Amos 1:1–2; 5:14–15, 21–24
There’s something deeply moving about the sound of water. The rush of a river, the rhythm of the tides, the gentle flow of a stream, water is never still for long. It moves, it shapes, it cleanses, it nourishes.
When the prophet Amos declares, “Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream,” he’s calling for something just as alive and unstoppable. Justice, in God’s eyes, isn’t a one-time act or a slogan we speak when it’s easy. It’s a living movement, something that flows through our lives and into the world, carrying compassion, fairness, and mercy wherever it goes.
Amos was speaking to a people who had built beautiful places of worship. They sang, they sacrificed, they prayed, but God wasn’t pleased. “I hate, I despise your festivals,” God said, “but let justice roll down like waters.” It’s not that God rejected their worship, it’s that worship without justice had gone dry.
The river had stopped flowing.
So Amos invites us – even now – to step into that stream again, to let our faith move beyond comfort and ritual, and into action and love. Amos invites us to ask:
- Where is God’s justice needed in my community right now?
- How can I help it flow a little more freely?
- What barriers might be holding it back?
Because the thing about water is, it finds a way. Even when blocked, it seeps through cracks, reshapes the landscape, and continues its course. God’s justice does the same, and when we open our hearts, it flows through us, renewing everything it touches.
May our faith be like that stream, not stagnant or still, but alive and moving, carrying God’s love beyond all barriers, until justice truly rolls down like waters.
Let’s Pray:
God of justice and mercy, let your river flow through us. Wash away what is hardened or indifferent within us. Help us to hear the cry of those who thirst for fairness and peace. May our worship rise not only in song, but in acts of compassion, courage, and care. Let justice roll down, through our hearts, our homes, our world. AMEN
