Don't Starve...

Amos has so many lessons upon which we can meditate. The sermons he preached in chapters 3-6  compelling. Calling on the people to “Hear this word…” Urging them to see the error in their ways, to see that their pride and complacent behavior was the source of their fall.

The prophet’s record ends with five distinctive visions of judgment which God gave to His servant: a vision of a plague of locusts (7:1-3), a vision of a devouring fire (vv. 4-6), a image of a plumb line (vv. 7-9), a vision of a basket of ripe fruit (8:1-14), and finally a vision of the ruined temple (9:1-10). Amos then closes his message on a positive note as he describes the future glorious kingdom that God has promised to His people (vv. 11-15).

In chapter 8, our blue-collar prophet shares of a day of bitter mourning. A day we often refer to as “the Day of the Lord.” We see many vivid pictures in which we are told of what will happen “on that day” on the day of bitter judgment.

The Lord through His prophet proclaims that this coming judgment would, in fact, be like a famine (vv. 11-14), not only of literal food but also of spiritual nourishment. Amos knew as do we that "man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Deut. 8:3 ESV) echoed by Christ in Matthew 4:4. Thus, these days would be days in which people would cry out for help, but they would indeed find no sustenance.  What a tragedy it is that all around we have plenty of "religion" but no Word from the Lord!  People stagger like drunks from place to place, always searching to find food and drink for their bodies as much as spiritual sustenance for their souls.

Today we experience this all too often in one of two ways. We are either famished, not receiving any nourishment spiritually or we are feasting on the wrong things, much as a diet of junk food and Coca Cola will surely destroy us from the inside out eventually causing our bodies to fail.

We are in a sense starving ourselves, consuming the Word one day a week and feasting on junk the other seven.

Think about it…. If you only ate once a week how healthy do you think you would be?