Turn To God When You Hurt For Others Series

Turn To God When You Hurt For Others

Amos 5 & 6

Introduction

In all of the things we struggle with in life, God is constantly calling us to turn to Him for help, strength, love, and grace. We often seek to fix our problems in our own skill and ability. We say we believe in a sovereign God who has our best interests at heart, who desires for us to live with Him forever, who has demonstrated over and over his faithfulness to us - yet we still try to overcome without His help. The Scriptures encourage us to turn to God in the most difficult moments of our lives and trust Him. The four sermons in this series will be in the prophets. Our theme verse is

Isaiah 45:22 ESV “Turn to me and be saved,? all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.”

Today we are in the book of Amos.

Amos was a country preacher. His own autobiography in 7:14-16:“I was no prophet, nor a prophet's son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs. But the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ Now therefore hear the word of the Lord….”

Amos’ message from about 760BC rings true for us today. Israel had reached a time of economic comfort. They continued to worship God in all of the ritual and observation of the Israelite religion: sacrifices, music, tithes, and feasts. Unfortunately they also worshiped other gods as well, which led to gross immorality, arrogance, and self-serving. Amos warns of a ‘Day of the Lord’ to come, but is mostly ignored. Captivity at the hands of the Assyrians was less than 40 years away by the time Amos preached. From a position of comfort and prosperity, Israel released the heart God wanted them to have for the hurting/struggling. That’s a great danger for us today… let’s notice some of the warning signs that alert us to a loss of compassion for the hurting.

1. Five Signs of Lost Compassion for the Hurting (Amos 6:1-6)

Complacent (6:1 Woe to those who are at ease in Zion, and to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria…). A feeling of self satisfaction with no concern for others. Zephaniah 1:12 “At that time I will … punish those who are complacent … who think, ‘The Lord will do nothing, either good or bad.’”

Comfortable (6:4 Woe to those who lie on beds of ivory and stretch themselves out on their couches and eat lambs from the flock and calves from the midst of the stall.) They were comfortable physically, plenty of food to eat.

Careless (6:5 who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp and like David invent for themselves instruments of music) 1 These 5:14 “…Warn those who are idle and disruptive…”

Concerned for self (6:6 who drink wine in bowls and anoint themselves with the finest oils…)

Philippians 2:3 “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility, value others above yourselves.”

Cold Hearted (6:6b …are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!)

God’s Reaction (Amos 5:21-23) No matter how well they offered their religious services, the fact that they were complacent and cold hearted toward the hurting around them made their worship an offense to God. They are guilty of taking advantage of the poor, receiving bribes, and becoming rich on the backs of others (5:11-12). They not only have abandoned righteousness, but they hate anyone who rebukes them. Five times in chapter 4 the Lord expresses his desire that Israel turn back to Him, but ultimately they do not. We have to guard against the prosperity and comforts of this life moving us to a place of complacency and carelessness. When we walk with Jesus, however, we are moved by the hurts of others.

2. Steps Toward Healing When Others Are Hurt

Live by the Greatest Commands

Matthew 22:37-40 ...“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” Israel thought their focus on worship was enough. God pointed them to the neighbors around suffering. Both!

Seek the Kingdom First

Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Seeking the Kingdom is not seeking religion, but seeking religion that concerns itself with loving God & neighbors!

James 1:27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.