I.        INTRODUCTION – AMOS AND ISRAEL

A.      Amos prophesied during a time in which Israel had prospered greatly but had also become corrupted.

                                                             1.      Amos’ ministry occurred during "the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel” (Amos 1:1).  This was around the year 755 B.C.

                                                             2.      Prosperity was prevalent in both Israel and Judah.

a.       In Judah, Uzziah (Azariah) had subdued the Philistines, Ammonites, and the Edomites.

b.       In Israel, Jeroboam II ruled over a strong kingdom at time when Israel’s enemies (Assyria, Babylon, Aram, Egypt) were relatively weak.  Israel’s economic and military strength abounded.

                                                             3.      Rather than being thankful to God, God’s people had forgotten Him.

a.       Israel’s historical pattern was to be faithful to God when times were hard and to become arrogant and wicked when times were prosperous and comfortable.

b.       In Amos’ time, Israel had turned away from God into selfish indulgence.  Their hearts were filled with greed and wickedness, and their worship was vain and self-serving.

B.      Amos was called by God from his rural dwelling to prophesy to the affluent people of Israel.

                                                             1.      Amos lived in the rural area of Tekoa, which was about twelve miles south of Jerusalem.

                                                             2.      Regarding his vocation, Amos said, "I am not a prophet, nor am I the son of a prophet; for I am a herdsman and a grower of sycamore figs” (Amos 7:14).

                                                             3.      Nevertheless, God called Amos to leave his work of farming in Judah and to prophesy in the land of Israel (Amos 7:15).  Specifically, Amos was sent to Bethel, which was the place of residence for the king of Israel and a center of idolatrous worship (1Ki. 12:28-33).

                                                             4.      Amos and his message were not well received in Israel.

a.       He was personally rejected because he was an outsider from Judah, and his message was unpopular because it was utterly unsympathetic to the pampered lifestyles of the wealthy.  In a time of prosperity and optimism, Amos and his message of destruction and judgment for Israel was not welcome.

b.       Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, told King Jeroboam, "Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is unable to endure all his words” (Amos 7:10).  He demanded that Amos "no longer prophesy at Bethel, for it is a sanctuary of the king and a royal residence” (Amos 7:13).

II.      A MESSAGE FOR OUR TIME

A.      The conditions in Israel were similar to those in our own nation, and therefore Amos’ message has lessons for us today.

                                                             1.      In Israel, Amos confronted the problems of the love of luxury, the disregard and oppression of the poor, ritualistic worship, and religious apostasy.

                                                             2.      Because there are similarities between Israel and our own nation, Amos’s message contains lessons that our people need today.

B.      Just as materialism had become a plague on Israel, so also it troubles our nation.

                                                             1.      The luxury-loving people of Israel had winter houses, summer houses (Amos 3:15), "houses of well-hewn stone,” "pleasant vineyards” (Amos 5:11), and "beds of ivory” (Amos 6:4).  Their pretentious women called out to their husbands, "Bring now, that we may drink” (Amos 4:1).

                                                             2.      Amos described these people as "cows of Bashan who are on the mountain of Samaria, who oppress the poor, who crush the needy” (Amos 4:1).  While indulging themselves, they "impose heavy rent on the poor and exact a tribute of grain from them” (Amos 5:11).  Amos said "they sell the righteous for money and the needy for a pair of sandals” (Amos 2:6).

                                                             3.      Such materialism is a cancer that rots a nation from the inside.

a.       One of the five visions of Amos was a basket of rotten fruit (Amos 8), which represented Israel as a nation overripe for judgment.  The internal corruption of greed and materialism had ruined a blessed nation.

b.       It was not wrong for Israel to enjoy comforts and conveniences, but their selfish indulgence at the expense of others and their neglect of God were sinful.

c.        Like Israel, our own nation now rots with materialism after many years of affluence and indulgence.  Amos’ prophesies against Israel sound out a warning for us today.

C.      Just as the people of Israel had no tolerance for the hard truth, so also many people in our nation have learned to love smooth preaching and compromised messages.

                                                             1.      Israel was not accustomed to the blunt preaching of Amos, and they wanted him to leave.

a.       Amaziah said to Amos, "Go, you seer, flee away to the land of Judah and there eat bread and there do your prophesying!” (Amos 7:12)  Israel was accustomed to prophets who were for hire and could be told what to do and say.

b.       Amos was not a professional prophet (Amos 7:14-15), but rather he was sent from God with a message that he refused to compromise.

                                                             2.      For all of history and still today, there have always been efforts to dilute the truth of God’s word.

a.       The enemies of God have often attempted to intimidate God’s preachers, soften their messages, and promote false prophets (Isa. 30:10; Jer. 5:31; Hos. 4:6; 2Tim. 4:1-4).

b.       That ungodly tradition continues today in our nation as many so-called preachers, ministers, and pastors teach compromise and falsehood on nearly every issue.  They say what people want to hear in order to line their pockets with money.

D.      Just as Israel’s worship had become insincere and hypocritical, so also many people today worship in vain.

                                                             1.      The people of Israel worshiped, but they did so in hypocrisy and insincerity.

a.       The problem in Israel was not a lack of religious activity.  They were busy with religious rituals, solemn assemblies, and burnt offerings.

b.       The problem was that their religious activities were empty, external acts.  They were insensitive to the will of God, which was evident when they were guilty of oppression and extortion (Amos 2:6-8; 4:1), selfishness (Amos 6:4-6), and greed (Amos 8:4-5).

c.        Notice Amos 5:21-24 (compare to Isaiah 1:11-16) – "I hate, I reject your festivals, nor do I delight in your solemn assemblies.  Even though you offer up to Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them; and I will not even look at the peace offerings of your fatlings.  Take away from Me the noise of your songs; I will not even listen to the sound of your harps.  But let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”

                                                             2.      Likewise today, it is possible for us to make a good show of worship even while practicing ungodliness.

a.       We may get the outward form of worship correct while being inwardly corrupt.  Such worship has no value to us and is an insult to God.

b.       Today in our nation, we see a people who are "holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power” (2Tim. 3:5).  "They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him” (Tit. 1:16).  We desperately need to get back to "pure and undefiled religion” (Jas. 1:27).

E.       Just as Israel had become indifferent to their own sin, so also many in our nation have no concern for the wickedness that pervades the country.

                                                             1.      Israel’s prosperity gave them a false sense of security so that they felt no need to repent.

a.       Despite God’s efforts to reach out to Israel, they remained apathetic to their condition.

b.       Five times, God said, "Yet you have not returned to Me” (Amos 4:6-11).  In Amos 6:6, God said, "Yet they have not grieved over the ruin of Joseph.”  They simply did not care.

                                                             2.      Likewise, many in our nation have been made insensitive to sin by years of sinful indulgence and unbridled affluence.

a.       Our nation was founded by God-fearing people who incorporated God and the teachings of the Bible into every portion of their lives.  They were constantly aware of God’s providence and their obligation of service and gratitude to Him.

b.       Today, this sense of obligation to God has mostly been lost in our nation.  Instead, there is a false notion that because we are blessed, therefore we must be right.  The abundance of supplies for our physical needs have made us indifferent to the sin among us, and the result is apathy to our nation’s dreadful spiritual state.

III.   CONCLUSION

A.      Amos was unmoved from his mission in a city where he was unwelcome and unwanted.  We must admire this faithful, courageous farmer-prophet who never flinched from his duty.

B.      The lessons of Amos were for Israel, but they are for us as well (1Cor. 10:11).  Let us and our nation heed these lessons lest we fall as did Israel.