This week we are considering the following verses from Amos in light of current events:
This is what the Lord God Almighty says: Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
Amos 5:16,23–24
Coronavirus cases have been rising across the country, and one of the identified sources of the spread of the virus has been churches. This is because some churches have been gathering for in-person worship without appropriate precautions. But if a church’s worship creates a social ill, something is seriously wrong! According to Amos, if worship is accompanied by injustice, God considers it noise. Authentic worship of God will be coupled with doing good for our neighbor!
This reality keeps us in our present form of worship and church life. As much as we would like to return to the in-person worship that we once had, we know that we cannot do so in the present circumstances without doing harm to others. The way to truly worship God in a pandemic is to do so at a distance from one another! Thus we gather virtually for livestreamed worship, or in the very spread-out, restrained setting of our 8:30 in-person worship; and we continue to support our mission work through online or by-mail giving, or through volunteer service in which we can work far apart from others. In this way we can faithfully serve God in these most unusual times.
Prayer – Guide us, O Lord, to genuinely follow the commandments to both love God and love our neighbor. Share on XIf you missed Sunday worship, you can join with the recorded service of either the 9:30 or 10:30 worship hours at live.kentmethodist.org
