Let Justice Roll Down Like Waters

“I hate, I despise your feasts,

    and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings,

    I will not accept them;

and the peace offerings of your fattened animals,

    I will not look upon them.

Take away from me the noise of your songs;

    to the melody of your harps I will not listen.

But let justice roll down like waters,

    and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

“’Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? You shall take up Sikkuth your king, and Kiyyun your star-god—your images that you made for yourselves, and I will send you into exile beyond Damascus,’ says the Lord, whose name is the God of hosts.” (Amos 5:21-27 ESV)

Yes, this is Old Testament teaching, and specific to these people of that time period, but it is New Testament teaching, too, and this still applies today, at least it does to the modern gatherings of the church here in America, or to what is falsely being called “church.” For so many of these gatherings are not about giving true honor and worship to the Lord, but they are about being entertained by comedian “pastors” and actors, and by good sounding praise bands, and by theatrical productions and video presentations.

So many of these gatherings called “the church,” too, are worldly and are following the ways of the world and business models for how to “draw in large crowds of people from the world.” And so they have altered the character of God, of Christ, and of his gospel and of his church (the body of Christ) in order to not offend the people of the world and in order to appease human flesh so that they can attract the world to their gatherings. But this is also so that many of them can keep on living in sin without conscience.

But even some of the less modern “church” gatherings are not much better off for they are teaching a diluted and altered gospel message, and they are just going through the rituals of religious exercise. But the people are not walking in obedience to the Lord and to his commands in holy living 24/7, i.e. as a matter of daily practice. And they are not being taught the importance of holy living and of obedient walks of faith. For theirs is more of a just do the religious stuff and you are “good to go” to heaven.

But this is not what God requires of us who claim to have faith in Jesus Christ. God requires that we die with him to sin, not just once, but daily, and that daily we walk in obedience to his commands in holy living and no longer in sinful addiction. For he is not interested in our forms of religious practice which are void of submission to him as Lord and of surrender to his will for us to obey him. And he is not interested in our empty songs of praise to him if our lives are not given over to him as living sacrifices, pleasing to him.

He wants our all on the altar of sacrifice laid, our hearts under Holy Spirit control, and us yielding to him our bodies and souls. For when we believe in Jesus Christ with genuine God-gifted faith in him, we die with him to sin and we are raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer as slaves to sin, but as slaves to God and to his righteousness. Now we are his possession and our desire is to do his will, to do the works he prepared in advance that we should walk in them, by his grace.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

And he wants us to forsake all other gods and idols and forms of religious practice that are not of him. He wants us wholly surrendered and committed to him and to his service so that we will do all that he commands that we must do, in his power. For if we do not, and if we refuse him, not only will we not inherit eternal life with God in the end, but he promises that he will visit us in judgment while we are still on the earth. And he may judge us with armies or with storms or fires or famine in order to bring us to repentance.

But we who are walking with the Lord in fellowship with him, who are walking in his ways and in his truth and righteousness, who are not walking in sin and in rebellion against the Lord, we have nothing to fear of whatever the Lord sends in the way of his judgments on this earth and on the people of the earth and on his wayward and lukewarm church, too. But we still need to depend on the Lord and to trust him in all things and to not falter just because times got much harder. For the judgments of God will test our faith.

The Peace of God

By Jon Gardner, Aneva Peirce

Philippians 4:7

The peace of God surpasses all that I can understand. 

It keeps my heart and mind secure, in Jesus’ loving hand. 

When all around me falls apart, and fear consumes my soul, 

Sweet thoughts of peace assure my heart, that God is in control.

When every breath conceals a sigh, and unshed tears increase, 

I cry out from this desert land, imploring God for peace. 

He answers me with gentle words, to comfort and to shade, 

“Let not your heart be troubled, child, nor let it be afraid.”

When evening casts its shadowed fears, that haunt me thru the night, 

The peace of God envelops me, and darkness yields to light. 

Though smiles may mask my brooding doubts, while sight on earth is dim, 

Thru faith, the God of peace reveals eternal peace with Him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXm2It_TwOk

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