Bible Scripture Reading

"Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for 6 February 2013, from Cindi, a Daughter of the King of kings and Lord of lords.'

Today's Blog Title: "Vision Of the Summer Fruit"
Today's Blog Scripture Reading: Amos 8:1-14
Today's Key Verse: Amos 8:2 "And He said, "Amos, what do you see?" Si I said, "A basket of summer fruit."  Then the LORD said to me: :the end has come upon my people Israel; I will not pass by them anymore."

Amos, in Chapter 8, is given another vision, this time of a basket of ripe fruit, which signifies that the time is ripe for the judgment of Israel which will come real soon.  There is a terrible irony in this picture in verses 3-4.  It is a picture of worshipers enjoying special music in a cathedral while just outside, the needy beg in utter desperation.  This image calls every believer to an honest self-examination of themselves.

"Fail" in verse 4, essentially means "To have no means of survival."  Because the poor are socially powerless, it is easier to defraud them than others.  Typically prices for food in poor sections of our cites are much higher, than in more affluent suburbs, and rental is high for poorly maintained living spaces.  Not every building owner is a slumlord, nor every market intent on fraud.  But there clearly is too much "skimping the measure, boosting the price, and cheating with dishonest scales.

God's Judgment in verses 9-10 would be a great reversal of light to darkness, and joy to mourning.  "In that day," in verse 9, refers to the "day of the Lord."  "Sackcloth" in verse 10, was a coarse cloth of goat or camel hair and was uncomfortable to wear.  Thus it was worn next to the skin as a sign of mourning or great distress.  Shaving the head to create temporary "baldness" was another sign of mourning.

In Amos 4:6, Amos had reminded the nation of Israel that God had sent famine upon them, yet they had not returned to Him.  Now in verse 11, the famine would not be of food, "but of hearing  the words of the LORD."

"From sea to sea," in verse 12, means from the Dead Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.  Those in Israel searching for the word of God, would have to circle all of Israel's territory, but in vain.  The sin and shame of Samaria, was that of putting their trust in the idolatrous worship conducted at Dan and Beersheba.  Dan was in the far north, and Beersheba was in the far south and were the limits of significant Israelite settlements.  In the days of Amos, Beersheba was in the kingdom of Judah.

Click on this link www.cindi-davis.blogspot.com for a Scripture Reading from Romans 12:2.

Please uplift Youcef Nardankari and American Pastor Saeed Abedini in your Prayers as they have been falsely accused by the Iranian government and have been sentenced to an Iranian prison.  Pray that God will uplift and provide them His Strength, His Peace, and His Comfort as well as to their families.  Also Pray for all those who are being persecuted for their Faith and Trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Have a God Filled and Spirit Led Day. Go in Peace and Serve the Lord our God with Gladness. Love God More Today. ALWAYS remember that when you have a spiritual, emotional, relational, physical, or financial dilemma in your life, and you yell out, "I CAN'T," GOD Whispers to you, "BUT I CAN."

Jesus Reigns, and He Is, Has Been, and Always Will Be In Complete and Total Control!!!

Your Sister in Christ,
Cindi



  



 

Bible Scripture Reading

"Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for 4 February 2013, from Cindi, a Daughter of the King of kings and Lord of lords."

Today's Blog Title: "The Visions"
Today's Blog Scripture Reading: Amos 7:1-16
Today's Blog Key Verse: Amos 7: 14-15 " The Amos answered, and said to Amaziah: "I was no prophet, Nor was I a son of a prophet, But I was a sheepbreeder And a tender of sycamore fruit.  Then the LORD took me as I followed the flock, And the LORD said to me, Go, prophesy to My people Israel."

In verses 1-3, Amos has a vision of locusts.  A locust plague would leave the people without food, for the first crop was commandeered by Jeroboam the king as payment for taxes, and if this crop were to be destroyed by locust, there wouldn't be any crop until the next year, and this  would cause starvation.  In verses 4-6, to try "by fire" means that fire would have been both the instrument by which Israel's guilt would be judged and the instrument by which their punishment would be carried out.  "Consumed the great deep" means that the vast reservoir of underground water, as well as the sea  would dried up by fire, and that such a fire, would be inextinguishable and the land would be devastated beyond hope.  Both of these punishments were held back in answer to the prayers of Amos.  But punishment can be delayed only so long, however righteous the one who prays for sinners.

In verse 7-17 the vision of the "plumbline" lets the prophet know that all hope for Israel has been exhausted, and Judgment must come.  The purpose of the "plumbline" is to illustrate how far Israel has strayed from God's righteousness, and that it must be destroyed.

The word "seer" in verse 11, was an ancient term equivalent to "prophet."  Amaziah, in using it, recognizes the office of Amos, but he still refused to listen to his message.  In verse 13, the words, "For it is the kings sanctuary," are revealing.  The chief priest's allegiance was not to God, but to the king!  We as Christians too, sometimes feel loyalty to human leadership.  The danger always exists, that in seeking to please or protect men, we may forget that our ultimately loyalty, should ALWAYS be to God.

We as Christian are all held accountable for what we say, what we do, or what we fail to do as Christians, and as believers.  People are free to make any choice they wish, as Amaziah did in choosing loyalty to king, over loyalty to God.  Always remember, that we will remain accountable to God, for ALL the choices that we make.

Have a God Filled and Spirit Led Day. Go in Peace and Serve the Lord our God with Gladness. Love God More Today.  ALWAYS remember that when you have a spiritual, emotional, relational, physical, or financial dilemma in your life, and you yell out, "I CAN'T," GOD Whispers to you, "BUT I CAN."

Please uplift Youcef Nardankari and American Pastor Saeed Abedini in your Prayers as they have been falsely accused by the Iranian Government and have been sentenced to Iranian Prison.  Pray that God will uplift and provide them His Strength, His Peace, and His Comfort to them as well as to their families.  Also Pray for all those who are being persecuted for their Faith and Trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Jesus Reigns, and He Is, Has Been, and Always Will Be, In Complete and Total Control.!!!

Your Sister in Christ,
Cindi