05 seek the lord

Seek the Lord
and Live! (Amos)

Lesson 5

KEY TEXT
“Seek good and not
evil, that you may live;
and thus may the
Lord God of hosts be
with you, just as you
have said!”
Amos 5:14

Key Thought:

Amos reminds us that only in seeking the
Lord is there life.

 How to seek the Lord:
 Hating evil and loving good
(Amos 5:14-15)
 Abandoning the religious
formalism (Amos 5:5, 21-27)
 Result of rejecting the message:
 The example of Amaziah
(Amos 7:10-17)
 The silence of God
(Amos 8:11-12)
 Result of accepting the message:
 A kingdom of justice and
prosperity (Amos 9:11-15)

“For thus says the Lord to the house of
Israel: “Seek Me and live”” (Amos 5:4)

Because of the growing evil in Israel, Amos advised them, “Seek
good and not evil… Hate evil, love good!” (Amos 5:14-15)
Our first step must be to gain the ability to distinguish between
good and evil. The apostle Paul states that we must exercise to
gain it with the help of God.
“But solid food belongs to those who are
of full age, that is, those who by reason of
use have their senses exercised to discern
both good and evil” (Hebrews 5:14)

We must exercise through prayer and
seeking God’s will. If we don’t exercise, we
could make the mistake Isaiah warned us
about: “Woe to those who call evil good,
and good evil; who put darkness for light,
and light for darkness; who put bitter for
sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20)
But just knowing and seeking good is not enough. We must hate evil: “The spirit
of Christ will lead us to hate sin, while we are willing to make any sacrifice to save
the sinner” (E.G.W., Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, pg. 171)

“But do not seek Bethel, nor enter Gilgal,
nor pass over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall
surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall
come to nothing.… Though you offer Me
burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I
will not accept them, nor will I regard your
fattened peace offerings” (Amos 5:5, 22)
Although those places were idolatrous houses,
Israel thought that they could worship the true
God there. But their sacrifices and hymns were
just red tape. God wasn’t in their hearts. Their
lives of injustice, cruelty and inhumanity denied
their faith.

The book of Amos is an invitation to
reconsider our lives and our
motivations; to seek God and live.

“They hate the one who rebukes in the gate, and they abhor
the one who speaks uprightly”(Amos 5:10)
They treated Amos like a
“professional” prophet who could
be purchased with gifts. Amaziah
(priest in Bethel) invited him to go
to Judah where his prophecies
could be better heard.

But Amos was a simple
shepherd who had received a
calling from God. He was sure
of his mission: “Go, prophesy
to My people Israel” (Amos 7:15)
Amaziah rejected God’s
message and that had terrible
consequences which would be
shared with all the people of
Israel if they refused to
seek God.

“Therefore thus says the
Lord: „Your wife shall be a
harlot in the city; your sons
and daughters shall fall by
the sword; your land shall
be divided by survey line;
you shall die in a defiled
land; and Israel shall surely
be led away captive from
his
own land.‟” (Amos 7:17)

“They shall wander from sea to
sea, and from north to east; they
shall run to and fro, seeking the
word of the Lord, but shall not
find it” (Amos 8:12)
When someone repeatedly rejects the calling of the Holy Spirit to the
point of totally silencing his/her conscience, there is no more Word of
God to him/her but only “a certain fearful expectation of judgment”
(Hebrews 10:27) That will particularly happen in the last generation. When
grace will end, the wicked will seek words to calm their consciences
down but won’t find them —like King Saul.

“Then they will call on me, but I will not
answer; they will seek me diligently, but they
will not find me” (Proverbs 1:28)

“Then I saw Jesus lay off His priestly attire and clothe Himself with His
most kingly robes. Upon His head were many crowns, a crown within
a crown. Surrounded by the angelic host, He left heaven. The plagues
were falling upon the inhabitants of the earth. Some were denouncing
God and cursing Him. Others rushed to the people of God and begged
to be taught how they might escape His judgments. But the saints had
nothing for them. The last tear for sinners had been shed, the last
agonizing prayer offered, the last burden borne, the last warning
given. The sweet voice of mercy was no more to invite them.
E.G.W. (The Story of Redemption, cp. 59, pg. 404)

REFLECTION
“When the saints, and all heaven, were interested for
their salvation, they had not interest for themselves.
Life and death had been set before them.
Many desired life, but made no effort to obtain it.
They did not choose life, and now there was no atoning
blood to cleanse the guilty, no compassionate Savior to
plead for them and cry, “Spare, spare the sinner a little
longer.”
All heaven had united with Jesus, as they heard the
fearful words, “It is done. It is finished.”
The plan of salvation had been accomplished, but few
had chosen to accept it. And as mercy’s sweet voice
died away, fear and horror seized the wicked.
With terrible distinctness they heard the words, “Too
E.G.W. (The Story of Redemption, cp. 59, pg. 404)
late! too late!””

Those who are
repentant and
accept the message
of forgiveness from
God will own the
kingdom Jesus has
prepared for us.

“Then the King will
say to those on His
right hand, ‘Come,
you blessed of My
Father, inherit the
kingdom prepared for
you from the
foundation of the
world’” (Matthew
25:34)

““On that day I will raise up the tabernacle
of David, which has fallen down, and repair
its damages; I will raise up its ruins, and
rebuild it as in the days of old; that they
may possess the remnant of Edom, and all
the Gentiles who are called by My name,”
says the Lord who does this thing” (Amos 9:1112)

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and Live!
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05 seek the lord

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