Shortly before Jesus’ ascension, we read his powerful words to the disciples: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you shall be My witnesses in both Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
This immediately conjures up images of the Abrahamic covenant in Genesis 12. After God promises to bless Abram and his descendants, he adds the crucial line: “through you, all the nations of the world will be blessed.”
It is curious (and sad, if we’re honest) that Abram’s descendants appeared to be very happy with the parts about how God planned to bless them, but then how they seem to have completely and consistently rebelled against those latter words – the part about blessing the rest of the world.
As we read through the Old Testament, we get a rather disappointing account of Israel’s various commitments to idolatry and rebellions against God. There are wonderful exceptions, of course, but the tragic majority is depressing.
By the time we reach Amos, we find ourselves having to ask the question, “What happens when God’s people rebel against His plans, His lordship, and the ministry work that He has placed in our hands, telling us to do something about it?”
Amos 1 and 2 record a fascinating series of “reckonings” that the prophet is announcing on God’s behalf. It begins with Aram (Amos 1:3-5), then moves to Gaza (v6-8), then Tyre (v9-10), Edom (v11-12), Ammon (v13-15), then Moab (Amos 2:1-3), Judah (v4-5) and then finally Israel.
With a minor exception or two, when you look at a map, these reckoning announcements move from the further lands/nations in a “spiral” inward before hitting the “bull’s eye” of Israel.
This passage is fascinating, in part, because it reveals the heart of the Israelites in that day. Their focus was inward, toward themselves and their own prosperity, toward their own pleasures and idolatry. They seemed to care nothing for the world other than to wish that it would politely go away and die somewhere and stop bothering them.
What happens when God’s people rebel against His plans, His lordship, and the ministry work He has placed in our hands and told us to do something about? Well, we find ourselves dispassionately observing the calamities of others around the world as they spiral ever closer to us – the bull’s eye, at which point it’s too late.
I can’t help but think of the image of a flushing toilet, which spirals downward until, assuming the plumbing works fine, the waste is deposited into the sewer. And that is right where dispassionate and selfish vainglory belong.
But Jesus’ words in Acts 1:8 fill us with hope and instruction. For what happens when God’s people observe His plans, honor His lordship, and work faithfully in the work He has given us to do? Well, then we see ourselves faithfully ministering to, and discipling those in:
Jerusalem – our immediate context (family, work, neighborhood, church, etc.)
Judea – our city, state, nation
Samaria – our neighboring nations (and also our enemies, as the Jews of the day considered the Samaritans to be their enemies)
The ends of the world – all around the world.
This, again, is a spiral. But it’s not a spiral inward and downward. It’s a spiral outward and upward.
The curse is reversed when God’s people “put Him back on the throne” of their hearts and minds. Our focus becomes outward-facing, blessing and ministering to others, and finding the “bread we have to eat that you do not know about.”
It’s not asceticism. It’s not about impoverishing ourselves and becoming miserable.
It’s rather about booting ourselves off of the throne once more so that God can have that spot.
To quote the old Dutch proverb: “What is heaviest must weigh heaviest.”
Just for a Closer Walk 