September 22 - Amos 1-3
The prophecy of Amos is very clear and concise. The Holy Spirit inspired him to deliver this prophecy to Israel, but also, to Judah and to the other nations around them. We can learn a lot from these messages of Amos.
First of all, we know that God's judgment is against all sin. God is not a person who shows partiality. Yes, He is merciful, but His mercy is for everyone, too. Amos begins by delivering a series of messages against the surrounding nations. God's mercy for them had run out, and now there would be a time of punishment. Some of the things they had done were very serious. I am sure that the Jewish people felt superior to all of these nations, and they were probably glad to hear these words from Amos. Isn't that normal for God's people? We see the sins of the unbelievers. We think they are so terrible. We wonder why God has not already punished them. The answer is that God is always merciful, and He always does the right thing. We are not wise enough to judge them, and we should not try. We should share the Lord with them.
Then, Amos delivers the prophecy against Judah and Israel. It is evident that in God's eyes their sins are worse than the sins of the nations, because His people had His Word and His prophets. (2:4) They had left God's way to worship idols in a debased way. (2:7) They should have known better, so God was even more angry with them. I hope we will hear this message. Don't focus on the sins of another. Focus on yourself. Don't focus on the sins of unbelievers. Yes, they are terrible, but they don't know the Lord. Are God's people doing the same types of things? Then, we should be more focused on calling God's people to repentance, first. Many times the unbelievers can look at God's people and think that they are just as good as God's people so they don't have anything to worry about. This is a terrible testimony, and it is a message that leads them to Hell.
God could not walk with His people any more, because they were not agreeing with Him. (3:3) He knew that they were fully aware of His truth because He always used prophets to proclaim what He was doing. (3:7) Therefore, He had to send a severe punishment on His people. (3:12) I believe God still reveals what he is doing to His people through prophets and that He is judging us today, because we are not following Him as we should. It is time for us to hear Amos and the other prophets. It is time for God's people to repent. No matter what the world is doing, we need to get right with God and become an example to the people who don't know God.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Amos 4-6.
First of all, we know that God's judgment is against all sin. God is not a person who shows partiality. Yes, He is merciful, but His mercy is for everyone, too. Amos begins by delivering a series of messages against the surrounding nations. God's mercy for them had run out, and now there would be a time of punishment. Some of the things they had done were very serious. I am sure that the Jewish people felt superior to all of these nations, and they were probably glad to hear these words from Amos. Isn't that normal for God's people? We see the sins of the unbelievers. We think they are so terrible. We wonder why God has not already punished them. The answer is that God is always merciful, and He always does the right thing. We are not wise enough to judge them, and we should not try. We should share the Lord with them.
Then, Amos delivers the prophecy against Judah and Israel. It is evident that in God's eyes their sins are worse than the sins of the nations, because His people had His Word and His prophets. (2:4) They had left God's way to worship idols in a debased way. (2:7) They should have known better, so God was even more angry with them. I hope we will hear this message. Don't focus on the sins of another. Focus on yourself. Don't focus on the sins of unbelievers. Yes, they are terrible, but they don't know the Lord. Are God's people doing the same types of things? Then, we should be more focused on calling God's people to repentance, first. Many times the unbelievers can look at God's people and think that they are just as good as God's people so they don't have anything to worry about. This is a terrible testimony, and it is a message that leads them to Hell.
God could not walk with His people any more, because they were not agreeing with Him. (3:3) He knew that they were fully aware of His truth because He always used prophets to proclaim what He was doing. (3:7) Therefore, He had to send a severe punishment on His people. (3:12) I believe God still reveals what he is doing to His people through prophets and that He is judging us today, because we are not following Him as we should. It is time for us to hear Amos and the other prophets. It is time for God's people to repent. No matter what the world is doing, we need to get right with God and become an example to the people who don't know God.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Amos 4-6.