So the LORD relented. “This will not happen,” the LORD said. – Amos 7:3

Today’s Scripture Reading (June 24, 2013): Amos 7

Robert Harris’ “Fatherland” is a bestselling novel that explores the possibility of a world in which Adolph Hitler did not die. It explores what the world would look like decades later if Germany had actually won World War II. So much of what we remember as history simply would not have come to pass. The novel is open ended, leaving some of the conclusions up to the reader. And for some, the book is simply a complete waste of time. After all, that is not the way our world was shaped. Germany did lose the war and Hitler did die – so why waste time thinking about what can never be? But that is part of the beauty of fiction – any plot line is possible. And for fans of fiction, “Fatherland” was a huge success.

One of the surprising artifacts of believing in an ‘omni’ God (a God who is all powerful, all knowledgeable, and always present) is that we begin to read all of human history, both what has passed and the portions that are yet to come, as if it is all in the past – or all of history as a completed novel that cannot be changed. It is as if the entire history of the world has already been written. Somehow it is comforting to think that God knows absolutely everything that is going to happen in each of our futures.

But another aspect of this ‘omni’ God that holds all the moments of our lives in his hand is that he becomes a passionless God – unmoved by our circumstances and our prayers. So God’s response to Amos prayer in this passage is interpreted differently depending on how tightly you need to hold on to the ‘omni’ God characteristics. If it is important to you that God is all powerful, all knowledgeable and always present, then you are forced to admit that it was never really God’s intention to allow the locusts – in this case the Assyrians – to attack Israel. He already knew that Amos would intercede and therefore what God intended all along would come to pass. But if you hold the ‘omni’ characteristics lightly and believe in a God of passion and compassion, then you will be more willing to concede the possibility that God really did change his mind because of the prayer that Amos had prayed.

For me, I believe in a God for whom one of the primary characteristics is love. Therefore, I want to believe that God was truly moved by Amos prayer. God changed his mind – and history occurred differently than it would have if Amos had never prayed. And internally the Bible would seem to agree. After all, even James asserts that “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” (James 5:16.) And Amos was a righteous man whose prayers were heard by God.    

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Amos 8