Tag: plumb line
God’s plumb line of Truth!
Scripture reading for September 13: Amos 6-7
“This is what He showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb, with a plumb line in His hand. And the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Amos?” “A plumb line,” I replied. The the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.“ Amos 7:7-8
Amos had received a series of visions from the Sovereign Lord about the coming judgment on the nation. The first vision concerned a swarm of locusts stripping the land clean. (Amos 7:1-3) Amos interceded for the nation and the Lord relented. The second vision concerned a judgment by fire on the nation and Amos again interceded and the Lord relented. Prayer by one man can make a difference! We must never stop praying and believing in faith even when God warns us of coming disaster!
In the third vision God had a plumb line and was standing by a wall that was built true to plumb. Being plumb simply means perfectly perpendicular. A plumb line is a line of string with a pointed weight on the bottom. It is held up near the wall and shows clearly if the wall is plumb or not. If the wall is not plumb, it is leaning and may topple. The more out of plumb, the more the wall is in danger of collapse.
In this vision, the wall that was built true to plumb was the nation of Israel. God had “squared” them away and put His law as a plumb line in their midst to keep them straight. The people, however, refused to love God and obey His law. He was their Builder and Maker and lived in their midst. He sent prophets to drop the plumb line into the lives of His people and show them that their wall was out of whack! Amos had been sent to warn them of their complacency and materialism. (Amos 6:1, 4-6) They were living lives of luxury but had forgotten the God who had formed them and blessed them to be His holy people!
Amos got the left foot of fellowship by King Amaziah. He was told not to speak any more in Israel but to go back to Judah where he came from. (Amos 7:12-13) (Plumb lines were not welcome!) God used prophets to bring a revival and repentance that would bring restoration. If the message was rejected, the wall would fall. (Amos 7:16-17)
How is the wall of your life? Is the plumb line of God’s truth being dropped regularly alongside of it? Are you listening, reading, and heeding the plumb line of God’s Word? Today is a good day to straighten up and make the necessary changes!
Truth that offends!
Scripture reading for August 5th: Amos 7-9, Matthew 15
Matthew 15: 7-12 “You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said, “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me; in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” And He called the people to Him and said to them, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person. Then the disciples came and said to Him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heart this saying?”
Jesus was not one to sugar-coat sin in the lives of people, particularly those claiming to be the most religious and righteous. The Pharisees had confronted Jesus about His disciples not washing their hands when they ate. Jesus spoke strongly back to them with questions about why they had broken God’s laws for the sake of their traditions. He openly called them “hypocrites.’ They were pointing fingers at others problems but ignorant of their own issues. They claimed to honor God and keep His Word, but were only giving lip service and not obeying the heart of God. They were blind guides leading blind people–both would fall into the ditch! This hypocrisy came from hearts that were not submitted to God, but rather became offended when Jesus spoke Truth to them. God’s Plumb Line of Truth tests all men’s hearts.
Matthew 15:13-14 “He answered, “Every plant that My heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone: they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.”
Prayer: Father God, forgive me for the times I have judged others but purposely ignored my own faults and breaking of God’s Word. I want to be one who worships God in sincerity and Truth and teaches and lives out God’s Word in heart-felt submission. Deliver me from offense and finger-pointing. Rather empower me to walk in the Holy Spirit and live out Your Truth.
Amos 7:7-8 “This is what He showed me: behold, 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, “Behold, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass them by.”
The prophet and the plumb line!
Scripture reading for September 15th: Amos 6-7
“This is what He showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb, with a plumb line in His hand. And the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Amos?” “A plumb line,” I replied. The the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.” Amos 7:7-8
Amos had received a series of visions from the Lord about the coming judgment on the nation. The first vision concerned a swarm of locusts stripping the land clean. (Amos 7:1-3) Amos interceded for the nation and the Lord relented. The second vision concerned a judgment by fire on the nation and Amos again interceded and the Lord relented. Believers prayers are powerful!
The third vision was about a plumb line and a wall that was built true to plumb. A plumb line is a line of string with a pointed weight on the bottom. It is held up near a wall and shows clearly if the wall is perpendicular or not. The more out of plumb, the more the wall is in danger of collapsing.
The wall that was built true to plumb was the nation of Israel. God had “squared” them away and put His law as a plumb line in their midst to keep them straight. The people, however, refused to love God and obey His law. He was their builder and maker and lived in their midst. He sent prophets to drop the plumb line and Amos had been sent to warn them of their complacency and materialism. (Amos 6:1, 4-6) They were living lives of luxury, feasting, and drinking, but had forgotten the God!
Amos got the left foot of fellowship by King Amaziah. He was told not to speak any more in Israel but to go back to Judah where he came from! (Amos 7:12-13) A positive response to Amos and his message would have brought the people back into proper alignment. This time the wall would fall! (Amos 7:16-17)
How is the wall of your life? Is the plumb line of God’s truth being dropped regularly alongside of it? Are you listening and reading and heeding God’s word? Today is a good day to straighten up and make the necessary changes!
Plumb Line of Truth!
Scripture reading for September 15th: Amos 6-7
I have always liked the story of Amos and the plumb line. I’ve used a plumb line in building several times in my life. As a farmer, I used simple tools to build facilities for my animals. The plumb line was used to make sure walls were straight up and down and posts in buildings were in their proper alignment. The plumb line works by gravity. A heavy pointed brass “bob” suspended by a line always pointed straight down and the line is perpendicular to the earth. It was simple and worked to measure vertical alignment!
“This is what He showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb, with a plumb line in His hand. And the Lord asked me, “What do you see Amos?” “A plumb line,” I replied. The the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among My people Israel; I will spare them no longer.” (Amos 7:7-8) Amos had a vision of the Lord holding plumb line. This vision represented God’s measuring His people’s vertical alignment with Him and His law. God gave them His law to help them but they were complacent and spent their time in luxury, feasting and drinking. (Amos 6:1-7)
God also sent prophets like Amos and Hosea to call the people back to this proper vertical alignment and warn them where their lives were out of plumb! In a sense, Amos was God’s messenger holding the plumb line of His word to warn the people that God was going to judge them! The truth that Amos spoke was not well received by the leaders of the nation. Amaziah, the priest at Bethel, sent Amos away! “Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Eat your bread there and do your prophesying there. Don’t prophesy anymore at Bethel, for this is the king’s sanctuary and temple of the kingdom.” (Amos 7:12-13)
When the Lord warns His people, it is better to listen and obey than try to eliminate the prophet with the plumb line. How does your life line up? Are you in alignment with God and His holy word? Are you trying to shut up the voice of God by avoiding church or Bible reading? Why not make some changes today?
Amos and the plumb line!
Scripture reading for September 15th: Amos 6-7
“This is what He showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb, with a plumb line in His hand. And the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Amos?” “A plumb line,” I replied. The the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.” Amos 7:7-8
Amos had received a series of visions from the Sovereign Lord about the coming judgment on the nation. The first vision concerned a swarm of locusts stripping the land clean. (Amos 7:1-3) Amos interceded for the nation and the Lord relented. The second vision concerned a judgment by fire on the nation and Amos again interceded and the Lord relented. Prayer by one man can make a difference! We must never stop praying and believing in faith even when God warns us of coming disaster!
The third vision is the passage that we will consider today. God had a plumb line and was standing by a wall that was built true to plumb. Being plumb simply means perfectly perpendicular. A plumb line is a line of string with a pointed weight on the bottom. It is held up near the wall and shows clearly if the wall is plumb or not. If the wall is not plumb, it is leaning and may topple or could be taken down. The more out of plumb, the more the wall is in danger of collapsing.
In this vision, the wall that was built true to plumb was the nation of Israel. God had “squared” them away and put His law as a plumb line in their midst to keep them straight. The people, however, refused to love God and obey His law. He was their builder and maker and lived in their midst. He sent prophets to drop the plumb line into the lives of His people and show them that their wall was out of whack! Amos had been sent to warn them of their complacency and materialism. (Amos 6:1, 4-6) They were living lives of luxury and feasting and drinking but had forgotten the God who had formed them and blessed them to be His holy people!
Amos got the left foot of fellowship by King Amaziah. He was told not to speak any more in Israel but to go back to Judah where he came from. (Amos 7:12-13) Plumb lines were not welcome! The prophet was causing people to be upset and angry. Prophets could bring a revival and the wall would come back into plumb, or the wall might just have to fall because it was too far out of plumb! This time the wall would fall! (Amos 7:16-17)
How is the wall of your life? Is the plumb line of God’s truth being dropped regularly alongside of it? Are you listening and reading and heeding the plumb line? Today is a good day to straighten up and make the necessary changes!