AMOS continues with the threatening of Judgement we saw in the last chapter, and exposes more fully the reason for this promise of judgement. It is an horrendous fact that people can hear the exposing of their sins, and have God's attitude of judgement upon sin clearly told, but still ignore the word of God, and continue in their sinful ways. It is an amazing act of grace on God's part that he is so patient in the face of this provocation. In the case of Israel, God keeps on speaking, warning of judgement, and exposing sin, yet the people just did not listen. Much time past before God executed judgement, so Israel had plenty of time to heed God's word, repent and be saved, but history tells us they refused to change, and were totally destroyed. Today the situation is almost worse than in the time of Amos. The church today does not simply ignore God's judgement, but denies that God judges sin in any way at all.

UNDERSTANDING THE VERSES.

It will be helpful for us first of all to understand the picture which Amos is revealing here in the state of Israel. In the last sermon we heard Amos speaking to the rulers and the rich. Here in these verses which begin chapter 4 we hear Amos looking more deeply in the culture, and showing that the women, the wives, of the rich and ruling, were almost worse than their husbands. They demanded from their husbands ever increasing luxuries. This is expressed in verse 1 in the cry 'Bring us some drinks!'. They had no concern for social justice. They were ready to have the poor crushed and plundered in order to satisfy their thirst for more of the pleasures of life. God's threat of judgement is focused on them. Not only would Israel be invaded and defeated, but the comfortable life these women enjoyed would be snatched from them, and they would be ignominiously led away as captives. They would lose everything.

Then in verses 4 and 5 Amos speaks with irony of the worship of Israel on which these rich and rulers depended for their continuing in God's favour and in the prosperity they enjoyed. Israel went to worship at Bethel and Gilgal, the shrines they had set up. Amos tells them their worship was sinful. (v4). He tells them their sacrifices were an abomination to the Lord, and their tithes unacceptable, together with their thank-offerings and freewill offerings. Israel boasted in all this worship, but such was the corruption in this worship, and the inclusion of acts contrary to the law of Moses, that it was all an offence before God. Israel boasted of their worship, feeling that in it all they deserved God's acceptance, favour and blessing. With irony Amos speaks of this worship, and by this method expresses how God hates it all. Again, outward acts were thought to be all that God required, and Israel failed to understand that God seeks pure hearts, and inner sincerity in worship.

SIN EXPOSED.

God exposes the sin in Israel in two directions. The first direction is the sin of injustice and oppression of the poor and needy. The second direction speaks of the more serious sin of hypocritical worship, and worship which denied the truth of God.

Sin always rises from within the heart. It is out of the heart of human beings that all corruption and evil proceeds. This is seen outwardly in life which seeks selfishly only for self, and cares little for others. The body craves the pleasures and luxuries of life, and is ready to ignore the needs of others. In Israel this had gone so far that the rich and powerful were ready to satisfy their own cravings at the expense of others. There was no public spirit, and no living for the good of all. This condition of heart is always prevalent in society. We see it today when people can agree for the need to cut back on expenditure in government, and the need to reduce our national debt, but when it comes to self, here there must be an exemption. Cuts must be made but we are an exception, so no cuts for us. Sin in the heart is expressed also in the fact that great effort has gone into gaining social justice for all, but no area in society is willing to sacrifice their own comfort and standard of living for the good of the whole. The fact is that the society of the church is not exempt from these corruptions, and those who call themselves Christian are as good as any in defending their own standard of living.

The second direction is even more serious, and it speaks to the visible church directly. In Israel the rich and powerful were diligent in worship given to God. They engaged in all the various outward expressions of religious life. But the fact was that in the first place they tailored their religious activity to suit their own wishes and opinions, and were not faithful to, or subject to, the word and way of God expressed in the Scriptures handed down to them through Moses. The other fact of the worship in Israel was that it was all outward. As long as the outward acts of their religion were carried out it was felt that all was well, and God's favour was secure. From this came the belief that they could work works which were acceptable to God. They depended on their religious acts. In all this there was no understanding that God required holiness of heart, and that no amount of religious activity could make an unrepentant heart acceptable to God, and that we all remain dependent on the mercy of God because sin is present in everything we do, even in our most righteous acts.

This scenario is still present within the church. It is the Word of God, that is the whole of the canonical Scriptures, understood in their plain meaning, which must govern the belief and worship of the church. But today there is no real submission in the visible church universal to the Bible. The church today feels perfectly justified in accepting or rejecting only what human reason deems to be right, and there is no submission to the whole Word of God. Together with this the church is not ready to submit all its religious practices and ways to the scrutiny of God's Word, and is ready to introduce what is the opinions of men. Continuing from this is the dependence on a false view of God and his love, contrary to the Bible, and the casting out of all in the Bible which is critical of this belief. If this was not enough the church today is filled with the notion that we can establish our own righteousness, and is unwilling to submit to the only righteousness that saves the soul, which is the righteousnes of God revealed in the Gospel.

REVELATION OF GOD.

The next emphasis which Amos is called by God to affirm and declare is the truth about himself. This is truth so very much needed in the church today.

This revelation of God is found at the beginning of verse 2. Amos declares “The Sovereign Lord has sworn in his holiness:” This revelation emphsises two aspects of the person and character of God. Firstly the he is Sovereign and Lord; secondly that he speaks by his holiness. Let us consider each of these aspects of God.

In the first place God is a Sovereign. He is the Lord who is king with unlimited and omnipotent power and authority. He is the one to be obeyed, and who demands complete obedience. He is the one as Lord who is able to enforce his will if human beings persist in disobedience. This Sovereign Lordship of God means that if he threatens judgement, that judgement can and will be carried out if his threatening is not heeded, and if there is no returning to him in righteousness. This is made clear in verse 2 - The Sovereign Lord has sworn in his holiness “The time will surely come....” The time is the time of the execution of his just and righteous judgement.

In the second place God speaks in his holiness. This means that God's words, and specially his threatening of judgement, comes from his character of holiness. It is the holiness of God which brings forth judgement upon sin, and all unrighteousness. Here is the truth which is constantly affirmed in the Bible. God is holy, and without holiness no one will see the Lord. God in his holiness can't abide sin. God in his holiness must execute his wrath and justice upon sinners who will not turn from their sin.

The emphsis and revelation here is compelling for today. God's holiness and his just reaction to sin and sinners is almost totally denied, and like Israel here in the days of Amos, this knowledge of God as Sovereign Lord and holy is denied or ignored. The threat of Judgement through Amos on Israel, speaks to the church today, and will be carried out, unless we repent.

CERTAINTY OF JUDGEMENT.

Amos was directed by God to spell out to Israel that their way of life, both in society and religion, was sinful; and that God's wrath was poured out against all sin. Amos was given a word of judgement, that God's judgement was poised to descend on Israel. This threat was not carried out immediately, but when Israel did not repent or change, the execution of judgement was carried out, and the ten tribes of Israel were annihilated, and are seen no more.

That God judges sin, but today the reality of eternal punishment is totally ignored, and in some cases denied. If it is not denied, then the emphasis is always on the idea that a loving God would never judge eternally, and consign people to everlasting damnation. The fact is that God's judgement did eventually fall on an unrepentant Israel, affirming that God, in his holiness, will judge and blot out all that sins and falls short of his glory. When the New Testament speaks of hell and the wrath of God, which it does, both from the mouth of Jesus and the mouths of the Apostles, it will do no good to ignore this truth, or deny its reality, or water down its plain meaning.

The fact is that if the ideas of modern Christianity were true, and the denying of the wrath and judgement against sin and sinners were true, then there would have been no reason for Christ to be incarnate, and then to die, giving his life as a ransom for sinners. The fact that God gave his Son up to death, laying on him our iniquity, and punishing him in our place, affirms that God is holy, and sin must receive the just sentence in accord with God's holiness. This is the wonder of God's great mercy and love, that he gave Jesus, in his infinite love, to save us from his wrath. Let us embrace the fact as sinners we deserve God's wrath, and cast ourselves on Jesus as our Saviour and sin bearer, that we may be saved from his wrath.