PAUSING
Find a quiet place where you can be alone. Take a few seconds or minutes to pause and be still; to breathe deeply, and to re-center any scattered thoughts or desires onto the presence of God.
PRAYING
God of our salvation and restoration, thank You for Your great and beautiful mission in the world. Here I am, Lord, fill me with Your Spirit and send me.
ENCOUNTERING HIS WORD
"Will not the day of the Lord be darkness, not light—
pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?
“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 harps.
But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!"
- Amos 5:20-24
Part 2
Justice and righteousness were to be the identifying marks of God's people. While the gods of all the other surrounding religions in the ancient near east identified themselves with the powerful and ruling class, the God of Israel had a special mercy and identity towards the weak and lowly. Think of Israel's beginnings: oppressed as slaves in Egypt, God cared for them and freed them from the cruelty of Pharaoh. God cared for the vulnerable and God wanted his people to reflect that same character of compassion, justice, and mercy.
The prophet Amos describes the justice of God like the rolling of a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream. There is something relentless about God's justice. It's abundant. It's unstoppable! In a land of deserts, even if everything else is dried up, justice was meant to flow, and God's people were meant to be the conduits. But God's people routinely ignored the poor. And their sacrifices and songs to God did not come out of hearts and lives committed to acting in love, justice, and righteousness. So God refused to accept their empty religious worship.
Worship that pleases God is all about this sort of right living. One commentator defines justice in verse 24 as “reparation for the defrauded, fairness for the less fortunate, and dignity and compassion for the needy” and righteousness as "attitudes of mercy and generosity, and honest dealings that imitate the character of God” . Justice is what happens on the outside when you take God's character seriously, and righteousness is what happens on the inside. Worship that is truly pleasing to God is one where our inside and outside life truly reveals that we have believed and embraced God as justice and mercy.
REFLECTING AND PRAYING
Is God revealing any ways in which you might be unintentionally contributing to the injustices of our world today? What might God be saying to you?
In light of this passage, are there different ways God might be inviting you to prepare for worship on Sundays? How might God be leading you to prayer and action?
Pray for justice using the following Psalms as a guide
GODS PROMISE
“The LORD is our God bringing justice everywhere on earth. He will never forget his agreement or his promises, not in thousands of years.” - Psalm 105:7-8
Find a quiet place where you can be alone. Take a few seconds or minutes to pause and be still; to breathe deeply, and to re-center any scattered thoughts or desires onto the presence of God.
PRAYING
God of our salvation and restoration, thank You for Your great and beautiful mission in the world. Here I am, Lord, fill me with Your Spirit and send me.
ENCOUNTERING HIS WORD
"Will not the day of the Lord be darkness, not light—
pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?
“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 harps.
But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!"
- Amos 5:20-24
Part 2
Justice and righteousness were to be the identifying marks of God's people. While the gods of all the other surrounding religions in the ancient near east identified themselves with the powerful and ruling class, the God of Israel had a special mercy and identity towards the weak and lowly. Think of Israel's beginnings: oppressed as slaves in Egypt, God cared for them and freed them from the cruelty of Pharaoh. God cared for the vulnerable and God wanted his people to reflect that same character of compassion, justice, and mercy.
The prophet Amos describes the justice of God like the rolling of a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream. There is something relentless about God's justice. It's abundant. It's unstoppable! In a land of deserts, even if everything else is dried up, justice was meant to flow, and God's people were meant to be the conduits. But God's people routinely ignored the poor. And their sacrifices and songs to God did not come out of hearts and lives committed to acting in love, justice, and righteousness. So God refused to accept their empty religious worship.
Worship that pleases God is all about this sort of right living. One commentator defines justice in verse 24 as “reparation for the defrauded, fairness for the less fortunate, and dignity and compassion for the needy” and righteousness as "attitudes of mercy and generosity, and honest dealings that imitate the character of God” . Justice is what happens on the outside when you take God's character seriously, and righteousness is what happens on the inside. Worship that is truly pleasing to God is one where our inside and outside life truly reveals that we have believed and embraced God as justice and mercy.
REFLECTING AND PRAYING
Is God revealing any ways in which you might be unintentionally contributing to the injustices of our world today? What might God be saying to you?
In light of this passage, are there different ways God might be inviting you to prepare for worship on Sundays? How might God be leading you to prayer and action?
Pray for justice using the following Psalms as a guide
- “LORD, I know that you defend the cause of the poor and the rights of the needy.” -Psalm 140:12
- “If you oppress poor people, you insult the God who made them; but kindness shown to the poor is an act of worship.”
- Proverbs 14:31 - “You listen to the longings of those who suffer. You offer them hope, and you pay attention to their cries for help. You defend orphans and everyone else in need, so that no one on earth can terrify others again.” Psalm 10:17-18
- “You help everyone in need, and you defend them when they are on trial.” - Psalm 109:31
- “The kind of fasting I want is this: Remove the chains of oppression and the yoke of injustice, and let the oppressed go free.” - Isaiah 58:6
GODS PROMISE
“The LORD is our God bringing justice everywhere on earth. He will never forget his agreement or his promises, not in thousands of years.” - Psalm 105:7-8