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Biblical Autopsy of a Nation (Hosea 13)
22 Plays1 year ago
Sunday Message recorded 28 April 2024
by Pastor Victor Morrison
First Baptist Church -- Columbus TX
1700 Milam St.
Columbus, TX, USA 78934
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Transcript
Opening and Worship Acknowledgments
00:00:07
Speaker
Well, good morning. Already, my heart's been so blessed by the worship. Thank you, Marcia, and praise team. I do thank the Lord for you guys. And I'm so grateful for Austin Stone and all the high school students that are here today. Welcome. We're glad that you're here.
00:00:22
Speaker
And if I'm not mistaken, I think that song that we just sang was by Chris Tomlin, wasn't it? He's the one that wrote that. He used to lead worship over there. I don't know if he was like in the nursery at one time and grew up there, but anyway, he definitely led worship over
Mentorship and Learning
00:00:39
Speaker
there. And so that shows you the caliber of these that are here with us. We're honored to have you.
00:00:44
Speaker
I want to say, too, how refreshing it is to hear that you're at a retreat out there learning about the importance of mentoring. And in Hebrews 13, it says, remember those who've led you. And so I made a list of people that mentored me through my lifetime. And it went all the way across the bottom margin of the page, up the side, across the top, and down the other side. We never stop learning, even in this church family.
00:01:13
Speaker
There are people that I'm still learning from. So don't ever stop saying, Lord, I want to be closer. I want to know you more. And so I just affirm that and exhort you.
Introduction to Hosea and Israel's Context
00:01:25
Speaker
Just keep on going just like you're doing. So glad to have you here today. I'm glad that all of you are here. The Old Testament prophet, Hosea, that's where we're going to be. So I'll give you some time to find Hosea.
00:01:39
Speaker
His ministry lasted 45 years, 45 years. Some of you may be looking at me and say, how long have you been here? I've only been here almost 17. But anyway, I didn't know Hosea personally, in case some of you were wondering, was he in his state? No, I wasn't. He lived between, or ministered between 755 and 710 BC. He was preaching to the Northern Kingdom of Israel.
00:02:06
Speaker
Back then, the nation of Israel was divided. The northern kingdom was called Israel. The southern kingdom was called Judah. And despite God's amazing grace that he poured out over and over again, and despite all of the sacrifices the Lord made, sacrificial love that was constantly being demonstrated through the life of Hosea,
00:02:29
Speaker
still the people back then turned to apostasy. They were pulling back from God. They were turning to idolatry that we'll see in a moment. And so what's happening now is there's this foreign nation. They're called the Assyrians. The Assyrians were getting ready to come.
00:02:49
Speaker
and to basically destroy the northern kingdom of Israel. They destroyed their capital Samaria in 722 BC.
Spiritual Death and Hope in Christ
00:02:58
Speaker
So what Hosea is trying to say here, it's a matter of life and debt for that nation. And he was trying to encourage them all through the book of Hosea, turn back, turn back to God and experience the life that he has for you.
00:03:15
Speaker
but instead they chose to walk further and further away from him. And so what we're gonna find in chapter 13 is this Old Testament prophet, Hosea, is gonna perform a biblical autopsy. Don't get worried. We're not gonna do anything gross here this morning. But it says in chapter 13 verse one that Israel incurred guilt through Baal.
00:03:41
Speaker
and died. Isn't that, have you ever seen a nation, have you ever read about a nation that died? Well this one died, but they died spiritually. So if you would have been alive back then during Hosea's day, they would have been saying, what do you mean we died? We're still walking around, we still have our jobs, we're still learning things, we're still as families and so forth. Yeah, but you know Romans 5, 12, fact checks.
00:04:07
Speaker
this whole idea. Is it true that people can die spiritually? Romans 5, 12 says, therefore just as sin came into the world through one man. Remember his name? Adam. Just as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin.
00:04:27
Speaker
and death spreads to all men because all sinned." Isn't that something? The Bible says all is sin and falls short of the glory of God. And so even though here we're very much alive physically, but in this room there could be someone who's still dead in the trespasses of their sins. That's what we read about in Ephesians 2, 1 and 2.
00:04:52
Speaker
where the Apostle Paul was inspired by the Holy Spirit of God to say to the people who lived in Ephesus, they're still walking around. But he says, you know what? You were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked. So isn't it amazing that someone can be dead and yet they can still be walking? So you got a dead man walking. And so here's the thing.
00:05:14
Speaker
Spiritual death is more subtle. It's difficult to know who in this group that's here gathered today, who's alive spiritually and who's dead spiritually. Yet notice how he says, but in mercy, in grace, in love, God made a way in Christ for us to come alive spiritually. And so maybe you sense something as we were worshipping the Lord today. What you sensed is life.
00:05:44
Speaker
Many of us have come to Christ and turned to Him in repentance and faith, and we have spiritual life in our soul, in our spirit. We're no longer dead in our trespasses and sins.
00:05:58
Speaker
And so I just wanted you to know there's hope, there's hope for you that's found there in Ephesians chapter two, verses four and five and six, where he says, but God, being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. By grace you've been saved and raised us up
00:06:23
Speaker
with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Let me tell you, what is it that causes spiritual death? Well, the kids in Awana that were mentioned earlier, they've been memorizing verses for the past year and they could tell you. They could tell you Romans 3 23 says all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. They could tell you Romans 6 23 that says the wages of sin
00:06:53
Speaker
is dead. The wages of sin is dead. So there's spiritual death whenever we have sinned and walked away from God. And who who sinned and walked away from God? All of us. That's why I want you to know in this room right now, despite what you may think is a pre preconceived idea, there's none of us better than you. We're all the grounds level at the foot of the cross. All of us come to the point where we say, you know what I need
00:07:20
Speaker
I need salvation in Christ. We see that even in the Old Testament book of Hosea.
Hosea's Message: Love and Repentance
00:07:27
Speaker
Over and over again, I've told you that what's happening in Hosea is what God summarized in Romans 5.8. But God demonstrates his own love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. What you see through the book of Hosea, what we have seen
00:07:44
Speaker
is a God who loves us, a God who says, you know what, while you were still walking away from me, I was walking after you. So today I want you to know God's pursuing us.
00:07:55
Speaker
But last week we saw in Hosea chapter 12, Josh gave us a great message that addresses the seriousness of the nation's sin. There were consequences for sin. There's always consequences for sin. That's what it means. The wages of sin is dead. But despite their unfaithfulness, the Lord was still waiting in faithfulness to forgive if they would only turn.
00:08:22
Speaker
if they would only repent and come back to him. So I want the Lord to speak today. I've been excited to give you this message. Now, I want you to know at the beginning, maybe you say, you can't fool me, pastor. I saw the title of this message is autopsy, so I'm not expecting much. Hey, why don't you stand in honor of God's word? It's living, it's active. It can go down deep in our hearts. So let's see what God will speak to us today through his living word of God.
00:08:52
Speaker
We're going to be in Hosea 13 verses one to the end of the chapter. When Ephraim spoke, there was trembling. He was exalted in Israel, but he incurred guilt through Baal and died. Now,
00:09:09
Speaker
They send more and more and make for themselves metal images, idols, skillfully made of their silver, all of them, the work of craftsmen. It is said of them, those who offer human sacrifice kiss calves. Therefore, they shall be like the morning myths
00:09:32
Speaker
or like to do that goes away early, like the chaff that swirls from the threshing floor or like smoke from a window. But I am the Lord your God from the land of Egypt. You know no God but me. And besides me, there is no savior.
00:09:52
Speaker
It was I who knew you in the wilderness, in the land of drought. But when they grazed, they became full. They were filled and their heart was lifted up. Therefore, they forgot me. So,
00:10:07
Speaker
I am to them like a lion. Like a leopard, I will lurk beside the way. I will fall upon them like a bear robbed of her cubs. I will tear open their breasts, and there I will devour them like a lion, as a wild beast would rip them open. He destroys you, O Israel, for you are against me, against your helper.
00:10:33
Speaker
Where now is your king to save you in all your cities? Where are all your rulers, those of whom you said, give me a king and princess? I gave you a king in my anger and I took him away in my wrath. The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up. His sin is kept in store.
00:10:57
Speaker
The pains of childbirth come from him, but he is an unwise son, for at the right time he does not present himself at the opening of the womb. I shall ransom them from the power of Sheol. I shall redeem them from death. O death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your sting?
00:11:22
Speaker
Compassion is hidden from my eyes. Though he may flourish among his brothers, the east wind. The wind of the Lord shall come rising from the wilderness and his fountain shall dry up, his spring shall be parched. It shall strip his treasury of every precious thing.
00:11:40
Speaker
Samaria shall bear her guilt because she has rebelled against her God. They shall fall by the sword. Their little ones shall be dashed in pieces and their pregnant women ripped open." Let's go to the father in prayer.
Israel's Spiritual Autopsy
00:11:55
Speaker
Lord, once again, we pray that you would awaken our nation. Lord, we're standing on the doorstep of the National Day of Prayer. I pray that all across our country that people be praying for a great spiritual awakening.
00:12:10
Speaker
Lord, our hope is in you. And so, Lord, help us to see as we look into Hosea 13, what is it that you're saying to us? Maybe it's on a personal level. Maybe it's on a national level. Maybe you'll call us to pray like never before that nothing like this would happen in our family. Nothing like this would happen to our nation. So speak, Lord, as we bow before you and listen closely as your servants. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thank you. You may be seated.
00:12:41
Speaker
The purpose of an autopsy is to determine the cause and the manner of death, as well as to evaluate any disease or injury that may have contributed to the death. So in this biblical autopsy that we're about to see, God's going to reveal to us what happened to the Northern Kingdom. Why did they die as a nation?
00:13:05
Speaker
But then also you may say, well, I've sensed the Lord saying something to me. I feel dead on the inside. Just listen all the way to the end of this message. You'll know where life is found by the end. But also maybe you're saying God is really placing our country on my heart. I'm praying so hard for our country. That's great. So whatever it is, I pray that God will speak to you as we go through this passage. I know he's spoken to me as I was trying to get it ready this week.
00:13:34
Speaker
The first thing I want you to notice is found in verses 1, 2, and 3. Verses 1 through 3, to me, speak of the devotion to a multitude of idols. I think that contributed to the death of their nation. You know, if you see verse 1, you may say, what does it mean that whenever Ephraim spoke, Ephraim is like this second name, kind of like a nickname.
00:13:59
Speaker
that Israel was called. So we're still talking about the nation, Israel, the northern kingdom, Israel. When Ephraim spoke, it says, there was trembling. In other words, God blessed Ephraim so much that other people said, you know what, that guy's influential. Maybe in your school, maybe at work, maybe in your community, there are people that are, they're influential. And what they say really holds weight.
00:14:23
Speaker
That's the way it was with Ephraim. But something happened. They got blindsided. What did they get blindsided by? They were blinded by so many idols.
00:14:34
Speaker
You know, an idol is basically a waste of your time. You know, if you look at verse two carefully, you'll see it says that they send more and more, so they're just wasting more time on these idols. But not only a waste of time, a waste of treasure. Did you see what they used to build these idols? It says they're silver. They're silver could have been used for their families, but instead, they're using it on sin. Instead, they're using on idolatry.
00:15:03
Speaker
And so they wasted their silver in their treasure. They wasted their talents. Did you see who built these things? Could you build an item? Could you construct something? You know, it said they brought in the craftsmen. So these guys are using all the skill they have to build something that's a waste of time. It's a waste of treasure. It's a waste of their talents. But then there's also something degrading.
00:15:30
Speaker
that is described where it says that they would kiss the calf. So whenever they would make a golden calf, they would kiss it. Would you raise your hand if you've ever kissed a calf?
00:15:40
Speaker
Okay, I don't see anybody's hands, that's good. You're in good shape here today. Well, you know, I mean, we can ask Dr. Mike Ritalin, who's a veterinarian, you know, have you ever heard of anybody kissing a calf? And probably he has not, so let's hope so. But anyway, Joseph named his sons Manasseh, and Manasseh was the firstborn, and his name meant, you know what God did? He made me forget all my hardships. When you come to Christ, you forget all the
00:16:06
Speaker
hard things that have happened in your life you begin to say now I'm experiencing good things the goodness of the Lord but when his second son was born he named him Ephraim do you know that the name Ephraim means make it fruitful and that's exactly what God did for that northern kingdom he made them so fruitful everything they did just seemed like it just turned out well but you know what all that's about change
00:16:32
Speaker
Why? Because they chose idols. They chose sin. And so God says, you know what, you were fruitful, but now they're going to call you unfruitful because you've been unfaithful. Well, let's look at the second thing that I think contributed to their spiritual death. There was a second factor.
00:16:50
Speaker
I think it was in gratitude for the blessings. In gratitude for the blessings. You see, their unfaithfulness led them to this deception. You know what? We have done this. As a nation, we have done this. Look at all that we have. Look at all that we're able to do. Look at what we have done.
00:17:09
Speaker
So their unfaithfulness led them to think they did it, and so it led them to be unthankful. What do we have to thank God for? Our hands built this. Our hands did that. Our minds thought of this. Well, what had God done for them? We'll look at verses four and five and six.
00:17:27
Speaker
And I think you'll begin to see clearly the ingratitude for all the blessings.
Consequences of Unfaithfulness
00:17:32
Speaker
God had done so much for them. What had he done for them? Well, let me list four things real quickly. He had delivered them out of slavery. That's verse four at the beginning. But also he had revealed to them his identity. Do you know that over 1,300 years, God had been revealing to them different things about himself.
00:17:53
Speaker
You know, think about how he revealed to Abraham in 2091 B.C.
00:17:59
Speaker
when he called in. But think about what he revealed to Moses at Mount Sinai in 1446. David knew a lot about God. If you read the Psalms, you'll see he certainly knows more than me about God. Well, he was around in 1010 BC when he became king. And so all of this time, God's been saying, this is who I am. This is who I am. This is who I am. I want you to know me. And so despite all of that, they're saying, we don't owe you anything.
00:18:27
Speaker
We're not going to thank you. We're not going to praise you. We're going to do things the way we want to do them. Well, he had also sustained them during a very difficult time. I would say it was adversity. He sustained them through 40 years of adversity.
00:18:43
Speaker
Maybe it's a hard time in your life, but yet God's sustaining you. He's providing for you during this difficult time. And he says that's what he had done for them. All when they were wandering around in the wilderness, God was saying, you know what? Your shoes aren't going to wear out. I'm going to provide what you need. But he also provided for them prosperity. Because there came a day when they went into the promised land. And oh, it was amazing to be in there. And oh, you think about all that God did.
00:19:13
Speaker
You know, if you were to go to Romans 1, 18 to 32, it describes what a generation or what a nation does just before God says, you know what, I've had enough. I've had enough. Three times he says he gave them over, he gave them over, he gave them over. This is in Romans chapter one, verses 18 to 32.
00:19:38
Speaker
ungodliness causes God to say, you know what? I've had enough of this ungodliness. Refusal to honor God. But get this, the third thing is a failure to give thanks. Is it really that big of a deal to God? I think it is. I think it is. I think it is because of one thing, and it's mentioned right here at the end of verse six. Therefore, they forgot me. They forgot me.
00:20:06
Speaker
See, when you think you've done it all in your life, you think everywhere you got, you got there by yourself, then you'll forget God. And God built us. God longs for us to have a personal relationship with us. He wants to love you. He wants to encourage you. He wants to comfort you. He wants to guide you. He wants to use you.
00:20:27
Speaker
But instead, whenever we turn to unfaithfulness, it leads to this ungratefulness, which leads to forgetfulness. Do you know that three times, Hosea has been saying the same thing. He's been saying the same thing. Three times, he said, they forgot me. If you were to check this out in Hosea 4.6,
00:20:48
Speaker
They forgot the law. They forgot the commander who gave them the law in Hosea 4.6 and Hosea 8.14. They forgot their maker. They were thinking, I don't know if evolution was big at that time, but there's people today forgetting their maker. But then also here in chapter 13, verse 6, I think the context would tell us when they grazed, they became full, they were filled, and their heart was lifted up. Therefore, they forgot me.
00:21:18
Speaker
I think the context is we've forgotten our provider. We've forgotten who gave everything to us. We think we did it all. No, that's not right. And whenever we act like that's the way it is, God doesn't like it. And so I think that was a contributing factor to their nation's spiritual death. But let's move to a fourth thing, inaptitude.
00:21:43
Speaker
So let's say that God is going to, wait a second, I forgot a point. The third point is the magnitude of God's passion. So what does God feel? What's God gonna do if a nation forgets him? Does God just sit there and act like that's okay? It's okay.
00:22:01
Speaker
There's a guy named Derek Kidner who's written a lot of commentaries and so forth on Old Testament books. And I read this statement by Derek Kidner and I thought, ooh, that's good. Don't forget this statement. Derek Kidner said, there's a popular picture of God today that pictures God as a tolerant spectator. He's just kind of watching it all. Oh, hey, that's pretty good.
00:22:27
Speaker
But, Kidner goes on to say, that's not the revealed picture in God's word. You know, whenever God was giving the Ten Commandments and so forth in Exodus 20,
00:22:38
Speaker
verses three through six. The first couple of commandments was, I don't want you to have any other idols. I don't want you to have any other gods. I don't want you to make any graven images and so forth. And he told them why. Listen to the reason why God said, I don't want you to be bowing down to other idols. Here's what he said. Because I'm a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation,
00:23:05
Speaker
those who hate me but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments. You see what God is saying is I care about you. God is saying I made you. God is saying I am passionate about a personal relationship with you. He wants it so badly that he says I'm not gonna just sit here.
00:23:29
Speaker
like some spectator in the stands. And I'm certainly not like one of those idols that cannot think for itself and so forth. It's just a dead idol. So what is God like? Well, why don't we let God say it for himself? I'm not making this up. Verses seven and eight tell us exactly what he says I'm like. He says, so I am to them like a lion, like a leopard.
00:23:58
Speaker
like a bear robbed of her cubs. I got to thinking through these verses and what is God trying to say to us? Here's what I think he's trying to say. He said, if you try to do the wrong thing, you ignore me, you disobey me, you walk away from me. And in nations like that, he said, I'm coming. I'm coming for you.
00:24:19
Speaker
And when I'm coming for you, just know that I'm gonna be like a lion in his strength compared to a man in his strength. Do you realize that lions are seven times stronger than men? Do you realize that the bite of a lion is between 650 to 1,000 PSI? Do you realize that he said, I'm not just like a lion in its strength, I'm like a leopard in how stealthy
00:24:49
Speaker
the leopard is. He said, I'll lurk. You see, sometimes we think, you know what, I do things all the time and God's not coming after me. Yeah, that doesn't mean he's not stalking him. He's coming. And that's what he's trying to tell them. He's coming. Do you know that a leopard is called the silent killer by some who study animals? Because they can sneak up on you and it's like, whoa, there he is. I didn't realize he was there.
00:25:14
Speaker
But then there's also the bear, a bear robbed of her cubs and it says, you'll fall on them. You know, I got to think about the speed of a bear. You know, you think there's no way a 600 pound grizzly is gonna be able to catch me. I can now run that dude. You know, retired Jamaican Olympic runner, Usain Bolt, he ran 27 miles an hour. That's a little faster than I can run.
00:25:40
Speaker
like several times faster. But anyway, he can run 27 miles an hour. But get this, a bear, despite the 600 pounds, he can move. He can run 40 miles an hour. So he's going to be catching you. And so don't try to outrun him. Do you know that he can run 44 feet per second?
00:26:00
Speaker
Man, it's lightning fast. I'm thinking to myself, wow, how fast does a bear do? Well, one guy said a bear in the sprint can outrun a racehorse in the sprint. And I thought, goodness sakes. When I was in Canada, we hunted bear. I got to shoot one one time. I killed a bear. And so anyway, it's just an amazing thing. But that's why whenever the outfitter told me,
00:26:26
Speaker
He said, okay, you got him. Let's go down out of the tree. And I said, why don't you go down out of the tree? You make sure it's safe and then I'll come down out of the tree. I knew I wouldn't have a chance. So if someone rejects Jesus and therefore is running away from the almighty God's pursuit of justice, who are you gonna call?
00:26:46
Speaker
I mean, who are you gonna say, come help me? The Lord's after me. Who is it that's gonna be able to stop him? That's what I think verses 19 through 13 is all about. It's the ineptitude of deliverance. It's like, who can deliver us out of the hands of the Almighty God?
00:27:06
Speaker
Listen, the Lord is able to deliver you and he's definitely delivered me. Out of every sin imaginable, he can help you. Come on, he can help you, he can deliver you. But if you are his enemy and he's after you, there's nobody. There's nobody in the whole universe that you can turn to and say, hey, I need you to get God off me, because his wrath is chasing me.
00:27:34
Speaker
Well, verse 9 would tell us that there's none strong enough to deliver us from the Almighty. Verse 10 and 11 would tell us there's none wise enough to deliver us from the vulnerability. You know, there's nobody that's going to be able to figure out how to make you where you're not vulnerable. And there is none perfect enough, thinking about Jesus and his perfect life,
00:27:58
Speaker
and the sinless atonement that he made for us on the cross, there's none perfect enough to deliver us from the accountability of our sins. Did you see what is written here? I mean, this ought to get our attention in verse 12. The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up. It's like a book, right? It's bound up in a book. His sin is kept in store. So it's like God says, okay, you don't want to trust my way of salvation.
00:28:28
Speaker
then I'm gonna be keeping a record of all that you do. And I'm gonna put it over here, and when you stand before me and you say, I've been a good person, I'm better than all these other people, then he said, we're gonna pull out the book. You should go to Revelation. Go to Revelation 20. Read about the great white throne judgment. When it says the books were opened, the books are the books of our works. If you don't want
00:28:55
Speaker
to trust Christ. They're going to read what you did in your life because there was nobody that was perfect enough to take
Justice, Mercy, and Redemption
00:29:02
Speaker
those out. But the good news is
00:29:04
Speaker
In the book of life, which the Lord writes our name with his blood, it's invisible. He takes away all of our sins. So we're not gonna get to heaven because of our works. We're gonna get to heaven only, only because of his work, his perfect work. That's the only reason that I get to go is because of what he did for me and what he did for you. But also, there are none perceptive enough
00:29:32
Speaker
to deliver us from the uncertainty. I think that's what he's talking about in verse 13. In verse 13, he says, the pains of childbirth come from, the pains of childbirth come for him. They're coming after Israel, just like a woman. She doesn't know exactly when it's gonna happen. And he says, but he's an unwise son. For at the right time, he does not present himself at the opening of the womb.
00:29:57
Speaker
Wouldn't that be so sad if it's time to be born and the baby says, no, it's cold out there. I like it. I think I'm going to stay in here. Do you know that something similar to that happened in 1945? Beulah Hunter was 25 years old at that time, and she was going to deliver a baby girl. And she did eventually deliver the baby girl named Penny on February 21st, 1945, after
00:30:26
Speaker
almost 100 days pastor due date. Wow. It was 375 days. It's still a record if you want to fact check me on that. But I want to go to verse 14. I feel like it's one of the most important verses in this whole chapter. And I don't want to make sure you understand it because there's a lot of people that take it this way, take it that way.
00:30:51
Speaker
I think it's a prophetic glimpse of the crossroads, the crossroads of God's justice and God's holiness when it's just like it's gonna be the same for everybody, all right? But then something crossed his justice and his holiness. It was his mercy. His mercy came down and intersected with his justice.
00:31:16
Speaker
And so in order for you and me to be forgiven of our sins, something's going to have to be done about the sin debt that we owe. We owe. It's a penalty. It's a punishment. And a holy God that knows everything. He's been keeping records. He knows that we do not deserve to be in heaven. And so what I want you to see is that even back then, even in Hosea's day, there was this God's up there saying, the time's coming. Time is coming.
00:31:46
Speaker
He's getting excited because he sees down the road. And so that's why he says prophetically in verse 14, yes, the Northern kingdom is about to perish, but he says, I shall ransom them from the power of shield. In other words, you know what? I'm sick and tired of this thing called death that sin has done to those that I've created. And God is saying, I'm going to take care of it. And he did.
00:32:13
Speaker
He took care of it in His Son. And so mercy came volitionally. Did you see twice? He says, I shall ransom. Then look, I shall redeem. So nobody made Jesus come. Nope, the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit, they said, you know what? This is the plan. This is the plan. This is what we're gonna do. And so it was,
00:32:39
Speaker
Jesus surrender to the plan of the Lord, glad surrender, but it's also a vicarious. It's a vicarious. Mercy came vicariously because it says ransom. It says redeem. I can't pay my way out of my sin debt. But you know what? Jesus could because he didn't have a sin debt.
00:33:02
Speaker
That's why his blood was so precious and so important. He died vicariously saying, I'll give my life because if not, death's going to keep on whipping people around. And so mercy was going to come victoriously.
00:33:20
Speaker
If you were to read these verses here that says, O death, where are your plagues? O shield, where is your sting? If you were to go to 1 Corinthians 15, you would see that quoted. 1 Corinthians 15, 55, Paul is talking about the resurrection of Christ. And right there is what he quotes. Do you know that Hosea is quoted eight times in the New Testament?
00:33:43
Speaker
I mean, this guy is quoted more times than any of the other minor prophets. I think it's because the Lord was saying a lot. And the Lord was saying one thing is, I'm going to take care of death. I'm going to take care of sin. I'm going to take care of that sin death.
00:33:59
Speaker
And so, you know what, Revelation 20 verse 14, some say, I don't like Revelation, I don't wanna go there, it's too scary, it's too hard to understand, and so forth.
Invitation to Trust in Christ
00:34:09
Speaker
You need to read Revelation 20 verse 14, because you know what Jesus did? It says, then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. You ought to say, yay! Jesus took care of death! So that's what I'm saying is, look at the end of verse 14.
00:34:27
Speaker
It says, compassion is hidden from my eyes. And see, this is what throws some scholars off. They're saying, is he saying he's not going to be compassionate on Israel? Some scholars say, yeah. He's saying, you're going down. I see that.
00:34:41
Speaker
But you know what I think it's talking about? When you look at the New Testament, when you see all the different things that are spoken that I just referred to, I think, no. He's saying, I will have no compassion on death. When I get to beaten death, death's going to go down. So when Jesus doubled the cross, what I'm telling you is he defeated death. He said,
00:35:03
Speaker
I've lived a perfect life. And that's why the father said, I'm going to raise my son from the dead because he never sinned. He doesn't owe the wages of sin. He deserves life. And the father raised his son to life. So I'm telling you, that is tremendous news. That's why I love the song. It's an old one now by Phillips Craig and Dean. Have you ever heard that song? Mercy came running.
00:35:30
Speaker
Mercy came running. I'll give you the chorus, but you can look it up. It says, mercy came running like a prisoner set free, passed all my failures to the point of my need, when the sin that I carried was all I could see, and when I could not reach mercy,
00:35:51
Speaker
Mercy came running to me. That's what the cross is. Don't you get it? The cross is God's running toward us. He's running toward us. And he's saying, I love you. I've done everything for you. But despite all that he had done, the final contributing cause of the death of their nation was this.
00:36:12
Speaker
the declaration of judgment, the certitude of judgment. If God says it's going to happen, it's going to happen. So that's why the word of God is so reliable. You can trust it. Whatever God has said.
00:36:25
Speaker
He says, for example, in verse 15, it doesn't matter if you are affluent, affluence before the judgment will mean nothing because nobody's going to be able to pay off their sin debt with their cash or with their gold or their silver or anything. He gives an analogy and said it's going to be like this wind coming from the east. You're not going to be able to control it.
00:36:48
Speaker
And so this analogy of the wind was representing the Assyrians. They're coming. The Assyrians are coming. And so when they get there, look at the atrocities that they were going to do. They were cruel. Look up in the history books and see how nice were the Assyrians whenever they took over. They weren't nice. They were butchers. They were cruel. The things that they did were outrageous. There were atrocities that were going to happen. And why?
00:37:19
Speaker
Don't miss why God's saying it over and over in Hosea, verse 16, Samaria shall bear her guilt because she's rebelled against her God. That's it. That's the bottom line. Samaria shall bear her guilt because she's rebelled against her God. See now.
00:37:40
Speaker
Individuals, nations, families, we don't have to bear our guilt. You know why? We have a guilt bearer, a sin bearer. Jesus took our guilt. He died on the cross. You know what it says in Hebrews 2, 9 and 10? It talks about how He tasted death for us.
00:38:00
Speaker
He died so we don't have to die spiritually. And then even when we do die physically, we're going to go through a doorway just like that. And on this side, here we are on that side, there will be with the Lord. And I'm just thinking, wow, you know, he died on the cross as a perfect substitute in our place, tasting death for us. He paid the penalty of death for our sins. Did he do that because we were worthy?
00:38:29
Speaker
You know what he did that for? Because he's worthy. We're not the worthy ones. He's the worthy one. And so I'm thinking, thank you God. That's why Ephesians 2.8 says, for by grace you've been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing, it's the gift of God. So I'm just closing with these words.
00:38:51
Speaker
Any individual, any family, any community, any nation that admits their sin to God turns in repentance from their sin, places their trust in the finished work of Christ. You know what we can be? We can be rescued from the penalty of sin. We can receive spiritual life. This morning I was reading
00:39:15
Speaker
in John chapter 5, where it says that God, through Christ, can bring us out of death into life. That's what God wants for you today. But if you reject his offer, then God is trying to warn us. Listen, there's only death. There's only judgment. Because that's what we're worthy of. We deserve the judgment. We deserve
00:39:39
Speaker
sin, sin's wages of sin is death, right? So we deserve to be separated from God. But Jesus said, I'm going to down the cross so you don't have to experience that. So we have to say, okay, Lord, I'm willing to turn from my sin.
00:39:56
Speaker
I'm willing to put my faith and trust in the finished work of Christ. Would you stand with me? I want us to have an opportunity for anyone who's here today who's not ready. They have never done that. They've never placed their faith in Christ. Maybe they're trying so hard every single day to earn God's favor, to earn God's love, to earn their way into God's family. They're thinking, if I'm good enough, then maybe he'll let me go to heaven when I die.
00:40:24
Speaker
It's not going to work. That's not going to work only because of what Christ did. That's the only reason that we will get to go to heaven when we die is because we've trusted in him. Would you trust in him today? Let's pray together. Lord, we're about to sing a song of invitation and we're winding up our service. This is going to be it. But before we leave this room, we wanted to give an earnest appeal to any that may be here and they still have never trusted Christ.
00:40:54
Speaker
Lord, I pray they would say, I don't want to forget somebody like him. I don't want somebody like God Almighty coming after me. I can't outrun them. Oh please Lord, help them realize that you said I am gonna ransom them. I am gonna redeem them. I am gonna take care of their sin dead. So help us to run to Christ today, to trust him. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
00:41:26
Speaker
This is a ministry of First Baptist Church, located at 1700 Milam Street, Columbus, Texas.