A look at the deceitfulness of faithlessness. Hosea. Part 2

A look at the deceitfulness of faithlessness. Hosea. Part 2.

Friday, November 23, 2012

Hosea is the story of the Great Reversal of the Great I-Am.
The name, in the Hebrew, is translated YahWeh, which, in modern English is translated as ‘Jehovah’.

Instead, the Jews believed God’s name so sacred they refused to print it, using the word Adonai instead (’The Lord’).

For example, Jesus said, “I AM the Bread of Life” – JOH 6:35,41,48,51.
“I AM the Door” – JOH 10:7,9.
“I AM the Good Shepherd” – JOH 10:11,14
Jesus said, “I AM the Way the Truth and The Life” – JOH 14:6.

“I AM the Light of the world” – JOH 8:12; 9:5; 12:46; LUK 2:32.”
“I AM the True Vine” – JOH 15:1,5
Jesus said, “I AM the Resurrection and the Life” – JOH 11:25.
Jesus said, “I AM the First and the Last” – REV 1:17; 2:8; 22:13.

And so, no other messenger gives us so complete an outline of the ways of God with His people as does Hosea. They thought it was the “best of times,” but God’s perspective was just the opposite–it was the worse of time and that’s why He sent Hosea to correct their misapprehension of the truth.

And so Hosea emphasized idolatry, and compared Israel’s relationship as spiritual adultery, using his own marriage to an unfaithful woman as an illustration.

JAM 4:4  You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

And we will see how Hosea’s own reconciliation and forgiveness toward his faithless wife illustrates Israel’s ultimate restoration with God.

The major themes of Hosea’s message are the sins of faithlessness and spiritual adultery as well as the lack of the promises made by Gomer, Hosea’s faithless wife.

1. “Call his name Jezreel”-“God will sow”

Note: Where Jezreel is specifically stated to be the child of Hosea (“Gomer bore him a son,” HOS 1:3), this is not said of the next two children.

2. “Call her name Lo-Ruhamah” (“no mercy”).
The Northern Kingdom will receive no mercy in the coming judgment.

3. Lo-ammi = “not my people”
symbolic name given by the prophet Hosea to his second son by Gomer.

One of the main problems that Hosea’s wife whose name was Gomer had with Hosea was that her faithlessness toward him led her to a lack of respect as noted in EPH 5:33.

This is why the woman is to have respect and honor for her right man not because he deserves it but for the Lord.

Love, as a feeling, is never constant which is why respect is a necessity.

A soul rapport is based on thinking which develops a love that goes far beyond feeling.

Though the parameters changed, their relationship remained intact.

Forgiveness means to give up resentment, excuse a guilty party, to release from payment, to forget an offense never bringing it up again not even to discuss it.

And this means that if someone asks for your forgiveness, and in honor you forgive them, then integrity and loyalty to doctrine demands that you forget whatever was done against you.

It also means that you never again recall what the individual has done to you or penalize the individual for doing so. However, remember the principle: arrogance has no ability to forgive.

LUK 17:4 says “If someone sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”

EPH 1:7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace,

Your sins have been paid for so I must respect the “payment” i.e. the blood or the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross.

PSA 51:4, after he sinned with Bathshiba and Uriah,  “Against Thee, Thee only I have sinned, and done what is evil in Thy sight,”

“not forgiving” others is actually to sin against God.
ISA 43:25 “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake [because of My honor and integrity].Â
Furthermore, I will not remember your sin.”

COL 3:13  “Bearing with one another and forgiving each other.  Whoever has a complaint against anyone else, just as the Lord forgave you, so also you should forgive others.

EPH 4:32  “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other just as God in Christ has also forgiven you.”

MAR 11:25  “And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your transgressions.

COL 2:13  And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,

1JO 2:12  “I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.”