God is No Respecter of Persons

Amos 2:6,10-13: "This is what the LORD says: 'For three sins of Israel, even for four, I will not turn back my wrath. They sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals . . . . I brought you up out of Egypt, and I led you forty years in the desert to give you the land of the Amorites. I also raised up prophets from among your sons and Nazarites from among your young men. Is this not true, people of Israel?' declares the Lord. 'But you made the Nazarites drink wine and commanded the prophets not to prophesy. Now then, I will crush you as a cart crushes when loaded with grain."

When one reads the first chapter of the book of Amos, one might quickly agree with the enactment of God's wrath against the pagan nations (e.g. the Arameans, Philistines, Edomites, Ammonites, etc.) that perpetrated gross atrocities against God's covenant people (the Israelites) . When the Lord says that He would "break down the gates of Damascus" thus destroying the Arameans, the reader in his spirit of righteous indignation yells out, "you deserve it!" And the same vehement response might be found as one reads God's judgment against the Philistines or the Edomites or the Ammonites; after all, these nations warred continuously against the Israelites and often brought destruction to the descendants of Abraham throughout their Old Testament journey.

Then rather unexpectedly, God includes in His punitive list the very chosen people that He had blessed, protected, and called His "chosen." One might find himself scratching his head wondering why the covenant people would be assimilated into such a listing; God seems to anticipate this question, for He immediately brings His charges to justify His responsive wrath. Specifically, God says that the Israelites, "sell the righteous for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals. They trample on the heads of the poor as upon the dust of the ground and deny justice to the oppressed . . . " (2:6-7). The descendants of Abraham that God had called out as His own had adulterated themselves by following the licentious, rebellious ways of the very pagans that brought God's judgment. It seems that the Israelites believed that their privileged position gave them immunity from such a response from the Lord. As the Israelites prided themselves in the fact that God had called them out as a privileged nation, these Israelites treated God's graciousness with contempt by not believing that He would call them to account for their defiant, wicked behavior. In reality, the Israelites were no different that those wicked nations around them, and frankly they didn't care. They were going to do whatever their heart desired, and they still expected God to show His preferential treatment to them as the natural descendants of Abraham.

God's responsive words in Amos let the reader know that the Lord is not a respecter of persons when they are engaged in sinful behavior. Being true to His Righteousness and Holiness, God calls to account any person/nation that perpetrates sin, irrespective of the calling to which he/they have been called by the Lord. God does not play favorites; He does not let the sins of His chosen people slide, while bringing judgment upon everyone else. No one is immune from the Divine judgment that will come for cosmic treason against the One True God!

This is a great word to those of us who have responded by faith in Jesus Christ as Lord. We should not think that we are free to live an antinomian lifestyle, simply because we have been redeemed through the precious blood of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul reinforces such a conclusion when he says in Romans 6:11 that we cannot live in sin any longer because we are dead to that lifestyle and are instead alive in our allegiance to Jesus Christ as Lord. We don't look for ways to live lives of selfish hedonism, rather we earnestly seek to yield ourselves to the will of Christ for He has provided us the immeasurable benefits of His glorious grace, thus freeing us from the penalty of our sins.

Still, we should be reminded that our sin will bring God's discipline. The writer of Hebrews says it well, "God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it" (Hebrews 12:10b-11).

Don't expect to receive preferential treatment for your sinful behavior. Confess your sins to the Lord, for only then can you expect the Lord to bestow His blessings to you for your faithfulness and obedience to Him.