Dear Saints at Redeemer, 

Have you ever noticed how captivating court cases and trials are?  There is something about them that grabs our attention and rivets the mind.  It’s compelling to watch the interaction between the plaintiff and the defendant.  Fictional and non-fictional court cases have been a fixture in books, television, and movies and many of us can recall various trials that enthralled our nation.  Sometimes these court cases are not clear cut.  The evidence is shoddy.  The star witness lacks credibility.  The case being built has holes and it’s hard to determine the burden of guilt.  Then there are other cases that are slam dunks.  The evidence is mounting.  Solid witnesses abound.  The case being built only gets stronger and it’s obvious who the guilty party is.  Which is exactly what we see in Hosea 4. 

In Hosea 1 – 3 we saw Hosea’s relationship to Gomer as a parable between God and unfaithful Israel.  Now as we turn to chapter 4 we will hear God’s accusations, coming judgment, and warnings to Israel.  If Israel was wondering where she went wrong she did not have to look far.  At the heart of the issue Israel did not remain faithful to God and the people no longer loved him or knew him (v.1).  They had abandoned God.  The nation was full of swearing, lying, murder, stealing, adultery, and bloodshed (v.2).  The people consulted wooden idols and sacrificed to idols (v.12-13).  Are you beginning to get a sense of how guilty Israel was?  Not only were the people forsaking God, but so were the rulers and priests!  The priests “rejected knowledge” and forgot the law of God (v.6).  The religious leaders benefited from the sins of the people (v.7-8).  The rulers of the land loved shameful ways (v.18).  As the accusations pile up it is utterly clear that the people were guilty indeed! 

Travis Cardwell will consider these events in Counterfeit Gods from Hosea 4:1-19.  Israel had sinned grievously against the Lord and God’s threats of punishment and judgment cannot be avoided.  But even with these lingering and serious judgments there still is hope.  In Hosea 6, God promises restoration if the people repent.  We also saw in chapter 1 that even though God’s judgment is coming it’s not the final word.  God would have his people back later down the road.  In the NT, there is an abundance of evidence that believers today are the sons of Abraham (Galatians 3:7, Romans 4:16). So as we pause over these awful realities in Hosea 4 we should sense the stench that sin is to God, yet we should also feel the magnificent grace that Jesus Christ offers.  Join us this Sunday as we consider these truths and exalt the “One who knew no sin, yet became sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God!” 

Resting in the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,

Billy