Amos 5:18-20
All God’s works are purposeful and “done decently and in order” (1 Cor. 14:40). He created man to live purposeful lives in relationship with Him, reflecting His glory and fulfilling the plans He has for us. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10 ESV).
However, we live in a fallen world because of Adam and Eve’s disobedience. God commanded them “to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Gen. 2:17). Their willful rebellion, or lawlessness, against God’s righteousness, brought sin into the world, resulting in every one of us being born sinners and sentenced to death. Romans 6:23a says: “For the wages of sin is death…” Sin separated us spiritually from God and threw the world into mass disorder.
At the time God called Amos, Israel was experiencing a time of prosperity but lacked loyalty and unrepentance for sin. A part of God’s purposeful work is justice. Israel had strayed far from their calling as God’s people, chosen to represent His nature of love and righteousness to other nations. So, God sent Amos to prophesy to Israel, warning them of the coming of “the day of the Lord.” “Yes, the day of the Lord will be dark and hopeless, without a ray of joy or hope” (v.20). God’s message of judgment is a warning for all who refuse to repent and turn from their evil ways back to living purposeful lives that reflect His glory.
Lift your voice and shout “Glory!”