(Amos 4:1-13)
1 Hear this word, you cows of Bashan who are on the mountain of Samaria,
Who exploit the poor, who oppress the needy,
And say to their husbands, “Bring now, that we may drink!”
2 The Lord God has sworn by His holiness,
“For behold, the days are coming upon you
When they will take you away with meat hooks,
And the last of you with fish hooks.
3 You will go out through holes in the walls,
One in front of the other,
And you will be hurled to Harmon,” declares the Lord.
4 “Enter Bethel and do wrong;
In Gilgal multiply wrongdoing!
Bring your sacrifices every morning,
Your tithes every three days.
5 Offer a thanksgiving offering also from that which is leavened,
And proclaim voluntary offerings, make them known.
For so you love to do, you sons of Israel,”
Declares the Lord God.
6 “But I gave you also cleanness of teeth in all your cities,
And lack of bread in all your places;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
7 “Furthermore, I withheld the rain from you
While there were still three months until harvest.
Then I would send rain on one city,
But on another city I would not send rain;
One part would be rained on,
While the part not rained on would dry up.
8 So the people of two or three cities would stagger to another city to drink water,
But would not be satisfied;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
9 “I struck you with scorching wind and mildew;
The caterpillar was devouring
Your many gardens and vineyards, fig trees and olive trees;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
10 “I sent a plague among you as in Egypt;
I killed your young men with the sword, along with your captured horses,
And I made the stench of your camp rise up in your nostrils;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
11 “I overthrew you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,
And you were like a log snatched from a fire;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
12 “Therefore so I will do to you, Israel;
Because I will do this to you,
Prepare to meet your God, Israel.”
13 For behold, He who forms mountains and creates the wind,
And declares to a person what are His thoughts,
He who makes dawn into darkness
And treads on the high places of the earth,
The Lord God of armies is His name.
Who exploit the poor, who oppress the needy,
And say to their husbands, “Bring now, that we may drink!”
2 The Lord God has sworn by His holiness,
“For behold, the days are coming upon you
When they will take you away with meat hooks,
And the last of you with fish hooks.
3 You will go out through holes in the walls,
One in front of the other,
And you will be hurled to Harmon,” declares the Lord.
4 “Enter Bethel and do wrong;
In Gilgal multiply wrongdoing!
Bring your sacrifices every morning,
Your tithes every three days.
5 Offer a thanksgiving offering also from that which is leavened,
And proclaim voluntary offerings, make them known.
For so you love to do, you sons of Israel,”
Declares the Lord God.
6 “But I gave you also cleanness of teeth in all your cities,
And lack of bread in all your places;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
7 “Furthermore, I withheld the rain from you
While there were still three months until harvest.
Then I would send rain on one city,
But on another city I would not send rain;
One part would be rained on,
While the part not rained on would dry up.
8 So the people of two or three cities would stagger to another city to drink water,
But would not be satisfied;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
9 “I struck you with scorching wind and mildew;
The caterpillar was devouring
Your many gardens and vineyards, fig trees and olive trees;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
10 “I sent a plague among you as in Egypt;
I killed your young men with the sword, along with your captured horses,
And I made the stench of your camp rise up in your nostrils;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
11 “I overthrew you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,
And you were like a log snatched from a fire;
Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
12 “Therefore so I will do to you, Israel;
Because I will do this to you,
Prepare to meet your God, Israel.”
13 For behold, He who forms mountains and creates the wind,
And declares to a person what are His thoughts,
He who makes dawn into darkness
And treads on the high places of the earth,
The Lord God of armies is His name.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
As it says here in verse 13, God, who created everything, also gave us His word, the Bible, in order to communicate with us everything we need to know. In it, there are directions to follow for every circumstance in order to have a fuller life. Much more than that, salvation and fullness of life is NOT about being religious and carrying out a bunch of do's and don'ts, it is all about having a personal relationship with God.
Without a relationship with the Lord, our good deeds are worthless! Therefore, because He is a loving God, He wants to help us along the way - in His way, which is for us to do everything in His love, strength, wisdom and guidance, asking and allowing Him to change our hearts from the inside out. Because He is a loving God and has given us a free will, He will never force us to obey. Just as He will never force anyone to believe and love Him back. But He does give everyone fair opportunity to make this decision! Being sovereign, He already knows who is going to become a child of God.
One day, all of us will stand before the Lord to be judged. Unbelievers will be judged according to their sins. And because they rejected Jesus and what He did for us on the cross, and because they didn't want Him in their lives, they will go to an eternal place void of God and His goodness. For believers, because we accepted Jesus and His forgiveness of sins, He will judge and reward us for all good deeds done with right motives. And because we accepted Him into our lives, we will spend eternity with our loving Lord and Savior in heaven!
Putting the two thoughts together, it is clear. We should desire to be in God's word daily in order to know Him and His will better. We should desire to keep returning to the Lord when we stray and make mistakes. He is faithful and will never disown us, but why wouldn't we want to keep growing closer and closer to Him! And as we do, we can ask and allow the Lord to work for us, in us and through us.
Notice that God's kingdom is opposite of the world's way. The world's way is selfish and prideful, and love is conditional. God's way is selfless and humble, and His love is unconditional and sacrificial. Instead of taking, we are to give. Instead of lying and fighting with each other, we are to make peace and stand for justice. Instead of using people, we are to help those in need. Instead of judging, we are to edify, teach and encourage in God's truth and love, all with His help! Because all that is God's way is unnatural for us, this is exactly why we need Him in our lives! In this way, we will be blessed, even when as we go through the storms of life.
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