Today, the world is currently wrestling with a multitude of issues in including social unrest, climate change, wealth inequity, and racial injustice. Through the last four years, these issues have exacerbated by divisive language and individual hatred. Throughout the bible, prophets have warned against many of these issues and cautioned Christians to show restraint in their anger. Although these issues have only multiplied in recent years, the bible through its prophets have provided hope. For one, many prophets condemned much of the unrest occurring in the world today. They provided solutions through the salvation of Jesus Christ and redemption from sin. Here, repentance and a genuine change of heart would ultimately overcome much of the unrest we see in the world today. It is through a powerful and fulfilling relationship with the lord that these civil disagreements can be mitigated.
To begin, the prophet Amos was a shepherd in Judah. Once called to God, Amos began defying the Israeli ruling power. His harshest critique was aimed specially at the royalty and aristocracy that prevailed at the time. He was particularly alarmed at how the wealthy were enriching themselves at the expense of the poor. Within the bible, the lord speaks through Amos directly to the privileged of society. Here, the lord found that these individuals did not love their neighbor and only looked out for their own wealth and concerns. Chapters 2,3,4, and 8 within the book of Amos depict how these individuals were selling people into slavery for goods, oppressing the poor, and using women immorally. Amos rebuked them because he saw in that lifestyle evidence that Israel had forgotten God. We currently see this today, as economic inequality within the United States is at its highest level in nearly 50 years. More people are poor, with roughly 25%...
Much like in eight century B.C, when Amos lived, the wealthy continue to exploit the poor. We see this with the recent COVID-19 pandemic as Georgia senators David Purdue and Kelly Loeffler, sold millions of dollars of
stock while telling the public that the
virus was not a major threat. Million of people would go on to lose their jobs while nearly 400,000 people died. Meanwhile, the wealthiest Americans saw their wealth increase over this period. Thankfully, Amos does apply a message of hope as a prophet. The book teaches...…primarily interest in idols,
money, adultery, and themselves, the lord still loved them. This propensity for idolatry meant that the Israelites lived as if they were not God’s people. However, in Hosea 1:9-10, the bible notes hos God reminded the people of Israel that he would restore their relationship with him often describing them as “sons.”
The overall message to also be gleamed from Hosea is the important of family. Although individuals within the
family have their flaws, it is important to work through them together. This is particularly true as it relates to adultery. With the advent of the
internet and the proliferation of
sex throughout the world, it can be difficult to avoid. Websites, mobile phone apps, movies, and media often all contain sexual content. Through the excessive exposure to this content,
society has been desensitized to the idea of a monogamous relationship. Instead, many prefer to avoid quality relationships and split away on the slightest sign of trouble within a prolonged relationship. The bible teaches us that we should work to cultivate strong family relationship predicated on the foundation of the bible. Here, although trouble will undoubtedly arise, the family and its relationship with God can overcome it.…
