Dave’s Monday Blast – September 26, 2016
Pastor Phil has been teaching through the New Testament book of Colossians the past few weeks. The current section from chapter three on husband/wife relationships has helped me clearly see that the marital relationship is correctly modeled for us by the triune nature of God. As is typical with our Heavenly Father, He has been simultaneously using other avenues of instruction to make His mind known. The speaker at our recent men’s event (Captain/Pastor Tom Joyce) spoke passionately about the importance of men “Leaving a Legacy” that honors God and displays unconditional love to our wives, our families and all relationships. Additionally, I felt compelled to read through the book of Hosea as a supplement to further understand the depth of God’s love for me and how I must respond to His unconditional love within the context of my own relationships.
In summary, God calls Hosea to marry a prostitute. After they’re married, she continues to “work”. She has three children (check out their names and meanings for yourselves), two of which are likely from other men. Eventually she leaves Hosea and her children and runs off. She eventually becomes enslaved; Hosea is instructed by the Lord to purchase her back from the slave market. Reality TV at its finest!
But the turbulence of Hosea’s marriage is actually the perfect metaphor for God’s love for us. Hosea may be a small chapter of the Bible but it carries a BIG message. Though we run from God in our disobedience and idolatry, He doesn’t stop loving us nor pursuing us. Running away from God leads us into a valley. It’s a valley filled with broken dreams, broken finances, broken emotions, and broken lives. But when we return to Him, He creates a door of hope, and even the most rebellious are restored.
I think we can glean four important lessons from this interesting book revolving around the theme of restoration. Each lesson has something to say about God’s love, and what happens when we run from it. It clearly affirms God’s admonition to husbands found in Colossians 3:19; we are to love our wives as Christ loves His church.
I want to share the first of four lessons with you today:
- Unfaithfulness Breaks Relationships: We know that adultery is listed as one of the commandments, but is that really the reason why it’s such a painful experience? Are families ripped apart because someone broke a rule? No. They’re ripped apart because someone broke a heart associated with a sacred vow! Few things in life are more painful than being betrayed by someone you love. Unfaithfulness brings darkness, brokenness, and pain into something that was supposed to be a safe, secure foundation. Being unfaithful wrecks relationships, and it breaks God’s heart.
True Covenant Love is Absolutely Exclusive. If you’re married, think back on your wedding day. If you’re not, imagine what your ideal wedding would be like. When you’re up there at the altar, do you swear to be faithful 80% of the time? No way! Your marriage is exclusive. In Hosea, the problem in Israel was that people were claiming to have a relationship with God, and felt entitled to His blessing, but in reality were serving other masters. His wife was a metaphor for idolatry and disobedience. Declining to follow God’s rules and rejecting exclusivity in a relationship with Him may feel like freedom, but in actuality all you get is chaos and heartbreak.
Next week we want to examine Three Characteristics of God’s Love through the story of Hosea. I encourage you to read the book…it is short and very exciting.
This week consider how you can INTENTIONALLY demonstrate love to others.
