"Cut the Music, You Fat Cows!"

Scripture Passage

Amos 1-6:14

 

Scripture Focus

Away with your noisy hymns of praise!
     I will not listen to the music of your harps.
Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice,
     an endless river of righteous living.
                                   (Amos 5:23-24 NLT)

Observation

What a great book—what a remarkable prophet!

Amos was a shepherd from the southern kingdom of Judah called by God to prophesy to the northern kingdom of Israel. The focus of his challenge was against the opulent wealth and empty religion of Israel’s upper crust. See any potential problems there? A southern sheep herder telling wealthy northerners what was wrong with all their wealth and religion?

And Amos apparently hadn’t read “How To Win Friends and Influence People” before launching his ministry, either. You gotta laugh when you see the way he the way he addresses the women of Samaria—“Listen to me, you fat cows…always calling to your husbands, ‘Bring us another drink!’” (Amos 4:1 NLT).

If you can stand to hear it, though, Amos drives home powerful truth. Those in Israel who still claimed any allegiance to Yahweh were merely going through the motions—even though they may have been going through the motions with gusto! All their zealous and meticulous acts of worship did nothing to change the oppressive means by which they acquired the wealth they were enjoying. And so, God says through Amos…

Away with your noisy hymns of praise!
     I will not listen to the music of your harps.
Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice,
     an endless river of righteous living.
                                   (Amos 5:23-24 NLT)

Bottom line, religious acts mean nothing removed from righteous living. Tithing off income produced through oppressive business practices doesn’t honor God. It’s not the offering of sacrifices or the giving of tithes that God needs—it’s a people who reflect His character! Only then—when our lives reflect God’s heart—do “noisy hymns of praise” ring true!

(Addendum:  You may recall an allusion to today's text by Martin Luther King, Jr., in his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. If you’ve never watched or heard the entire speech, you can find it here. I encourage you to listen to the whole thing.  Truth is, it’s more than a speech—it’s a great sermon delivered by an anointed man of God!)