God's Plumb Line

The prophet Amos based one of his "sermons" on the image of a plumb line (see Amos 7:7-9). A plumb line was an ancient construction tool used in building stone walls - of a house, of a wall around the city - to insure the wall was perpendicular to the ground. A wall that was not properly aligned was at risk of deterioration, crumbing, and collapsing. 

Amos used the image to communicate to the people of Israel that their lifestyle was "out of alignment" with the ways of God. Their out-of-alignment lifestyle put their nation at risk.

Could we benefit from using God's plumb line in the issues facing the church today? to check the alignment of our thinking and beliefs? How does what we think-believe align with ...

• the character of God - God's merciful and gracious nature, God's nature of self-giving, servant love
• the life, ministry, and teachings of Jesus as a reflection of God's character
• grace and forgiveness, the way God relates to us
• the ways of the Kingdom that Jesus taught and lived: all are beloved children of God, relationships are based on grace and forgiveness (rather than merit), power is used to serve, material wealth and possessions are a form of power to be used on behalf of the powerless
• the transformation of heart and mind that we call spiritual growth (as opposed to a focus on proper belief and behavior)
• loving as Jesus loved. 

Note that I do not speak of the Bible as God's plumb line, although many Christians do. "What does the Bible say?" is their mantra. They use the Bible to validate their beliefs. This practice is being used  by some in The UMC today to validate their position on LBGTQ issues, forgetting how the Bible was once used to support slavery and to deny women voice and leadership in the church. It's not enough to appeal to the Bible. The better test is "Does it align with the character of God?"

At the end of a plumb line is some kind of weight that, because of gravity, sets the line taunt and straight. It is what makes the plumb line functional. That "weight" in God's plumb line is the character of God.

Does what I think and how I believe align with who God is?