Amos_1

Scripture - What stood out?Amos 111 This is what the Lord says:“For three sins of Edom,    even for four, I will not relent.Because he pursued his brother with a sword    and slaughtered the women of the land,because his anger raged continually    and his fury flamed unchecked,12 I will send fire on Teman

    that will consume the fortresses of Bozrah.” Observation - What does it say?This book is a collection of Amos’s visions, sermons, and poems, centered around the failings of the nation of Israel and its neighboring nations. Verse two is a one verse description of Israel’s impending fall, and immediately is followed up by what is about to happen to four of Israel’s neighbors. All not so good things. Understanding - What does it mean?This week, my wife and I have had some very meaningful but intense discussions about “forgive and forget” as it pertains to the bible. And inevitably these conversations lead to very fun and meaningful discussions on theology and bible semantics. Here are two things that have come up in our conversations: 

• There is a healthy tension/cohesion that exists between Father and Son. Matthew 5:17 “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. (NLT)
• Our understanding of the word forget is different from the biblical authors’ and God’s. Lois Tverberg in her fascinating book Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus writes: 
  • Interestingly, forget is almost never used in combination with sin. But often the Bible does say that God will “not remember” our sins.*
  • Because Hebrew focuses on the action rather than the thought, it doesn’t necessarily imply that God loses the memory of sins in his infinite mind. It simply means that he has decided to forgo prosecution.*

 So when God decides to forgive our sins, he’s not forgetting the fact that they happened, he’s just not going to punish us for them...although he should, especially for those of us that don’t repent and turn back to him. In that same way, Tverberg analogously explains, If you’ve ever been in a close relationship, you know what this is like. A wife whose feelings are hurt by her husband (or vice versa) “decides to forget”—to put the offense out of her mind even though the memory doesn’t go away. Out of love, you simply choose not to act in revenge for the sin. And once you have done this, the memory itself tends to subside.* In our discussions my wife and I are clear that judgment by God is coming and that God is not a God of just the perpetrator but also a God of the victim as well. But in the meantime we are left to figure out just exactly what we ought to do when somebody wrongs us. The bible makes it clear to forgive. That much is certain. But how do we move forward with some of the people who have hurt us so horribly. I think that is the question we are left to wonder. God’s discipline, much like his judgement is perfect. Ours is not. And we are left as imperfect people trying to deal with one another imperfectly. Life Application - How can I apply this to my life today? Lord, I have read Amos and I still have complete faith in you. I pray for a little more wisdom and understanding. Teach me to bring healing and Godly council to others that have been so hurt by some of the people that were the closest to them. Teach me how to forgive. Teach me how to teach. Teach me Father to live with those around me without a spirit of condemnation, always remembering to leave the final act of judgement up to You. In the name of Jesus do I pray, amen.-kenneth lee

 *Tverberg, Lois. Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus . Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.