Tues.’s Devo - See, Hear, Understand

Read: Amos 7-9; 2 Kings 14:28-29, 15:6-29; 2 Chron. 26:22-23; Isaiah 6:1-13
God promised he would never do anything he didn’t first show his prophets. God showed Amos several scenarios of judgement and allowed Amos to be a part of his decision. Amos was able to talk God out of a plague of locusts and a fire that would both destroy Israel.
How funny that Amakiah would accuse Amos of plotting against King Jeroboam when all Amos was doing was repeating God’s words. He continued to prophesy against Jeroboam because he knew that God’s word would stand and he wasn’t afraid of what mere men could do to him.
I love that Amos was not a “professional prophet”. He had never been trained to hear from God. He was a farmer who God chose to speak through. That gives us hope. We don’t have to be on a church staff to hear from God. The Holy Spirit is available for us all.
God was going to bring judgement to the land and there would be signs in the earth but the famine that was coming was going to be a famine of hearing God’s word. What a terrible thing. People would faint for a word from God and not be able to hear.
Isaiah said that their hearts would be so hard that they would not be able to see or hear or understand. Jesus said the same thing of these people in Matthew 13:15 For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.
The worse thing that could happen to us is to have our hearts hardened. But Jesus says of us: But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. (Matthew 13:16)
Lord, I pray that you will keep our hearts soft and our ears attentive to your voice. May we see with your eyes, hear with your ears and understand with your heart so that we might love with your love.