Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Destroyed by the Help

The Minor Prophets Speak to Today 


Destroyed by the Help

World map
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Hosea 13:9-1NLT

You are about to be destroyed, O Israel—
Yes, by me, your only helper.
Now where is your king?
Let him save you!
Where are all the leaders of the land,
the king and the officials you demanded of me?
In my anger I gave you kings,
and in my fury I took them away.
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FIRST IT WAS ISRAEL


I do not think I have traveled anywhere where there is not a story about the help damaging property, destroying a business, or killing the boss.  The incidents may have been accidents.They may have arisen from fear, anger, jealousy, a sense of entitlement, or any other assortment of motives.

But in this passage, God declares Israel is about to be destroyed by literally their only helper. There can be no helper to save us when God turns against us.

In 1 Samuel 8:1-10:25  Israel begs for a king and makes God angry. Then, though God warns against it, he nonetheless grants their wish. Literally, he gave them a king in his anger.

Now he mocks the people and their king and other leaders:

Now where is your king?
    Let him save you!
Where are all the leaders of the land,
 the king and the officials you demanded of me?

Of course the neither the king nor all the leaders of the land could save them from their impending destruction. When God moves, there is no leader strong enough to push back the divine hand.

NOW IT IS US


Our proud non-theocracy - the democracy our ancestors demanded -  with plugged ears and dull minds hears the same mocking from God today, but we cannot comprehend it. We cannot accept it!


“You are about to be destroyed –
Yes, by me, your only helper.
Now where is the leader you were so proud of,
the favored politician
now disgraced or removed?
Let him save you!
Where are all the leaders of the land,
the president and the elected officials
you continue to demand of me,
the human government upon which you depend?
In my anger I gave you human leaders,
and in my fury I took them away.

We need to be careful who we ask God for to lead us. Whether on the right or on the left, God is through providing us human leaders. He has taken away what shred of righteousness ever came with the leaders we elected.

Because we depend on getting the "right" one of them elected rather than on the God who is a Christian's only Lord, indeed the only Lord of all nations, God's fury burns against us and our fall is divinely predicted, even predicted by the false prophets who are more wise in reading the signs of the time than are the children of God.

The next step - unless there is church wide repentance, maybe even nationwide repentance - stands ready to be implemented, destruction by the only true helper we have or have ever had.

Tell me reader, is the same true of the country you live in?

Photo Credits:
Rolling Green Hills by Nahid Sikander some rights reserved @flickr.com

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