Let Justice Roll Down

Last week, we began our journey through the Book of Amos. God had chosen an ordinary person to speak an extraordinary message. God was aggravated by the rising corruption and moral decline of the times and ready to render judgment.

In our Amos text this morning, God continues the indictment, calling out religious practices.

Apparently, the people of Israel had perfected celebratory festivals and solemn assemblies, and bringing choice offerings to the Lord.

But the Lord was fed up with this.

Why would God say, “I hate, I despise your festivals and take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

Why would God not accept the burnt or grain offerings or even look at the offering of well-being?

God was aggravated by Israel’s religious hypocrisy.

Sure the people gathered and made their offerings to God, but their religious rituals had become focused on the superficial. God is interested in our substance.

God required something different.

Illustration:

MJ and I share servant hearts. As Father’s Day was approaching, MJ wanted to serve differently in honor of Father’s Day. I value collaboration and bringing forth different voices so I shared the Amos and Mark texts.

Mark: [Mark shares how he read and wrestled with the text . Coming back to me to say these texts have nothing to do with celebrating Father’s Day.]

Exactly! Your experience makes the point of the text.

Mark wants to talk about his ‘Father’s Day’ topic; leaning to tradition rather than listening to specifically serve the Lord.

God requires something different.

In the Gospel text, when the Pharisees and scribes are fixated on ritual washing, Jesus points says:

8 You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.”

The rituals gave the appearance of being holy but the practices were hollow.

In Amos’ time and Jesus’ time, the people were concerned with ritual and performance rather than justice and righteousness.

God the Father and God the Son are aligned and interested in our substance.

Big Idea of the Message: Going through the motions of religious acts means nothing when the rest of your life isn’t in obedience to God.

Why the Amos text? What does this mean for us.

Front burner to back burner -

Last year, the news media was churning with coverage of protests and riots in response to injustice.

We were in the amidst of contentious presidential campaigns, pandemic pain, and vast uncertainty.

The rhythm of the world shifted and required us to pivot and pay attention differently to our realities.

The human condition received a different level of attention as pre-exisiting inequities moved from the margins to the center.

As the world reopens and we again get busier, inequities and injustices persist but are in danger of being pushed to the margins again.

God requires something different.

In the Amos text, God shifts from accusation to invitation.

God says, “I am not interested in the sights, sounds, or smells of your rituals toward me...

24 But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

Ritual is not righteousness.

God is not interested in appearances but the authentic, substantive application of justice.

God requires each of us to embody the quality of being just and promoting equity among all humanity to be in right relationship with God and one another.

Examples of justice

June is Pride Month--Pride gatherings are rooted in the arduous history of minority groups who have struggled for decades to overcome prejudice and be accepted for who they are. ~CNN

Let justice roll down like waters

1. In 2013 there was controversy at the memorial service for Nelson Mandela; it was discovered that the sign-language interpreter hired for the event didn’t actually know sign language. He stood next to the speakers and waved his hands in a manner that appeared to be ASL, but none of it meant anything. He was putting on a show, but no one got anything out of it: http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2013/12/11/250179179/fake-sign-language-interpreter-marred-mandela-memorial.

2. God is not interested in the show of religious ceremonies. That’s not the point of religion. James 1:27 says, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

Application Point(s):

· Examine your life: is it just a religious show or do you take the time to obey God and live out God’s justice even when no one is looking?

Sunday morning sensibilities vs Monday morning mania

Take the time to step away from activity, technology, and any other distractions to see and hear your own reality.

Are you God’s vessel of justice?

What would it mean for you to actively be God’s vessel of justice?

What needs to change in your life to let justice roll?