Off Kilter

And the LORD said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms 

Hosea 1.2 

Talk about dysfunctional family, Hosea had one. God's prophet did not have an easy life. In Hosea's case his soon to be family would be used to illustrate God's broken heart and broken relationship with Israel and Judah. 

These days broken families are common. Even the word “family” needs an explanatory footnote. 

The word originally meant one man and one woman who united to become the base unit of the family. That unit, protected and directed by God, produced offspring who in turn married to produce God given offspring. And so it was. 

Today the nuclear family is a threatened species. Attacks from various fronts and many opinions advance against it daily. The God intended purpose for the family is blurred or obscured because God is not the focus nor objective anymore. 

Hosea found himself and his soon-to-be fractured family as a living illustration of the disintegration or disintegrated family of Israel (Judah). He was to marry a prostitute. This point alone has caused many  theological debates. The question is begged, “Why would God ask Hosea to marry a prostitute?” 

Though the answer is difficult the reason is clearly seen in the illustration. God loved Israel. Israel was a difficult marriage partner. She was always running after other lover-gods. Remember the scene at the foot of Mount Sinai as Moses was receiving the Ten Commandments? 

We see similar situations all around us daily. People groping for love in all the wrong places. Yet we often turn a cold shoulder to such situations. We hate getting involved but that is exactly what we need to do. We  family members must demonstrate what true family love is all about. Our relationship with God is vital to that end. In an intimate relationship there is little that can or should be hidden. 

As our rich relationship grows it will affect those around us. If we stifle that love we lose on two accounts. Our affect on our neighbor suffers and our relationship with God suffers too. 

Hosea was staring at a long hard personal lesson in love and he didn't veer from the task. We need to take up his mantle in these trying days.