Boundaries ~ Hosea 4

“…they break all restraint…” Hosea 4:2b NKJV

Life boundaries.  Good or bad?  Well, I guess it depends on who you ask.  And I guess, more importantly, it would depend on who is setting those life boundaries.  And even further, I guess it would depend upon what those life boundaries are based upon.  It’s curious to me to ponder about mankind without boundaries.  A scary thought indeed.  For just such a scary example, undertake the great, yet alarming, study of humans without boundaries, The Lord of the Flies, by William Golding.  A human behavioral case study that is even more alarming because the study utilizes children in lieu of adults.  But in it we see that unbound human nature is not bound by age.  Yet what does God say about humans without boundaries?  And what will happen when God leaves men and women to do whatever pleases them?

The book of Hosea is possibly one of the most indelicate in all of scripture in its word usage, imagery, and theme.  We see God command Hosea to marry a prostitute to create the vivid imagery of just how Israel has played the harlot in leaving their loving marriage relationship with God and pursued other idols in His place.  In the ESV translation we see the word whore/whoredom used 18 times, adultery used 8 times, lust used 3 times, and prostitute used 2 times.  Yes, in the book of Hosea God pulls no punches in comparing how it makes Him feel when the people He created and loves reject Him and instead choose to love and worship idols in His place.

But early in the book of Hosea we see the dire depths of how low the Israelites had sunk in their sin.  They had broken all the restraints of God’s definition of right and wrong.  Or, to parallel one of the most ominous verses in scripture from the very last line of the book of Judges:

“In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” Judges 21:25 ESV

But before you are too quick to dismiss this as “typical Old Testament Israelite sin nature”, please allow me to bring this into our modern world using some current advertising lingo that perfectly parallels our innate sin-fueled desire to break our bonds, boundaries, and restraints.  “Just do it” (Nike), “No rules, just right” (Outback), “Your world should know no boundaries” (Merril Lynch), “Sometimes, you gotta break the rules” (Burger King), “Nothing is taboo; break all the rules” (Don Q rum), “Living without boundaries” (Ralph Lauren), and "Relax. No rules here” (Neiman Marcus).  Wow, it seems that the desire of our human sin nature has not strayed too far in the 2,760 years since Hosea penned his words.  We just market our sinful desire to break our boundaries much better.

As mankind sheds its desire and need for God, His Word, His wisdom, His correction, and His guidance, bad things happen.  Really bad things.  We see this proven in the very same verse, just words later:

“…and bloodshed followed bloodshed.” Hosea 4:2b ESV 

This verse is even more impactful in the Good News translation:

“…it is one murder after another.” Hosea 4:2b GNT

The true word play here in the original Hebrew means “they touch one another.”  That folks, means there was no pause between the killing and murdering.  Rather chilling to imagine what can truly happen when we humans break the boundaries of God and live as our nature truly desires.

But even more chilling is how God deals with such blatant, rebellious, hard-hearted sin.  And it is stated ominously in verse 17 using only three words:

“…leave them alone.” Hosea 3:17a GNT 

One of the absolute worst possible things that God can do in the lives of His creatures is to simply leave them alone.  For to leave humans on their own is to leave them to their own destruction.  We do not want God to leave us alone for one main reason…we need to God to protect us from ourselves.  Without God we will, without question, stray far away from Him into the territory of our innermost sin-fueled desires.  For that is the only direction unbound sin nature will take an individual…away from God. Far away.

So what is the answer to this rather doom-filled equation of man’s desire to live without the boundaries of God?  Well, God lovingly provides the answer right here in the same chapter.

“My people are destroyed because they lack knowledge of Me.” Hosea 4:6a ISV

Without knowledge (the understanding and doing) of God’s nature, His laws, His Word, His purpose, and His coming judgement, mankind cannot ever escape the destruction and spiritual death of its sin.  And when I say destruction and spiritual death of sin, I am not just addressing God punishing sin on the day of judgement that all humans will eventually face (2 Cor. 5:10, Rev. 20:12, Matt. 12:36), I am speaking of the pain, destruction, and spiritual death that our own sin brings into our own lives well before we ever get to that judgment seat of God.  Without an acute awareness and understanding of God that encompasses both factual information about His character and an intimate, personal relationship with Him, you, me, and all humans are doomed to be destroyed by the ravages of our own personal sin.  A fact that the evil one, satan, will be more than pleased to embrace.

Today, seek to combat this by gaining more knowledge about Almighty God, your creator, the lover of your soul.   And then pray for Godly wisdom to do what that knowledge instructs.  And just how to do this?  Well, if you are not already enjoying daily time connecting with God through His Word, then start in this very day.  Start with this simple plan.  Grab your Bible, start in the book of Matthew, that has 28 chapters, and read one chapter a day for 28 days in a row.   A chapter is roughly about 5 minutes to read, so basically read your Bible for 5 minutes every day for one month.  Easy cheesy, yes?  And in this way, dear reader, you are taking a step closer to learning more about God while stemming your ever-creeping retreat from the only One that can rescue you.  Yes, to answer our opening question, not only do we need boundaries, but we desperately need Godly ones. And those Godly boundaries are vital if we truly seek to attain the abundant, rich, satisfying, full to overflowing life God promises us in John 10:10.  Godly boundaries? Good. Very good.

May you find that abundant life today through loving the blessed boundaries of God ~ Dan

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10 ESV

“the absolute worst that God can do to His creation…is to simply leave it to itself” ~ unknown

"everyday beauty", Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico