"Wine and new wine
take away the understanding.
My people consult a piece of
wood,
and their divining rod gives
them oracles.
For a spirit of whoredom has led
them astray,
and they have played the
whore, forsaking their God.
They sacrifice on the tops of the
mountains,
and make offerings upon
the hills,
under oak, poplar, and terebinth,
because their shade is good.
Therefore your daughters play
the whore,
and your daughters-in-law
commit adultery.
I will not punish your daughters
when they play the whore,
nor your daughters-in-law when
they commit adultery;
for the men themselves go aside
with whores,
and sacrifice with temple
prositiutes;
thus a people without understanding come to
ruin."
When I read this section, what came to mind was the fundamentalist practice of polygamy; especially in relation to "Reformed" or "Fundamentalist" Mormon culture. More specifically, I'm thinking of Warren Jeffs on trial for trying to coerce a (at least one - sure there were others) 14 year old girl to marry her 18 year old cousin. I guess I can imagine God saying to the rulers of such practices, "I will not punish your daughters, your daughters-in-law -- you are the leaders, you know better." But it's scary sometimes in fundamentalism and mainstream religion when leaders DON'T seem to know better - they think what they are doing is FOR God!
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Response: Hosea 4:1-10ish
Sorry for my lack of blogging last week...I had good intentions...no, actually, I didn't. I knew I should read my bible and meditate on what it said, but I didn't. I skipped out. I watched TV instead. I read stupid gossip columns online. I avoided.
So now I'm confessing it to you guys. If I miss a week again, you guys have full permission (in fact please do) to email or call or blog me and say, "HEY! You know you need to read God's word! Quit hiding out!" And I will receive it and heed it (hopefully) in love and you will have held me accountable to reading God's word.
It may sound silly, but at this point in my life, this blog is really my only "regular" bible reading/study/discussion. It's a bit pathetic, but at least it's a something. So there is some confession for you.
Here's some of my thoughts on this passage:
Verses 1 and 2 seem to describe what I see on TV/in movies all the time. Just watch any episode of CSI, and I bet you'll see all of these things: cursing, lying, murder, stealing and adultery. I think the media has a serious influence on society. It reflects where we're going, but I really think it's also driving the bus that's taking us there (or at the risk of sounding like a self-righteous conservative, the media is carrying the handbasket that society is going to hell in).
I am very affected by the TV and movies I watch...if a movie is sad, I will feel sad for a while because of it ("Blood Diamond" left me in a funk for a week!). I'm operating on the assumption that other people are the same way...so, no wonder our world is increasingly full of cursing, lying, murder, stealing and adultery - that's what we're being fed.
I think I'm on a tangent...all I'm saying is, I see those things in the media and therefore accept that they are true and then go out and do them.
Verse 3 really intrigued me:
"the beasts of the field and the birds of the air and the fish of the sea are dying." - That sounds like extinction...how many animals do we have on the endangered species list now?
Verse 6:
"So my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge." My study bibles says this is "partly because the preists had failed to teach God's word to the people." I think that is definately happening today. Churches aren't teaching God's word, they're teaching self-help. Or they're teaching politics. Or they're calling themselves "churches" and teaching something that sounds an aweful lot LIKE the gospel but isn't (cultural reference here).
And in my own life, I fail to teach myself what the word of God says. It is much easier to be led astray when you don't have knowledge of God's word to keep you firm.
Verse 7:
"the more the priests increased, the more they sinned against me; they exchanged their Glory for something disgraceful."
This sounds like the power and authority pastors (and leaders and "lay" christains and everybody) get, and how it changes them (us). I certainly can't make a blanket statement that mega-churches are bad, because I do believe there are churches out there that are "mega" but are still on-track and teaching the gospel. But I believe there are plenty that aren't, too. Alot of churches (and people) have traded their "glory" (meaning, I think, humility, servanthood, love, charity, poverty) for "something disgraceful" (power [financial, political, etc.], recognition, comfortable living, etc.).
I think what chapter 4 has describe so far has been happening all the time. It sounds a lot like what was going on in the 1200's (as described by the book I'm reading about St. Francis). The state of the church was certainly what is described in chapter 4. The pope had ultimate spiritual, but more important, political, authority, the church had launched all sorts of crusades against people, priests were all about material gain instead of the spiritual lives of their people, etc.
But I also think that a passage like this should cause me to compare my own life to Israel. Have I or am I "rejecting knowledge" (verse 6)? What does it mean to "feed on the sins of my people and relish their wickedness" (verse 8)?
So now I'm confessing it to you guys. If I miss a week again, you guys have full permission (in fact please do) to email or call or blog me and say, "HEY! You know you need to read God's word! Quit hiding out!" And I will receive it and heed it (hopefully) in love and you will have held me accountable to reading God's word.
It may sound silly, but at this point in my life, this blog is really my only "regular" bible reading/study/discussion. It's a bit pathetic, but at least it's a something. So there is some confession for you.
Here's some of my thoughts on this passage:
Verses 1 and 2 seem to describe what I see on TV/in movies all the time. Just watch any episode of CSI, and I bet you'll see all of these things: cursing, lying, murder, stealing and adultery. I think the media has a serious influence on society. It reflects where we're going, but I really think it's also driving the bus that's taking us there (or at the risk of sounding like a self-righteous conservative, the media is carrying the handbasket that society is going to hell in).
I am very affected by the TV and movies I watch...if a movie is sad, I will feel sad for a while because of it ("Blood Diamond" left me in a funk for a week!). I'm operating on the assumption that other people are the same way...so, no wonder our world is increasingly full of cursing, lying, murder, stealing and adultery - that's what we're being fed.
I think I'm on a tangent...all I'm saying is, I see those things in the media and therefore accept that they are true and then go out and do them.
Verse 3 really intrigued me:
"the beasts of the field and the birds of the air and the fish of the sea are dying." - That sounds like extinction...how many animals do we have on the endangered species list now?
Verse 6:
"So my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge." My study bibles says this is "partly because the preists had failed to teach God's word to the people." I think that is definately happening today. Churches aren't teaching God's word, they're teaching self-help. Or they're teaching politics. Or they're calling themselves "churches" and teaching something that sounds an aweful lot LIKE the gospel but isn't (cultural reference here).
And in my own life, I fail to teach myself what the word of God says. It is much easier to be led astray when you don't have knowledge of God's word to keep you firm.
Verse 7:
"the more the priests increased, the more they sinned against me; they exchanged their Glory for something disgraceful."
This sounds like the power and authority pastors (and leaders and "lay" christains and everybody) get, and how it changes them (us). I certainly can't make a blanket statement that mega-churches are bad, because I do believe there are churches out there that are "mega" but are still on-track and teaching the gospel. But I believe there are plenty that aren't, too. Alot of churches (and people) have traded their "glory" (meaning, I think, humility, servanthood, love, charity, poverty) for "something disgraceful" (power [financial, political, etc.], recognition, comfortable living, etc.).
I think what chapter 4 has describe so far has been happening all the time. It sounds a lot like what was going on in the 1200's (as described by the book I'm reading about St. Francis). The state of the church was certainly what is described in chapter 4. The pope had ultimate spiritual, but more important, political, authority, the church had launched all sorts of crusades against people, priests were all about material gain instead of the spiritual lives of their people, etc.
But I also think that a passage like this should cause me to compare my own life to Israel. Have I or am I "rejecting knowledge" (verse 6)? What does it mean to "feed on the sins of my people and relish their wickedness" (verse 8)?
Hosea 4:4-11
This time I posted the text of verses 4-11, but bolded the ones that really stood out to me. (Kind of like Lectio Divina, I guess) The verses bolded were familiar to me. Probably because I've read them before, but also because I think they tie-in the with the context of our contemporary culture. So my invitation for this passage is to pay attention! To yourself and the culture around you.
How do these phrases (almost lines of poetry, actually) connect with the world around you?
In addition, since these verses pose a problem, as a Christian believer, what is the "healing balm" to these entrenched, cultural and spiritual wounds?
Yet let no one contend,
and let none accuse,
for with you is my contention,
O priest.
You shall stumble by day;
the prophet also shall stumble
with you by night,
and I will destroy your mother.
My people are destroyed for lack
of knowledge,
I reject you from being a priest
to me.
And since you have forgotten the
law of your God,
I also will forget your children.
The more they increased,
the more they sinned against me;
they changed their glory
into shame.
They feed on the sin of my
people;
they are greedy for their
iniquity.
And it shall be like people,
like priest;
I will punish them for their ways,
and repay them for their deeds.
They shall eat, but not be
satisfied;
they shall play the whore, but
not multiply;
because they have forsaken
the Lord
to devote themselves to
whoredom.
How do these phrases (almost lines of poetry, actually) connect with the world around you?
In addition, since these verses pose a problem, as a Christian believer, what is the "healing balm" to these entrenched, cultural and spiritual wounds?
Yet let no one contend,
and let none accuse,
for with you is my contention,
O priest.
You shall stumble by day;
the prophet also shall stumble
with you by night,
and I will destroy your mother.
My people are destroyed for lack
of knowledge,
I reject you from being a priest
to me.
And since you have forgotten the
law of your God,
I also will forget your children.
The more they increased,
the more they sinned against me;
they changed their glory
into shame.
They feed on the sin of my
people;
they are greedy for their
iniquity.
And it shall be like people,
like priest;
I will punish them for their ways,
and repay them for their deeds.
They shall eat, but not be
satisfied;
they shall play the whore, but
not multiply;
because they have forsaken
the Lord
to devote themselves to
whoredom.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Hosea 4: 1-3
"Hear the word of the Lord,
O people of Israel;
for the Lord has an indictment
against the inhabitants
of the land.
There is no faithfulness or
loyalty,
and no knowledge of God in
the land.
Swearing, lying, and murder,
and stealing and adultery
break out;
bloodshed follows bloodshed.
Therefore the land mourns,
and all who live in it languish;
together with the wild animals
and the birds of the air,
even the fish of the sea are perishing.
O people of Israel;
for the Lord has an indictment
against the inhabitants
of the land.
There is no faithfulness or
loyalty,
and no knowledge of God in
the land.
Swearing, lying, and murder,
and stealing and adultery
break out;
bloodshed follows bloodshed.
Therefore the land mourns,
and all who live in it languish;
together with the wild animals
and the birds of the air,
even the fish of the sea are perishing.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Response, Hosea 3
In response to Anna's thoughts, and my own question: yeah, we're gluttonous. I'm self-medicating with fatty/cheesy foods this very night. What if I didn't have such things to lean on? If in the 3rd world would I indulge in....water? Probably not if I had to journey ten miles with five containers on my back to the nearest well. Sometimes our own material abundance exhausts us.
So, to the question: What might God ask us to do in contemporary culture? I imagine God saying: "Marry an addict who doesn't intend to recover or change his/her ways. Love this person. Then maybe you will have a glimpse at what it is like for God to love Israel (i.e. God's chosen people.)"
The theme throughout Hosea seems to be the obedience of the prophet to do what God says. In this story of Hosea and Gomer, we learn something about God's love and provision.
**BUT**
I still say there is a difference between this portrayal of God, and the God we come to know through Jesus Christ, incarnate. (Notice I don't say "different Gods," instead, "different portrayals.") The God in Christ becomes human and that is the command. It is out of God's extreme freedom, abundant love, and absolute sovereignty that in Christ he sets the norm for humanity. But it isn't law. His coming eradicates the law. Jesus' love cuts through boundaries and rules, calling all people (even whores, addicts, and consumers) to his kingdom. I think Hosea points to such a kingdom, but is still a portrayal of God that is wrapped up in law.
Does that make sense??
So, to the question: What might God ask us to do in contemporary culture? I imagine God saying: "Marry an addict who doesn't intend to recover or change his/her ways. Love this person. Then maybe you will have a glimpse at what it is like for God to love Israel (i.e. God's chosen people.)"
The theme throughout Hosea seems to be the obedience of the prophet to do what God says. In this story of Hosea and Gomer, we learn something about God's love and provision.
**BUT**
I still say there is a difference between this portrayal of God, and the God we come to know through Jesus Christ, incarnate. (Notice I don't say "different Gods," instead, "different portrayals.") The God in Christ becomes human and that is the command. It is out of God's extreme freedom, abundant love, and absolute sovereignty that in Christ he sets the norm for humanity. But it isn't law. His coming eradicates the law. Jesus' love cuts through boundaries and rules, calling all people (even whores, addicts, and consumers) to his kingdom. I think Hosea points to such a kingdom, but is still a portrayal of God that is wrapped up in law.
Does that make sense??
Hosea 3 Response
In response to Kendra's question, I had a few thoughts.
It seems to me two ideas central to our American identity are those of Individualism and Consumerism.
Individualism: We are all about looking out for #1 - me or me and my family or me and those that are most important to me. So, perhaps God would call us to refrain from getting married or from dating anyone at all...in order to symbolize that loneliness and isolation of our individualism. Or perhaps he would call us to marry or partner with a dictator or someone who oppresses people, because when we persue only what benefits ourselves, we step on and oppress others.
Consumerism: What this actually is is Gluttony.
Proverbs 23:1-3
"When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony. Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive." I think food is a major example (just look at obesity rates in our country!), but I think gluttony extends to "stuff" too. How many of us have clothes we never wear, electronics that are out-dated, closets full of stuff we never use?
I'm not sure who/what God would have us partner with for this one...any ideas?
I think consumerism/gluttony ties in with individualism in that both of these ideas are pursuits of happiness. We pursue what we think will make us happy. And money or stuff will, won't it??? (If not stuff, than people will.) But where in the Bible does God promise us we will be happy? I'm pretty sure the fruits of the spirit don't include "happiness."
So we have this idea in our "Empire" that we're supposed to be happy. And I think that fuels our consumerism/individualism.
I'm struggling with this one right now. I like being happy. I like consuming things. I'm afraid God's will for me includes not being happy. That it includes not chasing after the things I want. Oh yeah, but doesn't God tell us that He knows what's best for us? That everything He does is for our good? It is so hard for me to remember this, to accept this, to grasp this. That I can trust God.
This song (by Switchfoot, of course) has been running through my mind as I write this...
Happy is a yuppie word
Nothing in the world could fail me now
It's empty as an argument
I'm running down a life that won't cash out
Happy is a yuppie word
Blessed is the man who's lost it all
Happy is a yuppie word
Looking for an orphanage
I'm looking for a bridge I can't burn down
I don't believe the emptiness
I'm looking for the kingdom coming down
Everything is meaningless
I want more than simple cash can buy
Happy is a yuppie word
It seems to me two ideas central to our American identity are those of Individualism and Consumerism.
Individualism: We are all about looking out for #1 - me or me and my family or me and those that are most important to me. So, perhaps God would call us to refrain from getting married or from dating anyone at all...in order to symbolize that loneliness and isolation of our individualism. Or perhaps he would call us to marry or partner with a dictator or someone who oppresses people, because when we persue only what benefits ourselves, we step on and oppress others.
Consumerism: What this actually is is Gluttony.
Proverbs 23:1-3
"When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony. Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive." I think food is a major example (just look at obesity rates in our country!), but I think gluttony extends to "stuff" too. How many of us have clothes we never wear, electronics that are out-dated, closets full of stuff we never use?
I'm not sure who/what God would have us partner with for this one...any ideas?
I think consumerism/gluttony ties in with individualism in that both of these ideas are pursuits of happiness. We pursue what we think will make us happy. And money or stuff will, won't it??? (If not stuff, than people will.) But where in the Bible does God promise us we will be happy? I'm pretty sure the fruits of the spirit don't include "happiness."
So we have this idea in our "Empire" that we're supposed to be happy. And I think that fuels our consumerism/individualism.
I'm struggling with this one right now. I like being happy. I like consuming things. I'm afraid God's will for me includes not being happy. That it includes not chasing after the things I want. Oh yeah, but doesn't God tell us that He knows what's best for us? That everything He does is for our good? It is so hard for me to remember this, to accept this, to grasp this. That I can trust God.
This song (by Switchfoot, of course) has been running through my mind as I write this...
Happy is a yuppie word
Nothing in the world could fail me now
It's empty as an argument
I'm running down a life that won't cash out
Happy is a yuppie word
Blessed is the man who's lost it all
Happy is a yuppie word
Looking for an orphanage
I'm looking for a bridge I can't burn down
I don't believe the emptiness
I'm looking for the kingdom coming down
Everything is meaningless
I want more than simple cash can buy
Happy is a yuppie word
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Ch. 3 Reflections...
As I typed this passage into blogger, I wondered how it might translate into our culture today. This segment, at least, seems to be the "allegorical" part of the story. Marrying a whore is like Israel's instability. Israel depends on the fluctuation of kings and rulers, and as Israel becomes the Empire in charge, "she" tends to absorb the religious practices of other domains.
I thought I'd describe it, but instead, I'll ask a question. Considering our North American "Empire," who might God call us to marry or "partner" with? What would seem foolish to our culture, and yet on a smaller scale represent the values of our nation?
Just a thought. . .
I thought I'd describe it, but instead, I'll ask a question. Considering our North American "Empire," who might God call us to marry or "partner" with? What would seem foolish to our culture, and yet on a smaller scale represent the values of our nation?
Just a thought. . .
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Hosea Chapter Three
OOPS! I almost forgot my "Wednesday Responsibility." Here is chapter 3 of Hosea:
"The Lord said to me again, "Go, love a woman who has a lover and is an adulteress, just as the Lord loves the people of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love raisin cakes." So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer of barley and a measure of wine. And I said to her, "You must remain as mine for many days; you shall not play the whore, you shall not have intercourse with a man, nor I with you." For the Israelites shall remain many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or pillar, without ephod or teraphim. Afterward the Israelites shall return and seek the Lord their God, and David their king; they shall come in awe to the Lord and to his goodness in the latter days."
"The Lord said to me again, "Go, love a woman who has a lover and is an adulteress, just as the Lord loves the people of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love raisin cakes." So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer of barley and a measure of wine. And I said to her, "You must remain as mine for many days; you shall not play the whore, you shall not have intercourse with a man, nor I with you." For the Israelites shall remain many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or pillar, without ephod or teraphim. Afterward the Israelites shall return and seek the Lord their God, and David their king; they shall come in awe to the Lord and to his goodness in the latter days."
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