Hosea 14:8

DISCOURSE: 1178
GOD’S NOTICE OF PENITENTS

Hosea 14:8. Ephraim shall say, What have I to do any more with idols? I have heard him, and observed him: I am like a green fir-tree: from me is thy fruit found.

THE conversion of a sinner is a work of infinite difficulty; no efforts of the creature can accomplish it: none but He who spake the universe into existence, can renew the soul: but when his time is come, the work is done both easily and effectually. As a ship, forsaken by the ebbing tide, can never be dragged along, but is easily put in motion when borne up by the returning waters, so the sinner is immoveable in his iniquities, till the Spirit of God flows in upon him: and then “old things quickly pass away, and, behold, all things become new.” This observation is verified continually before our eyes: persons who have been warned and entreated for many years, and have not only withstood all the most awful and endearing considerations, but have been more and more hardened by the means used to convert them, have at last been turned to God through a secret and invisible influence upon their souls, and have become burning and shining lights in their day and generation. Such were the effects produced on the day of Pentecost, when thousands to whom our blessed Lord had preached in vain, and on whom the most stupendous miracles had wrought no change, were constrained to renounce all their former habits and opinions, and to embrace a new, a spiritual, a despised, and persecuted religion. A similar instance we have in the passage before us. If we look to the account given us of Ephraim in chap. 4:17, we shall find, that he was “joined to idols,” yea, so glued to them, that neither warnings from man, nor judgments from God, could separate him from them; and therefore God said respecting him, “Ephraim is joined to idols, let him alone;” it is to no purpose to use any further means for his recovery; he is incorrigible, and irreclaimable. But, behold the change, when once God is pleased to put forth his power! When once he says, “I will heal their backsliding, I will be as the dew to Israel,” “I will manifest my grace and mercy to his soul,” the obdurate heart relents; the abandoned sinner turns from his iniquities, and even with indignation and abhorrence renounces his most beloved lusts; “Ephraim saith, What have I to do any more with idols?” If God therefore have such pity on an impenitent transgressor, we shall not wonder at the gracious declaration which he makes for the comfort of this penitent and returning sinner; “I have heard him, and observed him: I am like a green fir-tree: from me is thy fruit found.”

In discoursing on these words, we shall be naturally led to shew you,

I. The disposition of the true penitent—

[The unconverted man, though he may never have bowed down to stocks and stones, is an idolater: he “loves and serves the creature more than the Creator.” All indeed do not worship the same idol: one gives his heart to riches, another to honour, another to pleasure; and though all these find a higher place in our affections than we allow to God, yet each person has his favourite idol, to which he is in a more especial manner devoted: but when grace has renewed the heart, then the penitent says with Ephraim of old, “What have I to do anymore with idols?” His disposition is, To renounce all sins in general,—his besetting sin in particular;— and this too with indignation and abhorrence.
He renounces all sins in general.—A person who is not truly penitent may exchange one sin for another; he may exchange lewdness and intemperance for the love of honour and ambition: he may turn from prodigality to avarice; or from indifference and profaneness to Pharisaism and hypocrisy. But he never remits one sin without taking some other in its stead; yea, he frequently puts more into the scale of pride and conceit, than ever he took out of that of sensuality or profaneness. But it is not thus with the true penitent: he has commenced a war against sin in general; he endeavours to attack it in all quarters; he knows that sin is idolatry, in that it is a preference given to the creature above God himself; and therefore, without making any reserves, he determines to extirpate sin, root and branch, if possible, and says, “What have I to do any more with idols?”

But he more particularly devotes to destruction his besetting sin.—The besetting sin of the ten tribes was idolatry: and therefore when Ephraim is brought to repentance, he is represented as fixing his eyes more particularly on that sin. Indeed this was remarkably exemplified in the Jews, after their return from the Babylonish captivity: for though, before their captivity, they could never be kept long together from idolatry, they could not after their return be drawn to it; insomuch, that when it was proposed to set up a statue of Augustus in the Temple, the Jews determined to perish rather than submit to it. Now every man has some sin which more easily besets him: and it is oftentimes a very difficult matter to find it out, by reason of the various shapes which it assumes, and the deep recesses in which it lurks. But it is a distinguishing mark of the true penitent, that, whatever he imagines to be his besetting sin, he will be more particularly solicitous to mortify and subue it. The hypocrite and self-deceiver will plead for his darling lust; he will make excuses for it; he will cast the blame on his constitution, or his situation in life; he will palliate his guilt, and not endure to be admonished respecting it: but the truly upright soul will be exceeding glad to discover his secret enemy, and will by prayer and all other means labour to bring it into subjection.

Nor is this all: he will prosecute his lurking foe with vigilance, and cast him out with indignation and abhorrence. This is strongly intimated in the text: Ephraim does not merely resolve that he will not have any more to do with idols; but with an holy indignation against them, and an everlasting abhorrence of them, he says, “What have I to do any more with idols?” He determines never to join himself to them again: the folly and wickedness of such conduct appear to him now in such glaring colours, that he cannot endure the thought of ever relapsing into it any more. Thus it is with the true penitent: O! how does he lothe the sins that have led him captive, and the secret sins that have so defiled his conscience! How does he determine, if possible, to withstand the baneful influence of his in-dwelling corruption, and to watch and pray against it! How does he aggravate the guilt of his besetting lust, till he sees it in all its vileness and deformity! How unreasonable does it appear to him to harbour such an enemy in his bosom! How does he mourn because he cannot get rid of it! How desirable does the furnace itself appear, if it may but purify and retine his soul!

Say, Believer, are not these the thoughts of thy heart? Say, thou that weepest, like Mary, at thy Saviour’s feet, dost thou not hate thy sins, and thyself on account of them? Couldst thou but bring forth the lurking foe, and slay him utterly, wouldst thou not rejoice? Is it not thy grief that thou canst not get more complete victory over him? Is it not thy shame that thou art at any time deceived by him? Does it not make thee lothe thyself, to think how ready thou art to favour this enemy, and to be enticed by him before thou art aware? Art thou not often filled with indignation against thyself, to think that thou shouldst ever offend thy God through the solicitations of some base lust or evil principle within thee? Yea, I go further, and ask, Dost thou not hate thyself because thou canst not hate thyself more? I know thy heart vibrates; I know it is in unison; I know there is no discordant string; I know that these must be thy feelings, if thou be upright before God.]
It is with pleasure therefore that I proceed to set before you,

II.

The notice which God takes of this disposition—

[It is impossible that there should be the smallest good in our hearts, and God not observe it: there was but “some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel” in the heart of young Abijah, and the Lord noticed it, and remembered him on account of it. The Prophet Jeremiah sets this in a striking point of view: he represents Ephraim [Note: Chap. 31:18.] as mourning over his sins in secret, and God as listening to him, and at last as breaking out into this soliloquy; “I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus:” then, after repeating the substance of Ephraim’s complaint, he adds, “Is not Ephraim my dear son? is he not a pleasant child? for since I spake against him, I do earnestly remember him still; yea, my bowels are troubled for him, I will surely have mercy on him [Note: Chap. 31:20.].” Exactly thus, in my text, God hears Ephraim saying, “What have I to do any more with idols?” and he adds immediately, “I have heard and observed him;” I have had my eye fixed upon him, though he did not know it; I have attended to every word he has been saying; he has not uttered a sigh, but it has entered my ears; he has not poured forth a groan, but it has pierced my heart; he has not shed a tear, but I have treasured it up in my vial: he thinks I will not regard him, but I have heard and observed him all the while: there is not a thought of his heart that has escaped my notice; and what is more, I now say respecting him, and respecting all that shall resemble him even to the end of the world, “I am, and will be, to him as a green fir-tree; and of me shall his fruit be found.”

I must here just observe, that the words of my text which are printed in different characters are not in the original, but are supplied by the translators; and that therefore the verse maybe read, and I think should be read, thus; “Ephraim saith, What have I to do any more with idols? I have heard him and observed him: I will be like a green fir-tree: of me shall thy fruit be found.” The sense is the same indeed either way; only in the latter it is more clear: and according to it we have two blessed promises of God to the penitent and contrite soul, namely, that he will afford him protection, and engage for his perseverance.

First, he promises protection to the repenting sinner, “I will be as a green fir-tree.” The fir-tree affords a remarkably thick shade, which cannot be penetrated either by sun or rain; so that it afforded a safe retreat, either from the rays of the meridian sun, or from the violence of the impending tempest. Conceive then a burthened sinner travelling towards Zion: see him either trembling from an apprehension of Divine judgments, even of that “fire and brimstone, storm and tempest, which God will rain upon the ungodly;” or fainting through the heat of temptation and persecution, What a reviving cordial to his soul is here! Let him come to me, says God; “I will be as a green fir-tree to him;” I will shelter him from the curses of my broken law; I will guard him from the fiery darts of Satan; I will hide him from the assaults of all his enemies; none shall hurt him: I will hide him in the secret of my tabernacle, even in my pavilion, where he shall have not only safety, but all manner of refreshing viands: “he shall sit under my shadow with great delight.” Hear this, ye who desire to renounce your idols; ye who long to be delivered from the attacks of your great adversary, and to find a place of rest unto your souls: to you God says, “Surely I will deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence: I will cover thee with my feathers, and under my wings shalt thou trust: my truth shall be thy shield and buckler [Note: Psalms 91:3.].” You know how our blessed Saviour complains of the Jews, that when he would often have gathered them, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, they would not. O! let him not utter the same complaint against you. They indeed would not flee to him, because they would not believe their danger; but you are in danger of keeping from him through a doubt of his ability or willingness to protect you. But, O! flee to him: he is a sure Refuge: only rest under his shadow, and you need not fear: none can ever hurt you, if you be found under the shadow of his wings: he promises that he will be as a green fir-tree to you; and he will fulfil his word unto all that put their trust in him.

The other promise which God here makes to the repenting sinner is, that he himself will engage for his perseverance in the ways of holiness; “Of me shall thy fruit be found.” The penitent no sooner determines to cast his idols to the moles and to the bats, than fears arise in his mind, and he says, “But how shall I do this? Who is sufficient for these things?” To silence therefore all such doubts as these, God himself undertakes the work; “Be not afraid, sinner;” I will take that work upon myself; “my grace shall be sufficient for thee;” I will furnish thee with strength according to thy day of trial; “Of me shall thy fruit be found:” “I will make thee fruitful in all the fruits of righteousness: the things thou desirest are the fruits of my Spirit; and my Spirit shall produce them in thee.”

Can we conceive a more comforting declaration than this? If the drooping sinner were permitted to dictate what God should say to him, could he devise any thing more calculated to comfort and refresh the soul? My dear brethren, behold your God undertaking for you, not merely to bring you to heaven, (for that would be a small matter, if you were not made holy,) but to deliver you from all your sins. Hear his gracious words, as they are recorded by Ezekiel; “From all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you: a new heart will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will cause you to keep my statutes and my judgments to do them.” Hear again what he says to the same purpose by Jeremiah; “I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not depart from them to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me: yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.” Is it possible for God to express more earnestness in your cause, or a more full determination to preserve you in spite of all your in-dwelling corruptions; or rather, I should say, to deliver you from them? O! lift up your heads, ye drooping penitents, for your redemption draweth nigh: only commit yourselves into the hands of a faithful God and a loving Saviour: there is a fulness of all that you can want treasured up in Jesus; and out of his fulness ye may all receive, grace for grace. He is the Vine, from whom you must receive sap and nourishment continually; “As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in him: separate from him ye can do nothing: but if ye abide in him, ye shall bring forth much fruit;” yea, ye may“do all things, through Christ strengthening you.” However inveterate therefore your corruptions be, fear not, but look unto Christ: instead of being terrified, as though they were invincible, let the sight of them remind you what great things the Saviour has undertaken for you: instead of despairing on account of your own weakness, rather learn to glory in it, as the means of displaying your Saviour’s strength. Do not misunderstand me, as though I would have you glory in sin: God forbid! sin is, and ought to be, your shame and aversion: but I say again, your inability to any thing that is good ought not to discourage you, because the Apostle says, “When you are weak, then are you strong:” and therefore, while you lament your sins, you may at the same time “glory in your weakness, that the power of Christ may rest upon you.” Your extremity shall assuredly be the season of God’s interposition: “In the mount of difficulty the Lord shall be seen;” according as it is written in Deuteronomy 32:36. “The Lord shall judge his people, and repent himself for his servants, when he seeth that their power is gone, and there is none shut up or left.”]

Here let us close, with one obvious reflection—

Do ye not see from hence how excellent repentance is?
[Whether it be viewed in its nature or its consequences, surely it is a most inestimable blessing. What can be more desirable than to be delivered from those base lusts and idolatrous affections, which rob us of our happiness, and God of his glory? If we had discarded all our idols, and were determined to have nothing more to do with them, we should have a very heaven upon earth; especially if we found the grace of Christ sufficient for us; as we certainly should do, if we sought it humbly, and depended on it simply. God will never disappoint our expectations which are founded on his promises. If indeed we presume to limit him with respect to the time and manner in which he shall deliver us, we may be disappointed; but if we commit ourselves to him, to carry on his work in the time and manner that he sees fit, we shall never be disappointed: he will assuredly cover our defenceless heads, and make fruitful our withered branches: he will perfect that which concerns us, and fulfil in us all the good pleasure of his goodness; nor will he ever leave us till he has accomplished all the good things which he has spoken concerning us. And is this the nature, is this the consequence, of repentance? Shall every contrite soul have an experience of these things? O that God may grant us all, “repentance unto life, even that repentance which is not to be repented of!” May we thus experience the power and grace of Christ, and find everlasting rest unto our souls!

But let not those whose hearts are yet cleaving to their idols conclude themselves penitent. What repentance has the worldling, who is minding nothing but his earthly business? Surely Mammon is his God; and, till this idol be put away, there is no repentance, no salvation to his soul. Nor has the proud, passionate, carnal, worldly-minded professor any pretensions to repentance; for what repentance has he, when he is yet harbouring idols in his heart? No, professor, thou must be delivered from thine idols; thy besetting sin in particular must be lamented, lothed, and mortified: nor, till this be thine experience, wilt thou have any defence against the impending wrath of God: thou mayest talk of Christ, and have a clear head-knowledge of the truth; but knowledge will not serve instead of repentance: thou must be divorced from thy lusts, thine evil tempers, and every thing else to which thou hast been glued. Christ gave himself to redeem us from all iniquity, and to purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works; and therefore, if thou wouldst ever dwell under the shadow of God in heaven, see that this fruit be found on thee on earth. God is willing to produce it in you: look therefore to Him; and he will be as the dew unto you; he will heal your backslidings, and love you freely — — —]