The Maggot, The Rot, & The Lion | Sunday, June 23, 2024

Hear this, O priests! Take heed, O house of Israel! Give ear, O house of the king! For yours is the judgment, because you have been a snare to Mizpah and a net spread on Tabor... I will be to Ephraim like a moth, and to the house of Judah like rottenness... For I will be like a lion to Ephraim, and like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear them and go away; I will take them away, and no one shall rescue. (Hosea 5:1–14)

When a nation's sin festers into rot, God will get its attention—first as a maggot, then as a lion—yet His judgment always aims at restoration.

Judgment Begins at the House of God

This last week Pastor Nick took a clip from last Sunday's message and titled it "Judgment begins at the house of the Lord." Within a short time it had thousands of views online. That statement comes from Peter:

For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? (1 Peter 4:17)

If God is willing to judge His own people, what does that say for how He will judge the world?

When I began teaching the Bible here at 19 years old in February of 1999, I soon came to James 3, and that sobering word stopped me:

Let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. (James 3:1)

I remember thinking, how come nobody told me this before I started teaching? There is a weightiness to that, and there ought to be. To step forward and speak the exhortations of God's Word carries a greater accountability. And that's exactly the point Hosea 4 made and Hosea 5 makes again: you don't get a pass because you're a priest. You don't escape judgment because you have the title Minister or Pastor or a Master of Divinity. God said that to the priests in Hosea's day 2,800 years ago—they would not be exempt when judgment came on the Northern Kingdom.

When Headlines Prove the Scriptures Right

Two weeks ago in the news a well-known Christian minister with a large national radio and television ministry resigned in shame over what the church release called "mystery sin"—and we all know what that means. This last week it happened again: another well-known pastor from a large megachurch resigned in shame because of sexual impropriety some four decades ago, with a minor. I don't need to name them; it's in the news.

When we see things like this—and sadly it is far too common—it rightfully makes people angry. It stumbles the faith of some. For those who looked up to these men, it derails their confidence in Christian ministers, in churches, even in God's ability to transform and sanctify people. It has become the "in thing" over the last seven years for people to post their deconstruction stories online—often tied to the indiscretions of some minister they or their parents looked up to.

These headlines make me angry. But I'll also say something that may surprise you: I am encouraged, because they prove the Scriptures right. They prove James right—we shall receive a stricter judgment. They prove Peter right—judgment begins at the house of God. They prove Paul right:

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. (Galatians 6:7)

They prove Jesus right—"there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed." They prove Solomon right—"God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing." The Scriptures are true.

Point One: Sin Will Be Judged Without Partiality

There was no exemption given to the class of people in Israel called priests. Sin will be judged without partiality. Paul says, "The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men." And as Exodus 34:7 reveals, God "will by no means clear the guilty." That is the heavy reality of God's nature.

The good news—and it is good news—is that God is merciful, gracious, and slow to anger. I am so grateful He is patient. But I also keep the clarity of thought that He will by no means clear the guilty.

These are the same truths Hosea spoke 2,800 years ago. After a civil war had split the nation, the Northern Kingdom—called Israel, Ephraim, or Samaria—had continued in persistent idolatry and spiritual adultery for 500 years or more. God's longsuffering was wearing thin, and now it was time for judgment to begin at the house of God.

A Snare on the Hills and in the Valleys

Hosea addresses everyone—the priests, the house of the king, and the common people. "You have been a snare to Mizpah and a net spread on Tabor." Mizpah was a valley region; Tabor the most prominent hill in the valley of Jezreel. On the high hills and in the valleys, what were the children of Israel doing? Worshiping Canaanite deities—Baal on the mountaintops, Asherah in the valleys, and Molech as well. The hills and valleys had become a snare. They were ensnared in sin and defiling the land.

This was not hidden. As 2 Kings 17:10 says, "They set up for themselves sacred pillars and wooden images on every high hill and under every green tree." They burned incense in all the high places. The Bible calls this presumptuous sin—the King James renders it "sin with a high hand." It is brazen, bold, Cavalier, arrogant, audacious, rebellious defiance, out in the open for everyone to see. Through Moses, God spoke hard words about it:

The man who acts presumptuously... that man shall die. So you shall put away the evil from Israel. (Deuteronomy 17:12–13)

Charles Spurgeon, the great prince of preachers, said it well: all sins are great sins, but some sins are greater than others. Every sin carries the venom of rebellion, but some sins wear upon their faces the brazen pride that defies the Most High. It is remarkable, he noted, that under the Jewish law atonement was provided for every kind of sin—with one exception: the soul that sins presumptuously shall be cut off from the midst of God's people.

Point Two: God Will Punish Presumptuous Defiance

There are cities in Scripture known for this kind of presumptuous defiance—Sodom and Gomorrah, destroyed by God in Genesis 19. If you ask people today what Sodom's sin was, they have opinions. But what do the Scriptures say? God answers in Ezekiel 16:49: "This was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride." It is fascinating that we have a whole month dedicated to the celebration of presumptuous sins.

I think it was Ruth Graham who said—and Billy began to repeat it—that if God does not judge the United States of America, He will have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah. That is a heavy thing to consider as we sit here in the month of June.

So God's people—from the king to the priests to the commoners—were wholeheartedly given to sin with a high hand on every high hill and under every green tree. And God says your judgment is decreed; it is written, stated, and certain. Do not be deceived; God is not mocked. God will punish presumptuous defiance.

The Seared Conscience

They do not direct their deeds toward turning to their God, for the spirit of harlotry is in their midst, and they do not know the LORD. The pride of Israel testifies to his face. (Hosea 5:4–5)

Israel was proud and bold in their sin, and their boldness over centuries made it virtually impossible now to turn back. It was as if they had crossed a line that hindered their return.

This brings up a concerning truth: there seems to be a point at which the conscience is seared. Paul says the conscience is that internal part of you that accuses or excuses you—like an umpire calling "safe" or "out," letting you know right from wrong. God hardwired it into you. Yet there is a point, as Ephesians 4 says, where you become "past feeling"—a dullness sets in. You've seen it: a 60 Minutes interview with some reprehensible murderer, and there's a blackness, a deadness in their eyes. There's no sense of right and wrong left. Is it impossible for such a person to return to God? Nothing is impossible with God—but it is hard.

Isaiah, Hosea's contemporary, spoke to this:

Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! (Isaiah 5:20)

That word woe carries a sense of sorrowful, coming judgment. Paul warned in 1 Timothy of those whose conscience is "seared as with a hot iron." That is what happened to Ephraim.

Keeping Up the Pretense

These heavy words are for God's own people—not ignorant pagans, but the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who had the law and the Word. And yet, even while worshiping Baal, Molech, and Asherah, they tried to keep up the pretense of worshiping God:

With their flocks and herds they shall go to seek the LORD, but they will not find Him; He has withdrawn Himself from them. (Hosea 5:6)

"Well, it's the Sabbath, we still need to bring an offering." But they would not find Him. As we saw last week, "Ephraim is joined to idols, let him alone" (Hosea 4:17). God has removed His presence. "They have dealt treacherously with the LORD, for they have begotten pagan children."

Point Three: God Removes His Presence from His Presumptuous People

We are not Israel, and I believe God still has future plans for the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—people disagree on the details. But the church is also, in Christ, the people of God, and there is something here for us to learn. Paul makes this clear:

Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. (1 Corinthians 10:11–12)

Israel continued in proud sin for centuries thinking, "We're God's people." We Americans can do the same: "We're a Christian nation, God would never judge us." Take heed when you think you stand, lest you fall.

So what should we learn? Paul's counsel in Ephesians 4: no longer walk as the rest of the world walks, "in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened... because of the blindness of their heart, who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness." We can point fingers at lost people who have a deadness of soul—but we ought to know better. "But you have not so learned Christ."

Put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new man. (Ephesians 4:22–24)

Three Aids to Putting Off and Putting On

This putting off and putting on is my responsibility in Christ, but by God's enabling power. He has given us three things to help.

First, the indwelling Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth who guides us and empowers us to walk in righteousness. Second, the Word of God, which sanctifies us. Jesus prayed, "Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth" (John 17:17). Ephesians 5:25 says God cleanses His church by His Word, renewing our minds.

Third, the body of Christ—the people of God—to stir us up to love and good deeds. Develop close friendships with other Christians, guys with guys, ladies with ladies. Hopefully you have a friend who will call you on the carpet: "The way you just spoke to your spouse is not befitting a Christian," or, "Honestly, your business practices aren't right." You might get angry—how dare they!—but God is speaking. It's like He's saying, Hey, McFly, wake up, I'm trying to get your attention, because I don't want to have to remove My presence from you. Would you want God to withdraw His presence from your business? Probably not—all the success you've had to this point has been His blessing. Acknowledge it. We are called to work out our salvation with fear and trembling, knowing that God is working in us to will and to do His good pleasure.

A Warning to Judah—and a Cold Response

Blow the ram's horn in Gibeah, the trumpet in Ramah! Cry aloud at Beth Aven, "Look behind you, O Benjamin!" (Hosea 5:8)

Now Hosea, a prophet to the northern tribes, turns to the cousins in the South: "Listen up! God is judging your cousins in the north. Look behind you—Ephraim shall be desolate." God sounds the alarm to Judah, giving them advance notice so they would repent, because they were doing the same things.

And what was their response? Phenomenal:

The princes of Judah are like those who remove a landmark; I will pour out My wrath on them like water. (Hosea 5:10)

They looked at Ephraim's coming judgment and thought, "If our brothers in the north get destroyed, that might be good for us—we might inherit some land in the deal." It's like watching your neighbor's house burn down and thinking, "I bet I could get that property for a steal." Where does your heart have to be to drift that far?

Point Four: The Maggot, the Rot, and the Lion

God gives three similes—comparisons using like or as:

I will be to Ephraim like a moth, and to the house of Judah like rottenness. (Hosea 5:12)

"Moth" isn't the best translation. A better rendering would be like a pus, or like a maggot. God says, "I am bringing judgment upon the northern ten tribes—and it is like a festering, gangrenous, putrefying sore, destroying them by infection." To Judah, "like rottenness"—a decay setting in.

But the maggot and the rot didn't work, so now comes the third image:

When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound, then Ephraim went to Assyria and sent to King Jareb; yet he cannot cure you, nor heal you of your wound. For I will be like a lion to Ephraim, and like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear them and go away; I will take them away, and no one shall rescue. (Hosea 5:13–14)

Early, when the nation began to decay, Ephraim didn't turn to God—that would have meant stopping what they were doing. Instead they reached out to Assyria for help. But Assyria couldn't cure them; they were sick with sin too. So now God says, "Because you refuse to turn to Me, I will come like a lion. I will tear them and take them away"—exile, removal from the land. He tried to get their attention with internal rot; now He comes with an external force that is frightening.

I think we are at the point of the internal rot. What comes next when that rot weakens a nation? You don't have to play it out very far. We are not Israel, but God has not changed. God's wrath is relentless when there is no repentance. God used the Assyrians under Sargon II around 722 BC, and later Sennacherib, to nearly destroy Israel and, but for God's miraculous grace at Jerusalem in about 701 BC, would have destroyed Judah as well.

Point Five: God Relents When He Sees Repentance

Why would God enact such punishment? First, because it is exactly what He said He would do through Moses in Deuteronomy. Second—and crucially—God's punishment is ultimately for the purpose of purification. He will destroy the cancer so that He might redeem what remains.

I will return again to My place till they acknowledge their offense. Then they will seek My face; in their affliction they will earnestly seek Me. (Hosea 5:15)

God backs away and waits. He is patient enough to wait out our rebellion, to let us reap the consequences of our sin so that we might return to Him. Because of His abundant mercy and grace, God will relent when He sees repentance.

The greatest illustration is the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15. A son demanded his inheritance early—essentially saying, "I dishonor you; I wish you were dead"—and squandered it all in riotous living. When everything fell apart, he came to his senses: "The servants in my father's house have it better than I do. I'll go back and ask to be a servant." But the father was waiting with open arms, and he restored the son to his rightful place and rejoiced. That is the amazing thing about God: He allows the son to run away, and He waits. Isaiah says He "waits to be gracious." But He relents only when there is repentance, when a person returns to Him.

The Good News in the Bad News

Hold these realities in your heart. Sin will be judged without partiality—we occupy no special place exempt from God's judgment. He will punish presumptuous sin, and sin that continues unjudged for a long time tends to turn presumptuous, with the thought, "I haven't been judged yet, I guess it's okay." And God will be relentless in His punishment when there is no repentance.

Here is the good news hidden in the bad news: God's wrath was relentless upon another for you. Christ died in our place. He bore my sin, my shame, the punishment for my sin upon Himself, so that in Christ I might know mercy and grace. In Christ Jesus I can be reconciled to God because Jesus bore my shame and sin on the cross. That is the awesome gospel.

There are people in your life—friends, family, co-workers, neighbors—who need to hear this today, who may be living in presumptuous, high-handed sin. The heavy reality is that God will judge it. That's hard to say, and we often feel too reserved to say it. But God needs them to hear it, and you are the conduit—they're probably not going to tune in to my message. So I am challenging and equipping you: by the power of the Holy Spirit, be presumptuous in sharing the gospel. To the point that when you call a friend on the carpet for their sin and they say, "Wasn't that presumptuous of you?"—say, "Yes, and I'll be all the more bold to tell you that you need to repent." Why? Because only in Christ is there redemption. Without Him, the wound will fester and the lion will come, and there is no hope apart from Christ for our nation or any nation. God help us.

Closing Prayer

Father God, I do pray that You, by Your Spirit—Holy Spirit—who enabled the early church with boldness, would enable this church, the late church, with boldness, because our culture needs to hear the good news of the gospel. They need to see the reality and the truth that sin brings judgment. Would You empower Your people, pour out Your Holy Spirit upon Your church, give us opportunities this week, and do not allow us to shrink back from them. Give us the words in that moment to be presumptuous in the sharing of the good news of the gospel. Pour out Your Spirit upon Your church, we pray. We ask this today in Jesus' name, and all those that agreed said, Amen.