God's Chosen

Hosea 4 through the rest of the book is like a roller coaster of doom and hope. Doom, because of Israel's unfaithfulness. Hope, because of God's faithfulness. In the beginning of the chapter in vs. 1 we see 3 things about Israel that the Lord has a controversy with. First, there is no faithfulness in the land. This reminds me of the times of Noah. In Genesis 6:5 it says, "The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." Although a few verses later in vs. 8 it says, "But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord." Apparently there was not even a Noah among God's chosen people. At least there is no mention of one. Secondly, there is no steadfast love. Another word for steadfast is unwavering. Love that is wavering is not really love. The last thing mentioned about the children of Israel is that they had no knowledge of God. It's sad to see when people forget what God has done, but for the people to not even know about God's great love is just not right. There is no excuse after all that God has done for Israel to have no knowledge of Him. So Israel was not faithful to God because they did not love Him, but further more they did not even know Him. Vs. 3 says that, "the land mourns and all who dwell in it languish, and also the beasts of the field and the birds of the heavens, and even the fish of the sea are taken away." This is a picture of complete devastation. Again, it reminds me of Noah's day. Genesis 6:7 says, So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But God is faithful to His people and He does not blot them out. From vs. 4 through 15 it mentions the wickedness that Israel has become involved in. I wont go into all of it, but just imagine what a group of people would do if they had no love or knowledge of God. In vs. 16 Israel is compared to a stubborn heifer. The verse says, "Like a stubborn heifer, Israel is stubborn; can the Lord now feed them like a lamb in a broad pasture." "Like a lamb" makes me think of Psalm 23, how the Lord is my shepherd. The Psalm is a picture of fellowship with God the way He intended it. It speaks of safety and security in the Lord; how he leads us to safe waters and His provision for us. Not only are we secure in safety, but also in places of danger. The psalmist says, "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." Israel was outside of God's safety and security. This is why God punishes them. God has great things planned for this nation and has chosen them for a reason.
Just as Israel has been chosen by God, we have also been chosen by God. Ephesians 1:4 says, "even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him." Just as Israel was chosen to bring Jesus into the world, we are chosen by God to proclaim Jesus to the world. But as Israel was like a stubborn heifer, we too are often unusable. We fight God's will in exchange for our own desires. We get lost in "ministry" when God has something else for us. If we would be faithful, ever loving, unwavering, and aware of God's still small voice; just imagine the wonders He has in store for us.