Sermon for November 15

The Reading

Hosea 11:1-9

 When Israel was a child, I loved him,

    and out of Egypt I called my son.

 The more I called them,

    the more they went from me;

they kept sacrificing to the Baals,

    and offering incense to idols.

 Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk,

    I took them up in my arms;

    but they did not know that I healed them.

 I led them with cords of human kindness,

    with bands of love.

I was to them like those

    who lift infants to their cheeks.

    I bent down to them and fed them.

They shall return to the land of Egypt,

    and Assyria shall be their king,

    because they have refused to return to me.

 The sword rages in their cities,

    it consumes their oracle-priests,

    and devours because of their schemes.

 My people are bent on turning away from me.

    To the Most High they call,

    but he does not raise them up at all.

 How can I give you up, Ephraim?

    How can I hand you over, O Israel?

How can I make you like Admah?

    How can I treat you like Zeboiim?

My heart recoils within me;

    my compassion grows warm and tender.

 I will not execute my fierce anger;

    I will not again destroy Ephraim;

for I am God and no mortal,

    the Holy One in your midst,

    and I will not come in wrath.

The message

Over the past two weeks, Our Sunday readings have introduced us to the political and religious conflicts, fears and struggles that made up daily life in ancient Israel. As we continue to wait for and read towards Christmas, the thoughts, beliefs and actions of this group of people who first heard God’s promises become more and more relevant.  As we see the social and political psychologies and religious changes, we witness why the world needed Jesus.  The reading two weeks ago was about the division of the Kingdom of Israel, a separation between North and South, caused by a mix of poor decisions, arrogance, greed and unfaithful leadership.  Last week the reading was about the conflict between Elijah, the prophet of the God of Israel and the prophets of Baal, a very popular god of the neighboring people around Israel.  This is one of many examples in this time period where religious beliefs and systems fight with one another for the hearts, minds, support and allegiance of the people.  

In both of these stories, we get a peek into a community and world that is complicated and uncertain.  The people of Israel are constantly pushed and pulled in different directions.  On one side they have the promises of God, the covenant that if they keep the law, God will be their God and they will be his people. They also have the amazing history of God freeing them from slavery in Egypt, defeating the Egyptian empire though a series of plagues, walking them across the red sea as if on dry land, providing for them, leading them to great victories and punishing severely but forgiving their disobediences.  In each case of punishment and forgiveness, God has mercy on the people and welcomes them back to relationship, protection and care.  On the other side the people of Israel face the the temptations to made deals with the powers of the world, with the empires that surround them and to turn to other gods and deities who might provide more for them. 

As the years go on, the people of Israel forgot about or turn from God more and more often. They look to other gods, people and places for their safety and salvation.   They forget the covenant and what God has done for them. They lose faith.  A few moments ago, we heard the prophet Hosea poetically describes this time “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. The more I called them, the more they went from me; they kept sacrificing to the Baals, and offering incense to idols”

Of course, Hosea was not alone. There was a series of voices that cried out against this way of life. These are the people who become known as the prophets. Their work was to publically expose the sins of the people, to remind them that they are turning to meaningless, powerless things and fake deities instead of God. The prophets warn people to repent and change or God’s unrestrained wrath will come.  The prophets start with their warnings about 100 years before that wrath arrives, before the fall of the two kingdoms of Israel and destruction of the temple. They continue to speak though those horrible years of suffering and in the aftermath of great defeats.  

There are 15 prophets who have left recorded books that are included in the Old Testament, There are the 12 minor prophets and 3 major prophets (Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Isaiah). This distinction between minor and major is not a matter of importance, it is simply based on the length of their books.  All of the prophets have a few shared themes. They offer words of warning and doom, asking, begging, commanding and pleading with people to open their eyes and realize God will not be patient with their sins forever.  They offer an unwelcome message to the people. God is disappointed, truly and really disappointed. If the people of Israel continue to treat one another with abuse, violence and anger, if they continue to worship other gods, and seek their help from empires, they will fall. The people of Israel must repent and turn back to God or they will suffer.

There is also a message of hope and promise of restoration. No matter what happens, God will not forget the promises made, God will not abandon God’s people.  Part of this promise includes the expectation of a messiah who will come, restore and bring the people back to God. Hosea expresses this hope, again poetically:  the Lord said : My heart recoils within me; my compassion grows warm and tender. I will not execute my fierce anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim; for I am God and no mortal, the Holy One in your midst, and I will not come in wrath.

This morning, we heard some of the words of the prophet Hosea, one of the minor prophets.  In this selection, he covers all of those major themes shared by the prophets of Israel.  Hosea spoke and wrote for an incredible length of 60 years, covering the time about 750 years before Jesus birth. (He was the only prophet of this time period to write).  Hosea primarily warns against the idolatry and pagan worship that took over the hearts , minds and faith practices of the Northern Kingdom.  In a particularly personal metaphor, the prophet Hosea often talks about the people of Israel as a case of adultery. In this case, God is the husband and Israel is the unfaithful spouse. In Hosea’s own life, by God’s command, he marries the prostitute Gomer who cheats on him with another man and runs away, only to return and be forgiven.  Hosea uses this violation of the sacred promises of marriage to explain to the people how they are violating the sacred promises with God.

Today, our community, society and world is not so different from ancient Israel. We too face lots of different forces pushing and pulling for our time, resources, hearts and minds.  Our daily lives are filled with news, stories and experiences of religious, social and political conflicts, great and small. We fear things, we ignore things, we do not seriously ask “what does God think about all of the poverty in the world”, “what does God think about the way we treat the world entrusted to our care”, “how are we doing with the commandments “you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind , with all your soul and your neighbor as yourself” or “how are we doing with Jesus instruction  “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you”. 

There is no easy answer to any of these questions. Personally, I don’t think we are doing so good.  Today, we have a lot of people who try to answer these questions for us, who try to take on the role of prophet.  It’s hard to tell who to listen to.  For me, it all comes down to asking does this person talking point us towards a compassionate, loving, caring and forgiving God who wants us to experience comfort and joy and who wants us to live better.  That’s what the prophets did.