“This is what he showed me: behold, the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. And the Lord said to me, ‘Amos, what do you see?’ And I said, ‘A plumb line.’ Then the Lord said, ‘Behold, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass by them; the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste, . . .’” (Amos 7:7-9)
The prophet Amos speaks of a vision that the Lord gave him of a plumb line. This is a measuring tool used by contractors to determine a straight line or edge. The Lord was going to measure Israel, the northern Kingdom which had rebelled against King Solomon’s successor and split Israel in two. He was going to use His plumb line, His standard of perfection. The people thought they were righteous, religious and blessed because they thought they were still His chosen people. they did not worship in Jerusalem. The Lord was showing them that they did not measure up to His righteousness. Therefore, He was going to judge them.
At some point Amaziah the high priest at Bethel objected to Amos’ message for it reflected badly on him, the King, and the nation to tell them they were unrighteous. The priest tried to silence Amos by appealing to vanity and greed, projecting his own values onto Amos. Amos could not disobey God. He continued to make further statements of judgment.
In these days of moral confusion and chaos, we Christians continue to speak out against sexual immorality, antisemitism, racism, and corruption. Yet are often accused of being intolerant even by fellow Christians. To silence and dismiss they accuse us of being intolerant. They claim that we have no right to judge other people who are comfortably immersed in alternate lifestyles. They accuse us of narrow-mindedness and bigotry but based on what? What authority do they cite to justify their conclusions and their lifestyles? The laws of the land? The media? Public opinion? Their own carnal feelings and desires? Their definition of Love? And if they appeal to a higher spiritual power, who defines who that is and what is it based on? What is their plumb line? The laws and constitution of the United States, or any nation for that matter, the mores and values of society and culture, these are not our plumb line for living and thinking.
We believers have a plumb line, a standard by which we view the world and our lives: the Word of God. In His Word we find that no one can stand up against God’s standard of perfection. All will be judged by that standard no matter what they think, or who else they may appeal to. But it is the word of God that judges, not the messenger who speaks it. We speak His word in love so that sinners may repent and come to faith in Jesus. He is willing to grant all mercy and forgiveness once they acknowledge their sinfulness and inability to save themselves. This is the only way to avoid just punishment for sin.