Before Worshiping Do This or Stop Worshiping

Amos 5:23-24
(23) Away with the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.
(24) But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!

A hypocrite is a person who pretends to be good but in reality, is bad. A hypocrite is a person who presents themselves as religious but in reality, they live contrary to the principles of religion. A hypocrite is not what they present themselves to be. A hypocrite will disappoint because they will soon contradict what we expect.

God hates hypocrites. Jesus condemned hypocrisy In Matthew Chapter twenty-three. In the English language, we are told pretenders are worse than murderers.

The key problem with hypocrisy is that they are hard to help. You think they are okay and you ignore them, yet they are desperately in need. Hypocrites may eventually deceive themselves that they are good when they are not. Hypocrites may for this reason be difficult to save.

In the book of Amos God condemns hypocrites in Israel. The people of Israel were hypocrites. They pretended to love God and even actively participated in worship but they never practiced that faith.

Amos 5:21
“I hate, I despise your religious festivals;
your assemblies are a stench to me.

Amos 5:22
Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them.
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
I will have no regard for them.

God tells Israel that He is no longer interested in their worship. He doesn’t want their sacrifices and offerings. He actually says He hates the worship services in Israel. God hates their offerings.

Many times we think that Worship and offerings will seriously impress God. We think God will be so impressed by worship and offerings that He will ignore or not notice that it is hypocritical. But God is not flattered.

In our text today, Amos 5:23-24, God tells Israel to stop the worship. God tells Israel to stop the songs of praise that they are singing. God tells Israel to first before worship, put their faith into practice by stopping injustice. You cannot perpetuate injustice and still come and actively participate in worship. You can’t be hurting people the whole week, then on the day of worship you are actively praising God. You are praising God and worshipping actively, yet people are cursing and crying because of you.

Before worshipping stop the injustice or stop worshipping. You can’t be hurting God’s people, then rushing to cover it up with offerings, singing, and activities in worship. Before any worship, stop the hypocrisy.

Unless we stop the injustice we commit directly or by silence when we should speak, our worship remains unacceptable before God. May God make us conscious of injustice. May we be courageous enough to address injustice. May our worship consequently be acceptable before God, in Jesus’s name, Amen!

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