Thoughts for the Day

This is what he showed me: the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb-line, with a plumb-line in his hand. And the Lord said to me, ‘Amos, what do you see?’ And I said, ‘A plumb-line.’ Then the Lord said,

‘See, I am setting a plumb-line
in the midst of my people Israel;
I will never again pass them by;
the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate,
and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste,
and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.’

Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent to King Jeroboam of Israel, saying, ‘Amos has conspired against you in the very centre of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos has said,

“Jeroboam shall die by the sword,
and Israel must go into exile
away from his land.”’

And Amaziah said to Amos, ‘O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, earn your bread there, and prophesy there; but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom.’

Then Amos answered Amaziah, ‘I am no prophet, nor a prophet’s son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees, and the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, “Go, prophesy to my people Israel.”

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

Society as a whole, today, does not like rules! Think about it, the child at school who won't sit down and expects the sole attention of the teacher; or the teenager or adult who is not willing to obey the police when told stop riding a bicycle on the pavement; or the bereaved person who wants a Christian minister to conduct a funeral but with no mention of God in the service (yes, it happens!). The period we call the Enlightenment in the late 17th to 19th century has led us to believe that we are the sole arbiters of what is right or wrong, and millions of us will not accept judgements from others.

For many who believe in this way the Old Testament brings a problem. It is seen as a book of laws with God as a severe Judge. They don't see that He resembles a parent who must bring correction and justice to his children. The story of Amos the farmer who is called to speak words of judgement to a powerful political priest like Azariah who has the king's ear, can cause problems for many modern readers. However we should remember that the king, Jeroboam, who led the ten northern tribes was condemned by God as having done "evil above all those who were before you". (1 Kings 14.7-9).

Telling "truth to power" was dangerous for Amos, as many prophets found, but it can also be uncomfortable to speak such truth today. As Christians we are called to speak out against the wrongs in our society, and we need to measure them against the plumb-line of our Lord Jesus Christ's words about loving God and our neighbour. If we do this we shall learn to speak up for the poor, the vulnerable, the dispossessed and the marginalised.

Lord Jesus Christ,
may we be honest with You about our own faults -
our selfishness and our "I want" attitude,
as well as our preference to ignore those in need.
Help us to be brave enough to speak out against injustice,
and against those things that do not measure up to
Your rule of love.
Then give us the will to take action to help others.
Amen.