Standing in the Gap
You and I want to be found in the gap.
We look at Amos in this study… as one who represents all the prophets, including Jeremiah, that have stood in the gap on behalf of God and for the people they've been given to love and lead.
Standing in the gap for Jesus won't ever be easy, it can cost everything, but it will ALWAYS be worth it. Amos, a simply farmer, who didn't ask for this calling, was unwanted, unappreciated and unashamedly pushed away by the very people he prayed for and was extremely burdened over. He stood and he shared and he showed those he loved, lived among and worked around the burden and blessing God placed upon him. And his prayer life and unwanted intercession made a difference in Israel. Yes, a difference that only he and the Lord knew. The people, who wanted nothing to do with him and encouraged him to move on, had absolutely no idea what he did for them (Amos 7:1-9).
He was a difference maker... one that trusted and pleaded with God and for God. He was a difference maker because he KNEW the Difference Maker. When we know someone that can make a difference, we usually turn to them to do something others can't do. Like Mary, Jesus' mother, who knew Someone...
God sent them a prophet: 2 Chronicles 24:15-22
1. The prophets ministry is born out of God's wrath: (when the people have departed/forsaken/neglected/transgressed)
2 The prophets are sent at the worst time morally but some of the best time culturally, economically and intellectually, when humanistic thinking is celebrated and trusted most.
3 The prophets ministry will appear to be one rooted in negativity because he was sent to testify AGAINST them in their immorality. |
