God is calling his people to be different
HOW and WHY?
Hosea
- Set in the 8th century BC during the rise of the Assyrian Empire in the Northan 10 tribes of Israel.
- The people are worshipping the gods of the land.
- They have turned to Baal, calling him Lord, they are visiting shrine prostitutes, giving their daughters into temple prostitution and taking part in magical practices.
- Hosea is told by God (Yahweh) to marry a woman named Gomer
- Did anyone have any prophetic words telling them to marry the person they are married to?
- We didn’t, but one lovely but interesting lady told us that it was concerning that we hadn’t and that we should pray for prophetic confirmation.
- As this story shows just because you get a prophetic word, it does not mean that it will be easy.
- People wait too long to get married if you love Jesus and they love Jesus and you are attracted to each other, get married.
- Hosea listens to God, and marries Gomer, they have two children a boy and a girl.
- All seems great, then she leaves him for another man, several men.
- Imagin the pain that Hosea is going through.
- He loves Gomer, she is the mother of his children.
- God told Him to marry her.
- His heart is breaking into pieces.
- For Some of you this is reality:
- The person you loved betrayed you.
- The one who said they’d protect you hurt you.
- For Some of you this is reality:
- Then God tells Hosea to forgive her and take her back.
- She has cheated on him numerous times.
- By law she should be put to death.
- But God says forgive her and take her back – and he does.
- Hosea’s marriage isn’t just any marriage.
- God is using Hosea and Gomer’s marriage as a living parable.
- An earthly story with a massive heavenly meaning.
God and his people
- God shows us through the marriage of Hosea and Gomer that:
- He is a loving husband and his people are an unfaithful bride.
- When we turn to other gods, gods like Baal, gods like we looked at last week. It is like committing adultery on God.
- His heart is broken.
- Every time we make a good thing an ultimate thing, money, work, family …
- Putting other gods in the place of Jesus in our lives, it breaks his heart.
- Like a wife cheating on their husband.
- A Husband leaving his wife
The prophetic Marriage
- This is what chapter 18 is about.
- This is why 18 is positioned straight after God correcting their worship.
- They lived in a world just like our own, one that worships sex and belittles marriage.
- But Yahweh says:
You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you.
- As Jesus says in Matthew 20:
- This is how the world lives Not so with you.
- This is how the West lives, this is the except way that the people on the Fylde live,
- Worshiping sex and belittling marriage. Not so with you.
Egypt and Canaan
- The Egyptian and Canaanite world of the 2nd millennium BC was a world of free sex where nothing was off the table.
- They lived in a world just like our own, one that worships sex and belittles marriage.
- The “do nots” of v6 to 23, many of which say “do not uncover the nakedness of” = have sex with.
- are all things that the people of this world did.
- Incest, adultery, homosexuality, bestiality, abortion.
- Sexual sin is almost as old as humanity itself.
- It was sexual sin that brought about the flood.
- Sexual sin is one of the first rebellions after the flood.
- Genesis is full of sexual sin, which can make it very challenging at first.
- I don’t remember this bit from Sunday school.
- As you’re reading the Bible to your kids, you find yourself thinking, “I’ll just skip over this bit!”.
- The bible is real though. It doesn’t sugarcoat life.
- Sexual sin has been a problem throughout all human history, and it is still a problem now.
We live in a world that worships sex and belittles marriage.
- Stats on Sex
- 5% of couples say that they were a virgin when they got married.
- The average person has 4 serious sexual partners.
- But by the time we hit 40 surveys show that most people have slept with 15-19 different people.
- With the invention of the smartphone, Porn addiction has skyrocketed over the past few years with it assumed that most under 30’s struggle with an addiction to porn.
- Those who grew up in the 80’s/90s remember, to keep your computer in a public space …
- Now we give a device with access to anything on the internet to a 6-year-old and assume it will be ok.
- Most children are exposed to explicit images by 9.
- Parents check their kids’ phones, don’t let them take them to bed, if your alone don’t take yours to bed, there is too much temptation, just a few taps and no one will know.
- All the research shows that regular exposure to explicit images does not make you a better lover, it lowers testosterone levels and increases depression.
Marriage
- 70% of couples cohabited before getting married.
- The general concept is to “try before you buy” leaving the option to separate without the mess of a divorce if it doesn’t work out.
- It doesn’t help!
- Divorce rates are 2% more likely for those who cohabit.
- The average to get married is 35 men, 33 women.
- Again because people believe that if they wait they will have a more successful marriage.
- In the 1960 the average age was 21 and 23.
- Where 1/10 ended in divorce by the 10th
- Now with cohabitation and waiting longer it’s 1/5.
- The current stat is 41% of marriages end in divorce with the majority not making it to 8 years.
- But increasingly people aren’t even bothering to get married with 51% of children now born to unmarried parents.
We live in a world that worships sex and belittles marriage.
Not so with you.
You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you.
- I hope no one is sitting there feeling guilty, feeling bad, (the holy spirit may be prompting you to do something and you should do it).
- You may have had sex outside of marriage.
- You have been unfaithful.
- You may have a porn addiction.
- Even if you haven’t Jesus set the bar higher than Leviticus 18
- The world would say:
- it doesn’t matter what you look at.
- Do what makes you feel happy.
- If your marriage isn’t working, get out of there.
- Not so with you.
- There are times when marriages need to end but the main point of Jesus’ teaching is:
- If we struggle with sexual sin, if we fail to keep to our marriage vows, to love and honour, serve each other as we should.
- We should take drastic action!!!
God’s standards are higher than we want to admit but his grace is deeper than we can imagine
The woman caught in adultery
- I want you to hear this, if you are full of regret and shame from past sin.
- Hear Jesus’ words “I do not condemn you, Go sin no more”
- There is forgiveness at the foot of the cross. All who come to Jesus will find forgiveness.
- Like God told Hosea to forgive and take back Gomer
- God will always take you back.
- His arms are always open wide.
- He is ready to receive us if we repent, turning from our wicked ways and moving towards him.
If God is always ready to forgive then; why is it important to live pure to seek to have good marriages?
Why is it important to live pure to seek to have good marriages?
- Israel’s marriages (one man, one woman, devoted to each other) were to be a picture of God and his people; Their marriages were meant to display the goodness of God to the surrounding nations.
- How much more today, with those of us who are in Christ?
- marriage between a Christ-following husband and wife is to be an even greater picture of Jesus and his church, The Gospel.
- Jesus who left heaven for his bride.
- And will be united with her in the end as heaven and earth become one.
- Jesus’ plan for marriage is:
- For a man and a woman to join together, becoming one new person.
- For both of them to run 100% for Jesus, both giving him all their praise.
- To spur each other to become more like Jesus.
- To find sexual, fulfilment in each other and only each other.
- For each to sacrifice self for the other.
Jesus Our Great Bridegroom.
- Jesus calls himself our bridegroom, He is the true and faithful husband.
- Therefore, we are to love our spouse, be faithful to our spouse and lay our lives down for them, not just because that’s what Jesus asks us to do but to display to the world how good our God is.
- Jesus’ plan for your marriage is that it would display the wonders of Jesus and his gospel as we live, forgive, and surrender to each other, laying down our rights for the good of the other.
- Just as Jesus has done for us.
Hosea
- In the middle of Hosea’s pain, God comes to him and tells him to prophecy
- The vision for your marriage needs to be bigger Church.
- God’s vision for your marriage is that those who are not his people would see Jesus in your marriage.
- And as a result they shall come to know Jesus.
- Who will say,” Those who were not my people are now my people”.
Do you belong to Jesus?
- We must get our relationship with God right before our human relationships can truly be all they are meant to be.
Pray
- Purity
- For Jesus to be our first love
- For those who are not married but have a desire to, that they would equally be joined with someone who love Jesus.
- For Marriages that are struggling.
- For all marriages to display Christ to this world.