10 and read at verse 11 and verse 12 there.
Oseah chapter 10 at verse 11.
Ephraim was a trained calf that loved to thresh, and I spared her fair neck.
! But I will put Ephraim to the yoke. Judah must plough, Jacob must harrow for himself.
Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap steadfast love, break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord,
that he may come and reign righteousness upon you.
There are perhaps certain books that you go to in the Bible, and you can turn to them,
and there's always a danger of feeling a sense of despondency and a sense of despair.
Books like the book of Acts, and you see great things happening in the book of Acts.
See the early chapters of the book of Acts, and you find thousands being added to the church in one day.
And you say to yourself, how can that be discouraging?
Well, it's because when you're reading it, you think to yourself, if only we were seeing days like that ourselves.
We feel a sense of despondency, wishing that the Lord would pour out his blessing in that way.
We would see thousands added to the church in one day.
So if we don't see it happening, we maybe begin to question ourselves, to question our prayers,
to question things that we're doing, to question maybe even God.
Where is God in the midst of everything that's going on in our day?
And you ask, do we live in the days that they lived in the days of Acts?
Do we live in a similar kind of time?
Well, we do, but we don't always see it.
The media doesn't present great things happening for the gospel around the world.
The main media, that is.
But if you listen to people, missionaries from around the world,
if you listen to people who are going out with the gospel around the world,
even in our own nation, there are great things happening.
The Lord is working.
And so we shouldn't lose heart, because the good news is going out and people are responding.
So maybe we don't see it in our own midst, maybe we don't see it in the way we would long to see it,
but the Lord is still working.
Whether it's thousands, whether it's one or two,
we are constantly reminded that the Lord is working.
So there can be a sense of despondency when things are good,
but there are other books that you can turn to,
and you can feel a sense of despondency because things are so bad.
We see it very often throughout the Old Testament,
and here's another example of it.
We looked at Habakkuk recently,
and we were seeing there how things were so difficult,
and here the day of Hosea.
As well, it was a difficult time.
But I want us to reflect this evening on Hosea and the hardships that he had to endure,
and just to see how it still gives us hope.
It's a book that's full of many difficulties,
difficulties for Hosea himself and difficult days for God's people,
and yet we still see God at work.
And if we were to ask ourselves,
do we see this kind of day in our own experience just now,
we would say yes.
The gentlemen have been praying.
We've been reminded of so many situations around our nation
or around the world that show us the kind of despondency and despair that we live in,
the uncertainty of the world in which we live,
the pain and grief that's around us both in a local sense but also nationally and internationally.
There's so much going on that would leave us thinking,
where can we go?
How can we go forward?
And that's very much the kind of day that Hosea was living in.
But what you see is God is faithful.
God is still with him,
and God is still calling a people to himself.
And you see it very much here in verse 12 of chapter 10.
So for yourselves righteousness,
reap steadfast love.
This is a reminder here of God's covenant love towards his people.
For it is time to seek the Lord.
So it's clear that people have been going away from the Lord.
They've turned their back on the Lord,
and he's saying it is time to seek the Lord,
that he may come and rain righteousness upon you,
that you might know his blessing.
And it was Hosea that was called into this ministry as a prophet.
And Hosea, with his own life, as we'll see in a moment,
he didn't find it easy to do it.
He didn't come into it in an easy background either,
and yet God used him in a powerful way,
and yet he had to be faithful.
He had good news to give,
but what he found was a people who didn't want to hear.
And that can resonate with ourselves today as well.
Think of the Gideons,
or good news for everyone as it's called now,
putting out Bibles,
putting out the word of God to people,
individuals, to schools, to hospitals, hotels,
all of these things used to be so easy for them to get the word of God in.
And yet now people are saying,
we don't want it.
Or if they take it,
they put it in a corner somewhere,
so that then if somebody asks,
they can get a Bible.
Whereas it used to be in many hotels,
you'd go in,
you'd open the drawer,
you'd find it on the bedside cabinet,
there would be a Bible there.
There is good news,
but people don't want to receive it.
And that's the same for Hosea.
He had great news to give the people,
but they had so turned their back on God
that they didn't want to hear.
And it's hard work for him,
but yet he stays faithful to the course.
And it's a reminder to ourselves,
in whatever we are doing for the Lord,
to stay faithful to him,
and to trust him,
and to serve him,
both faithfully and cheerfully.
In Colossians chapter 3, verse 17,
it says,
whatever you do,
whether in word or deed,
do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus.
So we are to be faithful in the name of Jesus.
But it also says,
giving thanks to God the Father through him.
So there's to be a sense of thanksgiving,
a sense of delight and cheerfulness
in what we are doing for the Lord.
We are serving our King.
We are serving our Lord.
And so Hosea worked in the midst of great difficulty,
but with that great assurance
that he was serving his Lord.
And when you see the people,
it's reflected in what they wanted in society
in verse 3 there.
For now they will say,
we have no king,
for we do not fear the Lord.
They don't want God,
but they don't want a king over them either.
In a natural way,
and a king,
what could he do for us?
There's this sense of confidence
in themselves,
and in what they are doing for themselves.
We don't need the Lord.
We don't need a king.
We can look after ourselves.
And that's the world today as well.
We don't need the Lord.
We don't need anybody to rule over us.
We can get on fine by ourselves.
But the gospel is what was needed here,
the good news,
and it's the good news
that our world needs today.
And in Hosea here,
we just want to see three things
that we can take from these verses,
verse 11 and 12.
Three things that remind us
just to be faithful
in the midst of difficult days.
And the first thing we see
is that we are in difficult days,
and Hosea was in a difficult day.
But then we see it was a day of dedication,
a day of devotion,
a day of giving to the Lord.
And then thirdly,
we see a day not to despair,
a day not to despair.
So it was a difficult day first.
If you know anything of Hosea,
maybe you know his own background,
his own life,
his home situation wasn't easy.
We see that in chapter one of this book.
Hosea's family life was far from straightforward.
He was told by the Lord
to take a wife who was unfaithful,
and then he had children.
And you look at the names of the children,
and they reveal so much of what was going on
in his own experience,
but also it was reflecting the nation of the Lord.
So you see that in chapter one.
You see in verse two down to verse 11 there,
it speaks about Hosea's home setting.
And he had children.
One was called Jezreel,
and behind that name was,
it means I will scatter.
I will scatter.
Then he had a daughter,
and she was called Lo-ru-ama,
which means no mercy,
as you see it here in English.
No mercy is the name of the daughter.
And then another son,
Lo-ami,
which means not my people.
And this is just reflecting
what's going on around us,
a people,
as a nation.
That the Lord is showing a people
who are unfaithful to him.
And through his children,
he's showing what he's going to do.
He's going to scatter his people.
He's not going to show mercy to his people.
And he's going to say,
you are not my people.
So as you are rejecting me,
this is the outcome.
And so Hosea's life was a witness,
was showing the people
just what their relationship
of the people with God was like.
They have turned their back on God,
just like we saw there
in verse 3 of chapter 10.
We have no king.
We do not fear the Lord.
So we don't need anything from God.
There was this disobedience.
But because of this,
there was consequences.
And you see that as you read through.
In chapter 8, for example,
it's very much a vine
that is being described here as the people.
And the vine is not bearing fruit
or it's bearing sour fruit.
And in chapter 8,
verse 7 and 8 and verse 14,
you see it very much seen there
that in verse 14, for example,
Israel has forgotten his maker
and built palaces.
And Judah has multiplied fortified cities.
So I will send fire upon his cities
and I shall devour her strongholds.
It's very much a sense of judgment.
The people have broken the covenant with God.
They have forgotten their maker.
They have replaced God
with an idol in the form of a calf.
Verse 5 and 6 of chapter 8 say that to us
and also verse 5 of chapter 10.
So they're more concerned
about this golden calf
that their idol that they've made
than the fear of losing God.
And what you see is
the complete turnaround from the people.
Instead of,
and there's two place names
that are important here as well.
First of all, you have Bethel.
And Bethel is the place
where God is worshipped.
And that's what the people had had.
The place that they would worship God.
It's mentioned in verse 15.
Bethel's mentioned there.
But they have turned from Bethel,
the place they worship God,
to Beth-Avon.
And this means the place of wickedness.
So they've turned away from the place
of worshipping God.
And they've turned instead
to the place of wickedness,
the house of wickedness.
So everything that we're seeing here
is outlining the relationship
of the people to God.
A difficult day.
But is our own day
any different?
Because we're seeing
almost exact same things.
We do not fear the Lord.
What can a king do for us?
We've turned away from Bethel,
the place of worshipping God,
to Beth-Avon,
the place of wickedness.
And you see it
in so many different ways.
Where the vine
that was once here
has not been tended.
The vine of the word of God.
Because we have known
God's favour.
We have known
God's blessing.
But the vine
has been turned away from.
And we're,
instead of tending it,
we've just abandoned it.
We've abandoned God.
And we're bearing
sour fruit.
You think of places.
The place of worship
of God, Bethel,
became,
they turned instead
to Beth-Avon,
the place of wickedness.
There's so many examples
of that
around our nation.
For example,
in Aberdeen,
the church where
Douglas Macmillan
once ministered
back in the 60s
and 70s.
It was changed
into a nightclub
back in the 80s.
And what did they call it?
Instead of being
the place of worship,
it was called
the ministry of sin.
Place of wickedness.
Place of just
turning away
from God.
And you see it
in so many ways
throughout our nation.
Places that were
once the foundation
of our Christian faith
are now mocked
or turned into
other things.
There's a hotel
in Peebles
down in the borders.
and it's an old
building.
And above the doorway,
the words carved
into the stone
was,
prepare to meet
thy God.
It was like
there was a warning.
Warning to the people
as they would come,
prepare to meet
thy God.
Not in the sense
there was danger,
but just that God
was real.
And so they were
to be aware of God
and to be ready
to meet God.
But now it's just
something that's used
as a joke
as people go in.
Something just for
a bit of laughter
as people go in.
The seriousness
of being ready
to meet God
is just taken away
from it.
So Bethel,
the place of worship
even in our own land,
has become Beth-Avon.
The place of wickedness.
The place of mocking God
and turning our back
on God.
So,
just like Hosea's day,
it is a difficult day.
So,
what can we do
in difficult days?
Where do we start?
Well,
with Hosea,
as you see here,
it's a day
for dedication.
It's a day
for dedication.
It's not a day
to forget God
or turn away
from God.
And as you go through
the book of Hosea,
it's a challenging book
to go through.
There's so many images
of despair
and hopelessness.
But in the midst,
you find some gems
and wisdom
and hope.
Just like Habakkuk,
which we looked through
recently
when we were thinking
of the nuggets of gold
that you find
in the midst of darkness.
Here again in Hosea,
we have that same theme
as well.
In the midst of
all the difficulties,
in the midst of everything
that is going wrong
in their day,
there's still hope.
And that's what we have
in verse 11
and verse 12.
There is hope.
And it's all about
turning back
to God,
dedicating
ourselves
to Him
and continuing
to show others
the need
to turn
to God.
So what we have
in verse 11
reminds us
that the people
were made
with a purpose.
Ephraim
was a trained
calf
that loved
to thresh
and I have spared
her fair name.
But I will put
Ephraim
to the yoke.
Judah must plough.
Jacob must harrow
for himself.
It's a reminder
there that
we were made
to worship
God,
to serve God.
the trained calf
as is mentioned there.
That's the illustration
for us.
We are made
for God
and to worship God.
But we turn away.
Hosea was faithful.
Amos,
another prophet,
was faithful.
Habakkuk,
Isaiah,
the prophets
faithfully proclaiming
the good news
of the gospel.
But what kind of people
did they come up against?
Well,
we find,
just what we find today,
a stubborn people.
The trained calf
as it's mentioned there,
the one
that the Lord
is able to use,
is contrasted
in chapter 4,
verse 16.
There it says,
like a stubborn heifer,
Israel is stubborn.
Can the Lord
now feed them
like a lamb
in a broad pasture?
the stubborn heifer.
They will not listen.
They will not budge.
Are we like that sometimes?
Are we sometimes
the stubborn heifer
it's talking about here
where we won't budge?
We hold on to things.
Yes, we are.
And they're all around us too.
We've all got that stubborn nature in us.
But there are many who,
when it comes to hearing the gospel,
even just wanting to
be close to them
in the sense of
giving them the gospel,
they're stubborn.
They don't want
to hear.
And it's hard
to keep going in the work
when that's what you're
coming up against.
But yet,
we are being reminded
in these verses
that God has made
everyone
with a soul.
God has made everyone
with a soul
that is accountable
to God.
We are made
to worship God.
And therefore,
we don't lose heart.
We don't lose heart.
We keep on
knowing that God
has his people.
Knowing that God
is working
in his people.
And even though
as it goes on here
to talk about the yoke
and the plough
and all of these things,
it's showing the hard work
of delivering
the good news
of the gospel.
Even into verse 12,
break up
your fallow ground.
It is hard ground.
It's a difficult ground
to work.
We're coming into
this season now
with March time.
Many people
start getting
plots ready
or fields ready
for planting.
But if you start
on new ground,
it's hard.
Fallow ground,
it's hard
to break into.
It's hard
to break down.
And it's going
to take time
to turn that ground
into good ground.
But there's still
that need
to plough.
There's still
that need
to work,
to break up
the fallow ground.
It's not always easy.
And that's
the image
of the vineyard
that you see
right throughout.
We'll see a vineyard
that takes time.
It takes tending to
in order to bear
good fruit.
And so it is
with the ministry
of the gospel.
It needs
that dedication.
It needs
that devotion
to it.
And that's
the kind of people
that God calls
on us
to be as well,
to be faithful
as we do
all for the Lord.
And you see it
in different ways
throughout the scriptures
as well.
In different ways
we are not to give up,
we are not to lose heart.
Jesus in Luke 18
he spoke the parable
of the woman
who kept coming
to the master.
And it's called
in verse 1
he says
he told them
a parable
to the effect
that they ought
always to pray
and not lose heart.
Always to pray
and not lose heart.
To break up
the fallow ground.
To not give up
in our prayers.
And to keep on
praying.
In Psalm 126
which we sang together
it says there
he goes out weeping
carrying seed to sow
will return
with songs of joy
carrying sheaves
with him.
So
you're going out
weeping,
you're going out
sowing,
you're wondering
what's going to come.
You're maybe feeling
a sense of despair
and yet the Lord
assures
there will be a day
when you return
in song
carrying the sheaves
the harvest
will come.
The Lord
can do it.
We're reminded
even how Jesus
himself
wept over
his people.
Luke 19
verse 41
as he approached
Jerusalem
and saw the city
he wept over it
and said
if you
even you
had known
on this day
what would bring
you peace
but now
it is hidden
from your eyes.
He was weeping
because he had
what could bring
them peace
yet it's hidden
and so
we are in
difficult days
but yet it's still
a day
for dedication
a day
for devotion
to the Lord
because
we have
what can bring
peace
to the people
so we still
have hope
and so
finally in 30
we see here
it's a day
not to despair
it's a day
not to despair
as chapter
10
verse 12
tells us
there is this hope
sow for yourselves
righteousness
reap
steadfast love
break up
your fallow ground
for it is time
to seek
the Lord
that he may come
and rain
righteousness
upon you
one commentator
put it this way
Hosea
is a story
heavy
with tragedy
but buoyant
in hope
I think that's
just a great way
of putting it
heavy with tragedy
there's so much
that's tragic
in the book
of Hosea
but yet it's
buoyant
with hope
because there is
still
the hope
of the Lord
and why
why can they hope
why could Hosea
hope
because the Lord
is with him
the Lord
is there
it is time
to seek
the Lord
is bringing them
down to that point
where there's
nowhere else
to go
and again
that's the kind
of world
in which we live
a world
that as
you often see
the wheel
go round
where there's
a turning
away from God
after a time
of blessing
and we can
have everything
we do not
fear the Lord
we don't need
a king
over us
until we come
to the point
where we're
so low
we've got
nowhere else
to go
and where
do we go
then
well that's
the answer
that Hosea
has
it is time
to seek
the Lord
and we have
a day to day
where people
are looking
for these answers
and we have
the good news
to give them
it is time
to seek
the Lord
and we should
be encouraged
that there are
things that are
happening
where the
Lord
is working
I'm speaking
to somebody
this week
who was speaking
about
Christian unions
and the
blessings that
they are
in schools
and we're
privileged here
to have
some of our
schools have
Christian unions
being run
in them
it's a great
delight
but we maybe
think to ourselves
if only
they were
happening in
other places
in the mainland
they are
and in
amazing ways
there were
an update
given where
schools down
in the borders
there's just
a hunger
for the gospel
because
the young
people
they know
that there's
something missing
they know
the answers
aren't coming
in the way
that we're
going
and in many
ways
they're seeking
the Lord
great
opportunities
and there
is hope
because
the gospel
is always
filled with
hope
we were
down in
Manchester
a few
years ago
in a small
town
south of
Manchester
and on
the Sunday
on the Lord's
Day we
went along
to church
in the
town
and we
went in
got a
very warm
welcome
into the
place
and there
was quite
a number
in it
was a
reasonable
congregation
but as
we were
looking around
we thought
there's not
many young
people here
it's mostly
a more
elderly
congregation
or middle
aged
congregation
there's one
or two
young people
and one
or two
infants
but as
as we
sat down
the preacher
came in
one of the
first things
he said
was
we're going
to be
praying
today for
our youth
group
who are
away
for the
weekend
80 of
them have
gone
on a
trip
and I
was like
we're
blown
away
80
children
and if
they'd
been there
as well
the place
would have
been pretty
much full
and you're
thinking to
yourself
we didn't
expect this
we didn't
expect this
you almost
think that
the gospel
has come
out of our
nation
it hasn't
there are
many congregations
all over
the country
where the
Lord is
working and
working in
amazing ways
so we don't
lose hope
we don't
lose heart
and Hosea
didn't
lose heart
he kept
devoting
himself
to
proclaiming
the word
of God
now at the
beginning we
said about
his children
and what
their names
meant
Jezreel
I will
scatter
my people
how he had
then a
daughter
no mercy
and then
another son
not my
people
but it's
actually in
these names
that you
see the
hope that
he had
because if
you just
turn back
to chapter
two as
we conclude
you see
there the
names
mentioned
again
from verse
20
I will
betroth you
to my
faithfulness
and you
shall know
the Lord
and in
that day
I will
answer
declares
the Lord
I will
answer
the heavens
and they
shall answer
the earth
and the earth
shall answer
the grain
the wine
the oil
and they
shall answer
Jezreel
and I will
sow her
for myself
in the land
so you're
seeing with
Jezreel
that although
they were
going to be
scattered
there was
going to be
a sowing
and if there
was a sowing
there would
be a harvest
so the harvest
although it
was difficult
days
was promised
and then
you go on
and I
will have
mercy
on no
mercy
so the
Lord
is able
to show
mercy
even in
the midst
of no
mercy
the Lord
is able
to show
mercy
and then
he goes
on
and I
will say
to not
my people
you are
my people
and he
shall say
you
are my
God
and so
you see
even in
the imagery
that was
given to
Hosea
of his
own
family
and the
misery
that there
was in
it
a scattered
people
a people
of no
mercy
a people
who are
not my
people
the Lord
says
he is able
to turn
it
he is able
from the
scattering
to bring
sowing
to bring
a harvest
he is able
to have
mercy
on no
mercy
he is able
to say
to you
are not
my people
you are
my people
and what
do the
people
say
you are
my God
so there
is hope
the people
who say
we will
have no
king
over us
we do
not fear
the Lord
there is
the hope
that they
will return
and say
you are
my God
so Hosea
breaks the
fallow ground
for it is
time
to seek
the Lord
and so
that as
we do
likewise
as we
seek
to proclaim
the good
news
of the
gospel
we do
so in
light of
that
it is
time
to seek
the Lord
who is able
to bear
a great
harvest
the Lord
who is able
to show
mercy
and the Lord
who is able
to turn a
people who
are not
his people
into a
people
who are
his people
that they
would say
with one
voice
my Lord
and my
God
we have
difficult days
it's days
for dedication
and devotion
and it's a
day
that we will
see the
delight
as we see
God
working
there is
good news
for all
so we are
to keep
proclaiming
that good
news
in the
hope of
God
hearing
and answering
our prayers
well let us
pray
Lord our
gracious God
we do
thank you
for your
word that
fills us
with that
hope
that in
the midst
of the
heaviness
of tragedy
as that
commentator
put it
that we
see that
too
that it
was filled
and buoyant
with hope
and we
thank you
Lord
that that
encourages
in our
day too
that we
would see
a world
that is
so full
of tragedy
in so
many
different
ways
but yet
that we
would see
the hope
that there
is in
seeking
the Lord
we ask
Lord that
you will
bless us
in every
endeavour
to show
forth that
good news
to show
it to
all around
us
to be a
people who
do not
lose heart
in doing
so
even though
there are
difficulties
Lord
that we
would be
filled
with that
dedication
to you
and that we
would see
Lord
a delight
in you
that we
would see
a people
coming to
rejoice
in the hope
that there
is in
Jesus
so we
ask all
these things
Lord
confessing
our need
of you
confessing
our short
comings
and our
sins
but thankful
for the
one who
is on
our side
our Lord
and Saviour
Jesus Christ
as we pray
in his name
Amen
we voy
voy