Seek the Lord and Live!

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Reading: Amos 5:4-15

Amos 5:4–15 ESV

4 For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: “Seek me and live; 5 but do not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into exile, and Bethel shall come to nothing.” 6 Seek the Lord and live, lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, with none to quench it for Bethel, 7 O you who turn justice to wormwood and cast down righteousness to the earth! 8 He who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns deep darkness into the morning and darkens the day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the surface of the earth, the Lord is his name; 9 who makes destruction flash forth against the strong, so that destruction comes upon the fortress. 10 They hate him who reproves in the gate, and they abhor him who speaks the truth. 11 Therefore because you trample on the poor and you exact taxes of grain from him, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not dwell in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine. 12 For I know how many are your transgressions and how great are your sins— you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and turn aside the needy in the gate. 13 Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time, for it is an evil time. 14 Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said. 15 Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.

Prayer

Last week, we were introduced to God roaring his judgment like a fierce lion. We watched as nation after nation faced the righteous wrath, until even God’s own people of Israel were indicted of their sins. We saw how God’s judgment is guaranteed because he has declared it. We recognized that his judgment is deserved - we earn his judgment by our sinfulness. We saw that God will not withhold his judgment, and that his judgment is the last word.

Today we’re looking at a stretch of Scripture that might sound “old-hat.” You might even think that the sermon today is basically the same message as last week. But today, I want to look at Amos’ pleading with Israel. Chapters 3-5 are an extended argument - a prosecution of the northern kingdom for its infidelity.

The roaring lion roars yet again; this time he lays out his case. His first proclamation shows the basis of his prosecution:

Amos 3:1–2 ESV

1 Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt: 2 “You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.

This is something that no other nation can claim. Israel has a unique relationship with God. No one but the chosen people of God, the sons of Abraham through Isaac, can say that they have a personal covenant with their God.

We have a relationship with God. That is something amazing! But we have a tendency to think that God won’t be as hard on us because of our relationship with him. That’s just not true.

Because God Loves Us, He Holds Us Accountable

Our relationship with God does not excuse us from judgment. God will hold us accountable for our actions. In fact, our relationship with God is the basis for his judging us. Look carefully at verse 2:

Amos 3:2 ESV

2 “You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.

That “therefore” means that the fact that God knows his people is the driving force of punishing them for their iniquities. Other Scriptures make it clear by saying things like:

Psalm 119:75 ESV

75 I know, O Lord, that your rules are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me.

Hebrews 12:6 ESV

6 For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”

Revelation 3:19 ESV

19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.

Our relationship with God ought to bring us into his presence with broken and repentant hearts for our sins, not make us proud and big-headed before the Holy One of Israel! God loves us, so he will hold us accountable for our sins.

So we have the motivation of God’s judgment as God’s love for his people. What causes that judgment? Well, that would be sin.

Our Sins Doom Us to Judgment

For the people of Israel, their sins were abundant. The first part of chapter 4 shows the kinds of iniquity that abounded in Amos’ day:

Amos 4:1 ESV

1 “Hear this word, you cows of Bashan, who are on the mountain of Samaria, who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, who say to your husbands, ‘Bring, that we may drink!’

Just how bad were they? God calls some witnesses to see how terrible the people of Israel had become; look at verses 3:9-10:

Amos 3:9–10 ESV

9 Proclaim to the strongholds in Ashdod and to the strongholds in the land of Egypt, and say, “Assemble yourselves on the mountains of Samaria, and see the great tumults within her, and the oppressed in her midst.” 10 “They do not know how to do right,” declares the Lord, “those who store up violence and robbery in their strongholds.”

It’s so bad in Israel, even the heathen Philistines and the vile Egyptians, perennial enemies of Israel, were called to witness the wickedness in Samaria. As a result of such debauchery, Israel would face judgment.

Amos 3:13–15 ESV

13 “Hear, and testify against the house of Jacob,” declares the Lord God, the God of hosts, 14 “that on the day I punish Israel for his transgressions, I will punish the altars of Bethel, and the horns of the altar shall be cut off and fall to the ground. 15 I will strike the winter house along with the summer house, and the houses of ivory shall perish, and the great houses shall come to an end,” declares the Lord.

They were doomed to judgment because of their sinfulness. Hear me, church, God will not overlook our sinfulness either. It doesn’t matter how religious we might be, either:

Amos 4:4–5 ESV

4 “Come to Bethel, and transgress; to Gilgal, and multiply transgression; bring your sacrifices every morning, your tithes every three days; 5 offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving of that which is leavened, and proclaim freewill offerings, publish them; for so you love to do, O people of Israel!” declares the Lord God.

It matters not how religious we may be, if we continue in iniquity we will be judged for our sins - and we should be! But God doesn’t want us to remain in our sins.

In fact, he tries to help us return to him.

In Amos 4:6, he tells them that the famine they faced was intended by God for their repentance. In verse 7, draught in select places called them to repentance. In verse 9, it was mildew and disease. In verse 10, a plague along with defeat in war were his methods. In verse 11, it was captivity. But look in every verse almost in this section and you’ll see the same refrain over and over again:

“Yet you did not return to me...”

God sought over and over again to restore his people, but time and again they simply refused.

God Seeks to Restore Us But We Refuse

As a result of our refusal, we stand doubly accused and facing certain judgment:

Amos 4:12 ESV

12 “Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel; because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”

What a tragedy this is! It is God who made us and loves us and he seeks to bring us to himself. And how many heartaches has God had to endure because those who should be his refuse to repent of sin? Can you imagine the pits in God’s stomach when a sinner rejects his plea? Can you imagine the utter anguish in his heart over the lost man or woman who never returns to him? It must be more painful than any thorny crown, any lashing, any nails piercing his skin, or any crucifixion. The pain of one rejecting God must make the Father’s heart yearn over that soul! Because God knows what happens when he is rejected:

If We Refuse God, Our Sins Will Destroy Us

Look at Israel’s future in 5:1-3:

Amos 5:1–3 ESV

1 Hear this word that I take up over you in lamentation, O house of Israel: 2 “Fallen, no more to rise, is the virgin Israel; forsaken on her land, with none to raise her up.” 3 For thus says the Lord God: “The city that went out a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which went out a hundred shall have ten left to the house of Israel.”

Devastation and ruin await the one who refuses God. That’s why it hurts the Father so much. God doesn’t want you to perish. God doesn’t want you to face eternal separation from him. God doesn’t want you to be hopeless and lost, unable to find your way. God’s doesn’t want you to have nothing to live for. God wants to give your life, and your eternity, purpose. But when you reject him, when you refuse his offer of forgiveness of sin and restoration of life, you are choosing death.

If we refuse God, our sins will destroy us. But there is hope:

Amos 5:4 ESV

4 For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: “Seek me and live;

Refusing God puts us directly in the firing line of God’s judgment, but repentance of our sins restores us into his life-giving presence.

If We Repent, We Will Live

Hear the words of God: “Seek me and live!” Would you seek God? Would you be willing to search diligently for him? Would you make every effort, stopping at nothing until you had acquired the divine presence?

Then don’t look for him in religion. Amos 5:5 tells us not to look in the religious centers of the day - Bethel and Gilgal and even Beersheba were not the places to find God. We can look in false religion, or even in true religion, and get lost trying to find God. The devotion of external rituals has insufficient room for the Holy God to dwell there.

Don’t look for him in a future time. Amos 5:6-7 give us a picture of urgency in looking for God. We cannot procrastinate searching for God - we must begin immediately and must not rest until we are his and he is ours.

Don’t look for him in a box. The god of our imaginations is often small, with a “neat and tidy” sort of manner about him. He is nice, kind, good, and never speaks with an off-tone or gives a harsh word. He always does things a certain way (often the same way we grew up with), and never requires more sacrifice than is comfortable for us to make. But that’s not the God of Amos 5:8-9. That God isn’t easy to put into a box at all! That’s the God who made stars and galaxies, who turns night into day and back again, who controls the chaotic seas and sends every drop of water on it’s journey, and who brings destruction in a flash. Your box just won’t do for that kind of God!

Don’t look for him in an unjust culture. This gets to verses 14-15:

Amos 5:14–15 ESV

14 Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said. 15 Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.