Calling the Nations to Account

so I wonder what do we know about Amos

anything

migrant worker love that

very contemporary Alistair what else

any images when we say Amos

a plumb line good that's probably the most famous

anything else

a shepherd

look at that today

well it's really good you all turned up because we're going to learn many wonderful

things

so if the minor prophets are like

glamping in sky Amos is a bit like Cote Bridge

it's a town

Amos is like a town but it's not a very nice town

kind of like Cote Bridge

if you're from Cote Bridge we can talk afterwards and you can hit me

it's a bit dark it's very rough

it's quite dangerous

but if you've ever been to Cote Bridge there's one building in Cote Bridge that stands out and it's called the time capsule

and it's the most fun swimming pool you've ever been to in your life

and so as we go through Amos

we're going to see lots of dark and rough things but there's going to be

when we finish there's going to be one

amazing gleaming building that we'll forever remember

the problem is we have to wait till chapter 9

before we get introduced to it

so I'm going to act like a tour guide

we're going to stroll through the town of Amos

and we're going to learn some wonderful things

last thing is introduction

there's a combination code

to Amos

and the combination code is

8351

perhaps we could all say that together

8351

and the reason that unlocks Amos

is because it's the

what happens in the book

so there's 8 oracles of judgment

3 sermons of rebuke

5 visions of judgment

and 1 oracle of salvation

that's the time capsule at the end

8 oracles of judgment

3 sermons of rebuke

5 visions of judgment

1 oracle of salvation

8351

ok

should have found Amos by now

it's not one that we go to often

so I thought I'd give you a little bit of time

to save your embarrassment

and so Amos chapter 1 verse 1 says this

Amos 1:1

the words of Amos

one of the shepherds of Tekoa

the vision he saw concerning Israel

two years before the earthquake

when Uzziah was king of Judah

and Jeroboam son of Jehoash

was king of Israel

he said

the Lord roars from Zion

and thunders from Jerusalem

the pastures of the shepherds dry up

and the top of Carmel withers

so we're introduced to this guy Amos

and Amos is a shepherd

he looks after sheep

in 714 of the book

we learn that he also looks after

sycamore fig trees

so he's kind of like a mixed farmer

a bit of sheep

a bit of trees

and actually

that frames this book really well

because so much of Amos

uses images of farming

there's so many pictures in it

that for a farmer

these would be day in day out

kind of things

and we're going to see those

as we go through

and I love that

because God is delivering his truth to Israel

through Amos who is a farmer

and it is God's truth through personality

Amos knows agriculture

and the message that comes is God's message

but through his personality

using a lot of this agriculture language

and Amos is a southerner

he's from this place called Tekoa

which is down in the southeast

near Bethlehem

and so he's in the south

that if you remember in 2 Kings 12

the kingdom splits

Rehoboam becomes the king of Judah

Solomon's son

but the ten northern tribes go off with

Jeroboam son of Nebat

and so Amos is a southerner

from the south

from Tekoa

near Bethlehem

but he's delivering his message

primarily to Israel

and therefore as Alistair said

he is a migrant worker

he is in a very real sense

a missionary

who's gone to deliver God's message

in a foreign country

Amos is written we think

and it's quite easy to date

because we've got very clear instructions

the vision he saw concerning Israel

two years before the earthquake

when Uzziah was king of Judah

and Jeroboam was son of Jehoash

and so we can date it about 760 AD

Amos is very rarely a contemporary of Isaiah

and this time of

the time this message is delivered to Israel

life in Israel is great

they are having a good time

they are flourishing

they are prospering

they win a victory against the Edomites

where 10,000 Edomites are killed

in the Valley of Salt

they've won some skirmishes against Judah

who they don't get on with anymore

so they have some pitched battles

and

Israel comes out on top

they even have a foray into Jerusalem

and manage to steal the temple articles

the boundaries of Israel are expanded

and so life in Israel is good

they are really flourishing

they are really on it

all is seemingly well with the world

and it's in this backdrop

that a lone prophet

from the southern kingdom

rides into town and starts to speak

look at verse 2

what he says

the Lord roars from Zion

and thunders

from Jerusalem

that's a tough message to bring

to the northern kingdom

because they've rejected Jerusalem

as the nation's capital

as Jeroboam sets up

golden calves in Dan and Bethel

in some attempt at statecraft

to diminish Jerusalem's influence

on the nation

and look what it says

that the Lord roars from Zion

the language of a lion

and when he roars

look what happens

the pastures dry up

the top of caramel withers

if you're a shepherd

the absolute worst thing

that could ever happen to you

is that the pastures dry up

and the foliage on top of caramel withers

that'd be the worst thing

your job basically as a shepherd

is to keep your sheep healthy

safe

and plump

and to keep them plump

you need good pasture

but the Lord roars

from Zion

and we learn

don't we

that God

through Amos

who is

declaring the roars of God

and the thunders of God

he is

ruling

and acting

in history

he's decided

that it's time

to intervene

in Israel's life

and so we have a God

who rules

and acts

in history

and a God

who speaks

and communicates

he doesn't sit

at the corner

of the universe

in a deck chair

drinking a pina colada

and let people

get on with it

he's intimately

interested

in the affairs

of the world

he created

and owns

and governs

sovereignly

and notice

that God

roars

this is not

God

coming

to put his

hand

put his

arm

around

Israel's

shoulder

and say

well done

you're being

very good

and you're

flourishing

as a result

God is roaring

this God

is to be

feared

as we read

through Amos

we're going to see

they're incredibly

complacent

and so God

roars

to shake

them

and wake

them out

of their

complacency

and God

roaring

is a good

thing

God

roaring

is a good

thing

that actually

when a lion

roars

it's warning

you

says this is

my territory

don't come

any closer

it's far

more dangerous

when a lion

is prowling

than it's

when the lion

prowls

that it

sneaks up

so the

fact that

God is

roaring

is a real

warning

to Israel

because God

is kind

and he's

trying to

influence

their lives

and though this

book is

majoritively

dark

it's good

that they

know these

things

that he's

giving them

a chance

to change

a chance

to move

the worst

thing

that could

happen

is if

God

stopped

speaking

if God

gave up

communicating

with his

people

and just

left them

to their

own

devices

sadly

we're going

to see

that that

does actually

happen

in Amos

in Amos

Amos 8:8

chapter 8

verse 8

God says

there's going

to be a

famine

of the word

of God

as he

stops

speaking

but right

now in

Amos 1

he is

roaring

at his

people

and so

we have

a farming

prophet

who speaks

on behalf

of the

sovereign

lord

who is

roaring

let me

read verse

3 onwards

this is what

the lord

says

for three

sins of

Damascus

even for

four I

will not

relent

because she

threshed

Gilead

with sledges

having iron

teeth

I will

send fire

on the

house

of

Hazael

that will

consume

the

fortresses

of

Ben-Hadad

I will

break down

the gate

of Damascus

I will

destroy

the king

who is

in the

valley

of

Avon

and the

one who

holds

the scepter

in Beth

Eden

the people

of Aram

will go

into exile

to

Ker

then drop

down with

me to

verse 13

this is what

the lord

says

for three

sins of

Ammon

even for

four I

will not

relent

because he

ripped open

the pregnant

woman in

Gilead

in order to

extend his

borders

I will

set fire

to the

walls of

Rabbah

that will

consume her

fortresses

amid war

cries on the

day of

battle

amid violent

winds on a

stormy day

her king

will go

into exile

he and his

officials

together

says the

lord

look with

me at

verse 4

of chapter

2

this is what

the lord

says

for three

sins of

Judah

even for

four I

will not

relent

because they

have rejected

the law

of the

lord and

have not

kept his

decrees

because they

have been

led astray

by false

gods

the gods

their ancestors

followed I

will send

fire on

Jerusalem

on Judah

that will

consume the

fortresses

of Jerusalem

this is the

best sermon

that the people

of Israel have

ever heard

they are

loving this

as he

speaks

they are

going

amos

amos

amos

guy at

the back

two hands

in the air

preach it

brother

let us

have it

amen

there is a

few Scottish

people in

so there is

just that

really edifying

mmm

and these

seven oracles

follow a

really standard

form

he says

thus says

the lord

this is

god

speaking

this is

amos

as god's

prophetic

mouthpiece

and then we

get the

standard form

for three

sins

even for

four

for three

sins

even for

four

this is a

hebrew idiom

talking about

completeness

that god says

you have

completely

sinned

your sin

is now

full

so i tried

this this week

as i did the

grocery shopping

in our house

aileen said

did you get

everything i

said for

three groceries

even for

four and

she didn't

get it and

thought i was

even weirder

than normal

and so god

says i've

looked and

i've seen that

their sins are

full they're full

of sin and

all these places

all seven of

these nations

are the

surrounding

districts the

enemies of

israel this is

the best news

they've ever

hurt

all these

people that

have inflicted

damage on

them over

the years

who have

caused them

pain and

anguish

who have

had pitch

battles against

them

god says i'm

going to judge

them because

their sin is

full

and look what

he says i will

not relent

every time for

three sins of

god's even for

four i will

not relent

for three sins

of tyer even

for four i will

not relent there's

going to be no

ninevite reprieve

for these nations

and then he

brings charges

against them

and i'm sure as

we read some of

these charges are

abominable

the damascus has

massacred the

people of gilead

he's they've

massacred them

like a combine

harvester going

through them and

just cutting them

down

the people of

gaza have done

wholesale slave

trading

they've taken

captives and

passed them on

to edom in

some

abominable

way

the people of

tyre have

become human

traffickers

even selling

their own

brothers by

breaking treaties

that were made

edom

disproportionate

anger

slaughter of

women and

slaying people

people that

back in the

day were

related to

them the

edomites

being

esau's

descendants

the red

ones if you

like and

then these two

tribes amon and

moab amon and

moab the

incestuous

offspring of

lots two

daughters from

genesis 19

and amon and

moab who have

graphic

horrendously

graphic

butchering pregnant

women and

cutting out their

unborn children in

the name of

expansion

and moab who

have desecrated a

royal corpse which

is an abomination in

the ancient world

and then see verse

four even judah

even judah's come

under the radar

of god for

their idolatry

their gross

idolatry

because they have

rejected the

law of the lord

and have not kept

his decrees

because they have

led astray

they have been led

astray by false

gods the gods

their ancestors

followed

just catalogs the

sins of these

nations

and israel is

loving amos

right now

he can't get

enough of it

he's going to get

a cover piece on

israel magazine

he's got 10,000

twitter followers

overnight

he's now got a

limo and an

entourage he's been

given keys to the

city

best guy they've

ever heard preach

he says god's seen

it all

he's heard it all

he knows it all

and he's going to

judge it all

and this god who

sees this

so comforting

that he sees

our world as

well as we

prayed so many

people picking

out that the

world is very

chaotic

and god sees

it all

and he's no

less inclined to

judge it

he's not stopped

keeping score

and taking

account of

the sins of

the world

and that's so

good

because nothing's

happening under

god's radar

nothing

do you know we

see the news all

the time we wake

up to sky news in

my house every day

and it's horrendous

and we get numb to

it numb to

injustice

another school

shooting this week

you think well i've

seen lots of those

before and we start

to become very hard

to it

and yet this

passage comforts

us because it

says our god

sees and

knows

and if this

temporal judgment

is certain

then eternal

judgment where

god will call to

account all

sin

all wickedness

all bloodshed

all needless

violence

all oppression

then we can

have real

comfort that

our god

knows

and so when

we pray god

this world

is in chaos

we can thank

him that it

won't go

unaccounted

for

israel's

loving amos

right now

he's had

10 000

youtube

views

by the time

we get to

chapter 2

verse 5

but chapter

2 verse 6

everything changes

so we had a

farming prophet

we then had a

fantastic prophecy

that israel was

loving now we're

going to have a

frightening

prophecy chapter

2 6 to 16

and so the

auditorium is full

we love

amos t-shirts

are emblazoned

on everyone's

chest

there's been a

fervent prayer

meeting in the

auditorium for

amos's next

speech

and as he takes

the stage

there's hushed

silence

and this is

what amos

says

this is

what the

lord says

for three

sins of

israel

even for

four i will

not relent

they sell the

innocent for

silver and the

needy for a

pair of

sun

they trample

on the heads

of the poor

as on the

dust of the

ground and

deny justice

to the

oppressed

father and

son use the

same girl

and so profane

my holy name

they lie down

beside every

altar on

garments taken

in pledge

in the house

of their god

they drink

wine taken

as fines

yet i destroyed

the amorites

before them

though they

were tall as

the cedars

and strong

as the oaks

i destroyed

their fruit

above

and their

root below

i brought you

up out of

egypt and led

you for 40

years in the

wilderness

to give you

the land

of the

amorites

i also

raised up

prophets from

among your

children and

nazarites from

among your

youths

is this not

true people

of israel

declares the

lord

but you

made the

nazarites

drink wine

and commanded

the prophets

not to

prophesy

now then

i will

crush you

as a cart

crushes when

loaded with

grain

the swift

will not

escape the

strong will

not muster

their strength

and the

warrior will

not save

his life

the archer

will not

stand his

ground

the fleet

footed soldier

will not

get away

and the

horseman

will not

save his

life

even the

bravest

warriors will

flee naked

on that

day

and as

amos delivers

this there's

gasps

there's

faints

there's

crying

because it

seems that

god has

left the

vilest

offender

till

last

the

other

seven

were

just

the

prawn

cocktail

before

the

steak

and

ale

pie

as

amos

delivers

the

thunderbolt

of god

right in

the

midst

of a

people

who have

a

catalogue

of crimes

before

them

it is a

sweeping

accusation

there's

perverted

justice

they sell

innocence

for silver

and they're

needy for

a pair

of sandals

human

life is

nothing

and those

that are at

the bottom

of the

food chain

are picked

off by

those at

the top

they trample

on the

poor

they deny

justice

to the

oppressed

this is a

civilization

that has

disintegrated

with perverted

justice

not only

that but

there is

sexual

immorality

the end

of verse

seven

father and

son use

the same

girl

and so

profane

my name

this idea

that sex

is just

a thing

and the

girls are

just to

be used

and so

even father

and son

are indulging

with the

same

person

they

disadvantage

the unfortunate

they lie

down besides

every altar

on garments

taken in

pledge

it says

in the

the law

of Moses

that you

can take

a garment

as a

pledge

if you're

in debt

but you

must give

it back

by nightfall

so people

aren't cold

when they're

asleep

it's a

really good

law

that those

who are

right at

the down

at the

bottom

are not

in this

downward

spiral

and look

what they

do

the people

that have

taken the

garment

on pledge

keep

it

for the

night

and they

use it

as a

mattress

but not

just in

their own

home

beside the

altar

of God

and they

take

fines

that are

supposed to

be used

for the

restitution

of people

who have

got it

wrong

but what

do they

do

they go

to

thresher

and odd

bins

and they

buy a lot

of wine

and they

drink it

in the

house

of their

gods

and it's

perpetuated

by the

most powerful

people

the people

at the

top

abusing

the little

ones

at the

bottom

and the

dogs

with the

biggest

teeth

are eating

the biggest

dinners

they're

violating

God's

holiness

they're

saying

his

law

it's

nothing

to us

we can

just

trample

over

it

and they

perform

sacrilege

because even

in God's

special

symbolic

places

they're

indulging

in all

kinds

of sin

so it

seems

quite apart

from the

other

seven

nations

Israel

is being

judged

and they're

being judged

especially on

account of

the amount

of revelation

that they

have received

from God

they should

know better

it seems

that the

pagan

nations

are being

called up

for gross

injustice

and offences

against human

morality

but here

it's very

specific

because they

know God's

law

and they're

trampling

over it

anyway

and then

in verses

9 and

10

God reminds

them that

he's been

so good

to them

I destroyed

the Amorites

before you

I gave

you this

land

I led

you through

the wilderness

and I

did it

in such

a way

that you

wouldn't

be polluted

by the

surrounding

nations

and now

you're acting

just like

them

and just

as I

judge

them

I

will

judge

you

they've

forgotten

that the

only reason

that they're

a nation

with a land

is because

their God

was so

kind

to them

then verses

11 and

12

God again

raised people

up to speak

to them

and to lead

them

but the

people rejected

them

he gave

them prophets

to speak

God's word

to them

and Nazarites

these

incredible

people we

have in the

Old Testament

these real

hairy men

who are like

the X-Men

of the Old

Testament

who do

incredible

things

and bring

about reforms

in the

nation

and the

prophets

are not

allowed

to speak

and the

Nazarites

if you're

a Nazarite

there's

three big

no-nos

you can't

have a

haircut

you can't

touch a

dead body

and you

can't drink

alcohol

and what

do they

do

verse 12

you made

the Nazarites

drink wine

it's going to

trample all

over God's

goodness

and God's

grace

they forced

them to

break vows

and forced

the prophets

not to speak

a total

disregard

for God

doing really

well but

they've come

incredibly

complacent

and their

hearts have

become cold

towards God

and injustice

reigns

and so

Jesus says

the two

greatest

commandments

are to

love the

Lord your

God

with all

your

heart

soul

mind

and

strength

and to

love

your

neighbour

as

yourself

and as

they've

stopped

loving

the

Lord

their

God

with all

their

heart

soul

mind

and

strength

and become

incredibly

tokenistic

is it

any

wonder

that they're

the ones

trampling

on their

brothers

and sisters

as a

result

he says

two things

you're very

guilty of

hypocritical

worship

you say

you're

worshipping

me

but you're

not

it's outward

appearance

but the

inward

reality

is miles

away

and as a

result

there's

social

injustice

God

set up

his

law

there

would

be

equity

there

would

be

community

there

would

be

people

looking

after

each

other

but

that's

not

here

in

Israel

in

760

BC

there's

just

social

injustice

everywhere

and God

says

I've

seen

it

all

and

I'm

going

to

judge

it

all

because

it

matters

to

me

it

really

matters

so

verses

13

to

16

are

brutal

now

then

I

will

crush

you

as

a

cart

crushes

when

loaded

with

grain

the

juggernaut

of the

ancient

world

running

over

them

and

there's

no

escape

for

anyone

doesn't

matter

if

you're

the

quickest

the

strongest

the

bravest

doesn't

matter

if

you're

great

at

fighting

or

the

quickest

on

the

draw

with

the

arrows

you

will

not

escape

this

so

total

is

God's

judgment

this

book is

a bit

like

Cote

Bridge

there

are

some

dark

streets

and this

is

the first

of

them

and so

what are

we to do

with this

well I

think

there's

some

real

challenges

isn't

there

a real

challenge

that are

we

engaging

in

hypocritical

worship

or are

we

really

loving

God

as

we

should

are

we

listening

to

God's

word

and

obeying

it

or are

we

just

keeping

up

appearances

is

Jesus

the

Lord

and

saviour

of our

lives

or is

that

just

a

tokenistic

gesture

because

we've

come

this

far

in

our

Christian

faith

and

we

can't

turn

back

now

are

our

insides

the

same

as

our

outsides

or is

this

just

a

hypocritical

facade

mask

that we

put on

on a

Sunday

because

God

sees

not

just

that

we're

here

but

how

we're

hearing

not

just

that

we're

singing

but

where

our

voices

are

coming

from

not

just

where

we

are

physically

but

where

we

are

spiritually

before

him

and

this

is

a

real

warning

that

we

can't

pull

the

world

over

his

eyes

and

secondly

that

he's

really

passionate

about

social

justice

he is

that

he

really

cares

and

I

wonder

how

that

affects

our

lives

the

trainers

we

wear

the

food

that

we

eat

our

attitude

to the

people

that

we

pass

on

the

street

whether

this

gospel

as we

looked at

this

morning

is

really

working

its

way

into

every

area

of

our

lives

because

God

says

I

really

care

and

he

has

a

special

heart

for

those

that

are

poor

and

marginalized

and

he

trusts

us

as

his

people

to

specially

go out

of the

way

for

them

and

so

he

says

I've

looked

and

you're

going

to

be

crushed

and

there

be

no

escape

and

resistance

is

futile

and

so

800

years

around

after

Amos

said

this

another

prophet

born

in

the

region

of

Bethlehem

turned

up

to

see

a

lot

of

God's

people

gathering

together

this

time

right

in

the

middle

of

Jerusalem

in

a

temple

and

he

was

appalled

by

what

he

saw

there

were

money

changers

ripping

off

poor

people

they

were

even

selling

doves

now

the

reason

you

could

bring