The Danger of Self-Reliance
By Dean Collins
Hosea had a tough job. He lived in the northern kingdom during Jeroboam II. Things had gotten pretty bad under Jeroboam’s reign. Hosea preached to the northern kingdom for nearly three decades, and, as all the prophets, he called God’s people to repentance. Hosea’s style of writing is a mixture of prose and poetry with most of the book considered poetry. In the 14 chapters of Hosea, there are descriptions of both the justice of God as well as the mercy and compassion of God that is available to everyone.
Hosea called for his listeners to return to the Lord, noting that they had stumbled badly. In verse three we find a strong message: “Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride on horses; and we will say no more, ‘Our God,’ to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy.” While there is a specific reference to not trusting in Assyria, Hosea makes clear that what is needed is to give up reliance on anything and everything. Only God can fix matters of the heart and bring healing to individuals, communities, and ultimately, to all of his creation.
Is there any place for self-reliance for a follower of Jesus? Is there a good, bad, and even ugly kind of self-reliance? I think it probably depends on what we mean when we apply this term to our attitudes and actions. The good of self-reliance has to do with taking responsibility to do what we say we will do. A good employee, committee member, and citizen works to make sure they are carrying their weight or doing their jobs that have been assigned. Certainly, as believers we want to be known as people who take our responsibilities seriously and do our jobs.
What about the bad kind of self-reliance? Suppose you have a tough decision to make or a difficult problem to solve. Should you practice self-reliance in those situations? All through Proverbs and many other places in scripture, we are taught to pray about all things and specifically to pray for wisdom. Proverbs has many passages that indicate that seeking wise counsel is a good idea. While you may want to be responsible in a tough situation, seeking the advice and counsel from others who have more knowledge and experience is a good idea. To simply apply self-reliance would be a bad decision.
Is there an ugly side of self-reliance? Absolutely! Being self-reliant might lead us to the sin of pride, where we think more of ourselves than we should. The more prideful we become, the more we lose self-awareness and develop blind spots about both our abilities and likely even our theology.
As we read through Hosea 14, we see the beauty of what God is doing in his grand story of redemption and the resulting renewal of all of creation. Beginning in verse five, we see the language of gardens; blossom like the lily, root like the trees of Lebanon, shoots that spread out, beauty like the olive and fragrances, flourish like grain, blossom like the vine, and like the wine of Lebanon. This language sounds like what it might have been like in the garden of Eden or what it will be like when Jesus brings heaven to earth. But all of this blessing and renewal comes not through our self-reliance that we can make ourselves or our world perfect. The pictures of new creation become ours only through repentance and surrender to the King of kings who was at the beginning, died and rose again, and will one day come again.
Lord, today we surrender our stubborn self-reliance to you. Forgive us for believing that we are wise enough, strong enough, or can live well enough to save ourselves. We surrender all to you and ask that your kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Your Time with God’s Word
Hosea 14:1-9 ESV
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