Tag: judgment on sinful kingdom
Famine for the Words of the Lord!
Scripture reading for September 16th: Amos 8-9
“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will send a famine through the land–not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord. Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the Lord, but they will not find it.” Amos 8:11-12
We are so blessed in America! We have nearly 360,000 churches across our land. Even in our city of Owensboro and surrounding area, there are nearly 200 churches to choose from for a population of about 115,000. About 30,000 -40,000 of those attend a church each week, a high number compared with other parts of our nation. We have services broadcast on television, cable, internet, and radio each day of the week. Christians should be out in the community sharing their faith and the word of the Lord each day. We should not have a famine for God’s word or have to search for it! It is readily available! Access to Bibles is not restricted here either, and, indeed, most households have more than one.
Amos lived and ministered among a people who were religious and went to church each Sabbath day to hear God’s word! They had prophets like him who spoke to them regularly. To come into the adult world of that day, children had to memorize the Books of Moses before their thirteenth birthday. What happened that they would have this famine in their land? Can a person or people have the word of the Lord and still have a famine for it?
When we ignore the Lord Himself and disrespect the light that we have from Him, we go into darkness that is deeper than before! These people had the truth and rejected it! They willfully went their own way and neglected to apply what was made known to them. This brought God’s wrath and judgment on them. This should be a strong warning to us today in America and in my city of Owensboro! To whom much has been given, much will be required!
God’s mercy is evident even in these dire prophetic writings of the prophet Amos. (Amos 9:8-10) God promises restoration after the shaking of judgment. He promises to restore the nation again and plant them in the land that He gave to them. (Amos 9:11-15) God’s goodness to a stubborn people is amazing! It draws us to repentance and faithful love again! (Romans 2:4) Let His mercy bless you today! Take advantage of the blessing of having God’s word as your living bread! Eat and be satisfied!