Psalm 38; Amos 8:1-14; Rev. 1:17-2:7; Matt. 23:1-12
The Lord gives Amos a vision of a basket of summer fruit, certainly a pleasing sight, but the interpretation is anything but pleasing. This basket of summer fruit will be nothing more than a pleasant memory for some time. There will be no harvest at all, there will be only destruction. At the moment, all is rosy for the nation, prosperity reigns and commerce is the by-word of the day but soon the time will come when all this will pass away. There will be no feast, only mourning, and the greatest famine will be a prophetic silence. No words of encouragement will be heard, nothing at all will be spoken in the Name of the Lord. Those who have gone after other gods will never return to the Lord. The end has come. What terrible words to hear.
Jesus speaks against the leaders of the people. They have the right words, they understand the law but they do not practice the law. They make the people’s burdens great while doing nothing to help. They are in it for the perks of the office, for their own honor and glory among the people. They are like the bad shepherds of whom Ezekiel and Zechariah have prophesied. There is always danger in taking a leadership role because we have too many worldly models to follow but we don’t take our cues from the world. Jesus showed a different way to lead and we need to immerse ourselves in His way if we are to avoid the temptations of worldly ambition and if we are to lead well. We do not lead from above or from outside, we lead from within. We lead also by raising up others who will lead in the way of Jesus.
Clearly the one like a son of man is Jesus. He makes Himself known in this one proclamation, “I died, and behold I am alive forevermore…” John, who was with Him for three years as His disciple, falls at His feet as though dead when he sees the glorified Jesus. The revelation of Jesus’ person is complete and John realizes that he needs to worship and he falls in fear. Notice that, unlike the angels, Jesus doesn’t rebuke John for this act and doesn’t compel him to rise immediately, He says what He always did after the resurrection, “Fear not.” He then begins to dictate letters to the seven churches. Can we assume that these seven were under John’s jurisdiction and leadership? The letter to the church at Ephesus praises them for their endurance, their hatred of evil, their discernment of false apostles and the fact that they have not grown weary. They have not allowed the world into the church as in the first two readings. His criticism is, however, that in that they have become proud and have lost the proper motivation for their endurance, love. Intolerance of false prophets and evil are good things only if they are done for love of God and only if they are also coupled with right action, otherwise they become only Pharisaical.
Jesus! what a Guide and Keeper!
While the tempest still is high,
Storms about me, night overtakes me,
He, my Pilot, hears my cry.
Hallelujah! what a Savior!
Hallelujah! what a Friend!
Saving, helping, keeping, loving,
He is with me to the end.
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