An Ever-Flowing Stream

Amos 5:24

Let justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

The Hebrew word that we translate justice appears over 400 times in the Old Testament. That’s a lot. It seems like God and the prophets are really concerned about justice and, more importantly, about those who have been mistreated and not received justice. Chief among these are the widows, orphans, and the poor. The prophets saw how the powerful took advantage of them. Amos, in today’s scripture, proclaimed to the rich and powerful that God sees how unjust their actions have been toward the powerless and the time has come for a reckoning.

To share what God’s justice is going to feel like, Amos uses the image of water. When he used this image, I am sure he was thinking about the dry wadis that crisscrossed the land. These dry stream beds would come alive with a rushing torrent of water after a rain. The water was forceful and many times destructive. We have witnessed the power of water in our area recently when heavy rains and hurricanes have released torrents of flood waters. They have destroyed property and unfortunately taken lives. Amos’ vision came true for his listeners because shortly after these words were spoken the people of Israel were conquered by the Babylonians and those in power were taken into exile. To them it must have seemed like a mighty destructive torrent, like when the wadis filled with rushing water.

Today I am thinking about the more gradual power of water. I think of the Wear’s Valley just south of us. It is one example of where a broad fertile valley was formed over thousands of years as water eroded the hard stone it was flowing through. There might have been an occasional cataclysmic flood, but generally the valley was formed through the slow, continual work of water. A process that is still ongoing.

I believe that we as faithful believers are called to be agents of justice. It is unlikely that we will be involved in a moment so dramatic that it changes things for all time. But that doesn’t mean we can’t join the flow of God’s rivers of justice and righteousness. We can speak out when we see people being treated poorly. We can donate to funds to help those who are hungry. We can vote for those who champion the needs of all, not just the rich and powerful. What we can do might seem to be insignificant. But think of Wears Valley. One raindrop doesn’t seem like it makes any difference. But over time, with lots of other raindrops, the land was transformed. We don’t have to see the results. We just need to be on God’s side, working for and with others for justice and righteousness, trusting and believing that God sees what we are doing and ultimately it will make a difference.

Let us pray:

Loving God, God of the widow, God of the poor, God of the homeless, God of the immigrant, and God of us all. Remind us daily that all are beloved in your sight. Help us to do what we can, even if it seems so little, to work towards a place where all are treated fairly and with respect. For we know that even a little can accomplish much when your faithful people heed your voice. AMEN.

This devotion was written and read by Bill Green.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

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First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.