Four-year-old Annie wanted to be just like her Mommy. Among other things she wanted a pearl necklace just like the expensive one her mother wore. So her parents bought her an imitation pearl necklace which Annie wore proudly. The small girl didn’t know the difference between the real thing and its imitation.
The kingdom of Israel was much like Annie. They wanted what the people in Jerusalem had—a temple, a style of worship, a collection of priests, and so on. Since they were unable to go to the true place of worship, they decided to create their own “string of pearls.” They couldn’t tell the difference between the imitation and real thing.
How did God see this? Was their brand of worship just as authentic as what took place in Jerusalem? Did God chuckle and say “isn’t that cute; they’re trying to be just like their mother?”
To let his mind be known, He raised up the prophet Hosea to make it clear where he stood (Hosea 8:4-7,11-13).
“Thus says the Lord: They made kings in Israel but not by my authority…With their silver and gold they made idols for themselves, to their own destruction. Cast away your calf, O Samaria! My wrath is kindled against them…When they sow the wind, they shall reap the whirlwind.”
God did not approve of their project. Their expensive idols would blow up in their faces—the “wind” of idolatry would grow into a “whirlwind” of destruction that would wipe them out as a people.
“When Ephraim made many altars to expiate sin, his altars became occasions of sin. Though I write for him my man ordinances, they are considered as a stranger’s. Though they offer sacrifice, immolate flesh and eat it, the Lord is not pleased with them.”
The people were deluded into thinking that “worshiping” their way would take away their sins. Hosea told them that not only did their altars lack power, they added more sin on top of what they already had. Though they still had God’s word available to them, it had become, in their minds, just like any other writing. They did not reverence it. When they went through their elaborate sacrifices, it did them no good. They wasted their time using the “imitation” product, and even deepened their sin every time they did so.
Hosea then spoke of the ultimate consequences of their behavior.
“He shall still remember their guilt and punish their sins; they shall return to Egypt.”
This was such a serious matter that God would go beyond smacking them on the wrists. He would undo everything that had taken place during the Exodus and the time that followed. They would be taken back to the slavery of Egypt and have to feel again what the Israelites felt when they were under the oppression of Pharaoh. Back to scratch!
Worship is a serious matter with God. This is the time when he meets his people in the most intimate way. He established in detail the ceremonies they were to follow, and arranged an order of priests who exercised his authority over worship services. Man-made forms of worship are dangerous, and rather than making a connection with God, they effect a greater distance from him.
I was inspired by an article I read about the Church in Japan. When it was abolished by the state, and all priests were driven out, rather than forming an “off brand” style of worship, the Christians went underground. They accepted being deprived the sacraments and focused on sustaining their faith through prayer and study of God’s Word. Several centuries later when the state approved of the Church in that country, the priests who led the way, commented that it was one of the healthiest churches they had ever seen. The people waited until God made it possible for them to worship once again in Spirit and in truth.
We are honored to be part of the true worship that God has ordained upon earth. We don’t have to travel to Jerusalem to find it. When an authorized priest celebrates the Eucharist, Jesus Christ, the great high priest, is there. He is both the priest and victim who enters into our midst to give our Father in heaven the kind of worship that pleases him—the kind that has true power. Because of the death and resurrection of Jesus we have access now to “the real thing.”
Do we value what God has given us in such abundance?
“Their makers shall be like them, everyone that trusts in them” (Ps 115:10).
