Introduction
Last week I gave a message entitled – Hope for the Hopeless based on the book of Isaiah. The hope of God’s salvation rings loud and clear climaxing in prophesies of our future Messiah. This morning I want to carry on with the theme of hope, but in relation to the Book of Hosea. There is a key passage that will introduce today’s message. “Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. 15 There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt” (Hosea 2:14-15).
I am the Lord
We have been reading through the Old Testament over the last 5 months. One of the phrases that has caught my attention in relation to God is “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.” The miraculous displays of God’s power became the pattern for the future deliverance of God’s people. The Exodus was the key example of God’s intervention to save, revealing his salvation, when the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians. They entered into a covenant relationship together. The salvation of God’s people continues on in both the Old Testament and New Testament. Hosea speaks of this in Hos. 11:1 – “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.”
The idea of salvation is that there is something from which we need to be saved. If you are sick, salvation would be healing. If you are lost, salvation would be to find your way. If you are caught in sin, salvation would be the forgiveness of sin. Salvation in both Old and New Testaments is about a holy and loving relationship with God. This is also true in the Book of Hosea. The people of God were committing spiritual adultery and running after false gods. The consequence of their wickedness was the coming judgment and captivity by Assyria. Hosea utters coming judgment where Israel would not find any satisfaction in idolatry and would eventually lose everything, her material resources and her religious freedoms. One of the challenges in Hosea’s day was the worship of Baal. Baal refers to lord or master and was used to describe one of the many local Canaanite gods. These gods tempted God’s people to stray from their Covenant Relationship. These demonic forces empowered a spirit of prostitution to seduce God’s people into all kinds of wicked practices. Hosea says they went after these lovers and forgot about God (Hos 2:13). These circumstances were not unknown to God. “I am the Lord your God…” was ready to bring words of hope and encouragement to his people.
A Door of Hope
Hosea uses the imagery of a Door of Hope which describes God’s intention to bring his love and compassion upon them; in other words – the hope of salvation. I mentioned last week that sometimes hope comes gradually like the dawn of the morning. At other times, hope comes suddenly, like a train coming out of a tunnel. Let’s look at Hos 2:14-15…
· In the case of Hosea, he speaks of a suddenly in relation to hope. “Therefore, behold…” describes a suddenly. It means not just to see, but to see now. It is like an unveiling of a painting, or the unveiling of gender. It happens suddenly. There will come a point in Israel’s future, after captivity, when God will do a suddenly and begin a new work of deliverance and salvation. This happened when King Cyrus is raised up to restore Israel to the Promised Land. Suddenly.
· “I am now going to allure her…” There have been times in my life when I was struggling with hopelessness. My thoughts and emotions were dull. I felt overpowered by life and circumstances. In these moments I needed to be wooed back to God. The Israelites were committing spiritual adultery and prostitution. They were lustfully following after false gods. The Lord uses terminology that would capture their attention. God is going to lure them back to himself. It is personal and intimate.
· “I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her…” Have you ever gone on a date with God? Or taken extended period time to just be alone with God? This is what is happening here. God is about to restore hope by spending time with his children away from all the distractions of that day. This would result in tender, friendly, kind conversation.
· “There I will give her back her vineyards…” As a consequence of their sin their vineyards were destroyed. Baalism – the worship of the false Canaanite gods – was often seen as fertility cult; in other words, when worshipped the hope was fruitfulness and productivity. Now God says he will restore their vineyards, their fruitfulness, their livelihood. Hope restored in the form of material blessings was in their future.
· “[God] will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.” The Valley of Achor is where Achan sinned by taking items devoted to the Lord. It was in this valley of trouble or disturbance where he and his family were stoned to death. God is saying that he will take our most disturbing circumstances and turn them into a door of hope. This door is something through which we must pass. We must enter into hope and let go of the past troubles. We are told this will be God’s doing in the nation of Israel. He can do the same for us.
· “There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt.” Hope restored comes with testimony and singing and song. Over and over in the Scriptures they are times of struggle followed by the songs of the Lord. The songs speak of the deliverance and salvation of God. Exodus 15 is the song of Moses and Miriam when in light of God’s deliverance. Psalm 18 is sung by King David when God delivered him from the hand of his enemies.
In Conclusion
This morning I would like to encourage us all to walk through the Door of Hope. There are moments in our lives when God give his grace to help us through the challenges. He desires for his children to draw near and experience fresh faith in our walks with him. So often when we go through struggles we end up absorbed in the struggle itself. Here are a few keys to help us through these times.
· Learn to forgive and release those who cause harm.
· Help others who are going through similar challenges.
· Direct your hard questions towards God first and not man.
· We must acknowledge that many times we need the help of others.
It is our prayer for each other for hope to be restored and for the song of the Lord to be heard again.