Does this heading startle you? Does it disturb you? It is an
actual quotation from the Old Testament book of Amos. God, through the prophet
Amos, was remonstrating with the nation of Israel for their continual
backslidings and refusal to obey Him.
Amos 4:12, 13, "(12)
Therefore thus will I do to you, O Israel; because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O
Israel!" (13) For behold, He who forms the mountains, and creates the
wind, who declares to man what his though is, and makes the morning darkness,
who treads the high places of the earth - the LORD God of hosts is His name.
Israel made preparations to meet their God at Mount Sinai;
where the Law was given unto them. This was a covenant between God and the
nation. The following centuries revealed a nation that disobeyed Him and
worshipped the idols of the surrounding nations. Here in Amos, the message is
to prepare to meet their God; but this time it would be in judgement upon them.
Subsequently, both the northern kingdom of ten tribes [Israel] and the southern
kingdom [Judah] were carried away captive into foreign lands. The ten tribes
were carried away into Assyria and the two tribes were carried away into
Chaldea; each on separate occasions.
What bearing does this have in today's world? The modern
nation of Israel is nothing like ancient Israel. The Israelis are back in their
land, but without a temple on Mount Moriah in Jerusalem, or the sacrifices God
insisted upon. Yet God still holds them responsible for their manner of life;
the covenant is still in operation today.
What about you and me? Does God hold us responsible to
Himself for our manner of life? Yes! Yes! Yes! Each and every human being is
accountable to God for their life lived here on Earth.
Romans 3:23 tells us that, "...all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
Please note, there are no exceptions - "all
have sinned". The only person who is not, and was not, a sinner is
Jesus Christ! Now Romans 6:23 informs us that "...the wages of sin is death..." Why do we die? It is
the penalty for sinning! Hebrews 9:27 reveals that, "...it is appointed unto men [human beings] to die once, but after this the
judgement."
So if we die in our sins can we expect God's judgement on us?
Of course we can expect God's judgement upon us if we die in our sins! The
solution to a problem can be found in the problem itself. In this case we need
to get rid of our sins - that is the simple solution.
Let's see what the apostle Paul, under the guidance of the
Holy Spirit, wrote to the believers in Christ in Romans 3:19-26.
"(19) Now we know
that whatever the law says, it says to those under the law, that every mouth
may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
(20) Therefore by the
deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the
knowledge of sin.
(21) But now the
righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law
and the Prophets,
(22) even the
righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and upon all who
believe. For there is no difference;
(23) for all have
sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
(24) being justified
freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
(25) whom God set forth
as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness,
because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously
committed,
(26) to demonstrate at
the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of
the one who has faith in Jesus."
Let's take note of the main points in each verse. In 19
all the world is guilty before God. In 20 no one is justified before God
under the law. In 21 and 22 we can have the righteousness of God
through faith in Jesus Christ. In 23 we see that all have sinned. In 24
we find there is redemption and justification in Christ Jesus through God's
grace to us. In 25 Christ shed His blood and made atonement to God for
us; therefore God can pass over all our sins previously committed. In 26
we find that because of Christ's work on our behalf God is still just, but is
able to justify one who has faith in Jesus.
You do not have to die in your sins! That is not what God
wants! You can prepare to meet God as your Saviour and Redeemer; or you can
meet Him as your Judge! The decision is yours alone!
Jon Peasey
Words of Life blog www.jrpeasey.blogspot.com
Ebooks author page https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/JRPeasey
[All
Scriptures quoted are from the New King James version; unless otherwise noted.
Words enclosed in [ ] are inserted
for clarity. Words in bold type
emphasise a point. You may notice some verses are
quoted with ... at the beginning,
ending or elsewhere in a verse. Only the relevant part or parts of the verse,
that relate directly to the current subject matter is quoted.]
[If you have any questions or comments
you are invited to contact me via the comments section below.]
