Wednesday, February 3, 2010

February 3, 2010 (Amos 1-9)

I'm in the 'judgment' books, and it's not pretty. Here's how Amos starts:

3 This is what the Lord says: “The people of Damascus have sinned again and again,
and I will not let them go unpunished!

6 This is what the L
ord says: “The people of Gaza have sinned again and again,
and I will not let them go unpunished!

9 This is what the Lord says: “The people of Tyre have sinned again and again,
and I will not let them go unpunished!

11 This is what the Lord says: “The people of Edom have sinned again and again,
and I will not let them go unpunished!

13 This is what the L
ord says: “The people of Ammon have sinned again and again,
and I will not let them go unpunished!

Amos 2

1 This is what the Lord says: “The people of Moab have sinned again and again,
and I will not let them go unpunished!

4 This is what the Lord says:“The people of Judah have sinned again and again,
and I will not let them go unpunished!

They have rejected the instruction of the Lord,
refusing to obey his decrees.
They have been led astray by the same lies
that deceived their ancestors.
5 So I will send down fire on Judah,
and all the fortresses of Jerusalem will be destroyed.”

6 This is what the Lord says:“The people of Israel have sinned again and again,
and I will not let them go unpunished!

10 It was I who rescued you from Egypt
and led you through the desert for forty years,
so you could possess the land of the Amorites.
11 I chose some of your sons to be prophets
and others to be Nazirites.
Can you deny this, my people of Israel?”
asks the L
ord.

If you notice from above, God starts with all the 'enemies' of Israel. But He ends with Judah and Israel. Our "chosen ones" standing with Him does not excuse us of sin and its consequences.

Amos 3

1 Listen to this message that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel and Judah—against the entire family I rescued from Egypt:

Let's personalize that verse:

Listen to this message that the Lord has spoken against you, O Christians - against those I have rescued from the penalty of sin and death:

2 “From among all the families on the earth,
I have been intimate with you alone.
That is why I must punish you
for all your sins.”


As I thought about the verse above, I thought of us who know God and have a relationship with Him. And I thought of the husband and wife relationship. When you are betrayed by a spouse, (or in the case of someone who has been intimate outside of marriage, by your partner), the pain and hurt are much deeper than you would experience if you were betrayed by a 'casual acquaintance'. There are consequences to our actions, and I think when we sin, it grieves God because of all He has done for us; because He has been intimate with us by removing the penalty of sin and bringing us into His family.

Let's put this into a modern day context. Let's think of John Edwards and his betrayal to his wife. Is she 'punishing' him for all his sins? I guess you could say that. She has broken off her relationship with him, and I would imagine he is paying a hefty financial price for his 'indiscretions'. If we could only see that our "adultery" with God causes the same pain to Him. How do we commit this adultery? By putting other things and pleasures before our relationship with Him. He desires intimacy. He has created us for intimacy. How do you accomplish intimacy? By sharing your heart. By valuing the relationship. By letting the person know they are number one in your life. By spending time with them. By sending little love notes. By doing something sacrificial for them. By showing love. By not expecting anything in return, except to be loved. And how do you know you are loved? By all the things expressed above. Why is it that we find it is easier to be intimate with a person than it is to be intimate with God? Because we can't see Him? Because we can't touch Him? That is why over and over the Bible says "the just shall live by faith". What is faith? Hebrews says "Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see". Faith in our relationship with God is doing all the "intimate" things above with Him, by faith. Spending time in His word, not to "check off a box", but to know His heart. Speaking to Him throughout the day, even though you can't see Him, you know, by faith, He is there.

I went to BibleGateway and did a search on faith. I am more convinced than ever this is the key to the Christian life - from salvation (for you are saved by faith...not by works, lest any man should boast), to living the Christian life.

And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

And Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith.

Unless your faith is firm, I cannot make you stand firm.

So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law.

But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners.

Clearly, God’s promise to give the whole earth to Abraham and his descendants was based not on his obedience to God’s law, but on a right relationship with God that comes by faith.

The book of Amos is filled with the proclamation of God's judgment on the people because they had turned from Him. But it ends with a promise of His restoration with the few that would repent. Instead of listing them all out, it all pales in comparison to the 'musings' about faith. I am going to go back and re-read that portion that talks about intimacy, and by faith, meet with my God.

1 comment:

  1. 01001100 01101111 01110110 01100101.

    Now does that make sense to anyone except a computer programmer, someone who is intimate with the atributes of computer and how it works. Its the same with faith and God. Non-Christians cannot understand the love of God without a translator. Christians when they are intimate with God, can translate and show God's love to those who don't know of it.

    BTW The binary code above means "Love"

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