April 30, 1950 WORSHIP THAT PLEASES GOD Amos 4:4; 5:4-9,14,15, 21-24 Pointers on the Lesson The prophet Amos shows in this week’s lesson that true worship con sists not in mere ceremonies. It con sists in a right heart attitude that ex presses itself in right conduct. He em phasizes that ceremonies are not the first thing. They are secondary. They can never be substituted for the primary thing. Amos thunders away at this fact which is so often forgotten. Pleasing Worship Not at Bethel Amos 4:4 The children of Israel were so bent on the false worship of Bethel and Gilgal that God here seems to have given them up to their self-willed idolatry in order that it may become evident to them how impotent such worship is to bless their lives. Verse 5 says of their false worship—“This pleaseth you” (R.V.). It, did not please God but it pleased Israel. Sometimes God lets His people have their own way if they persist in it, but it is always to their own detriment. Pleasing Worship Seeks the Lord Amos 5:4-9, 14,15 The key word in these verses is “ seek.” It occurs five times in these few verses. In the objects following the ap pearance of this repeated word we have the content of true worship. First, negatively, God’s people should not seek satisfaction in false worship, v. 5. Bethel and Gilgal with all their ritual and ceremony have nothing to satisfy the heart. Mere ceremonialism or fine sanctuaries cannot pjease God or bring blessing to the human heart. Second, positively, God’s people should seek the Lord (w . 4, 6-9). They who do so shall find life in its fullness (4); and they will find that they are submitting to One who is able to minister to their need (8, 9). Third, God’s people should seek the good, (w . 14, 15). While they are doing this they will also be hating the evil. One cannot truly love the good without hating its opposite. If one loves the poor and seeks to benefit them, he is bound also to hate those influences which tend to poverty. We need to see that godliness is the most practical fac tor in human experience. The section ends by showing that those who seek those things which are of God may ex pect the realization of God’s presence with them all the while. Pleasing Worship Not Empty Form Amos 5:21-24 When God says that He hates the ceremonial observances of His people, it is not to be understood that He hates them always and under every condition. He Himself has established certain cere monial observances such as the Levitical system and the Communion service. In their proper place they serve a very high and holy purpose. But God hates them whenever they are made a substi
tute for true worship. One should never suppose that mere water baptism will secure him entrance into the Kingdom of God. Nor should anyone suppose that faithful observance of the Communion service will make up for shady living between times. However, these cere monies observed in connection with a proper heart attitude can prove of great blessing to the individual. God says (v. 23) that even the songs sometimes sung by His people may be an abomination to Him. How often do God’s people sing a lie in the place of worship? The last verse sums up the matter by showing that what God wants to see in our lives is a practical outworking of the profession of faith we have made. Paul’s Epistle to the Romans emphasizes justification by faith as far as our relation to God is concerned. The Epistle of James em phasizes justification by works in our relation to man. Both are needed for a well-rounded Christian life. Memory Verse: “ Seek good, and not evil . . . and so the Lord, the God of hosts, shall be with you” (Amos 5:14). One of the main sins for which Amos condemned Israel was their insincere worship of the Lord God. Proudly they brought their sacrifices to the place of worship and observed their feast days and their solemn assemblies. They were living sinful lives but trying to worship as if they were righteous and well pleasing to God. God finally said that He hated their feast days and would not hear the melody of their songs any longer. God reminded the people of His punishments of famine, sickness, etc. to bring them unto Himself. Frequently He pleads with them to love and to worship Him again. Unless one’s heart is right with God, there is no form of worship that satisfies or pleases Him. Remember that both Cain and Abel built an altar and burned a sacrifice upon it, but only Abel’s offering was.ac ceptable because only Abel had obeyed God, and only Abel was right in the sight of God. Amos reminded Israel to “ seek good, and not evil” and promised “ the Lord, the God of hosts, shall be with you.” Many churchgoers today may as well stay at home as far as pleasing God is concerned. They may deceive men by their outward appearance of religion, but God looks upon their hearts and sees how evil and filled with sin they are. God desires many things, but the New Testament tells us that He is seeking for worshipers. They are rather rare in churches today. People' go to church to see their friends, to make themselves think that God will reward their outward show of worship, and for many other reasons than to worship Him. As He looks into your heart, does He find the worshiper for whom He seeks? Helps for the Children Amos Teaches How to Worship Amos 5:21-24
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