursue. And so God declares in verses 1 through 10, my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. They're being destroyed. Why? Because they're missing the knowledge of the Lord. He brings the charge in verse 1. He says there's no truth, there's no mercy, and there's no knowledge of God in

In the land. They don't know the Lord. They don't know him. Which is what he desires. Which is what he requires. Which is what we need the most. In verse 6 he says, my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. But then notice he says, because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for me.

Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. The reason why they have no knowledge is because they've rejected it. They're destroyed because they lack knowledge and they lack knowledge because they've pushed God away. They've rejected. You know, we're so quick to blame others when destruction comes. But often it's the result of rejecting God's truth, rejecting what God is saying.

He says, you've forgotten the law. Not the idea of, you know, like as an accident, you know, like you forget something accidentally. But again, they've rejected the truth. And so they've forgotten the law. And so God says, I will forget your children. You say, whoa, that's kind of harsh. But it's important to understand. Listen, if you disregard the word of God, it will impact your children. It will impact your family. There's some serious consequences to having a lack of knowledge and

Because you reject what God has said. He says in verse 7 that the more they increase, the more they sinned. The more they had, the more they used it to rebel against God. And so God says, I will punish them for their ways in verse 9. Verses 11 through 14, he says, my people ask counsel from their idols, from their wooden idols, from their staffs. That's where they're getting their counsel from. Where do you get your counsel from?

It's an indication of if there's idolatry going on in your heart. How do you get your direction? How do you make your decisions? You see, God's design is for you to hear from Him. God's design is for Him to instruct you. Not that other people can't play a part or be used by God, but where are you seeking counsel? On what basis are you making your decisions? This is the thing about idolatry that we need to understand. The nation of Israel...

was full of idolatry, but they were still trying to worship God as well. And they were not against God in the sense like, you know, we don't want anything to do. They still believed in God. But then they were also trying to worship these other gods. Now, not because they hated God, but because they thought, well...

This is something I need. This is something useful. They thought they were doing something good. You know, hey, it's wisdom to seek counsel from these other places. It's wisdom, right? It's wise. But it's not always wise. So yeah, you can get counsel from a lot of places. And you can make your decisions and form your opinions and set the course for your life based on a lot of different things around you.

You know, maybe you just Google it. Or maybe you listen to talk radio. Or maybe you watch this. Or maybe you talk to this family member. Whatever. But are you hearing from God? Do you need to repent of idolatry because you don't know how to hear from God? Because you're so busy hearing from all these other things that you don't know how to hear from God? It's an indication of idolatry. And that was the condition of the nation of Israel. They were getting their direction from places and things that were not of God.

In verses 15 through 19, God says, God's saying, look Judah, learn from their bad example. Don't be like them. Don't follow their corruption. Now Judah didn't learn the lesson. They followed the example of Israel and actually went worse. We saw that as we went through the book of Jeremiah.

But God was allowing Israel to be there as an example. In the same way that as we're going through these things, it's an example for us. And God's saying, don't follow their example. Don't follow the corrupt behavior of the world around you. Don't let the world be the standard by which you live. Well, this is what everybody's doing. This is how we live. This is what it's like to live in America or live in California or whatever.

This is what, you know, employees do. This is what employers do. This is what taxpayers do. You know, we just being like everybody else. No, the world is not the standard. Learn from the bad example and do what's right. And what is right? To hear from God and walk with him. He says in verse 16, the Lord will let Israel forage. He says in verse 17, let him alone. What's happening here is God saying, I'm stepping back from the nation of Israel. And God says,

often does this. It's his way of bringing judgment by simply stepping back and removing his protection. And we don't know how good we have it until he has taken it away. Israel didn't know how good they had it until he's removed himself, his protection and his provision. Sometimes I think God gives us a glimpse so that we can remember how much we need him. You know, any moment. I could be absolutely insane and

And out in the yard eating grass like Nebuchadnezzar. If God removes his protection, I could be that instantly. If God removes himself, I could destroy my own life. I desperately need God. And I pray that he helps me to not forget that. To trust in myself or to trust in other things.

Well, chapter 5 now, verse 15, he says, I will return again to my place till they acknowledge their offense. Then they will seek my face and their affliction, they will earnestly seek me. See, God says, I'm stepping back. Let them experience what life is like without me so that they turn back and repent and seek me once again. In verses 1 through 12, he says, they have dealt treacherously with the Lord. They've dealt treacherously. They've turned against him.

In harlotry. Verse 4 he says. They do not direct their deeds. Toward turning to their God. For the spirit of harlotry is in their midst. And they do not notice. They do not know the Lord. So here we get some insight. How to repent of idolatry. So as you're considering the question. Do I need to repent of idolatry? How do I do it? Well here God says. Again learning from their bad example. They're not directing their deeds. Toward.

toward turning to God and they do not know the Lord. And so for us to repent of idolatry is to do the opposite of what they're doing. First of all, direct your deeds toward turning to God. Start living it out. Start walking with God. Turn to God. And then secondly, know the Lord. God wants you to know Him. Again, marriage is that picture of that relationship. That's what He wants with you.

He wants you to know him, to hear from him, to talk to him, to walk with him. But for Israel, because they're not repenting, in verse 6 he says, I've withdrawn myself from them because they've dealt treacherously. In verse 13 through 15, God says, Assyria cannot cure you.

Verse 13 says, When Ephraim saw his sickness and Judah saw his wound, then Ephraim went to Assyria and sent to King Jerob. Yet he cannot cure you nor heal you of your wound. Israel is now seeing their need, seeing their sickness, seeing there's some issues. And so they run to Assyria. Sometimes they run to Egypt. Sometimes they run to Assyria.

They're trusting in these alliances that they're forming. All right, Assyria, you protect us. You take care of us. We're going to trust you to keep us safe. Idolatry has blinded them. And so when times are tough, they turn to the wrong place for help. And so God says, I'm stepping back. I'm going to let you go and trust in Assyria. Now again, if you were looking at this situation with the people of Israel at that time...

You might be inclined to say, hmm, yeah, there's this threat coming. There's this issue. Yeah, why don't we have an alliance here? Why don't we make an agreement between these two nations? We'll be stronger together. Let's make a trade agreement. Let's make a treaty together that will stand with one another in battle. That's wisdom. That makes a lot of sense.

But they were trusting in Assyria instead of God. Now, if you go to God, God might say to you, hey, make a treaty with Assyria. And that's fine. If God instructs you to do that, then you need to do that. But the issue was they weren't asking God. They weren't seeking God. They weren't letting God tell them what to do. And again, that's the point.

You and I, we can look at things and we can say, hey, that makes sense. You're like, well, here's my situation. You know, I've got these obligations. And so I'm thinking this is what I got to do. Well, sure, maybe that makes sense. But is that what God has told you to do? Did you hear from God? Did God tell you to do that? Did God tell you to go that direction? It's not always about whether or not it makes sense. Sometimes God's going to ask you to do some things that don't make any sense at all. But you got to do what God's called you to do.

And you can't just rely upon your wisdom or the wisdom of people around you or your advisors. You need to learn to hear from God because other people can't cure you. They can't heal you. Do you need to repent of idolatry? Chapter 6 now, verse 1. Come and let us return to the Lord for he is torn but he will heal us. He is stricken but he will bind us up.

Here's Hosea calling the people to repentance in verses 1 through 3. Let us return to the Lord. He says, let us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord. We're lacking knowledge. How do we resolve that? Let's pursue the knowledge of the Lord. We're destroyed for lack of knowledge. Let's resolve that. Let's repent of idolatry. Let's direct our deeds to turning to God.

Let's put our life in action. Let's put our bodies, let's put our minds in action to get to know God. Let's take steps to get to know God because that's what God wants. He wants you to know Him. Every Christian should be a student of the Word of God. Every Christian should be an expert on who God is and what He's like because you know Him, because you walk with Him.

Because you have experience in relationship with him. So get to know him. Take steps. Turn your life. So that you are pursuing the knowledge of the Lord. Now they didn't understand God. They didn't know the Lord. And so in verse 4 through 6 he has to instruct them. He says, I desire mercy and not sacrifice. He says in verse 6, I desire mercy and not sacrifice. And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.

They didn't know God. And so they're thinking, all right, we can satisfy God with offerings. Let's make some more sacrifices. Then God will be pleased with us. You know, it's amazing to me how little has changed from then till now. We still think the same way. What God desires is really so simple. Not necessarily easy, but it's simple. Know the Lord. But we would rather do something.

In fact, we'd rather do something once, like one big action. I would prefer to do one grand act than to daily walk with Jesus. We want that. That's what we would prefer. Let me just make one really big sacrifice. I'm just going to write one big check and it's going to hurt. But then that should last me for a really long time. That's not what God wants. I don't want sacrifice. I want you to get to know me.

What does that require? Okay, I'm going to spend 20 hours straight and I'm going to pray and I'm going to fast and I'm going to read the Bible. Well, that's great. But then what are you going to do tomorrow? Well, I'm going to party and I'm going to go have fun and do... No, no, no, no, no. You're missing the point. It's not one big sacrifice. So then you can just do whatever you want. No. What God wants is for you to live your life to know Him. Get to know God. Pursue the knowledge of God.

You are on an eternal expedition. Discovering who God is. Getting to know him. Again every Christian should be a student of the word. You need to be involved in studying the word of God. Not hearing me tell you about it. That's an important part. But you need to on your own. Get in there. You need to be an expert on who God is. Well in verses 7 through 11. He says they transgressed the covenant. Instead of getting to know God.

They've turned away from him and continued to rebel against him. Chapter 7 now, verse 13. Woe to them, for they have fled from me. Destruction to them, because they have transgressed against me. Though I redeemed them, yet they have spoken lies against me. Verses 1 through 10, he says, their own deeds have surrounded them. Here they are practicing their wickedness. And God says in verse 2, they're not considering that I remember all their wickedness.

And now all their deeds have surrounded them. They're scheming, they're planning, they're figuring out how am I going to make ends meet? How am I going to protect myself? All right, we've got these alliances, we've got these plans in place. But in all their scheming, they forgot to factor in the reality that God has seen and remembers all their wickedness. And so he says they've trapped themselves. They've surrounded themselves on all sides with their wickedness.

God's judgment is always just. It's always deserved. What he is allowing to take place, what he is bringing upon them is what they've built up for themselves. They've locked themselves in with their own wickedness. You can't blame God. You can only recognize that it was my own wickedness that got me here. He says in verse 3, they make a king glad with their wickedness.

They're trying to please the wrong person. The king's happy with them, but they forgot about pleasing the Lord. And see, to know the Lord, we need to put God first, to please the Lord first. Even if that means the king's not happy with you, please the Lord. But they got confused. They got it backwards. They pleased the king and forgot the Lord. Verses 11 through 16, he says, they returned, but not to the most high. They're looking for help. They're acknowledging,

Okay, I can't do this on my own. Now that's a good step to acknowledge the need. But it's not good if you then try to meet the need with the wrong thing. In verse 11 he says, they call to Egypt and Assyria. They're running to Egypt. They're running to Assyria. They're recognizing they have a need. But they're turning to nations instead of to God. And God says in verse 12, hey, wherever they go, I'm going to spread my net on them. He says, I will chastise them according to what the congregation has heard.

They know better. They've heard the truth. He says, woe to them. They fled from me. They're turning for help, but not to me. They're not crying out to God. And again, I ask, do you need to repent of idolatry? Who are you calling out to for help? It's good to acknowledge your need. It's good to acknowledge that you lack. That's an important step in turning to God. But when you acknowledge that and then call out for help, who are you calling to? Who are you trusting in to provide for you, to meet your needs, to direct you?

To protect you. Who are you trusting in? Who are you turning to? Chapter 8 now, verse 14. For Israel has forgotten his maker and his built temples. Judah also has multiplied fortified cities, but I will send fire upon his cities and it shall devour his palaces. He says in verses 1 through 6 that the calf of Samaria shall be broken to pieces. He says, look, they're setting up kings, but they're not by my instruction. They're not by me.

They've made their own gods. They're not gods, but they're worshiping them as God. And so he says in verse 7 through 14, he will remember their iniquity and punish their sins. God says, I'm going to remember and I'm going to punish them for their sin. Because Ephraim, he says in verse 11, has made many altars for sin. They have become for him altars for sinning. That's an interesting verse to consider. The nation of Israel made many altars for sin. And so they've become

for Israel, altars for sinning. It's pretty logical, right? They've made lots of altars by which they sin against God. And so those altars have become the means by which they sin against God. What did he call them to do? Turn your deeds toward knowing God. They turn their deeds toward sinning against God. We got to be careful about what we set up in our life.

Paul tells us in Romans 13 verse 14 to make no provision for the flesh. If you make provision for the flesh, you're like, okay, I want to walk with God. I love God. But I still have this thing in my life that, you know, I'm not ready quite to let go. And it's not that bad. But here's the problem. You allow that altar for sin and then it becomes an altar to sin. And so you sin because you've set up this altar. You've allowed, you've made provision for the flesh and

And this becomes an altar for sinning. Be careful the altars that you allow, the provisions that you allow for your flesh. In verse 12, it's real interesting. He says, I have written for him the great things of my law, but they were considered a strange thing. What's God saying? He says, look, I've recorded for you fantastic things in my word, but you considered my word strange. You didn't know my word.

Even though I've got great things in there for you, you don't know my word. How well do you know the word? How well do you know the word? This is why we spend time in the word. This is why we are devoted to going through the Bible in three years. Because God has great things in here for you. He has great things for you in his word. Listen, don't consider it a strange thing.

So many people have that idea, that mentality. Like, yeah, it's just strange. It's weird. It's hard to understand. I don't get it. God says, I've got great things in here for you. If I tell you to turn to the book of Hezekiah, you should know that's not a real book. Turn to 3 Peter. You say, that's not in the Bible. How do you know? Because I know the Bible because it's got great things for me. So I study it. I read it.

Don't consider it a strange thing. God wants you to know him. And so he's hidden great things about who he is in his word. For you to discover. For you to dig up and find. Pursue the knowledge of the Lord. That's what he desires. That's what he requires. But they were caught up in their idolatry. When the nation was split in two, there was two calves, two idols that were set up. One in Dan, one in Bethel.

And God is saying, this calf shall be broken to pieces. This is what you're trusting in. It's going to be destroyed. Chapter 9 now, verse 1. He says, Again, he's going back to the theme. You've played the harlot in verses 1 through 6.

Stop rejoicing, stop celebrating like everybody else because you have been involved in harlotry. And so now, verses 7 through 9, the days of punishment have come. And so he says in verse 10 through 17, they shall be wanderers among the nations. He says, you've separated yourself unto Baal, one of the gods that they worshiped. And so your glory will fly away. He says, I'm going to drive you from my house. He says, I will love them no more.

Because they've turned away from God. In verse 17 he says, My God will cast them away because they did not obey him and they shall be wanderers among the nations. This is what their idolatry has brought them. Do you need to repent of idolatry? Who are you trusting in? Where do you get counsel from? What do you worry about? Who gives you direction? Consider.

Chapter 10 now, verse 12. And verses 1 through 4, he says, He says in verse 2, He says,

I think this is interesting to consider, the idea of the heart being divided. Because I think we fail to realize how bad it is to have a divided heart. We think of it in terms of, okay, I'm doing pretty good because I'm including God in my life. You know, I started going to church again, read the Bible sometimes, you know, I've been praying more. So I'm doing, you know, pretty good.

But if your heart's divided, you think you're good because you're including God. God says, you don't understand. You're missing the point. I don't want a piece of your life. I want all of you. Remember the picture. The picture is marriage. Idolatry is harlotry. And so what if I told Kim, Kim, I love you, but I want to be with others too. She says, okay, yeah, no problem. No, of course not.

Of course not. As repulsive, as offensive as that is, that's how it is when we say, okay God, I'm going to trust in these things. I'm going to live for these things. I'm going to do what I want to do, but I'm going to still go to church. And you should reward me because I'm so faithful to you in going to church, in doing good things, in reading the Bible. A heart divided is idolatry. It's harlotry.

It's repulsive. God requires an exclusive relationship. He must be first. He must be foremost. He must be the greatest passion of your life. But he's not for the nation of Israel. So in verse 5 through 11, he says, when it is my desire, I will chasten them. They don't receive this chastening of the Lord immediately. He chastens people in his timing. Amen.

They've kind of stored up this chastening for themselves. But they have an opportunity now before they experience that judgment that is rightfully due to them. He says in verses 12 through 15, it is time to seek the Lord. He says, sow for yourselves righteousness and reap in mercy. Break up the fallow ground. The fallow ground is ground that hasn't been used. Some Christians have fallow ground. They've got spiritual disciplines that are unused.

They don't know how to read the word. They don't know how to spend time with God. They don't know how to hear from God. They don't know how to serve God. They don't know how to exercise spiritual gifts. They don't know how to walk with the Lord. He says, break up the fallow ground. Let's get to work. It's time to seek the Lord. Now he says, as you sow for yourselves righteousness, you'll reap in mercy. But then in verse 13, he says, here's what you've done. You've plowed wickedness and you've reaped iniquity.

There's a spiritual law that cannot be broken. You reap what you sow. Paul tells us that in Galatians 6, 7, and 8. You reap what you sow. So if you've sown wickedness, you're going to reap destruction. It's a law. It's what happens. And if you sow righteousness, you will reap in mercy. So sow righteousness. Break up that fallow ground. Seek the Lord. Know Him. Pursue the knowledge of God.

Chapter 11, now verse 7, he says, My people are bent on backsliding from me. Though they call to the Most High, none at all exalt Him. God is explaining the condition of His people. They're bent on backsliding, he says in verses 1 through 7. I loved them. I called them out of Egypt. He says, I taught them to walk. I drew them with gentle cords. But they've refused to repent. They're bent on backsliding.

He says, in verse 7, I think it's interesting. They're bent on backsliding. He says, though they call to the Most High, none at all exalt Him. They were calling to God. They were calling on the Most High, but it's lip service. It's just with their words. None at all exalt Him. What does that mean? Exalt means to lift up. And so here's the thing. All of us can fall into this same camp where we call on the Lord, but we don't exalt Him.

It's called hypocrisy. We use his name. We call upon him. We say that we love God. We go through religious rituals. We go to church. We read the Bible. But do you exalt the Lord? Do you honor him first? Obey him first? Do you please him first? Do you love him first? Is he first? Is he lifted up? Is he the highest in your life?

Now the implication here in verse 7 is that unless you're exalting the Lord, you're backsliding. If he's not first, you're drifting away. He has to be lifted up. He has to be most important. He has to be the passion of your life. Otherwise, it's backsliding. It's idolatry. But then in verses 8 through 12, God says, how can I give you up? You see here, God is conflicted. They deserve judgment. They've walked away. They've drifted away. They've rebelled against. He's called them. They've refused.

But God still loves them. Can you relate to that? Have you ever had to watch someone that you love suffer for their own mistakes? Yeah, even if they deserve it. But it churns your heart. He says at the end of verse 8, he says, My heart churns within me. My sympathy is stirred. God's heart hurts when his people, his children, receive what they deserve. And that's why he's calling them to exalt him, to know the Lord.

It's an opportunity of repentance for them. Chapter 12 now, verse 2. The Lord also brings a charge against Judah and will punish Jacob according to his ways, according to his deeds. He will recompense him. Verses 1 through 6, he says, the Lord will punish Judah according to his ways. Now again, this is what they deserve. It's according to their ways. He's not punishing them with what they don't deserve. It's what they deserve by what they've done.

And he gives them Jacob as an example. He says, look at Jacob and follow his example. Pointing back to Genesis chapter 32, when Jacob wrestled with the angel of the Lord. And remember, he wouldn't let go until the angel blessed him. He's basically saying, hold on to God like that. Hold on to God. Grasp hold of him. But to hold on to God like that, you have to hold on to him only. You can't hold on to him in something else. You're not going to hold on to him until he blesses you.

He tells them to wait on God continually. Verses 7-11, he says, I will make you dwell in tents. God says, you thought your iniquity was hidden, but I'm God and I see it. And I sent prophets to call you to repent and you haven't. And so I'm taking you out of your homes and you're going to have to dwell in tents again. You're going to be uncomfortable again. You're going to be spread out, wanderers, because you've refused to repent.

Verse 12 through 14, he says, the Lord will leave his guilt upon him. Israel was guilty. God was patient. He called them to repentance. And now God is going to judge them because they've refused to repent. But what's interesting here is the way that he judges them is he simply doesn't remove their guilt. When we turn to God in repentance, he removes the guilt. But because they refuse to return...

He says, okay, I'm not going to remove your guilt. God is so merciful and gracious to us. He withholds what we deserve, the judgment that we deserve. He withholds it to give us opportunity to repent, to turn to Him, to know Him. We get it backwards so many times. We think, how could God allow this in my life? How could God allow this judgment? It's so harsh. It's so terrible. How could God allow it? But when we think that way, it's backwards.

How could God allow us to live with what we deserve? Even in judgment, God is withholding what we deserve. He's been withholding it for a long time. Chapter 13, now verse 3. In verses 1 through 6, he says that they sin more and more.

They continue to increase in their sinfulness, in their idolatry. But he says in verse 4, yet I am the Lord your God ever since the land of Egypt and you shall know no God but me for there is no savior besides me. God says you continue to increase, you continue to rebel, but I'm not giving up on you. You will know no God but me. You'll find out that there's no other savior besides me.

Verse 7 through 11, he says, I will devour them like a lion. He tells them, I'm the only one who can help you, but you've turned me against you. I will devour you like a lion. In verses 12 through 16, he says, Samaria is held guilty for she has rebelled against the Lord. He says in verse 12 that Israel's sin has been stored up. And so now he's bringing this destruction upon them. And he brings it through the nation of Assyria.

The capital of which is Nineveh. Assyria comes down. Invades Israel. Conquers them. Displaces them. And spreads them out. Throughout the Assyrian empire. They've stored up. In verse 12. This judgment. They've stored up this judgment. Judgment. When God brings judgment. It takes time. He gives us opportunity to repent. But at the same time. That means that wrath is stored up. And the guilt is accumulated. And so when it.

when the judgment comes, it comes swiftly and abundantly. In my mind, I liken it to, I don't know if you ever went to Raging Waters. It's been a long time since I've been there. But I used to love to go to that water park. And they had this one area

Where there is this massive bucket up over like this playground. And water would be pouring into the bucket. Pouring, pouring, pouring. It'd be filled up, filled up, filled up, filled up. And then all of a sudden it would get to like this tipping point. When it was a certain, you know, amount of water in it. Then the bucket would fall over. And then all this water would just go. And pour out over everybody underneath it. And that's a good picture of the judgment of God. It stores up.

And God allows it to store up so that we have opportunity to repent. But it comes to a point. Only God knows what that point is. Again, it's according to His timing that He chastens us. But it comes to a point where He says, okay, overturning the bucket now. And all this wrath and guilt that you've stored up for yourselves, here comes the judgment. Now, some of you might be thinking, well, what happened to sin being cast as far as the east is from the west? That's the benefit of

Of repentance. That's the benefit of confession. If you confess. If you repent. Your sin is cast from the east. It's from the west. But if you don't. Your sin piles up. It surrounds you. And it brings this destruction upon you. That's what God is explaining to the nation of Israel. Well we finish now in chapter 14 verse 2.

He says, take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to him, take away all iniquity. Receive us graciously for we will offer the sacrifices of our lips. He says in verses 1 through 3, O Israel, return to the Lord. What is it that God requires of this nation that is wicked and rebellious and has stored up all this wrath? What is it that God wants? Repentance. Return to the Lord.

He says, ask for forgiveness. Ask for grace. The people are saying here, take away all iniquity. Receive us graciously. Repent of sin. Return to the Lord and ask for God to be merciful and gracious. The prophet is saying in verse 3, Assyria is not going to save us. We're trusting in Assyria, but they're not going to save us. We need to go back to God and ask Him to receive us graciously. He's calling them to repentance of idolatry. Again,

Who do you trust in? Where are you getting counsel? How do you make decisions? What do you worry about? These are all indications as you consider them. A good way to evaluate, is there idolatry going on within? And if there is, return to the Lord. Now here's the amazing thing. In verses 4 through 7, God says, I will heal their backslidings. When people repent, God heals. He says in verse 4, I will love them freely.

If we repent, God says, I'm going to heal you. I'm going to love you freely. My anger is turned away. I mean, it's incredible what God does when his people return to him. I will love them freely. You want to experience the fullness of God's love? Return to the Lord. The book is concluded with the conclusion, verses 8 through 9, the words of the Lord are right.

The words of the Lord are right. He says in verse 9, Who is wise? Are you wise? The wise person will walk in these things. The wise person will know the Lord, will pursue the knowledge of God.

But transgressors, they're going to stumble. You might look really good to all of us because we can't see the heart. But God knows where you're at. He knows what's really going on. And if there's idolatry, if your heart is divided, it's not a good thing. God sees what's going on. He knows what is real. And you need to return to Him. This book, powerful, powerful book, Call to Repentance, and a great reminder for our need

To know God. And how do we know God? Again, Hosea 8.12. I have written for him the great things of my law. But they were considered a strange thing. Get into the word of God. Seek the Lord. Get to know him. Live your life to please him. That is what it means to walk with God. Heavenly Father, we do pray that you would help us to seek you first.

To put you first in our lives. To live for you. And I pray God if there is any idolatry in our hearts. Lord that you would show us. That you would reveal it. And Lord that you would then help us to repent of it. To turn from those things that we've trusted in. To trust in you. To let go of those things that we've been consumed with anxiety and worry about. To then be consumed with you. Trusting in you to provide and take care.

Lord, that we would turn from those things that we've sought counsel from that are not of you, that we would turn to you and teach us to hear your voice, to receive your direction. Lord, that we might walk in your counsel, in your ways, for your glory, knowing you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.