Hosea And The Atonement

Hosea and the atonement.

Hosea 3:4

The excesses of the carnival of Christmas and New Year are over and now the period of abstinence has begun.

This period is leading up to Christianity’s most holy day, Easter, is the 40-day period called Lent, when pledges are made to give up everything from alcohol and smoking to nail-biting and overeating.

But given the importance of Jesus’s death from the very dawn of Christianity, it’s rather surprising that the practice of recognising this significant period has changed considerably over the past two thousand years – and in some very strange ways.

We have no record in the Bible, anywhere, where the Apostles, Disciples, or any Christians ever observed Lent. It is a tradition evidently taken from Christ’s fasting for forty days and forty nights, as given in Matthew 4:2. I have never seen anyone yet who has gone forty days and forty nights without eating, as did Christ!

Even though Lent is not mentioned in the Bible closer examination of the ancient sources, ( see Facts, Myths & Maybes (Everything You Think You Know About Catholicism But Perhaps Don't), by John Deedy, copyright 1993, published by Thomas More Press, page 235. however, reveals a more gradual historical development of the practice. While fasting before Easter seems to have been ancient and widespread, the length of that fast varied significantly from place to place and across generations. In the latter half of the second century, for instance, Irenaeus of Lyons (in Gaul) and Tertullian (in North Africa) tell us that the preparatory fast lasted one or two days, or forty hours—commemorating what was believed to be the exact duration of Christ’s time in the tomb. By the mid-third century, Dionysius of Alexandria speaks of a fast of up to six days practiced by the devout in his See.

We find that the time of Lent developed as part of the historical Christian calendar and is typically celebrated by some Christian churches that follow a liturgical calendar. Many of the theology handbooks of the nineteenth and early-twentieth century confidently claimed that Lent was established by the apostles themselves or in the immediate post-apostolic period at the latest. They assumed this season of fasting was closely connected with preparation for the Easter baptisms—a practice likewise considered to be of apostolic foundation (cf. Romans 6) and observed everywhere throughout the Church since its earliest days. Although its format has varied throughout the centuries and throughout different cultures, only following the Council of Nicea in 325 a.d. did the length of Lent become fixed at forty days. Lent traditionally lasts forty days, modeled after Christ's forty day fast in the desert, and ends on Good Friday. In the Western Church, Lent officially begins with a reminder of our mortality on Ash Wednesday (In 2019 , falling on March 6th. ) And it is observed only by a few denominations.

Search the scriptures diligently, from Old Testament to New, and you will find no mention of Jews or Christians observing an annual period of 40 days of fasting and abstinence preceding the festival of the Passover, yet today most of the Christian world observes a 40 day period called Lent, which precedes the festival of Easter Sunday.

Why 40 days because a period of 40 days is rather common in scripture

It rained 40 days and nights: Gen 7:4, 12.

Forty days after sighting the tops of the mountains, Noah set forth a raven and a dove: Gen 8:6-7.

Joseph mourned the death of his father Jacob for a period of 40 days: Gen 49:33 - Gen 50:3.

Moses on Sinai for 40 days: Exo. 24:18, 34:28, Deu 9:9-11.

Moses pleads for Israel 40 days on Sinai: Deut 9:18-25, 10:10.

Canaan spied on for 40 days: Num 13:25, 14:34.

Goliath taunted Israel for 40 days: 1 Sam 17:16.

Elijah fasted and journeyed to Horeb for 40 days: 1 Kings 19:8.

Ezekiel bore the iniquity of Judah for 40 days: Eze 4:6.

Jonah warned Nineveh of judgment in 40 days: Jonah 3:4.

Jesus fasted in the wilderness for 40 days: Matt 4:2, Mark 1:13, Luke 4:2.

Jesus was seen for 40 days after His crucifixion: Acts 1:3.

As we look into this period for our own spiritual growth we will be basing this study on the book of Hosea.

Hosea was a man of deep spiritual conviction who throughout his long ministry became progressively concerned both for the Lord’s person and testimony as well as his troubled people During his ministry corruption had spread throughout the whole land; even the places once sacred through God’s revelation - Bethel Gilgal, Gilead, Mizpah, Shechem were especial scenes of corruption or of sin. Nevertheless, he remained faithful to God and his calling through it all. The exact time of his death is unknown, although it seems likely that he did not live to see the fall of Samaria and the Northern Kingdom in 722 B.C.