AS we come to the consideration of these next four verses of Hosea chapter 5, I am impressed how applicable they are to the condition of the visible church in the present which show similar perversion of the truth, and it is so important to realise this and see how these prophets of old have a serious message for the present conditions in the church visible for all time. Just as Satan's activity is always vicious to destroy souls, so his malign activity is ever present. It was so evidently present in the church of the Jews when Jesus walked in Palestine, and his activity is terribly active in the present. As these verses express, Satan actively blinds the minds and hearts of people who profess to be Christians and church members, so they are blind to how greatly they have offended God. How offensive was these words of Hosea in his day, and so they remain in large sections of the visible church today.

The first three verses of the chapter 5 in the prophecy of Hosea end with the words 'Israel is corrupt'. These next verses illustrate this fact. This is why I have given this sermon the title 'Total Corruption'.

Verse 4 commences with a terrifying statement – Their deeds do not permit them to return to their God. Their deeds express the on-going facts of the living in the society of Israel at the time Hosea lived. The active expression of living in the society of Israel showed a total take over of society which in fact was a slavery under the dominion of Satan. This slavery was not appreciated as such. Society delighted in the way they lived. Satan had made his dominion so attractive that society in Israel was quite happy with their condition. So pleasant were the chains with which Satan had bound them, that the words of Hosea were offensive to the people. Satan had made them believe that they were thoroughly pleasing God in the way they lived, so that the people resented any suggestion that there was anything wrong in their living, behaviour and thinking.

This condition is to be found in today's church life. It has taken such a hold that the application of God speaking in his Holy Word expressed in the Bible is resented vigorously. If it is not resented, true exposition of the Word of God is either ignored or is received as idle tales. Congregations have no appetite for it, and prefer the empty moral platitudes offered up by so many clergy. In some cases the antagonism to the Word of God is such that if it can be avoided it will be avoided, and thought to be offensive and so unpleasant as to be avoided at all costs. Clergy and others who seek to truly expound God's word, if at all possible, are avoided.

Hosea goes on to the speak of the true reason for this attitude of Israel to the truth of God preached by Hosea. Hosea tells Israel that 'a spirit of prostitution is in their hearts'.

What is prostitution? In the physical sense it is giving the body to satisfy the lusts of the flesh, and this is usually done for money. Sexual activity is paid for. Following from this is giving in to sexual desire and pleasure whenever two people feel they would like to satisfy sexual desire in the name of love. Included in this is unfaithfulness in marriage. It is a fact that this attitude has grown, and found to be acceptable.

A spirit of prostitution which Hosea speaks of is expressed in religious practice that gives worship and devotion, not to God, the one and only creator, sustainer and ruler of all things, but to the false deities of the heathen whom Satan had caused people to worship and follow rather than God. Satan has raised these idols to appeal to the fallen and sinful nature of humanity as described in the New Testament as dead in trespasses and sins.

Hosea gets to the root of this problem. Spiritual prostitution rises from the heart, the condition of all humanity born into this world due to Adam's choice to believe Satan's lies, and so placing himself and all his progeny under the dominion of the evil one. What Hosea is exposing here in verse 4 of chapter 5 is that through the seduction of Satan, even the people of God, Israel, had succumbed to the desires of the flesh. Although outwardly the people still conformed to ways of God handed down since the time of Moses, their hearts desire was for the flesh, which they found to be satisfied in the license which they found in the idols of the heathen.

Hosea goes on describing this spiritual condition with the following sentence 'they do not acknowledge the Lord'. In other words, although Israel still desired God to be favourable to them and bless them, and because they were God's chosen people, they expected God's blessing, but from their inner being, their heart, they desired what was not pleasing to Jehovah, and even conditioned themselves into believing that in spite of the way they had departed from the Lord, that they still deserved God's favour.

This sort of spiritual conditioning can be seen repeated in the outward visible church of the present. Outwardly the worship of God appears to continue faithfully, but because of the seduction of the evil one, all sorts of rejection of the truth of God is found. So deeply does Satan convince his captives, that this departure from God's truth and revelation in the Bible is seen to be people coming of age, and shedding the ignorance of the past. In this situation Satan has convinced his slaves that they have grown and that those who still remain faithful to God are living in darkness. The truth which God makes plain in the Bible is that the reverse is the case – they have gone back to live in spiritual darkness, and those who are still faithful to God's word written are in fact living in the light of God. This is the emphasis of God's word in Hosea.

In verse 5 Hosea speaks of an awful fact amongst those who have been bound by Satan's deception. Hosea goes on to say in verse 5 'Israel's arrogance testifies against them'. In other words what Hosea could see in the society of Israel with his perception enhanced by the Spirit of God, was the arrogance of the people in their spiritual prostitution. Israel was proud of the way they were living, and in this spirit they looked down on those who still remained faithful to Jehovah, and despised them. Here we see how Satan had bound Israel in chains so that they had become very pleased with themselves, and to despise others who did not follow them in their ways and beliefs.

This spiritual condition is illustrated vividly in the Jewish church in the time of the living of Jesus in his ministry on earth. It is plain that they despised Jesus, and the teaching of Jesus, and even his rebukes, were treated with contempt by the Jewish leaders. Satan brings this spiritual pride to such a height that these Scribes and Pharisees viewed the teaching of Jesus with contempt. Such is Satan's victory in the visible church in the present.

So in verse 5 Hosea goes on to describe the result of this spiritual arrogance. He describes it as stumbling in their sin. Hosea goes on to speak of how Judah was also being infected by this stumbling. The stumbling, says Hosea, is because the way the people were living was sinful in the sight of God.

Let us us for a moment stop and seek to appreciate what is being revealed by this word stumbling. The idea being expressed by the prophet is that the people were seeking to come to God for his blessing, but on the way they trip and fall, and in the end they do not come into the presence of God, and so the blessing they were seeking from God is never enjoyed. What this is expressing is the fact that although Israel was coming before God in worship, the way they came was unacceptable to God, and did not achieve God's blessing but rather the reverse.

The next verse, verse 6, opens up the meaning more clearly and fully. Hosea describes the worship engaged in. He speaks of Israel coming with their flocks and herds to seek the Lord. So what Hosea is describing is Israel engaging in the sacrificial worship of Israel in bringing animals for sacrifice, according to the Levitical code, and expecting that the sacrifices offered would be accepted by God for the atonement of sin. In other words all the outward activity laid down by God for gaining his blessing was being conducted according to the Levitical law.

Hosea is telling Israel that by engaging in such worship, even though outwardly correct, they would not find God. In other words the purpose of the sacrifices they brought would be found unavailing to achieve the purpose for which they were carried out, which was to seek the Lord for his blessing of forgiveness and atonement for their sin, and for remaining in God's love and blessing.

Hosea then goes on to speak of the reason why their worship, though outwardly correct, failed in its purpose. The reason told by Hosea was that the Lord had withdrawn himself from them. Another way this action of God is described in the Bible is that God had hidden his face from them.

In the prevalent thought and preaching in today's visible church, under the banner of saying that God is love, it is supposed that it must be an impossible thought that God would cease to bless people who seek him, and come to church or who declare that they believe in God and his good favour toward them. In this pattern of thought it is taken for granted that God would always bless, and that God's attitude to people would always be favourable. This sort of theology forgets that God is unable to do anything contrary to his character. This is impossible to God. Such theology forgets that God is holy, and so he cannot act in anyway contrary to his holy nature. So God in exercising love has to love in accordance with his righteousness, which is revealed in the incredible gift of giving his only begotten Son, who would in his life and death fulfil all righteousness which then is made available as a gift to all who acknowledge their sin, cry for mercy, and put their trust in Jesus; where the righteousness of Jesus is imputed to such sinners, and so forgiveness, new life, adoption into God's family, and the gift of eternal life is bestowed on the grounds that Christ has satisfied all God's holy requirements in their place.

In verse 7 Hosea clinches the truth he has been given by God to express and make known to Israel of his generation. He tells the people that in their going after false gods of the heathen and adopting their ways, while they still outwardly carried on with the worship of Jehovah, they were unfaithful to the Lord. They were unfaithful because they had renounced the way that God's love could be poured out them, and though outwardly they seemed to be faithful and obedient to the Lord, in fact their lives and living showed gross unfaithfulness to the Lord, and rejection of his clear instructions.

It is a fact, made clear in the Bible, that any thought, action or practice which departs from God's clear will and purpose, is unfaithfulness to the Lord, and causes God to withdraw from those who seek him in any worship which denies or rejects any part of his revealed instruction of how true and acceptable worship can be given. It is an awful success of Satan that even though God's withdrawal of his blessing in the life of the church is plain to see, those who have departed in some way from the truth of God in the arrogance of human wisdom, are blind to the evident ceasing of God's blessing. The action in such unfaithfulness is to see only the outward structure where worship continues visibly; and where difficulties are noticed the visible church resorts to human wisdom and action to deal with the difficulty, and even when these measures are plainly not solving the difficulties, blindness still remains. Instead of seeking the Lord to reveal why his blessing is evidently withdrawn, and humbling themselves before God seeking light, God seems to be neglected in favour of human opinions.

Hosea goes on with further revelation of the disaster which follows from unfaithfulness to the Lord. He speaks of Israel giving birth to illegitimate children. Plainly the reference here is to Israelites who were not truly of Israel as God had established his chosen people. Illegitimate children speak of people granted entrance into the visible church of God which are not true Christians. Outwardly they perform as Christians, but inwardly from the hearts are not true believers, and who are not saved from their sins, and still are people on whom the wrath of God abides. The terrible tragedy which is found here is that people are led to believe all is well with their souls, and heaven is their future destiny. The tragedy is realised in the experience after physical death. As illegitimate children, who are not born again by the Spirit of God and truth, they will find themselves in eternal death in hell, where such destination is permanent for all eternity.

This devastating eternal experience is describes vividly in the final sentence of verse 7. This reads in the NIV translation as 'Now their New Moon festivals will devour them and their fields'. Other translations differ in part but the meaning stays the same.

In their temporal lives what is being told in warning by Hosea is that as God withdraws himself from them, and Israel would find also that God's blessings would also fade away, experienced in the fact their festivals and worship would be unfruitful, and instead, God's withdrawal from them would result in the loss of temporal property and wealth. This was seen to be true in the history in life of Israel. God's blessing withdrawn resulted in the Israelites being afflicted by their enemies, and their lives and property threatened and stolen from them.

Looking forward to eternity this loss is expressed eternally in the those who live their lives according to their own wisdom and opinions. The Bible writers in the New Testament, and Jesus in the Gospels', plainly teach conscious existence after death in either bliss in heaven or in misery in hell. So this last sentence of verse 7 speaks of total loss in hell for all those who have lived their lives apart from God, in unbelief of his sacred and infallible word given in the Bible. It is not sufficient to believe part of God's revelation in the Bible, or even most, if in any way God's saving love in Christ through his suffering in our place is tampered with or rejected.

In closing this sermon we see again that where in the visible church the Bible is not received in its entirety as God's word written, to be received, believed and obeyed, such warnings as Hosea gives in these four verses we have been seeking to understand become a reality. The words of John the Baptist and our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ of 'repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand' are words of light in the darkness Satan has brought into the visible church.