First Wednesday in Lent

Upside down. That was my position in high school gym class, as I hung from a thick rope attached to the rafters at least thirty-feet high on one end, while my foot was attached to rope several feet below. I had to, somehow, get myself right-side up and climb the rope to the top. Once at the top, the goal was to touch the steel rafter before I slid down the rope to the gym floor. I did touch the rafter by the way.

This experiences reminds me of the day I was grammatically, linguistically, and morphologically upside down when I first heard the phrase, “Niphal participle,” as I sat one evening in class learning Biblical Hebrew. Not only do the Hebrew speaking people have strange sounding phrases that meant absolutely nothing to me, the language is backwards; you must read it from right to left.

Upside Down

We Know the Feeling

Upside down. You know the feeling—on a roller coaster, or connected to a bungee cord, or trying to raise teenagers!

Amos certainly knew the feeling, because God’s program in his book is to capsize, invert, overturn, and upend everything.

Amos 1:3–2:6 Turns Israel Upside Down

An example of the prophet’s inversion is in Amos 1:3–2:16, which consists of a series of oracles against nations.

Whether in a warfare, public lamentation, court, or worship setting, oracles against nations always boded well for Israel—before Amos.

For example, in 1 Samuel 15:2–3 and 1 Kings 20:26–30, the prophetic proclamation against the enemy is matched with a specific promise of victory for Israel.

But Amos inverts this genre and adapts it for his own purpose to make a stinging accusation against Israel’s elite.

From Amos 1:3 through 2:5, the prophet’s audience, in all likelihood, cheered and applauded after each neighboring nation was condemned.

“Great preacher, this Amos,” was the mantra of the moment.

The sermon builds to a climax as three, four, five nations are placed under divine fire. With the judgment pointing to Judah (Amos 2:4–5), the number reaches seven.

The people could then safely assume that the sermon had ended and go home saying, “All’s well that ends well!” It was probably time for the benediction, a general dismissal, and then the normal post-service discussion about the weather and events of the week.

But Amos was not done preaching. The Lion was still roaring (cf. Amos 1:2; 3:8; 5:19). God’s wrath was about to fall upon Israel.

The oracle against Israel (Amos 2:6–16) came as a shocking surprise.

Amos 2:6-16 “This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins of Israel, because of four, I will not hold back judgment, because they sell the righteous for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals.

7 They trample the heads of the poor into the dust of the earth, and they turn aside the claims of the oppressed. A man and his father go to the same young woman. In this way they profane my holy name.

8 They stretch themselves out beside every altar on pieces of clothing they seized as collateral. In the temple of their gods they drink wine obtained through fines.

9 I was the one who destroyed the Amorites in front of them, the Amorites, who were as tall as cedars, who were as strong as oaks. I destroyed their fruit above and their roots below.

10 I myself brought you up from the land of Egypt, and I led you in the wilderness for forty years, so that you would take possession of the land of the Amorites.

11 I raised up some of your sons to be prophets, and some of your best young men to be Nazirites. Is this not so, you people of Israel? declares the Lord.

12 But you made the Nazirites drink wine, and you commanded the prophets, “You must not prophesy!”

13 Look, I am weighed down under you, just as a cart is weighed down when it is loaded with sheaves of grain.

14 There will be no escape for the swift runner. The powerful man will not be able to exert his strength, and the strong warrior will not be able to save his own life.

15 The archer will not stand his ground. The swift runner will not save himself, and the horseman will not save his own life.

16 The most courageous among the warriors will flee naked on that day, declares the Lord.

There are seven oracles, beginning with Damascus (1:3–5) and ending with Judah (2:4–5). Seven is a number commonly used in the Bible to denote completeness, making this eighth oracle unexpected.

Little did the Israelite audience know that the prophet’s analysis of the crimes of the nations was in reality a noose that was getting ready to tighten around its neck!

The first seven oracles were small sparks of fire when compared to the mighty blaze that fell upon the leadership of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Amos upsets the equilibrium of those in his audience who were embracing the belief, “Come weal, come woe; our status is quo.”

The prophet lived and preached in such a way that the monarchy, the temple, the covenants, the land, and the state were all turned inside out and upside down.

And in a masterful way, Amos uses Gospel to Announce Law

One of Amos’s most unsettling statements comes in Amos 3:1–2.

He begins this section with the words, “Hear this word that the Lord has spoken concerning you, O children of Israel, concerning the entire clan which I brought up from Egypt, saying. . . . ”

The prophet’s audience might have concluded that the exodus was a sign of God’s ongoing and eternal favor (e.g., Numbers 24:8; Judges 6:13; 1 Kings 8:51–51); it forever guaranteed Israel’s “favored nation status” before the Lord.

In the next verse, however, Amos flatly contradicts these expectations.

He quotes God as saying, “You alone have I chosen from all the clans of the earth. Therefore I will inflict punishment on you for all your guilt.” (Amos 3:2).

Just as Amos shocked his unwary audience with the Israel oracle (2:6–16), so again he overturns expectations by using Gospel events to announce Law.

The problem of the people of Israel, including all humanity, is our inability or refusal to understand Original Sin. We see it as just a problem, or a blemish. When in reality, original sin does not describe what we do, but instead, describes who we are. It damns and brings eternal destruction. It has infected every man, woman, and child. No fear of God. No love for our neighbor.

If we looked closely, it would be like looking at the life of an addict.

Addictions

Monkeys and Cocaine

Several years ago a scientist did an experiment where he made cocaine available to monkeys. They would pull a lever, and a feeding tray would give them a hit of cocaine. Soon the monkeys got addicted to the cocaine. These were happy monkeys!

But then the scientist began to withhold the next fix. How many consecutive times do you think the average monkey would pull that lever to get the next fix? 12,800 times. Over and over and over and over again, “Gotta have it, gotta have it, gotta have it!”

People and Sin

This describes the affect of Original Sin on humanity. It is like we are addicted to sin. Gossip, anger, worry, laziness, excuses selfishness. You name it; it has us. We cannot break free.

Over and over and over and over again we scream, “Gotta have it, gotta have it, gotta have it!”

We think it is all about behavior, and if we can just somehow modify our behavior, we can be free. But it is a lie. Our church fathers called it, concupiscence.

Modern humanity links concupiscence to a strong sexual appetite. They would be wrong.

In reality, concupiscence

Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions (Article II: Original Sin)

1 Our churches teach that since the fall of Adam [Romans 5:12], all who are naturally born are born with sin [Psalm 51:5], that is, without the fear of God, without trust in God, and with the inclination to sin, called concupiscence. 2Concupiscence is a disease and original vice that is truly sin. It damns and brings eternal death on those who are not born anew through Baptism and the Holy Spirit [John 3:5].

The Swiss reformer, John Calvin, calls it total depravity.

In Confirmation Class, when studying the Apostles’ Creed we learn the following: “I believe, that I cannot by my own reason or strength, believe in Jesus Christ my Lord, or come to him, but the Holy Spirit calls me by the gospel...”

Unless we Repent and turn from our lack of fear, love, and trust in God, the message Amos preached will be spoken to us as well.

God, therefore, also says this to us. “You alone have I chosen from all the clans of the earth. Therefore I will inflict punishment on you for all your guilt.” (Amos 3:2).

The Greater Prophet

This Prophet, greater than Amos, Lived the Upside Down Life

Thank God that we are not left with Amos. There is Greater Prophet is more than a prophet, and because of Him, we have hope despite our willful rebellion, and total depravity.

St. Paul says this about Him, Philippians 2:6-7 “Though he was by nature God, he did not consider equality with God as a prize to be displayed, but he emptied himself by taking the nature of a servant. When he was born in human likeness, and his appearance was like that of any other man.”

Luther put it like this in one of his grand hymns:

His royal pow’r

disguised He bore;

A servant’s form,

like mine, He wore”

(LSB 556:6).

Paul continues, “He humbled Himself and became obedient to death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8).

Even the best advertising agencies in the world would be hard pressed for a catchy jingle. “Lose it all. Imagine the possibilities!”

Talk about upside down!

This Greater Prophet is also Omnipotent. As the owner of all things, He says, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head” (Matthew 8:20). Think on some of these things, for a moment:

The King of kings, He becomes a slave.

The Creator, He is spit on by His creatures.

The source of truth, He is found guilty of a lie.

The source of light, for three hours He hangs in the darkness.

The source of life, He is crucified, dead, and buried.

Jesus went from the pinnacle of praise in the universe to the ultimate absolute nothing. “He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to Him; nothing in His appearance that we should desire Him” (Isaiah 53:2).

He Loves Us with an Upside Down Love

As the Lord of Inversion,

He chose fishermen instead of Pharisees,

He chose sinners instead of Sadducees,

He chose whores instead of Herodians.

Jesus chose thorns for His crown instead of silver and gold, and

spit and blood instead of sweetness and light.

His choices led to torment and torture and darkness and death.

Jesus experienced all the judgment of the Father, for the total depravity of all the world, all the sins, including yours and mine.

Baptized into His kingdom

our lives are now inside out and completely upside down.

Once we were lost, but now we are found.

Once we were blind, but now we see.

And once we were dead, but now we are alive!

Amos knows all about this upside down life.

He writes in Amos 3:8 “The Lion has roared! Who can avoid being terrified? The Lord God has spoken! Who can hold back from prophesying?”

Amos dared to speak up about the wretched state of affairs in his country, and he did this regardless of the consequences for himself or for anyone else.

As God’s chosen and elect, loved and forgiven sinners, we are also empowered to live in such a way that what the Thessalonians said about Paul and Silas will be said of us. “These men who have turned the world upside down have also come here” (Acts 17:6).

Amen.