Amos 5:14a New
Living Translation
“Do what is good and run
from evil so that you may live!”
Amos was a man of God, yet there
was nothing extraordinary about him. He was neither a priest, nor the son of a
priest. Neither prophet, nor the son of
a prophet, yet God chose Amos to deliver an urgent message to the people of the
Northern Kingdom of Israel (Judah). The
purpose of this book is to relay the visions of Amos from Almighty God to the
wealthy people of Israel who had fallen into the sins of complacency, idolatry
and the oppression of the poor. Amos
spends a few chapters speaking on the punishment that was coming for the
peoples of Philistia, Tyre, Edom, Ammon & Moab. The Jews were delighted to hear of their
demise. They must have bolted upright
though when they heard the name of Judah counted among the peoples set to be
judged. The last chapter of this book
speaks of hope in spite of all the punishment that had been laid out in the
previous chapters.
There are many tie-ins in both the Old
& New Testaments that make all said in the entirety of scripture relevant
to us believers today. Many people who
claim to be Christians walk a dangerous tightrope between sin and
righteousness. It’s as if they want to
dance on the lunatic fringe as long as they can without falling into sin. That’s not at all what an ambassador of
Christ would or should do. Temptation is
real & it’s out there. It is when we feel the least vulnerable that we
should be the most cautious. Satan wants
to knock you off your perch of faith and cause you to be ineffective for the
Lord. By dabbling in sinful ways we
stand nothing to gain & everything to lose. The devil wins because he
knocked you off kilter for a time, but he is a defeated foe who has nothing to
lose.
There is a reason God had Amos use the
verb ‘run’ when speaking of evil. It’s
nothing to trifle with. When spotted,
make a 180 & run in the opposite direction.
Don’t let the evil of this world grab a hold of you & drag you back
into old habits & lifestyles. Strive to do that which is good & right,
for hope shall blossom from the righteousness you display. Until next time, walk with the King and be a
blessing!
Resource: The Life Application Study Bible.
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