Week 44 - Amos 1 Strap on Your Sandals and Let’s Go.

‌GENEROSITY

THANK YOU…for your generosity!

SCRIPTURE:

John 14:15 NLT

15 “If you love me, obey my commandments.

UPDATE

Cafe Hope at 10am on Sundays, isn’t about unlocking the doors. It’s about opening the doors of your hearts to Invite Invite Invite. Thus engaging with people throughout the week.

Where can you go for a free cup of coffee with a friend?

Hispanic Church Today at 2pm

Finance Small Group Part 3 has Kicked off. It is each Wednesday at 6pm!

It’s a shared light meal, video, and discussion to find God’s passion in a culture of lies and deception when it comes to finances.

COMING FRIDAY NOVEMBER 1st HARVEST FEST HERE AT CORNERSTONE

NEED candy, booths with games, food, and lots of smiles!!

Sign up TODAY and WHERE YOU WANT TO SERVE!!

END TO DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME Is next Saturday night. Fall back two hours.

COMING Thursday November 14 at 6pm is “The Sound of Hope”

Angel studios presents right here at Cornerstone—the story of Possum Trot, a town in south east Texas

Current Bible Series: Unqualified: Still Loved

a walk through Joel and Amos to rend our hearts and turn or run to God.

LESSON: INTRO

The Bible presents story after story that centers around people’s interactions with God and their response to God’s call on their lives.

Studying a person from the Bible can be an extremely meaningful way to gain insight about God and his relationship with humanity.

Sometimes those people are models of godly living that we should aspire to emulate. Other times people’s behavior and attitude toward God reveal the fallenness of the world and the negative effects sin can have on our lives.

TRANSITION

Similar to that of Hosea and Joel…Amos was “Unqualified: But Loved by God.”

Amos was not Qualified, but like the old adage—“God qualifies the unqualified.”

LIKE YOU AND ME!

So, Who is Amos?

A herdsman and farmer who cared for fig trees. (1:1; 7:14) in the town of Tekoa, located in the southern Judah during the divided kingdom (1 Kings 12). The meaning of his name is similar to the meaning of the name Wayne-- Amos, means “burden” or “burden bearer,

Amos is not mentioned by name in any other books of the Bible, but his work is quoted twice in the New Testament, once by Stephen (Acts 7:42–43concerning Amos 5:25-27) and once by James (Acts 15:15–17 concerning Amos 9:11-12).

The Northern Kingdom of Israel

Jeroboam II ruled. He was a tremendous military leader. BUT A TERRIBLE KING… his wealth poisoned his leadership. People turned towards apathy and idolatry—the worship of other gods.

Amos had had it!!!

He was sent to the people of Samaria, to bring them back to God by repentance, and reformation of their manners as he felt God calling him to go to the temple in Bethel and speak God’s words…

Amos pronounces judgment and destruction against the Syrians, Philistines, Tyrians, and other enemies of the Jews, then it concludes with comfortable promises of the restoration of the tabernacle of David, and the establishment of the kingdom of Christ.

His presentation is one of sermons, poems, and visions—that are not just good for those in Israel—but for today!

CHAPTER SUMMARY

Chapter 1-2 summary—Messages to the Nations and Israel

‌ The Lord will punish the Nations

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Chapter 3-6 summary—Poems & Messages to Israel and it’s Leaders

‌The Lord will punish Israel—but is that what God wants? No!

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Chapter 7-9 summary of Visions that depict God’s coming judgment on Israel

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The Lord will shake the house of Israel

Yet, God WILL RESTORE HIS PEOPLE!

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CHAPTER DETAILS

Chapter 1-2

Amos is to speak against Israel and that the Lord will punish Damascus.

Yet, Amos’ accusations don’t just include Israel, but against the Nations…

He declares that God will Punish the remnant of Philistines, Tyre, Edon, and Ammon.

‌Looking at a map it is like drawing rings of a target with Israel right in the middle of the cross-hairs.

When he gets to accusations against Israel—it is three times longer than all of the rest.

He accuses the Wealthy of ignoring the poor.

By allowing the poor to be sold into debt slavery

And denying these people legal representation.

He recalls that this shouldn’t be, because Israel should remember what it was like to not have legal representation and just--thus winding up in bondage in Egypt.

The very one’s that God rescued from slavery

THE PARTY IS OVER!

Next week we will see the heart of God as he reminds Israel—“I hose you, Israel from among all the families of the earth referring to Genesis 12.

LESSONS FROM AMOS

Though Amos ministered to Israel and delivered a specific message for a specific time in its history, there are several things we can learn from his life, message, and ministry that are applicable even today.

1. God Calls and Commissions Ordinary Individuals[i]

Nothing about Amos’ vocation as a shepherd and farmer would have marked him as one suited to carry the mantel of prophet. In fact, the resume of Amos leading up to his divine commission would have been remarkable only in how unremarkable it all looked on paper.

And yet, in His sovereignty and grace, God chose a shepherd and farmer to be His prophet and mouthpiece to the nation.

Amos is not the only example in Scripture where God used an ordinary individual and common laborer to do His work. What is important to remember, however, is that Amos was not called because of his qualifications. In His grace, God called Amos, Amos accepted the call, and God prepared Him for what was to come.

EXAMPLES: Moses, Abraham, King David, Peter and Saul, Gideon,

In doing so, the ministry of Amos demonstrates how, as the apostle Paul would later write, “God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong.” (1 Corinthians 1:27).

2. The Burden of a Divine Calling Cannot Be Easily Ignored

In receiving the call to prophesy to the northern kingdom, Amos could have chosen to stay home to tend his fig trees and care for his sheep. A simple farmer’s life would have been, at the very least, a much easier life than that of a prophet called to deliver bad news and a stern warning to an obstinate king and unrepentant people.

Heeding the call from God was not going to win Amos many friends in the north. In fact, there was a good chance his ministry could have gotten him thrown in jail or worse, killed.

Amos could have fallen back on his lack of qualifications as a reason why he was not the right man for the job. Instead, he strapped on his sandals, picked up his staff, and ventured north, trusting that God would provide for his needs and give him the words to say when it mattered most.

As Amos writes, “the Lord took me from following the flock and the Lord said to me, ‘go prophesy to My people Israel” (Amos 7:15). Accordingly, Amos saw any assignment that came from God as the highest of callings, not because of what it entailed, but because of who it came from. It was not a calling Amos could easily ignore, and he wisely chose not to.

WHO ARE YOU?

God has called you. His Spirit rests upon you.

No you may not be the mouthpiece to the nation, but who you are and what you do is of God.

ARE YOU QUALIFIED?

Most likely you are not qualified, but you are loved.

God cares about you and wants each of us to strap on our sandals, picked up our staff, and venture into the territory that we live to be His representatives to care the Good News of Jesus to all we come in contact with each day.

RESOURCE

[i] Crosswalk, https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/bible-study/who-is-amos-in-the-bible.html5 Lessons We Can Learn from Amos in the Bible