Seek and Live
Daily Old Testament Reading: Amos 3-6
Daily Focus Passage: Amos 5
The Book of Amos consists of the message of the prophet Amos to the people. The people lived in a manner that rejected the ways of the Lord and sought to fulfill their will. This approach to life paved the pathway to death and destruction. The prophet warned the people of this reality and called them to seek the Lord and gain genuine life. The same message extends to us today. We must seek the Lord in a relationship with Christ and receive eternal life.
SEEK GOD
Amos called the people to abandon seeking what they desired from the world and seek the Lord alone. The Lord is worthy to be the only focus of our seeking because he is the Creator and all things. As the Creator of all things, he cares deeply for creation and works within creation for his glory.
The Lord must be the center of our seeking because he is the true Provider. The Lord provides for his children amid the struggle and journey of life. The Lord provides the needed strength to endure. He provides the needed patience to wait. He sees our needs and provides for them in the darkest moments. Thus, we must seek the Lord because he is the true Provider.
The Lord reveals himself, his will, and his ways to his children. The Lord reveals himself through His Word and through our engagement with him. When we engage the Lord, he reveals his presence and work in our lives. He shows us his will as we seek him and leads us to fulfill his will. At the same time, the Lord reveals to us his ways so that we can live obediently.
The Lord sustains his children. As the Great Sustainer, the Lord offers a strong, unbreakable foundation that provides certainty for life. When we rest upon the Lord, he sustains us with his strength, his work, and his ability. When we seek the Lord, we can seek with certainty because of his sustaining nature.
LIVE
Amos declares the promise of life that comes from seeking the Lord. Amos reveals the need to seek the Lord to live life fully. When we live life to the fullest, we live with the knowledge of our worth, value, and gifts from the Lord. We live to the fullest when we seek the Lord and follow his leading, will, and ways.
As we follow the Lord, we gain the ability to live righteously. As we seek the ways of the Lord, we learn the right way to live life as defined by the Lord. Thus, when we seek the Lord, we learn to live in righteousness and to pursue living for the Lord in a manner worthy of our calling. This occurs as we live faithfully to the Lord and commit to him completely.
The one who seeks the Lord as a follower of Christ gains life everlasting. Eternal life only occurs when we respond to the invitation to receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior. The life we gain cannot be defined by this world or find its worth in this world but gains the promise of eternal life. This eternal life means we are in the perfected state forever with the Lord.
The prophet declares a message of hope to a people heading toward destruction. The message included the command to seek the Lord and the promise of a genuine life. The same message extends through the message of the Gospel. When rebels and sinners seek a relationship with the Lord through a personal relationship, the people gain eternal life.
