I was pleased to hear that Peter said this was only the third difficult chapter in Amos
because I was pretty convinced that the last four have been pretty challenging
and tonight I think is the toughest.
So we're in chapter 5 and we're with Amos,
who is a southern prophet from Tekoa, which is down in the southeast near Bethlehem.
And he's gone north. He's preaching to Israel.
He is in every sense of the word a missionary who has crossed cultural lines
in order to bring God's word to bear on a local population.
It is about 760 BC.
And as Amos is preaching, the God of the universe is roaring at Israel in judgment.
Now week one we learned that there was a combination that unlocked Amos for us.
Can anyone remember how we get into Amos?
It's encouraging.
8351, brilliant.
8351.
And we start with eight oracles of judgment.
Six are to the surrounding enemies of Israel.
And God is basically judging them for what in effect are war crimes.
Massacring people and performing heinous acts.
The seventh oracle of judgment is to Judah.
And God is judging Judah for their disobedience, that they have God's law,
and yet they've decided to trample over it and disobey anyway.
At this point, Israel is loving Amos until we get to verse 6 of chapter 2,
at which point God's cross has turned on Israel themselves.
And it's a catalogue of enormous problems.
The two main ones being hypocritical worship and social injustice.
They're not loving God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength.
In fact, they're hardly loving him at all and just keeping up appearances.
And at the same time, they're trampling over the poor in Israel.
We then get three sermons of rebuke.
And this is the third one we're in tonight.
We started with Mike in chapter 3.
And it was a very bleak chapter.
It was a very bleak chapter indeed.
But there was one ray of hope where God speaks about his remnants.
And I think he speaks about it in rather peculiar terms in verse 12.
This is what the Lord says.
As a shepherd rescues from the lion's mouth only two leg bones or a piece of an ear.
That's what he's saying about the remnant.
Just there's a little bit left that God is going to preserve and rescue.
And then last week in chapter 4 with Ian,
we had this wonderful sermon that was giving us a real way into chapter 4.
And again, it was another bleak chapter.
But we did see God's fatherly heart disciplining Israel in order to get their attention.
He talks about all the ways in the past that God had tried to get his people to return to him.
And yet they would not come.
And so after the three sermons of rebuke,
we get five visions of judgment, which we'll start next week with Graham.
And then we get one oracle of salvation.
And I have to say, Amos is tough going.
It is tough, tough going.
In fact, it's a bit like being a child on a long car journey.
And every mile, you ask your parents, are we there yet?
And the parents go, we're not there yet.
In fact, we're not going to be there for quite a while.
It was like when I used to drive down to Bournemouth, where I lived from Aberdeen.
And you get below Birmingham and you think we're nearly there.
You're not nearly there.
It just gets busier and the roads get more boring.
Until you finally arrive in Bournemouth, which is a wonderful place to live.
And so every week from going through five and then six and then seven and then eight,
we're going to go, are we there yet?
And the answer will be no, but we will get there in the end.
We will get to the end of chapter nine.
And I promise it will be worth it.
And if it isn't, Neal will give you a full refund
for all the sermons that you turned up to.
And so we come to this, which is the third sermon that Amos has preached.
It's kind of like the story of the new preacher who went to a new church
and he stood on the pulpit on his first Sunday and said,
please could you open your Bibles to 1 Peter chapter two, verse 12.
He read, live such good lives among the pagans
that though they accuse you of doing wrong,
they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits.
The congregation were absolutely spellbound.
They greeted him at the door with warm handshakes,
saying how much they've been utterly edified by his teaching that morning.
The next Sunday he gets up and he says,
please would you turn in your Bibles to 1 Peter chapter two,
verse 12, live such good lives among the pagans
that though they accuse you of doing wrong,
they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits.
Everyone looks a bit permused,
but they're greatly edified by his teaching
and greet him warmly at the door afterwards.
Week three, he says,
please open your Bibles to 1 Peter chapter two, verse 12.
People start to look concerned.
And then week four,
please open your Bibles to 1 Peter chapter two, verse 12.
Finally, one of the women in the congregation
grabs him at the door and says,
thank you for your teaching,
but is there more in our Bibles than 1 Peter chapter two, verse 12?
You seem to be preaching that every week.
To which he said,
my dear sister,
I'll keep preaching it until you start doing it.
And then we'll move on to the rest of the Bible.
That's kind of like what Amos is doing.
The three sermons are in fact very, very similar.
He is chastising God's people, Israel,
for their hypocritical worship and their social injustice.
He's holding those two up again and again and again.
And he's going to keep preaching it until Israel do something about it.
And so in chapter three, God is roaring.
And in chapter four, God is roaring as Amos preaches,
tells the people where they're going wrong.
But in chapter five, the tone changes remarkably.
And we move from God roaring at his people
to almost like Amos conducting Israel's funeral.
It's almost like we've got a picture of what it will look like.
It seems to be a little bit too late.
We're getting out of a window into Israel's future funeral
with Amos standing at the front of the chapel,
giving the eulogy.
Let's read the first three verses.
Hear this word, Israel.
This lament I take up concerning you fallen is virgin Israel,
never to rise again,
deserted in her own land with no one to lift her up.
This is what the sovereign Lord says to Israel.
Your city that marches out a thousand strong
will have only a hundred left.
Your town that marches out a hundred strong
will have only ten left.
There's been a death in Israel and Israel has died.
And it's been reduced to about a tenth.
That it seems that as Amos stands and speaks,
the lament pours out of his mouth.
And I guess it's very similar to when Jesus speaks
in Luke 19 verses 41 to 44.
So he approached Jerusalem and saw the city.
He wept over it and said,
If you, even you, had only known on this day
what would bring you peace.
But now it is hidden from your eyes,
the days will come upon you
when your enemies will build an embankment against you
and encircle you and hem you in on every side.
They will dash you to the ground,
you and the children within your walls.
They will not leave one stone on another
because you did not recognize the time of God's coming to you.
It's that same idea that it's too late.
That's really where we're coming to in Amos chapter 5.
And Amos chapter 5 is the very center of the book.
And if you write Hebrew,
which I'm sure all of you do,
you put the most important thing
right in the middle of your book.
So though this is the third sermon he's preached,
this is the very knob of everything that Amos is about.
And it's long, but I want us to see six key themes.
And hopefully this will just give us a framework
if we go back and look at Amos in the week.
So the first thing we see is that sin is catalogued.
Let me read verses 4 to 6, 7 and 10 and 12.
This is what the Lord says to Israel.
Seek me and live.
Do not seek Bethel.
Do not go to Gilgal.
Do not journey to Beersheba.
For Gilgal will surely go into exile
and Bethel will be reduced to nothing.
Seek the Lord and live
or he will sweep through the tribes of Joseph like a fire.
It will devour them
and Bethel will have no one to quench it.
There are those who turn justice into bitterness
and cast righteousness to the ground.
Verse 10.
There are those who hate the one who upholds justice in courts
and detest the one who tells the truth.
You levy a straw tax on the poor
and impose a tax on their grain.
Therefore, though you have built stone mansions,
you will not live in them.
Though you have planted lush vineyards,
you will not drink their wine.
For I know how many are your offenses
and how great your sins.
There are those who oppress the innocent
and take bribes
and deprive the poor of justice in the courts.
Therefore, the prudent keep quiet in such times
for the times are evil.
And it's the same sins that he's bringing up again and again
and it's hypocritical worship.
Look at verse 5.
There are three place names that are mentioned.
Bethel, Gilgal and Beersheba.
And these are all important places in Israel.
But they're also chronological.
So when Jeroboam, son of Nebat,
Jeroboam I sets up Israel as an independent kingdom
away from Judah,
he sets up two special places where he has a golden calf.
One Dan in the north,
one Bethel in the south.
And God says,
this is happening,
but don't think Bethel will save you.
Don't think this recent relic will give you anything.
And then he mentions Gilgal,
which is the first place that Joshua
and the 12 tribes celebrate
when they get into the promised land.
God says,
don't even think Gilgal will save you.
Don't even think Gilgal will afford you any protection
when my judgment comes.
And then he says,
don't even go to Beersheba.
Now Beersheba is all the way back in Genesis 21.
This is Abraham,
the very father of the nation,
who forms a treaty with Abimelech there
and calls on the name of the Lord as the Lord eternal.
God says,
don't even go to Beersheba.
The only place.
Don't go on some pilgrimage
to all the historic relics of Israel's past
because they're all empty.
They're all dysfunctional now,
just like your worship has become.
Don't retreat to religious observance,
he says.
Retreat to me.
Seek me and live.
Turn to me.
The very thing that he was trying to do
in all of chapter four.
I've sent this to you and that to you
and this happened
and it was all so you'd return to me.
And so God says,
don't whatever you do
go on some religious tourist route
through your history.
Seek me.
Seek me because your worship is hypocritical.
It's been the case throughout all of Israel's history.
This quote from Isaiah 29 picked up by Jesus.
The Lord says,
these people come near to me with their mouth
and honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship of me is based on merely human rules.
They have been taught.
That could be a summation of everything we're going to see
in Amos chapter five.
It was fine.
People were going to church.
People were offering sacrifices.
It looked pretty good on the outside,
but inwardly it was completely rotten
and they were in grave danger
because the tail was wagging the dog
and the process of bringing sacrifices
had far exceeded
and become more important
than the purpose for which they did it.
And so in the summer,
I was doing a wedding in Bordeaux
and Bordeaux has got wonderful churches
that you can go and visit.
It's actually built on swampland
so they never have the bell tower
connected to the cathedral
because when the bell rings,
the bell tower moves,
they all fall over
and they don't want it affecting
these huge church buildings they have.
But actually,
if you went to every single church
and Aileen loved the holiday
because that's pretty much all we did in Bordeaux,
you would think that you worship God
with a camera,
wearing shorts,
reading a guidebook in a different language
because in all these churches,
that's all that was going on.
It looked like real
church buildings
in which there should be
great worship of God
but all there was
was full of tourists
with selfie sticks
taking pictures in front of other people.
It was all appearance without substance,
empty form with no faith
and that's what God is saying.
Your worship is hypocritical
and your past will not save you.
And it's the precipice
over which we all stare
because we can all retreat
to just playing a role,
just keeping up appearances,
just going through the motions.
God says,
there's a funeral coming
because you will not turn to me
and have life.
The second thing he picks up
is social injustice again
and there's a real catalogue again.
There are those who turn justice
into bitterness.
People came looking for justice
but they were trampled down
and now the bitterness just grew
because what they deserved
they did not get
and righteousness was cast to the ground
like it was worthless.
People hate the courts,
verse 10.
The magistrate who was going to give justice
had become like the traffic warden
and the people that were told,
the people who told the truth
were just told to shut up.
Shut up.
Every time somebody said,
no, this is what God says.
Shut up.
We don't want to hear.
They tax the poor.
They make them pay extortionate amounts
for their grain.
It's meant that they've all got mansions
they can live in
but God is very clear
you will not live in them.
You've stored up all this money
to build a very grand nine bedroom house
but it will remain empty.
Though you may have boarded off plot
you will never live in it.
And they've got extensive vineyards.
They're thinking we can have
some real vintage Merlot
from these wonderful vines
but the problem with Merlot
is it takes time to mature.
And God says,
well, you may harvest
and you may trample
but you will not drink
because there's a funeral coming
because
you haven't worshipped me rightly
and you've oppressed the poor.
And so 12a is the verdict
for I know
how many your offences
and how great
your sins.
Your sin is excessive
and it is
extensive.
Their sins are catalogued.
And verse 13
has one of two interpretations
therefore the prudent
keep quiet in such times
for the times are evil.
Some commentators say
the times are so evil
that it's not worth
saying anything.
So saturated in sin
is Israel culture.
But some people go the other way
and say,
well, when God does judge
all this sin
everyone's mouths
will be stopped
because there'll be
absolutely no excuse
for the way that they've carried on.
Hypocritical worship
and social injustice
the sins catalogued
which were the sins
that God catalogued
in chapter 4
the sins that God catalogued
in chapter 3
and the sins that God catalogued
at the end of chapter 2.
And so what do we learn?
That these two things
really matter to God.
These are the things
so close to his heart
that we worship him
with all our heart, soul, mind
and strength
and that we love
our neighbor as ourselves.
Our neighbor being
those like us
and those not like us.
Those at the very bottom
of the rung
of society.
There is one little ray of hope
and we see that mercy
is offered.
Look at verse 4
the end of verse 4
seek me and live.
Verse 6
seek the Lord and live.
Verse 14
seek good nor evil
that you may live.
Verse 15
hate evil
love good
maintain justice.
In the courts
perhaps the Lord God Almighty
will have mercy
on the remnant of Joseph.
These verses
are like patches
of blue sky
amidst a mounting
murky sky.
The nation
will be judged.
That's already said
the funeral
will happen.
Israel will be
carried off
by the Assyrians
and they will never return.
But God holds out here
to the individual
a chance
to the repentant
to be part
of the remnant.
He's holding out
mercy
to the individual.
He says
the ship
is going to sink
but there is room
in the lifeboat
if you will
but turn to me.
90
will be killed
from those
who march out
from the town
but there will be
10 left
and you can be
amongst those 10 left
if you will turn.
You can be
like the hind legs
of the deer
rescued from the mouth
of the lion.
There is
mercy
even amidst
the darkness.
There is
hope
beyond
the exile
for those
who will repent.
and I guess
as we
come to the
New Testament
when God
is very clear
that he will
judge the world
in justice
by the man
he has appointed
Jesus Christ
there is still
that hope
for those
who will look
to the son
and receive
eternal life.
There is mercy
offered.
There is still
space
for grace
and we see
this right
in the middle
of the chapter
and dotted
throughout it.
then look
with me
at verses
15 and
16
verses
16 and
17
therefore
this is what
the Lord
almighty
says
there will
be wailing
in all the
streets
and cries
of anguish
in every
public square
the farmers
will be
summoned
to weep
and the
mourners
to wail
there will
be wailing
in all the
vineyards
for I will
pass through
your midst
says the
Lord.
I don't know
if you were
aware but
Wednesday was
back to the
future day
which in
back to the
future 2
Marty McFly
goes forward
to the
21st of
October
2015
and there
was this
real thing
about
did they
get it
right
was the
movie
accurate
to where
we are
now
some of
it was
right
none of
us have
got a
hoverboard
yet
but we're
ever
hopeful
and so
what we
get here
is like
back to
the future
we get
this snapshot
of what
it will
be like
on this
day when
God
visits
and it's
terrifying
there'll be
wailing in
all the
streets
George
Street
Princess
Street
Ferry
Road
everybody
is crying
it's a
scene of
utter
desolation
in
St.
Andrew
Square
and
Charlotte
Square
people are
crying in
anguish
look at
it
end of
verse
16
the
farmers
will be
summoned
to
weep
no one
bothers
farmers
if ever
you've
listened to
an episode
of the
archers
the only
remarkable
thing that
happens is
that nothing
remarkable
ever happens
because farmers
just go about
their field
tilling and
sowing and
harvesting
they just get
on with it
but it's so
serious now
that the
farmers are
joining in
even they've
got wind
of what will
happen
and the
mourners
to
wail
these
professional
mourners
that people
would call
in to
help
bring a
bit of
theatre to
a funeral
they're not
playing a
role
they're
wailing
for real
and in
vineyards
these places
synonymous with
celebration and
joy
no one
is laughing
there's no
good times
everyone
is
terrified
why
because god
has arrived
the holy
god has
passed
through their
midst
he threatened
it in
chapter 4
verse 12
therefore
this is what
i will do
to you
israel
and because
i will do
this to
you israel
prepare
to meet
your god
and he's
arrived
and it's a
scene of
utter
desolation
as a
holy god
meets a
sinful
people
it has
not gone
well for
them
and rather
than be
great joy
it's resulted
in great
loss
that a
holy god
and sinful
people cannot
mix
we see it
in isaiah's
life in
chapter 6
when he
sees the
lord seated
on the
throne
this is
the holiest
man
amongst
god's
people
and what
does he
say
woe is
me
for i'm
a man
of unclean
lips
john
on the
island
of
patmos
who
meets
the
risen
jesus
and he
turns
around
and sees
him
and he
says i
fell on
the
ground
as though
dead
and if that
was what it
was like for
those two
people just
imagine what
it's like for
these people
when their
god visits
while they're
playing in the
slurry of
their own
sin
and look what
this god is
like in verse
eight
he who made
the pleiades
and orion
who turns
midnight into
dawn and
darkens day
into night
who calls for
waters of the
sea and pours
them out over
the face of
the land
the lord
is his name
with a blinding
flash he destroys
the stronghold
and brings the
fortified city
to ruin
this is the
all-powerful
god visiting
his people
and they've
not been
ready
and they've
not been
excited by
his coming
they haven't
worshipped him
rightly
and they
have not
loved their
neighbours
themselves
and it's
all lost
but it's
of great
surprise to
them
verses 18
to 20
woe to
you who
long for
the day
of the
lord
why do
you long
for the
day of
the lord
that day
will be
darkness
not light
it will
be as
though a
man fled
from a
lion only
to meet
a bear
as though
he entered
his house
and rested
his hand
on the wall
only to have
a snake
bite him
will not
the day
of the
lord be
darkness
not light
pitch dark
without a
ray of
brightness
and so
you can
see them
they're all
looking for
the day
of the
lord
this will
go well
where is
raul
we bought
some sacrifices
and some
tithes
this morning
the day
of the
lord will
be great
for us
and god
gives them
a reality
check
and he
says you
think it's
going to be
great
it won't
be great
you think
it's going
to be
light
it won't
be light
it'll be
darkness
because
your
complacency
has deceived
you into
thinking that
you're safe
and you're
not safe
look at
verse 19
isn't that
the ultimate
example of
out of the
frying pan
into the
fire
it will be
as though a
man fled
from a
lion only
to meet
a bear
you think
you've
escaped
you've
not
escaped
there's
a bear
waiting
for you
as the
lord meets
you in
your sin
as though
he entered
his house
the house
that final
place of
safety
and what
did he
do
he rested
his hand
on the
wall
to catch
his breath
and there
was a
snake
to bite
him
this is a
real reality
check for
Israel
that they
think that
God could
have nothing
against them
that when
he comes
it will be
sheer light
and sheer
delight
and it
won't
it'll be
darkness
and devastation
as a
holy God
meets
his sinful
complacent
people
who have
failed
to be
failed
with the
great blessing
he's shown
them
to be a
blessing
and a
light
to the
nations
verse 21
is where we
really get
the rub of
the green
look at
what God
says
look at
all the
words
he uses
to describe
how infuriated
and against
all their
worship he
is
I hate
I despise
your religious
festivals
your assemblies
are a stench
to me
even though
you bring me
burnt offerings
and grain offerings
I will not
accept them
though you bring
choice fellowship
offerings
I will have
no regard
for them
away with
the noise
of your songs
I will not
listen to the
music of your
hearts
but let
justice roll
on like a
river
righteousness
like a
never
failing
stream
God
peels
back the
mask of
Israel's
religious
life
and he
says this
is an
utter
abomination
rather than
being pleasing
and acceptable
to me
it actually
just riles
me to
hatred
when you
gather as a
church it
is like a
stench
in my
nostrils
look what he
says about
the harp
now who
could not
like the
noise of
a harp
blink
there's
nothing
that could
be bad
about that
but what
does he
say I
will not
listen
to the
music of
your harp
this instrument
synonymous
with joy
and God
says I
want nothing
to do
with it
because it's
empty
it's
hypocritical
you're going
through the
motions
you're so
busy
in religious
activity
and yet your
heart is not
inance
it's like
you're wearing
a wedding ring
as a sign
of your
marriage
and yet you
are conducting
adulterous
relationships
in every
postcode
of the
city
it's just
simple and
ritual
without any
substance
at all
and look
what God
says in
verse 24
this is what
he's after
which is where
it links
with Psalm
51 that
Peter read
for us at
the beginning
but let
justice
roll on
like a river
righteousness
like a
never failing
stream
you are
exhausting
yourself in
religious
activity
but what
do I
want
I want
justice
and
righteousness
and I
want it
to flow
I want
it to be
this constant
cycle
this thing
that is
always
prevalent
in your
lives
justice
right
living
towards
your
fellow
man
and
righteousness
right
living
before
God
that's
what I
want
I don't
want your
offerings
I don't
want your
sacrifices
I don't
want your
harp
quartet
I'm not
bothered
how many
offerings
you bring
because until
you get
those two
things right
it's utterly
useless
and you're
wasting
everybody's
time
and you're
just storing
up judgment
for yourself
and so we
look at our
lives and
could we
say that
my life
is a
constant
flow of
justice
where I
am
passionate
about
loving those
that God
loves and
this special
place he
has in his
heart for
those that
are poor
and downtrodden
is there
this constant
desire to
help them
in and
through my
life
and what
about how
I walk
before God
is there
this constant
desire that
I will live
life before
an audience
of one
knowing that
he sees
all and
longs to
be glorified
in all
because until
I get those
two things
right church
attendance
doesn't matter
the songs I
sing don't
matter if
my heart
is not right
before him
it is
possible
for God
to hate
the fact
that you're
going to
church if
you go to
church wrongly
to not
accept the
songs out
of your
mouth if
it is just
brubble
and froth
with no
substance at
all
so by the
time we get
to the end
of the old
testament
and Israel
has gone
from bad
to worse
and has
been in
exile
and Judah
is back
in the
town but
they're
miles away
from where
they would
be
God just
says I
wish someone
would shut
the temple
door
put out the
fires on the
altar because
it's
abominable
to me
this has
not gone
well for
Israel
neither will
it go well
for us
it's just
bubble and
froth with
no substance
let me finish
with this
verses 25
to 27
did you
bring me
sacrifices
and offerings
for 40
years in
the wilderness
people of
Israel
you have
lifted up
the shrines
of your
king
the pedestal
of your
idols
the star
of your
God
which you
made for
yourselves
therefore I
will send
you into
exile beyond
Damascus
says the
Lord
whose name
is God
almighty
here's the
question
did the
people of
Israel bring
sacrifices
and offerings
to God
in the
wilderness
oh yes
they did
because they
had this
tent of
meeting where
they could
go and
offer them
but here's
what's in
view
that Israel
did all
these things
they got up
in the morning
they unzipped
their tent
and they went
and did their
religious duty
before Yahweh
who had
brought them
out of Egypt
the problem
was is when
they went
into their
tent at night
and the
flaps came
down
then out
from under
the pillow
came the
gods of
Egypt
sack off
your king
Kaiwan your
idols and
your star
gods
do you see
how duplicitous
they were
we'll worship
gods
but we'll
keep these
as well
and so I
wonder as we
come into
land
that we're
here tonight
and we're
singing trust
and obey
there's no
other way
to be happy
in Jesus
we're singing
all that
thrills my
heart is
Jesus
he is
everything
to me
but I
wonder what
the reality
will be on
Monday morning
what idols
we'll bring
out from
behind up
from under
our own
pillows
whether it
will be
materialism
and we'll
be ogling
the Amazon
catalogue
I wonder
where our
security will
be found
whether it's
in the God
who's revealed
himself
or whether
it's in the
bank statement
that drops
through the
door on
Tuesday
morning
and here's
the thing
the people
in the
wilderness
thought they
were getting
away with
it and they
weren't
God says
I saw you
pull those
idols out
and let's
be clear
he sees
the idols
that we
cleave to
and cling
to
and he
finishes by
saying you'll
go into
exile into
Damascus and
it's all your
own fault
I gave
you
everything
but you
still chose
to worship
me wrongly
and oppress
the poor
I was preaching
at Kirk
Liston this
morning
and I was
trying to
challenge them
about this
Old Testament
idea of being
blameless
we read of
Noah and
Job and
David being
blameless before
the Lord
blameless doesn't
mean they were
sinless
it just
meant that
their insides
were the
same as
their outsides
that the
reality of
how they
love God
in their
hearts
seeped out
into every
area of
their lives
and I
wonder if
that's the
challenge
coming to
us from
this chapter
is to put
away hypocrisy
to put away
going through
the motions
out of
religious duty
and to
let Jesus
take his
right place
in our
hearts
that it
might
transform
every area
of our
lives
and it
might make
a real
difference
to our
neighbours
wherever they
might be
God
catalogues
their sin
they're
terrified by
his presence
he extinguishes
their light
on the day
of the Lord
he says
I hate
your worship
and I
saw your
idolatry
we read
in the
New Testament
that many
people come
to Jesus
on the last
day and
say Lord
Lord
we prophesied
in your
name and
we even
healed people
and Jesus
says away
with me
I never
knew you
the same
reality seems
to be there
so let's be
very careful
as we listen
to these
words
that we
don't leave
here
without
having our
whole lives
committed
to and
connected
to the
Lord
Jesus
who makes
our worship
acceptable
and transforms
our lives
that we might
love what
God loves
and do
what God
calls us
to do
let's pray
Father God
was so
challenged
that Israel
was just
playing at
it
they were
privileged as
your people
and yet
walked away
and rebelled
in such a
complacent
way
and Lord
we thank
you so
much
that you've
given us
so much
you've given
us your
word
you've given
us your
spirit
you've opened
your eyes
to you've
opened our
eyes to your
son
Father you've
placed us in
a church and
yet we're so
conscious
we're so
conscious that
we're tempted
to just play
and go through
the motions
we're tempted
to just do
the little bit
that we need
to do in
order to keep
up appearances
and so Lord
I pray that
your spirit
would so
glorify your
son in our
lives that he
might transform
everything about
us
that we might
worship you
rightly
wholeheartedly
that we might
be those that
are blameless
and Father
that we might
love justice
Father whether
it's the taxes
we pay or the
people we walk
by on the
streets
Father may we
not just turn a
blind eye
but Lord may we
love what you
love and as a
God who loves
them may we
love them and
help them and
serve them also
we pray this in
Jesus name and
for Jesus sake
Amen