31. AMOS
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WHEN RELIGION HAS NO RIGHTEOUSNESS
INTRODUCTION
Last week we looked at Joel and Obadiah.
Now we come to the book of Amos.
Amos ministered during one of the most prosperous periods in the history of the northern kingdom of Israel.
The economy was strong.
The borders were secure.
Business was booming.
People were building expensive homes.
Religious services were continuing.
Offerings were being brought.
Songs were being sung.
From the outside, Israel looked blessed.
But God saw something completely different.
Behind the prosperity was pride.
Behind the religion was rebellion.
Behind the wealth was wickedness.
The rich were exploiting the poor.
Justice could be bought.
Merchants were dishonest.
Immorality was widespread.
And worship had become nothing more than empty religious activity.
So God reached down into the little town of Tekoa, called an ordinary working man named Amos, and sent him north with an extraordinary message.
Amos's message was simple:
God is not impressed with religion that does not produce righteousness.
The book of Amos reminds us that God does not merely listen to the songs we sing.
He also watches the lives we live.
I. THE BACKGROUND OF AMOS
I. THE BACKGROUND OF AMOS
A. THE MAN (Te-koa)
“The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa…”
Amos was not a professional prophet.
He did not come from a famous priestly family.
He tells us himself:
“… I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet’s son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit: 15 And the Lord took me as I followed the flock, and the Lord said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.”
Amos was a herdsman or shepherd and a worker with sycamore figs.
The Hebrew expression associated with his work probably refers to tending or dressing sycamore fruit.
He was a working man.
He understood sheep.
He understood fields.
He understood trees.
He understood ordinary life.
Then one day God said:
“Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.”
Amos did not volunteer for the ministry.
God called him into it.
That reminds us:
God does not have to use extraordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things.
God can take an ordinary person who is willing to obey Him and use that person greatly.
B. THE MAP
Amos was from Te-koa.
Tekoa was a small village in the southern kingdom of Judah, approximately 10–12 miles south of Jerusalem and 6 miles south of Bethlehem.
It sat near the edge of the Judean wilderness.
But Amos's primary ministry was not in Judah.
God sent this southern prophet north into Israel.
That is important.
Amos was a man from Judah preaching judgment to the northern kingdom.
One of the major locations in the book is Bethel.
Bethel had become one of the centers of the false worship system established in the northern kingdom.
So imagine Amos leaving the quiet hills around Tekoa and walking north into the prosperous religious centers of Israel.
He was an outsider.
But he had a message from God.
C. THE MONARCHS OF THAT DAY
Amos 1:1 tells us that Amos ministered:
“The words of Amos… which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam…”
This Jeroboam is Jeroboam II.
Amos probably ministered around 760 B.C.
Jeroboam II had brought the northern kingdom into a period of considerable prosperity and political strength.
Israel's borders had expanded.
Trade had increased.
Wealth had increased.
Luxury had increased.
But spirituality had declined.
They were becoming richer materially while becoming poorer spiritually.
That is one of the great warnings of Amos:
Prosperity is not always proof of God's approval.
A person can have more money and less God.
A nation can have a booming economy and a bankrupt soul.
A church can have beautiful buildings and still be spiritually empty.
D. THE EARTHQUAKE
Amos gives us another interesting historical marker.
“… two years before the earthquake.”
Apparently this earthquake became so memorable that people were still talking about it generations later.
Zechariah 14:5 refers back to the earthquake 400 years after it happened :
“… Yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake In the days of Uzziah king …”
So Amos preached shortly before a major event that people would remember for years.
God was warning before judgment came.
And that becomes one of the recurring themes of the book.
God warns before He judges.
II. THE BURDEN OF AMOS
II. THE BURDEN OF AMOS
The central burden of Amos is this:
PRIVILEGE DOES NOT REMOVE RESPONSIBILITY.
Israel thought their relationship with God guaranteed their security.
They were God's covenant people.
They had received God's promises.
They had experienced God's deliverance.
Therefore, they assumed God would never severely judge them.
But listen to:
“You only have I known of all the families of the earth: Therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.”
Notice that word:
“therefore.”
Israel might have expected God to say:
“Because I chose you, I will overlook your sin.”
Instead God said:
“Because I chose you, you are accountable for the truth you have received.”
Their privilege increased their responsibility.
Jesus taught the same principle in:
“… For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required…”
That applies to us.
We have Bibles.
We have preaching.
We have churches.
We have Bible studies.
We have Christian books.
We have access to biblical teaching almost everywhere.
And with greater light comes greater accountability.
III. THE BREAKDOWN OF AMOS
III. THE BREAKDOWN OF AMOS
The book contains 9 chapters.
For our overview, we can divide Amos into four sections.
A. CHAPTERS 1–2 — THE JUDGMENTS
Amos begins by announcing judgment upon the nations surrounding Israel.
Again and again we hear the phrase:
“For three transgressions…and for four…”
Be Concerned 1. Judgment on the Gentile Nations (Amos 1:2–2:3)
Eight times Amos used the phrase “for three transgressions and for four,” a Jewish idiom that means “an indefinite number that has finally come to the end.”
Amos pronounces judgment upon:
Damascus.
Gaza.
Tyrus.
Edom.
Ammon.
Moab.
Then Amos comes closer to home.
Judah.
And finally:
Israel.
You can almost imagine the people of Israel enjoying the first part of Amos's sermon.
“Preach it, Amos!”
“Tell Damascus!”
“Tell Edom!”
“Tell Moab!”
But then Amos turned the sermon around.
Suddenly the finger was pointing toward them.
B. CHAPTERS 3–6 — THE MESSAGES
Three times Amos introduces a major section with the expression:
“Hear this word.”
Amos 3:1
“Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you…”
Amos 4:1
“Hear this word…”
Amos 5:1
“Hear ye this word…”
God was speaking.
Israel was not listening.
1. THEY WOULD NOT RETURN
Amos 4 is especially powerful.
God reminds Israel of repeated circumstances that should have brought them back to Him.
There had been hunger, drought, crop failure, pestilence and military disaster.
But 5 times God says essentially the same thing:
“… Yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the Lord.”
Again in verse 8.
Again in verse 9.
Again in verse 10.
Again in verse 11.
God was saying:
“I tried to get your attention.”… “But you would not return.”
Finally we come to the famous statement:
“Therefore … Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.”
Every warning had been an invitation to return.
But they would not come.
2. THEY HAD RELIGION WITHOUT RIGHTEOUSNESS
Now we come to the heart of Amos.
21 I hate, I despise your feast days, And I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
22 Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: Neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
23 Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; For I will not hear the melody of thy viols.
That is strong language.
They were worshipping.
They were singing.
They were sacrificing.
They were attending religious gatherings.
But God said:
“I will not accept it.”
Why?
Because their worship on the Sabbath did not match their walk during the week.
Then comes our key verse:
But let judgment run down as waters, And righteousness as a mighty stream.
The Hebrew word mishpat carries the idea of justice or right judgment.
God wanted justice.
God wanted righteousness.
God wanted their lives to reflect their worship.
The problem was not that they were singing.
The problem was that their songs had become disconnected from their lives.
God was not condemning genuine worship.
God was condemning hypocritical worship.
Here is the practical lesson:
Our Monday ought to match our Sunday.
We can sing loudly and still treat people badly.
We can carry a Bible and carry bitterness.
We can attend church and ignore people who are hurting.
We can know the language of Christianity without living the life of Christianity.
God wants more than religion.
God wants righteousness.
3. THEY MISUNDERSTOOD THE DAY OF THE LORD
“Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord! To what end is it for you? The day of the Lord is darkness, and not light.”
Israel apparently looked forward to the Day of the LORD.
They imagined:
“God will judge our enemies.”
“God will vindicate us.”
But Amos said:
“You are not ready for the Day of the LORD.”
The Day of the LORD would mean judgment for unrepentant Israel as well.
Religious identity would not substitute for genuine relationship with God.
C. CHAPTERS 7–9:10 — THE VISIONS
Amos now records a series of visions.
1. THE LOCUSTS — AMOS 7:1–3
Amos sees locusts devouring the crops.
Amos cries out to God.
And judgment is withheld.
2. THE FIRE — AMOS 7:4–6
Amos sees consuming fire.
Again he intercedes.
Again judgment is restrained.
These visions reveal something important about Amos.
He preached judgment, but he did not enjoy the thought of people being judged.
He prayed for them.
A preacher can preach strongly against sin and still have a broken heart for sinners.
3. THE PLUMBLINE — AMOS 7:7–9
Amos sees the Lord standing beside a wall with a plumbline.
A plumbline is used to determine whether something is straight.
God was measuring Israel.
And Israel did not line up with God's standard.
Here is the lesson:
God's standard does not move simply because culture moves.
If a wall is crooked, you do not bend the plumbline to match the wall.
The wall must be measured by the line.
God does not adjust His Word to fit society.
Society must be measured by God's Word.
4. THE SUMMER FRUIT — AMOS 8:1–2
Amos sees:
“…a basket of summer fruit.”
There is a fascinating Hebrew wordplay here.
The Hebrew word for summer fruit is qayits.
The Hebrew word for end is qets.
They sound similar.
God shows Amos qayits—ripe summer fruit—and then says:
Amos 8:2
“The end is come upon my people of Israel…”
The picture is this:
Israel was ripe for judgment.
The fruit had reached maturity.
Israel's sin had reached the point where judgment could no longer be delayed.
5. THE LORD AT THE ALTAR — AMOS 9:1–10
The final judgment vision shows that there is nowhere to hide from God.
No mountain is high enough.
No depth is low enough.
No location is distant enough.
God sees everything.
Judgment cannot ultimately be escaped by running from God.
But thankfully:
Amos does not end at Amos 9:10.
The final five verses change the tone of the entire book.
D. AMOS 9:11–15 — THE RESTORATION
After all the judgment, God gives Amos a promise.
“… And I will raise up his ruins, And I will build it as in the days of old:”
The house of David would appear to fall.
Israel would experience judgment.
Jerusalem would eventually suffer destruction.
But God's covenant promises would not fail.
A Son of David was still coming.
Jesus Christ is David's greater Son.
In Acts 15:15–17, James quotes from Amos 9 as he explains that God's saving work among the Gentiles is consistent with His prophetic purposes.
But Amos also ends with very concrete promises concerning Israel.
“And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, And they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them…”
Then:
And I will plant them upon their land, And they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, Saith the Lord thy God.
The book began with judgment.
It ends with restoration.
God had not forgotten Israel.
IV. CHRIST IN AMOS
IV. CHRIST IN AMOS
We can see Christ in several ways.
A. CHRIST IS THE RIGHTEOUS JUDGE
Amos reveals a God who will not overlook sin.
The New Testament tells us:
John 5:22
“For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son.”
Jesus is Savior.
But Jesus is also Judge.
B. CHRIST IS THE MEDIATOR
Amos interceded when he saw judgment coming.
Amos 7:2
“O Lord GOD, forgive, I beseech thee…”
Amos stood praying for people who deserved judgment.
But Jesus does something far greater.
1 Timothy 2:5
“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”
Amos prayed that judgment might be withheld.
Jesus went to Calvary and bore our judgment Himself.
C. CHRIST IS THE COMING KING
Amos 9 promises the restoration of David's fallen house.
That hope is ultimately centered in Jesus Christ.
He is the Son of David.
He is the promised King.
He will reign.
And every promise God has made will ultimately find its fulfillment according to His purpose.
V. CLOSING PRACTICAL LESSONS FROM AMOS
V. CLOSING PRACTICAL LESSONS FROM AMOS
1. PROSPERITY DOES NOT ALWAYS MEAN GOD IS PLEASED
Israel had money.
Israel had success.
Israel had military strength.
But Israel did not have God's approval.
Never judge spiritual health simply by outward circumstances.
2. PRIVILEGE BRINGS RESPONSIBILITY
Israel had received tremendous truth.
Therefore Israel had tremendous accountability.
The more God gives us, the more responsible we are for what we do with it.
3. WORSHIP AND WALK MUST AGREE
This may be the greatest practical lesson in Amos.
God wants more than our songs.
God wants our surrender.
He wants more than church attendance.
He wants changed lives.
Praise must be accompanied by practice.
4. GOD CARES HOW WE TREAT PEOPLE
The poor were being oppressed.
Justice was being corrupted.
People were being used for financial gain.
And God saw every bit of it.
True spirituality affects the way we treat our neighbor.
5. GOD'S WARNINGS ARE ACTS OF MERCY
Again and again God said:
“…yet have ye not returned unto me…”
Every warning was another opportunity to repent.
God warns because He desires people to return.
6. GOD'S PROMISES WILL NOT FAIL
Amos ends with restoration.
Judgment did not erase God's promises.
Israel's unfaithfulness did not make God unfaithful.
God will accomplish everything He has promised.
