I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them. I hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.
Amos the prophet was a shepherd from a small village in the Kingdom of Judah when he was called by God. He begins his prophetic words by warning Israel’s neighbors that God is going to bring judgment against them for their sins. But these are not the point of his ministry. When he gets to Israel, Amos goes into detail regarding their sins. They mistreated the poor, selling them into slavery. They abused those who could not look after themselves. They shoved those without power out-of-the-way. They were shamelessly adulterous. They celebrated religious festivals using goods acquired through corruption. They did everything in their power to corrupt the righteousness of those who publicly dedicated themselves to righteous living. For all of this God was going to bring judgment and there would be no escaping it.
This reminds me of our society. Some elements of it sound like it is describing the Christmas shopping season:
and shove the oppressed out of the way.
Other parts sound like a sitcom (couldn’t you see this being an episode of next season’s “Two and a Half Men”):
corrupting my holy name.
But I look around and this really strikes home, because I see it everywhere:
says the Lord.
“Their fortresses are filled with wealth
taken by theft and violence.”
Let us read God’s word and learn once more how to do right. Too many of our churches spend Sunday morning entertaining those who come to service rather than teaching them what God commands. And we who attend them demand that they do so. We seek out churches that entertain us rather than those which discipline us to follow God.
Today I read the message to the first three of the seven churches. The first message is to the church in Ephesus. They are commended for their patience and hard work. They are further commended for recognizing false prophets and teachers for what they are and not following them. In particular for not following the teachings of the Nicolaitans (a sect that appears to have taught that grace allows Christians to live immoral lives). However, they are condemned for having lost their enthusiasm. It is not enough that we get our doctrine correct, we need to be enthusiastic in our love of the Lord. Remember the enthusiasm we had when we first came to know the Lord, we need to recapture that.
The second message is the church in Smyrna. They are commended for their suffering and poverty. The writer tells us that despite their reputation for poverty they are rich. Since their is no condemnation given of them, I will assume that he was referring to spiritual riches, not material ones. Further they are praised for standing up against blasphemous opposition. Finally they are warned that there is more persecution coming against them, but if they remain faithful they will receive eternal life. Let us strive to be like the church in Smyrna, faithful in the face of opposition and persecution.
The third message is to the church in Pergamum. They are commended for remaining faithful in the face of persecution. They remained faithful despite a strong anti-Christian religious establishment in the city. However, they are criticized for tolerating those who follow the teachings of the Nicolaitans. They partook of the ceremonies of pagan religions and practiced sexual immorality. Is this not something that we face in our society today? A temptation to go along with non-Christian religious rituals so that we do not stand out and appear judgmental? A tendency to accept as normal and ok the rampant sexual immorality of the society around us so that we are not called “prudes”? We are told that we must repent of our sins and stand strong against such false teaching.
The Lord has cut me free from the bonds of sin and godlessness. Those who oppose righteousness will suffer defeat and humiliation. Hopefully this will turn their hearts to God.
Words alone are not discipline. If they are not backed up by further action, they will be ignored. It is worse to speak without thinking through how your words will be understood than it is to act foolishly.