Amos...Even in Judgement and Consequence, God Still Loves Us!

This world desperately tries to paint our Lord as a God of love alone. He is also the God who will bring judgement on this earth. While He is most certainly LOVE, He is also the omnipotent God of justice.

The Judgement of An Angry God

Amos 9:1–10 (MEV)

I saw the Lord standing upon the altar, and He said:

Strike the capitals

so that the thresholds shake;

break them off onto the heads of all of them.

Those who remain I will slay with the sword.

Not one of them will get away;

not one fugitive will survive.

Though they dig down to Sheol,

from there My hand will capture them;

though they climb up to the heavens,

from there I will bring them down;

though they hide on the top of Carmel,

from there I will search and catch them;

though they hide from My sight on the bottom of the sea,

from there will I command the serpent to bite them;

and though they go into captivity before their enemies,

from there will I command the sword to slay them.

I will set My eyes upon them

for evil and not for good.

The Lord God of Hosts,

He who touches the earth and it melts,

and all who live on it mourn;

it all rises up like the Nile,

and subsides like the river of Egypt;

who builds His chambers in the heavens,

and founds His vault over the earth;

who summons the waters of the sea,

and pours them out upon the surface of the earth—

the Lord is His name.

Are you not like the Ethiopians to Me,

O children of Israel?

says the Lord.

Did I not bring Israel up from the land of Egypt,

but also the Philistines from Caphtor,

and the Arameans from Kir?

The eyes of the Lord God

are upon the sinful kingdom,

and I will destroy it

from off the face of the earth,

though I will not completely destroy

the house of Jacob,

says the Lord.

See, I am giving the command,

and I will sift the house of Israel

among all the nations,

as one sifts with a sieve,

and not a pebble falls to the ground.

All the sinners of My people

will die by the sword,

those who say,

“Never will disaster reach or overtake us.”

Usually, when the Lord is standing at the Alter we think of annointing, blessing, presence, just all around good things. We sing songs about such an event. We almost never think of what Amos saw, an angry God announcing judgement on the people. A side of the Lord that none of us ever hope to see.

Hypocricy, the Worst Place To Be

Israel was famous for their hypocricy. They would say one thing and do another. At some point the Lord just gets tired of it. This is exactly where Israel found themselves. Believe me, it can and does happen to us today when we’re disobedient.

Amos 8:11–12 (MEV)

The time is coming, says the Lord God,

when I will send a famine on the land,

not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water,

but of hearing the words of the Lord.

They will wander from sea to sea,

and from north to east;

they will run back and forth to seek the word of the Lord,

but they will not find it.

The worst place to be is, when He lets us have what we want. He says, they will seek my Word and not find it. They will listen for My voice and not hear it. They will finally have all that they want. This world and all of its tragedies and struggles will be their prize.

Romans 1:18–32 (MEV)

The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth through unrighteousness. For what may be known about God is clear to them since God has shown it to them. The invisible things about Him—His eternal power and deity—have been clearly seen since the creation of the world and are understood by the things that are made, so that they are without excuse.

Because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him or give thanks to Him as God, but became futile in their imaginations, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools. They changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man, birds, four-footed beasts, and creeping things.

Therefore God gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their own bodies among themselves. They turned the truth of God into a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. Their women exchanged the natural function for what is against nature. Likewise the men, leaving the natural function of the woman, burned in their lust toward one another, men with men doing that which is shameful, and receiving in themselves the due penalty of their error.

And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not proper. They were filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, proud, boastful, inventors of evil things, and disobedient toward parents, without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, calloused, and unmerciful, who know the righteous requirement of God, that those who commit such things are worthy of death. They not only do them, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.

This is where Israel would often find themselves, and I fear this is where we find ourselves today. It feels like a clear discription of the world that you and I are living in today.

Why Would He Allow This

A part of the judgement of sin is the consequence. Sin will ultimately bring death. I believe that the greater reason is to open our eyes. We don’t often recognize our need for salvation and change unless we first hit bottom. The truth is that we are in desperate need of mercy, forgiveness, salvation and a right standing with God! Sometimes, He will just get out of the way and let us experience the consequences of our actions. Not because He hates us, but because He loves us.

Amos 9:11–15 (MEV)

On that day will I raise up

the hut of David that is fallen;

I will close up its breached walls,

raise up its ruins,

and rebuild it as in the days of old;

that they may possess the remnant of Edom,

and of all the nations called by My name,

says the Lord who will do this.

Indeed, the days are coming, says the Lord,

when the plowman will overtake the one who is reaping,

and the treader of grapes the one who is sowing the seed;

the mountains will drip sweet wine,

and all the hills will flow with it.

I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel;

they will rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them;

they will plant vineyards and drink their wine;

they will make gardens and eat their fruit.

I will plant them upon their land,

and no more will they be uprooted

out of their land which I have given them.

The Lord your God has spoken.

On this side of heaven we may experience some judgement and consequences of our sinfulness. Because of His great love for us, He longs for us to return home to Him. As long as there’s breath in your lungs, it’s not to late! Thank God for mercy and forgiveness.