“Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord.” Amos 8:11
Dear Ones:
There is a relationship between the spoken word of God and the Living Word (Christ), that is unique and so very powerful. In Amos 3:7 we read: “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but He reveals His secret unto His servants the prophets.” What does this reveal to us about God’s dealings with us, and the importance of His word? God always manifests Himself, and works, according to His word, never contrary to it. A prime example of this is in the life of Sarah, wife of Abraham. Being beyond child-bearing years, the Lord gave her a promise concerning a son that would be born to her. Her response: “…By faith she received strength to conceive…BECAUSE SHE JUDGED HIM FAITHFUL WHO HAD PROMISED.” (Heb. 11:11) So, what is the principle here, the consistent principle by which God meets us individually where we are? It is this: when God speaks, He will accomplish that which He has declared. Our response is to believe and obey Him. THEN, He will work, as He has promised.
Amos was a shepherd/prophet who was called of God to reveal to Israel that impending judgement was coming because of their flagrant idolatry. Their heart became hard, and they were not willing to hear the Lord speaking to them. As a result, there was a form of judgement imposed on the land. God would give them a very limited revelation of Himself, in particular with regard to His spoken word. He most certainly would have given them so much more, but they would not hear.
In the days of Samuel, before he had been established as a prophet in Israel, there were similar circumstances. There would come a day when the “lamp of God would go out in the temple of the Lord.” (1 Sam. 3:3) The light of that lamp signified the manifest presence of God in the midst of the people. In addition, the Ark of the Lord would be taken by the enemies of Israel, Eli the high priest would die, and his daughter in law would give birth to a son, and call him, Ichabod, “…saying, ‘The glory is departed from Israel…for the ark is taken.'” (4:21,22) In this dark moment in the history of Israel, there is a God-given glimmer of light. “The Lord appeared AGAIN in Shiloh: for the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh BY THE WORD OF THE LORD.” (3:21) Again, what is the principle here by which God meets men? It is the revelation of Himself by the Word of the Lord. To not hear, nor believe the word of God, is to reject the revelation of God to the heart. This is famine indeed, for we live, “…NOT by bread alone, but by every WORD that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” (Matt. 4:4)
The question now becomes, “Do we HEAR the word of God?” Perhaps we should precede this question by asking another. “Are we deliberately, earnestly listening, in order to truly hear?” Israel was not listening, thus choosing to experience a famine in her soul. A good, practical example of this comes from the farm. If you give to cattle old hay, which has lost its nutritive value by being exposed to the air for a long period of time, the cattle will die, though they may “feel” full. To not give them good hay is to deny them life. It is the same with the word of God. God’s WAY is HIMSELF, and that WAY is manifested in that He speaks to our hearts individually, according to the Bible. To neglect what He is saying, or reject it, is to eat the “food” of this world, but which is Life-less, enabling us to exist, but certainly not to truly LIVE.
Dear Father, You who are speaking every day through Your creation, and in Your word, give us ALL to hunger and thirst after righteousness. Draw out our hearts to Yourself in such manner that the priority of our lives will be to sit at Your feet Lord Jesus, and hear your words, to believe and obey them. Then we shall LIVE, for Your blessing will always be given according to Your word, for Your glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad