Amos 7 (3)

Pray Psalm 106.6, 48.
We have sinned with our fathers,
We have committed iniquity,
We have done wickedly…
Blessed be the LORD God of Israel
From everlasting to everlasting!
And let all the people say, “Amen!”
Praise the LORD!

Sing Psalm 106.6, 48.
(Trust in Jesus: ‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus)
We have sinned, just like our fathers; we have done iniquity.
Just like them, our hearts have wandered; we have acted wickedly.
Refrain
Blessèd be our God and Savior, evermore His praise proclaim!
Let all those who know Your favor praise Your holy, glorious Name!

Read Amos 7.1-9; meditate on verses 7-9.

Preparation
1. What did God have in His hand?

2. How did He intend to use it?

Meditation
God gave Amos a vision of a plumb line. What is a plumb line? How does a plumb line work? Why do builders use them?

The great usefulness of a plumb line is that it always points to the center of the earth, the hot core of gravity and vitality that drives everything else on earth. The plumb line tells a builder that he is or is not lined up with true straight—or, in moral and spiritual terms, true righteousness.

The plumb line God held up to His rebellious people was His Law. He sent His prophets to the nation of Israel for generations, and they declared the righteousness of God and warned the people of judgment if they chose to live “out of plumb”. But for many years, God bore with the rebellion of His people; He would do so no longer. No longer would He “pass by” Israel and her idolatrous and sinful ways. Now He would pass through them, plumb line in hand, ready to make crooked things straight (vv. 7, 8).

But in Israel’s case, He would first have to tear down all the crooked walls—destroy the places where Israel worshiped idols and bring the “house of Jeroboam” to ruin (vv. 9, 10). Only when the crooked, bowing, crumbling walls of a rebellious nation were cleared away would God send another Plumb Line to strengthen the things that remained and begin work on a new building—the Church.

Jesus is our Plumb Line. Every day we must hold ourselves up to Him to find crooked places in our life and bring them into line with Plumb. The Scriptures contain the Plumb Line of Jesus, just as the prophets of old contained the plumb line of the Law. The more we look to Scripture, seeking Jesus, the more the Spirit of God will bring us “into Plumb” so that we are more like Jesus and less like our old sinful selves every day (2 Cor. 3.12-18).

Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
The Tower of Pisa leans due to an unstable foundation. No doubt, Mr. Bonanno Pisano used a plumb line to begin his project, but due to ground deviations, it is no longer straight.

Our Bible study teacher, Pat Hunter, used to say, “Watch your deviations”.

To illustrate, she would hold up her finger, pointing straight, and heavenward, showing the positive trajectory of hitting the mark of being like Jesus. She would then slightly move her finger, again, visually illustrating how just a slight change will throw the trajectory completely off, totally missing the mark.

God used the plumb line as His reference point to show the importance of having a straight trajectory for life—His Law. Living and abiding by it we will, as best we can through the power of the Holy Spirit, hit our mark of being like Jesus. Without it, deviating from it, we will fail miserably.

Last Sunday, in his sermon on “Transformation”, the pastor stated, “if you find your life characteristically caught up in any sin, that should alarm you.” Indeed it should.

I was struck by the truth of that statement. The little deviations I allow to remain characteristically in my life should alarm me mightily! And then I should expunge them from my life completely.

Deviations and swaying plumb lines have no place in the Christian’s life. That is God’s vision for us.

“You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Matt. 22.37-40; Deut. 6.5; Lev. 19.18).

“Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. Let all you do be done in love” (1 Cor. 16.13, 14).

“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” (Eph. 6.13).

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith…” (1 Pet. 5.8).

The Tower of Pisa was never intended to lean. It was meant to be built on a sure foundation.
God never intended for His people to deviate from His Law. He meant for us to stand firm in Jesus.
“For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 3.11).
“Behold, I AM setting a plumb line in the midst of My people…” (Amos 7.8).

Watch your deviations. Stand firm on the Foundation. Stay on the right trajectory. Hit the mark.

And be alarmed if you lean or sway.

Reflection
1. What serves as a “plumb line” in your life? How?

2. How can you know when you are beginning to deviate from this plumb line?

3. How can believers help one another stay on the plumb line of Jesus? Whom will you help today?

The Lord now seems to stand upon this wall. He measures it; it appears to be a bowing, bulging wall. Thus God would bring the people of Israel to the trial, would discover their wickedness; and the time will come, when those who have been spared often, shall be spared no longer. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Amos 7.1-9

Pray Psalm 106.44-48.
Pray that God will have mercy on His Church, that He will hold up the plumb line of Jesus for all His people to see clearly, that we might know Him better, love Him more, and be more faithful in obeying and serving Him day by day.

Sing Psalm 106.44-48.
(Trust in Jesus: ‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus)
Look upon us, LORD, with favor, see us in our sore distress!
Hear our cries, with love surround us; turn again to heal and bless!
Refrain
Blessèd be our God and Savior, evermore His praise proclaim!
Let all those who know Your favor praise Your holy, glorious Name!

Save us, LORD, from every nation; gather us from all our ways.
And we to Your Name will offer glorious thanks and endless praise!
Refrain

T. M. and Susie Moore

If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.