SUNDAY 5TH APRIL
TEXT: Amos 8:1-10
KEY VERSE: “Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and falsifying the balances by deceit? That we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes; yea, and sell the refuse of the wheat?” – (Amos 8:5,6).
The Christian Post on August 5, 2019 reported that a former pastor and evangelical author demonstrated his support for the homosexuals by marching in Vancouver’s annual Pride Parade less than a month after announcing he no longer considers himself a Christian. He shared several photos of himself participating in gay festivities. Even before him, there were other backsliders also who had deserted the course of Christ and denounced what they once believed.
Our passage reveals the horrible spiritual condition of the children of Israel at the time of Amos. God showed him a vision of a basket of summer fruits, a picture of the inevitable harvest of judgment to come on the land. Sabbath was impatiently endured so that they might continue their exploitation of the poor and the needy. These avaricious and merciless people wished the new moon and Sabbaths to be over so that they would go to market, as it were, and “buy the poor.” It was the custom of those times that when a man could not discharge his debts, he would surrender himself and family to his creditor as bondservants. By this, the rich increased their power, as well as their wealth. Not content with defrauding in the measures and prices, they mixed the chaff and sell it together with the wheat.
God is concerned about the image of the Christian today. He hates every form of oppression and fraudulence. A genuine believer will not defraud his brother or sister in business just because he or she is richer. Adding value to other people’s life is an obligation for every believer, and this will make us to be true witnesses of Christ. It is time for all turncoats to return to Jesus.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Men fall in private long before they fall in public.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: John 16-18
