你當預備迎見你的神(摩4章)

以色列阿，我必向你如此行。以色列阿，我既這樣行，你當預備迎見你的神。那創山、造風、將心意指示人、使晨光變為幽暗、腳踏在地之高處的，他的名是耶和華萬軍之神。(摩 4：12-13)

聖經中有提到「朝見神」，意思是預備自己來見神，神在祂的寶座上，而我們要主動前往，尋求神的意思；這裡的「迎見你的神」，是指無論你想不想見祂，祂都要來，而且已經準備要來，所以預先預告，叫我們要做好預備。

自古以來，有罪的人見到神都會有死亡的壓迫感！就像在公司行號、學校機關、或是軍隊裏面，聽到「上級長官」要來視察，我們的態度會隨隨便便嗎？不會的！正常人都會立刻警醒起來，把長官要的東西準備好，因為在這之前一定會詢問：「這次上級長官來視察的原因是甚麼？」然後還要將環境打掃乾淨，不該有的東西趕緊收掉。最後在時間鄰近時，還要列隊歡迎。

人的上級長官要來視察，尚且如此，更何況天地主宰要來，要親自拜訪你？

神藉阿摩司先知說：「我既這樣行，你當預備迎見你的神。」這裡的「預備」，指著不是呆呆地等候，而是有一些該做的事要做。意思是前面所講的所有罪，我現在要來看到改進。「我既這樣行」是指前面所述，神已經降下的災難，這些災難是因為人「三番四次」違背神的命令所造成的後果。現在祂為什麼要親自來一趟？可見是因為前面所刑罰的一切，一點用處都沒有，因此本尊只好親自走一趟。

當神親自來的時候，我們會怎樣？想一想自己的上級長官來，然後我們還無動於衷，會有甚麼下場？在世上而言，嚴重的話就是解僱。

倘若那惡僕心裏說：「我的主人必來得遲。」就動手打他的同伴、又和酒醉的人一同喫喝。在想不到的日子、不知道的時辰、那僕人的主人要來、重重的處治他〔或作把他腰斬了〕，定他和假冒為善的人同罪，在那裏必要哀哭切齒了。(太 24：48-51)

馬太福音廿四章可以說是我們身處末世之中的信仰備忘錄。主耶穌在此很不客氣地說：神來的時候，無動於衷、不預備自己、不改變罪行的人，就要「腰斬」處死他。而且這腰斬，也同樣是「假冒為善」的罪刑。

所以，如何迎見非來不可、擋都擋不住的神？至少要自省自己是否有阿摩司書中，第三章、第四章的罪：以強暴搶奪財物、積蓄在自己家中的人不知道行正直的事；欺負貧寒的、壓碎窮乏的；往伯特利去犯罪、到吉甲加增罪過；獻有酵的感謝祭、把甘心祭宣傳報告給眾人....等。

所以，每天以讀經、禱告開始，用安靜的心自我省察，讓聖靈的光、光照我們，就可以顯出我們的罪。天天以真道洗淨我們，在主來的時候，就可以準備好、裝飾整齊，迎接主的再臨。

凡事受了責備，就被光顯明出來，因為一切能顯明的、就是光。所以主說：「你這睡着的人，當醒過來，從死裏復活，基督就要光照你了。」(弗 5：13-14)

By Isaiah Kao

Prepare to Meet Your God (Amos 4)

November 12, 2026

“For thus I will do to you, O Israel; because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel.” For behold, He who forms mountains and creates the wind, and declares to man what are His thoughts, He who makes dawn into darkness and treads on the high places of the earth, the LORD God of hosts is His name. (Amos 4:12–13, NASB)

The Bible mentions “appearing before God,” which means preparing ourselves to come before Him. God is seated on His throne, and we must take the initiatvive to approach Him and seek His will.

However, the phrase “prepare to meet your God”meaning whether you want to meet Him or not, He is coming, and He is already on His way. Therefore, God gives us advance warning so that we can make the necessary preparations.

Since ancient times, sinful people have always felt an overwhelming sense of forthcoming death when encountering God! It is just like when we hear that a "superior" is coming to inspect our company, school, or military unit. Would we take it casually? Of course not! Any sensible person would immediately become alert and prepare everything the superior might need. Before the inspection, we would certainly ask, “What is the reason for this visit?” We would then clean up the surroundings and quickly put away anything that should not be there. Finally, as the inspection time approaches, we would line up to welcome the superior.

If we make such preparations for the inspection of a human superior, how much more should we prepare when the Sovereign of heaven and earth comes to visit us personally?

God spoke through the prophet Amos:

“Because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God.”

The word “prepare” does not mean simply waiting passively. Rather, it means that there are things we must actively do. In other words,God is coming to see whether we have corrected all the sins mentioned earlier.

The phrase“Because I will do this to you” refers to the disasters God had already sent, as described in the preceding passages. These disasters were the consequences of people's "for three offenses and for four "against God's commandments. Why, then, does God now have to come personally?Apparently, none of the punishments He had previously imposed had brought about any improvement.

Therefore, He has no choice but to make the visit Himself.

What will happen when God comes personally? Think about what would happen if our superior came to inspect us and we remained completely indifferent. What would be the consequences? In the workplace, at the very least, we could be dismissed from our jobs.

“But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My master is not coming for a long time,’ and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with those habitually drunk; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 24:48–51, NASB)

Matthew 24 can be regarded as a spiritual reminder for us living in the last days. Here, the Lord Jesus speaks very directly: When God comes, those who remain indifferent, fail to prepare themselves, and refuse to turn away from their sins will face severe punishment—even being cut in pieces. Such punishment is also assigned to "hypocrites".

So, how should we prepare to meet the God who is certainly coming and whose arrival cannot be prevented? At the very least, we must examine ourselves to see whether we have committed the sins mentioned in Amos chapters 3 and 4, including:

Using violence to seize property and storing up treasures in our houses without knowing how to act righteously.

Oppressing the poor and crushing the needy. Going to Bethel to sin and going to Gilgal to multiply our transgressions.

Offering thanksgiving sacrifices with leaven and publicly announcing our freewill offerings to others.

Therefore, we should begin each day with Bible reading and prayer. In a quiet moment, we should examine ourselves and allow the light of the Holy Spirit to shine upon us and reveal our sins. We must let the truth cleanse us every day. Then, when the Lord comes, we will be ready, properly prepared and adorned, to welcome His second coming.

“But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. For this reason it says, ‘Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you.’' (Ephesians 5:13–14, NASB)

By Isaiah Kao