What happens when we become complacent
Amos 9:1-10
Towards the end of my first degree, I was teaching English as a second language part-time in a grammar school. One of my students was the son of a colleague and as such, he knew himself to be in a privileged position. He was disruptive in class, never bothered to learn anything or do his homework and was set to fail not only in English, but in two other subjects as well. However, as the school year was coming to an end, his father went round pleading with the other teachers not to fail his son as three fails would have automatically meant his having to repeat the year of studies. As I was temporary, I was forced to go along with the agreement the rest of the teachers made to pass him, but it felt wrong to let him get away with it, so he could continue as before and never taste the consequences of his actions.
No escape!
In a small way, the attitude of this boy reminds me of Israel, who thought themselves privileged, the darling of Almighty God. What a nuisance that this prophet from Judah keeps going on about judgment! Harsh as Amos’ words sound, how else can God get through to these complacent and exploitative people? His judgment shows that He cares for the pain of the poor and needy oppressed by them (Amos 8:4-6). The Lord cuts through all their hopeful expectations as he shows a vision where His presence by the altar is not the approval of Israel’s worship but their condemnation and destruction (Amos 9:1). God will strike at their hypocritical piety by destroying their sanctuary and will not let them get away with sin anymore. Using poetic contrasts, the Lord makes clear that Israel will have nowhere to hide (whether in the underworld [Sheol], in heaven, on the thickly forested top of Mt Carmel or on the bottom of the sea, Amos 9:2-3). If they thought that God had no jurisdiction in a foreign land (exile), they will discover their mistake (Amos 9:4). God’s power and authority extends to every area of the created world (Amos 9:5-6).
Can Israel claim special status?
Israel’s conviction of invincibility rests on the remembrance of God’s saving grace in the exodus, their great story of deliverance. Surely, God would never allow His beloved people to experience any harm (Amos 9:10)! The Lord, however, confronts their complacency by comparing them to obscure and remote Ethiopia (Amos 9:7).[1] Are they any more special? Likewise, just as God brought up Israel from Egypt, so He sovereignly moved even the enemies of Israel (the Philistines and the Arameans) from their respective lands into a new home (v.7). What does Israel have to boast about then? The implicit issue is their response. Their attitude is no different from other peoples who experienced God’s grace, but it did not move them to serve Him. That is why judgment will come on them just as on other nations (cf. Amos 1-2). Yet, God will differentiate between Israelites as a sieve allows the smaller grain kernels to fall through, but captures husks, stones and other waste products for disposal (Amos 9:9-10). Those who think that responding to God’s grace with a sinful lifestyle is acceptable, will be judged, their false confidence in their invulnerability shattered.
How do we respond to God’s grace?
This passage confronts us with the question of how we respond to God’s grace and love in our lives. In this world, God showers His good gifts even on those who reject Him (Matt 5:44-45), though many will not acknowledge His goodness but credit their own abilities, efforts or even fate or chance for the grace they receive. Their response is to carry on living their lives as they please, as if nothing has happened. When Christians live the same way, they are no different from secular people. They may claim a relationship with God but are like a wife who never moves in with her husband after the wedding. Instead, she continues in a separate establishment, living as she wishes while taking the husband’s money and occasionally going out on dates with him. In the end, an appeal to such a relationship is hollow and we cannot expect God to honour the connection indefinitely. In fact, the saddest part of such a setup is that we miss out on the joys of a genuine relationship with the Lord all for the sake of guarding our independence and convenience. May we come to appreciate what we are missing and live for Him.
[1] Ethiopia, or Hebrew Cush, was often thought of as remote, on the edge of empires (see Esth 1:1).
If you enjoyed this post, please share it with others.