Year 9, Day 230: Amos 8

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Amos 8 shows the final act of Gods wrath.  Many people think that the end of God’s wrath is some cataclysmic force.  We read passages like the Exodus and how God deals with the Egyptians and think that this is the greatness of God’s wrath.  The truth is, though, that stories like the Exodus or the Flood are not the greatest moment of God’s wrath.  Passages like Amos 8 expose the greatest act of God’s wrath.

In this chapter, God threatens to take His Word away from them.  He threatens to remove Himself from their midst.  He threatens a spiritual famine.  He threatens a time when God will not be able to be found.

Without Him, there is not wisdom, not salvation, no grace, no mercy, no love.  Without Him, there is nothing worth living for.  Without Him, there is no cause for hope.  When God threatens to remove Himself from our midst, that is the greatest act of cataclysm that can happen.

To take this passage where it doesn’t naturally go, I think of this in terms of Hell, too.  What is so awful about judgment into Hell?  Is it the fire?  Is it the torment?  I don’t think so.  I think the worst part about Hell is life without God.  The worst part about judgment is knowing that existence will never be about anything other than human sinfulness.

When push comes to shove, that is exactly why I hold onto faith.  I can’t imagine life without God.  I don’t want a life without God.  I never want to experience life when God removes Himself from my midst.  I never want to feel a famine of His Word.

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