The Years the Locusts Have Eaten

Nothing is known of Joel except that he was the son of Pethuel. he probably lived in Judah about 500 to 350 B. C. He saw God's coming judgment on his people and called for repentance. He tells us about a locust plague which God used to judge his people. It ravished the country and destroyed everything in it's wake.
Joel saw this plague of locusts that he vividly describes as the sign of the impending Day of the Lord, and urgently summoned the people to a great fast, calling for weeping and mourning and repentance. Rend your hearts and not your garments. (Joel 2:12).

This Day of the Lord would be the judgment of God for sin. Only through repentance and a change of heart would the Lord "restore" their joy and pour out His Spirit upon them.

Now, I've never seen locusts swarm, but I have seen "army worms." When we lived in Houston, TX many years ago, we had a beautiful lawn of St. Augustine grass - green and lush. One morning we woke up and looked out - and it seemed that the grass was waving and moving. It wasn't the wind - it was covered, and I mean covered, in "army worms." They had come into our neighborhood and were destroying every yard around. Thousands of them. Within an hour they had eaten all the grass in the front yard. We ran to the hardware store, bought the appropriate pest control, sprayed the yard, and killed them all. The damage was done - but it took weeks for it to recover. I'll never forget the sight.

This passage reminded me of that experience. These locusts had eaten every crop, every vine, every tree, and destroyed everything in it's path. I wonder - have you ever felt like the "locusts" have taken something from you? Have you lost your "crop" - has something devastated you? Some of the most beautiful verses in these three chapters are Joel 2:25-26.

I will restore to you the years which the locust has eaten . . . You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied and praise the name of the Lord your God who has dealt wondrously with you.

Have you lost your job, your health, your family, your self-esteem? Remember Job that we studied not long ago? He lost everything, yet he did not lose his faith in God. He remained faithful to the Lord even though the "locusts" had come. We must learn to develop this kind of faith and trust in the Lord during our years of want and times of hardship.

The Bible says in Habakkuk 3:17-18 (NIV) Though the fig tree does not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields yield no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

May God give us the faith and strength to hold on to Him through plenty and want and the years of the locust. And as Paul says, to . . . learn in whatever state I am, to be content.

Sow the Wind, Reap the Whirlwind

When you sow something, you put it in the ground and, after caring for it, you expect that it will produce something of value. Otherwise, why would you plant it? With that in mind, I was struck with the analogy of "sowing the wind." Obviously, you could never actually sow the wind. You can't plant something you can't even grasp. That is kind of the point though...you are going through the motions of sowing something you expect to produce something of value, but in reality you are sowing nothing at all. You are investing energy and time in something that has no substance, and certainly no value. God, through Hosea, accuses Israel investing their time and energy- and expecting something of value to come from- something that has nothing to offer us. God tells the Israelites how they sowed the wind throughout these chapters.

Observing empty religious ritual. We certainly need religious "routines" and disciplines to get us through the rough and tumble soil we call our lives here on earth. The problem comes when we begin doing them for the wrong reasons; like gaining approval or praise, fear of the new or different, to keep from actually having to use our brains, when we feel we need to do it to make up for some sin we've committed, or earn God's approval. The purpose of our religious disciplines and rituals should be to remind us to keep God at the center of our daily lives. The Israelites had forgotten this, and their religious services no longer had any true meaning for their lives. It was all actually self-service- or sowing the wind.

Placing security anywhere other than in God. The Israelites were trusting in the military might of their alliances and the economic stability they were currently enjoying. We have all seen recently how quickly the economy can come crashing down around you. We've also seen in recent years that the largest army and wealthiest nation in the world can't always guarantee the safety of it's citizens. Depending on our own strength is futile. God is the only source of true security.

Seeking out people who simply agree with us. The Israelites weren't too fond of Hosea- or any of the prophets God sent their way. Obviously they didn't listen. When we block out the voices around us because they don't make us "feel good" or "happy" or support every decision we are setting ourselves up for failure. We need accountability, and we need to be open to the idea that God might have something to teach us from those who do things differently from us. The Israelites weren't open to the warning to change. Is God trying to warn you about an area in your life that you need to change? Are you listening- or mocking and drowning out the messenger?

In Chapter 10 verse 12, God exhorts Israel to "Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes and showers righteousness on you." God tells us in these verses how to be fertile soil.

Sow righteousness, seek the Lord. Spend your time and energy on your relationship with God. Seek to rid your life of things that displease Him or hurt His heart. Try to learn more and more about Him on a daily basis. If we sow this, that verse says we will reap unfailing love and be showered with righteousness. Now THAT sounds like a wonderful crop!

Remember who God is. In chapter 11 verse 9 it says "For I am God, and not man- the Holy One among you." Israel had forgotten the God they were dealing with. God is "not a tame lion." He is not just a "really great guy." He is God- the powerful, Holy, Lion of Judah. We cannot lose the reverence we have for Him, His character, knowledge, wisdom and power.

Maintain love and justice. Chapter 12 verse 6 tells us to "return to God" and "wait for your God always." I think it's interesting that God asks us to maintain both love and justice- sometimes it seems like the two are mutually exclusive. In God, they coexist so perfectly that his justice is an expression of his love and vice versa. We can't truly serve justice without a measure of love. And love is lacking without justice behind it. We as believers today, just like the nation of Israel, will be the most effective witnesses when we live by both principles.

God, speaking of Israel, in Chapter 13 says: "Therefore they will be like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears, like chaff swirling from a threshing floor, like smoke escaping from a window." If we sow the wind, far from reaping anything of substance or lasting value, what we reap is gone before we even realize it. We reap the whirlwind, and it brings nothing but disorder, disaster, and devastation to our lives.

Later in Chapter 13, God gives Israel hope. Paul quotes these verses in the New Testament. "I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. Where, O death are your plagues? Where, O grave, is your destruction?" God is certainly greater than the whirlwinds we have sown for ourselves! He has the power to redeem even the largest tornadoes of life!

Chapter 14 is a beautiful picture of the healing and refreshing God promises to those who return to the Lord and seek him for nourishment and life. It brings hope to this soul who gets tired of the dusty roads I walk sometimes. Let His promises wash over you and refresh your spirit today!

"I will heal their waywardness and love them freely,

for my anger has turned away from them.

I will be like the dew to Israel;

he will blossom like a lily.

Like a cedar of Lebanon he will send down his roots;

his young shoots will grow.

His splendor will be like an olive tree,

his fragrance like a cedar of Lebanon.

Men will dwell again in his shade.

He will flourish like the grain.

He will blossom like a vine, and his fame will be like the wine from Lebanon.

Who is wise? He will realize these things/

Who is discerning? He will understand them.

The ways of the Lord are right;

the righteous walk in them,

but the rebellious stumble in them.

Hosea 14: 4-7, 9

Lord help us to walk, not stumble. Amen.

Obeying God When it Doesn’t Benefit Us.

Today’s reading generates some tough thoughts. A prophet of God, Hosea, is told to marry an adulterous woman and have children with her. Your first thought may be, “God, why would you ask someone to do that?” Your second thought may be, “Would I do that if God asked it of me?” The prophets were asked to do some very difficult things. Remember Isaiah walking around naked and Ezekiel had to cook his bread using waste as fuel? This marriage of Hosea’s was to show how the northern kingdom had been unfaithful to God, their “husband” and provider. God is warning them again that if they did not repent they were headed for destruction.

Hosea chooses Gomer as his wife and she gave birth to a son. God said to name him Jezreel which means “God scatters.” This represented the punishment of the house of Jehu for the massacre that happened in the Valley of Jezreel. The scripture tells us that Gomer had two more children and it is believed that these two were not conceived from Hosea. The daughter’s name Lo-Rahamah means “not loved” which indicated that God would not show love to the house of Israel. This was God’s reaction to Israel’s unfaithfulness. Then there was a son born named Lo-Ammi which means “not my people.” This is the point where the people of Israel were abandoning God and in turn he was letting them go without protection or blessing.

Think about Hosea for a few minutes. Do you think he was prepared for the pain of dealing with an adulterous wife? Betrayal is one of the most painful things in life. If you have been on the earth long you have experienced some form of betrayal. Adultery is probably the worse form of betrayal. Hosea knew going into the marriage that his wife would not be faithful. Just like God knew when he made his promises of love to the people of Israel that they would one day turn away from him. But Hosea was human. The scripture does not reveal Hosea’s feelings, but we can imagine the pain involved in his obedience. Here is the big question. Will we obey God knowing that the pain involved in obedience may only benefit others we serve and not us?

God is so faithful and merciful! Thank you Lord! Despite the Israelites (my) unfaithfulness God is still faithful and has mercy. I LOVE verse six of chapter two.

“Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes;
I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way.”

Can you apply this to a part of your life? I know I can and I am so thankful God had so much love for me that he would make my life so painful without him. In chapters one through seven it goes on to tell us about Israel’s spiritual adultery and the punishment they will receive.

“Woe to them, because they have strayed from me!
Destruction to them, because they have rebelled against me!
I long to redeem them but they speak lies against me.” 7:13

Not only can we learn that God’s faithfulness is eternal, we also can learn from the example of Hosea that our life is not all about us. Our purpose on earth is not to fulfill our every desire for worldly success and happiness. We may be called to love someone who is un-loveable (an enemy? Matt. 5:44) or make a marriage work that would seem to be irreconcilable. In this book of Hosea we should recognize that both God and Hosea are working to restore a covenant relationship. Our society is so quick to run to the next thing to satisfy our flesh desires. We as a society do not want to be uncomfortable or inconvenienced and certainly not offended or made to look a fool in the eyes of the world. We do not understand eternal things. But we have promises as children of God:

"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. “For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
2 Peter 1:3-11