Seek, and Live

“Thus says the Lord to the house of Israel:

“’Seek me and live;
    but do not seek Bethel,
and do not enter into Gilgal
    or cross over to Beersheba;
for Gilgal shall surely go into exile,
    and Bethel shall come to nothing.’

“Seek the Lord and live,
    lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph,
    and it devour, with none to quench it..,
O you who turn justice to wormwood
    and cast down righteousness to the earth!

“He who made the Pleiades and Orion,
    and turns deep darkness into the morning
    and darkens the day into night,
who calls for the waters of the sea
    and pours them out on the surface of the earth,
the Lord is his name;
who makes destruction flash forth against the strong,
    so that destruction comes upon the fortress.

 “They hate him who reproves in the gate,
    and they abhor him who speaks the truth.
Therefore because you trample on the poor
    and you exact taxes of grain from him,
you have built houses of hewn stone,
    but you shall not dwell in them;
you have planted pleasant vineyards,
    but you shall not drink their wine.
For I know how many are your transgressions
    and how great are your sins—
you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe,
    and turn aside the needy in the gate.
Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time,
    for it is an evil time.

Seek good, and not evil,
    that you may live;
and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you,
    as you have said.
Hate evil, and love good,
    and establish justice in the gate;
it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts,
    will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.” Amos 5:4-15

Amos describes sharp contrasts of life experience: the Lord over places of false security, living over destruction, the peace of justice and righteousness over the bitterness of wormwood, awe at God’s majestic power over hatred of everything He represents. He illustrates the wasted efforts that pepper a life focused on self and riddled with sin, the emptiness of those without compassion for others. Then he presents a vivid choice: Seek God and live, seek good not evil, hate evil and love good. The One who can destroy is the One who is gracious to save.

There is a mysterious God-given intuition in life, an inexplicable will of a body to live even when prematurely born, or irreparably damaged. Yet in an otherwise healthy body, the flesh can tend to grow un-careful, apathetic or sedentary about what makes for a rich, meaningful life. We become clouds void of substance, like fishnets trying to capture the moon, finding fulfillment elusive.

While Jesus came to give life abundant, the enemy lurks to steal, kill, and destroy. We can’t grow complacent about spiritual health and practices and expect to enjoy life to the full as God intends. We must, in these evil days, press on to seek Him, hate evil, and love good to truly live. (John 10:10)

Has a growing love for self and self-care calloused our first love for the Lord? Has building and planting for pleasantness soured our hearts to the needs of others? What does a sober, honest search of what we value and what we hate reveal? How will we adjust priorities of heart and practice?

Lord, teach me to seek and love You above all.