Scripture Reading : Amos 4
Theme : Women, Worship and Stubbornness
- Women (4:1-3). The women of Israel is referred as cows of Bashan for their gluttony and pleasure seeking. They obtain ill gained goods and prompt their husbands to do their bidding. It is a sign of a society’s deep depravity when women, who are to be more nurturing by nature, do the opposite by oppressing the poor and innocent for luxury.
- Worship (4:4-5). Even while they sin greatly against God, they still regularly perform their rituals, thinking God is satisfied with just outward ceremonies. Like the Jews of Jesus’ time, they have turned God’s house into a house of thieves. They multiply transgressions in God’s house.
- Stubbornness (4:6-13). God tried many times to get their attention, but they would never return to God. They are stubborn, not humble. God repeatedly indicts Israel for this sin (Is. 48:4, Hos. 4:16, Eze. 3:7). They are dead in their transgressions.
Praying the Scripture
- Through Israel, we see how humans are stubborn and foolish. The human heart is a heart of stone that no punishment can take away. This is why hell cannot be corrective. Hell is final and a crystallization of the human heart. No one seeks God. Only by the grace of God and the proclamation of the gospel can sinners’ stony heart turn into a soft heart (Eze. 36:26) and seek God. Even as believers, we know how stubborn we can be sometimes. Let us pray that God will change our heart and give us a heart of humility and teachability.
- The Israelites had hypocritical worship and it displeased God. Let us draw near to God with a sincere and clean heart. It dishonours God by not going to church and it is also dishonouring to come to church to sin against God. Before we come to church, let us prepare our hearts to worship God by giving Him thanks, by trembling at His word, and be prepared to love others (Is. 66:2; Ps. 100:4).
主题：阿摩司书4
主题：妇女、崇拜和固执
- 妇女（4:1-3）。文中的“巴珊母牛”即指以色列妇女，因为她们成天大吃大喝，只好宴乐。她们取了不义之财，又叫自己的丈夫听从她们的吩咐。这是社会极度腐败的现象，因为女人的培育性理当较强，但这里完全颠倒，反为钱财欺压贫穷和及无辜之人。
- 敬拜（4:4-5）。即便向神大大犯罪时，他们仍继续行圣殿礼仪，以为神就此满足了。如耶稣时代的犹太人一样，他们将神的殿变成贼窝，在神的殿中加倍犯罪。
- 固执（4:6-13）。神多次尝试得到他们的注意，但他们永不愿归神。他们是固执的，不愿谦卑。神不断为此定以色列的罪（赛48:4；何4:16；结3:7）。他们在罪中已死了。
用经文祷告
- 我们藉着以色列能看到人有多固执、愚昧。人心硬石，惩罚也无可改变。这就是地狱为何无可使人改邪归正。地狱是人心最终的硬化。无人寻求神。罪人唯有藉着神的恩典与福音，石心才能变成肉心（结36:26），从而寻求神。即使信主后，我们晓得自己有时也可以很固执。让我们祈求神能改变我们的心，赐我们谦卑与受教的心。
- 以色列的敬拜是虚伪的，惹神愤怒。让我们以真诚、清洁的心就近神。不到教会敬拜是对神的羞辱；到了教会犯罪也是对神的羞辱。因此，让我们到教会之前预备好自己的心要称谢神，要因祂的话战兢，并要彼此相爱（赛66:2；诗100:4），从而敬拜神。
