For my people are determined to desert me. They call me the Most High, but they don’t truly honor me. [Hosea 11.7]
The entire context of Hosea is idolatry.
Hosea's accusation here is prophetic of today's Church. We laud God as "our everything," but turn to our idols for every solution. The most common idols we turn to are debt, insurance, medicine and technology.
The "work-around" that justifies our idolatry is to acknowledge God. We call Him God, but trust our idols to do His work in us. We go so far in this our depravity as to believe God gave us those idols. And then, we have the audacity to really think we are honoring God. Well, Hosea blows that fallacy out of the water. It is a sick religion that calls God "God" but trusts in idols to do God's work in us. How does that honor God? It doesn't.
Because faith is the only thing that pleases God, Hebrews 11 gives us a vivid picture of what trusting God looks like. Trusting God is honoring God. The largest portion of Hebrews 11 speaks of supernatural miracles by which God was honored in the lives of genuine believers. But the last part of Hebrews 11 is where most Christians "choke"...
...But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. [Hebrews 11.35]
Honoring God is refusing to turn from God. The litmus test that determines if we truly honor God or not is this: get rid of anything suspect as an idol and see if God can still provide what that idol would have provided otherwise.
No? Not willing to open that door?
The apostle Paul clearly instructed the believers in Corinth to examine themselves for genuine faith:
Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith. [2 Corinthians 13.5]
There is no way to examine for genuine faith unless we remove every other contributor but God. This may require "taking up our cross..."
So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. [1 Peter 1.6-7]
No, this does not mean God wants us to suffer... But it does mean He wants ALL the glory and honor ...and He won't get it if we resort to self-preservation (which, by the way, is everything debt, insurance, medicine and technology accomplish). Resurrection power comes only after "the cross." Jesus demonstrated it - and Jesus demanded it:
If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]
Father, Your Word is true. You are God. May genuine believers honor You the way the Bible says You are honored. May genuine faith be found among Your people as they intentionally rid themselves of idols to reveal Your power, honoring You. So be it.
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