Ripe for the Picking

Intro: As we come to the fourth vision in the Book of Amos, let me ask you some questions;

Can a person sin so much that he or she never again deserves a chance to be saved? Can a person become so enslaved by sin that he would never repent? Can a person become so hardened toward God that no matter what happened—a severe crisis or threat to life—the individual would never turn away from sin and trust the LORD?

It’s hard to believe but the answer to each of these questions is “yes!”

Romans 1:21–22 NKJV

21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools,

It goes on to say in Romans 1 that God gave them up to uncleanness of heart, God gave them up to vile passions and God gave them over to a debased mind!

Israel had come to that point, where God would give them up.

Text: Amos 8:1-3

Amos 8:1–3 NKJV

1 Thus the Lord God showed me: Behold, a basket of summer fruit. 2 And He said, “Amos, what do you see?” So I said, “A basket of summer fruit.” Then the Lord said to me: “The end has come upon My people Israel; I will not pass by them anymore. 3 And the songs of the temple Shall be wailing in that day,” Says the Lord God— “Many dead bodies everywhere, They shall be thrown out in silence.”

1. Basket of Summer Fruit; 1-2

One of the joys of living in the south is having a garden. I love fresh vegetables and the fruit from our fruit trees. Vine ripe tomatoes is my favorite. When you harvest the fruit in the late spring its ripe but firm, sweet and juicy. But the later the season moving into summer, fruit ripens at a quicker pace and if not picked and eaten quickly, it gets over-ripe or rotten and has to be thrown away.

That’s the picture Amos is shown here by the Lord. Israel is like a basket of summer fruit that is spoiled and it is good for nothing but to be thrown away.

Summer Fruit Celebration- When the harvest was ripe the people celebrated ‘The Feast of Tabernacles’. This feast was given to them as a reminder of the blessings of God’s provision for them during their many years of wilderness wanderings. This time of rejoicing in the Old Testament was a period when the people looked back in gratitude for past deliverances and provision but it was also an occasion to look to the future and seek God’s blessings for the year to come. ‘It was, for God’s people, the “turn of the year”.…

Bentley, M. (2006). Opening up Amos (p. 99). Day One Publications

Summer Fruit is Deceptive- The fruit ripens quickly in the summer and the color seems brighter. But it doesn’t take long for the fruit to spoil.

Israel looked good on the outside, they had a great economy, nice places of worship [false], a strong defense and people seemed happy. What else could one ask for?

[Gen. 40:16-20] (turn and read)Remember when Joseph was in prison and the butler and baker of Pharoah shared their dreams with him. The butler would be restored to his former position but the baker had a big surprise coming! So did Israel!!!

Ezekiel 7:2–3 NKJV

2 “And you, son of man, thus says the Lord God to the land of Israel: ‘An end! The end has come upon the four corners of the land. 3 Now the end has come upon you, And I will send My anger against you; I will judge you according to your ways, And I will repay you for all your abominations.

Summer fruit means the harvest is over- a basket of summer fruit represents a harvest has taken place and that the tree is no longer producing. The limbs are bare and there is no fruit. “I will not pass by them anymore.”

Israel had come to the point of an old fruit tree. The fruit it produced was not good and the crop was less every year. It was time to get rid of the tree. Two scriptures picture this happening to Israel.

Isaiah 5:1–7 NKJV

1 Now let me sing to my Well-beloved A song of my Beloved regarding His vineyard: My Well-beloved has a vineyard On a very fruitful hill. 2 He dug it up and cleared out its stones, And planted it with the choicest vine. He built a tower in its midst, And also made a winepress in it; So He expected it to bring forth good grapes, But it brought forth wild grapes. 3 “And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, Judge, please, between Me and My vineyard. 4 What more could have been done to My vineyard That I have not done in it? Why then, when I expected it to bring forth good grapes, Did it bring forth wild grapes? 5 And now, please let Me tell you what I will do to My vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it shall be burned; And break down its wall, and it shall be trampled down. 6 I will lay it waste; It shall not be pruned or dug, But there shall come up briers and thorns. I will also command the clouds That they rain no rain on it.” 7 For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, And the men of Judah are His pleasant plant. He looked for justice, but behold, oppression; For righteousness, but behold, a cry for help.

Luke 13:6–9 (NKJV)

6 He also spoke this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.

7 Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?’

8 But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.

9 And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.’ ”

Many today in America live a deceptive delusional life. A good job, material satisfaction, who needs God? We may look good on the outside but on the inside we are over-ripe [arrogant] and rotten. White washed tombs!

2. Sorrow and Silence; 3

The celebration of God’s blessings will be turned to sorrow and silence on the day of judgment.

The people’s joyful occasions would cease: all their social gatherings and celebrations as well as their joyful worship songs would be turned to wailing and howling.

The people would be slaughtered: the bodies of their friends, neighbors, and family would lie in their own blood and be scattered everywhere.

The people who survived the terrifying judgment would be so traumatized they would be unable to talk. There would only be silence, stone silence.

Ezekiel 7:5–9 NKJV

5 “Thus says the Lord God: ‘A disaster, a singular disaster; Behold, it has come! 6 An end has come, The end has come; It has dawned for you; Behold, it has come! 7 Doom has come to you, you who dwell in the land; The time has come, A day of trouble is near, And not of rejoicing in the mountains. 8 Now upon you I will soon pour out My fury, And spend My anger upon you; I will judge you according to your ways, And I will repay you for all your abominations. 9 ‘My eye will not spare, Nor will I have pity; I will repay you according to your ways, And your abominations will be in your midst. Then you shall know that I am the Lord who strikes.

In the Book of Revelation, beginning in chapter 6 and going thru to chapter 19 we see the terrible tragedies of the Tribulation Time. We see the seven seals, seven trumpets and seven bowls of God’s wrath poured out upon the nations of the world. There is a scripture in the midst of the sixth trumpet where a third of mankind would be killed, and it has always amazed me.

Revelation 9:20–21 NKJV

20 But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. 21 And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

Israel had continued to sin without the thought of repentance. They were guilty of social injustice [4], superficial worship [5a], dishonest practices in the market place [5b], slavery of the poor [6], deception for profits [6b].

Every one of these sins could be wrapped up in one word “Greed”!

1 Timothy 6:6–10 NKJV

6 Now godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 8 And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

3. God Won’t Forget; 7, 10

God is a just God so that means that God won’t forget. He is righteous and shows no partiality.

Too often when we are not immediately punished for the sin we commit, we think we’ve gotten away with it. But God won’t forget what we’ve done and he will administer justice.

[10] God says His justice will be meted out and it will be a terrible day because it will be like a day that you lost your only son.

The inheritance of a family was passed through the son. If a family had only one son and that child died, that families tribal inheritance would be lost forever in the nation of Israel, the people of God.

When the southern kingdom of Judah was carried captive into Babylon it was captive for 70 years but God said He would gather them in his arms and bring them back to their land (Isa. 56:8). But the people of Israel would be spared no longer. God is saying here that there will be no return of the northern kingdom.

Psalm 9:17 NKJV

17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, And all the nations that forget God.

Close;

There is a day that is coming that America will be no more because God won’t forget our sin as a nation. America as a whole is a basket of summer fruit, over-ripe and rotten. Its leaves are bare and there is no spiritual fruit on it.

America is Ripe for the Picking of Judgement!