“Outrageous pride and boasting..”

(8) The Lord GOD has sworn by himself, declares the LORD, the God of hosts: “I abhor the pride of Jacob and hate his strongholds, and I will deliver up the city and all that is in it.”

The message delivered to Israel by Amos yesterday was that God would give them another opportunity to seek good and not evil in order that they might live. And today, Amos speaks to the leaders of Israel who have become complacent and felt secure in life. He lashed out at them for boasting of what they had achieved. They knew that their prosperity was greater than other neighbor country and so they felt that everything would be alright forever. Amos responded to their very foolish attitudes that they pushed away every thought of coming disaster. He warned them that these would only bring the Day of Judgment closer. Amos described how badly these people had been spoiled by their worldly materialism. They slept in ivory beds and drank wine by the bowlful. Their lives were filled with luxury goods and joys of living. But the problem was that they did not grieve over the ruin of Joseph which meant they cared nothing about the destruction of their lives. So God said that He would give the city and everything in it to their enemies because He despised the arrogance of them. He would raise up against Israel a nation that would oppress them all the way so no one would be able to escape His judgment.

Today’s message shows me what God thinks of the pride of Israel and how totally dependent on God I am. It also showed me that boasting of wealth and strength led to my downfall. The people of Israel were only seeking a materialistic well-being life and began to feel that they didn’t need God. They were under the delusion that they were capable and self-sufficient. Because it was the source of their pride, God said that He would deliver up the city and all that was in it to their enemies. Today Amos was not just speaking to the leaders of Israel, he also was speaking to me not to forget the fact that I wouldn’t have anything without the grace of God. This message challenges me to cling on godly securities and not to let worldly things stand in the way of seeking good, not evil. Today’s QT taught me that the love of this world are based on my pride and boasting, so that I will keep repeating the phrase, ‘Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall’ over and over today as an application.