RUNNING ON EMPTY
TEXT: Amos 4:4; 5:4-6
Amos 4:4 -- "Come to Bethel, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years:"
Amos 5:4-6 -- "For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live:" "But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought." "Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel."
l. INTRODUCTION -- RESPONSIBILITY
Daedalus was the most skillful builder and inventor of his day in ancient Greece. He built the most magnificent palaces and gardens and created wonderful works of art throughout the land. His statues were so beautifully crafted they were taken for living beings, and it was believed that they could see and walk about. People said someone as cunning as Daedalus must have learned the secrets of his craft from the gods themselves.
Across the sea, on the island of Crete, lived a king named Minos. King Minos had a terrible monster that was half bull and half man called Minotaur, and he needed someplace to keep it. When he heard of Daedalus’s cleverness, he invited him to come to his country and build a prison to hold the beast. So Daedalus and his young son, Icarus, sailed to Crete, and there Daedalus built the famous Labyrinth, a maze of winding passages so tangled and twisted that whoever went in could never find the way out. And there they put Minotaur.
When the Labyrinth was finished, Daedalus wanted to sail back to Greece with his son, but Minos had made up his mind to keep them in Crete. He wanted Daedalus to stay and invent more wonderful devices for him, so he locked them both in a high tower beside the sea. The king knew Daedalus was clever enough for escape from the tower, so he also ordered that every ship be searched for stowaways before sailing from Crete.
Other men may have given up, but not Daedalus. From his high tower he watched the seagulls drifting on the ocean breezes. "Minos may control the land and sea," he said, "but he does not rule the air. We will go that way."
So he summoned all the secrets of his craft, and he set to work. Little by little, he gathered a great pile of feathers of all sizes. He fastened them together with thread and molded them with wax, and at last he had two great wings like those of the seagulls. He tied them to his shoulders, and after one or two clumsy efforts, he found that by waving his arms he could rise with the wind, until he taught himself how to glide and soar on the currents as gracefully as any gull.
Next he built a second pair of wings for Icarus. He taught the boy how how to move the feathers and rise a few feet into the air, and then let him fly back and forth across the room. Then he taught him how to ride the air currents, climbing in circles, and hang in the winds. They practiced together until Icarus was ready.
Finally the day came when the winds were just right. Father and son strapped the wings on and prepared to fly home.
"Remember all I’ve told you," Daedalus instructed his son, "Above all, remember you must not fly too high or too low. If you fly too low, the ocean sprays will clog your wings and make them too heavy. If you fly too high, the heat of the sun will melt the wax, and your wings will fall apart. Stay close with me, and you’ll be fine."
Up they rose, the boy after his father, and the hateful ground of Crete sank far beneath them. As they flew the plowman stopped his work to gaze, and the shepherd leaned on his staff to watch them, and people came running out of their houses to catch a glimpse of the two figures high above the treetops. Surely they were gods--Apollo, perhaps, with Cupid after him.
At first the flight seemed terrible to both Daedalus and Icarus. The wide, endless sky dazed them, and even the quickest glance down made their brains reel. But gradually they grew used to riding among the clouds, and they lost their fear. Icarus felt the wind fill his wings and lift him higher and higher, and began to sense a freedom that he had never known before. He looked down with great excitement at all the islands they passed, and their people, and at the broad blue sea spread out beneath him, dotted with the white sails of ships. He soared higher and higher, forgetting his father’s warning. He forgot everything in the world but joy.
"Come back!" Daedalus called frantically. "You’re flying too high! Remember the sun! Come down! Come down!"
But Icarus thought of nothing but his own excitement and glory. He longed to fly as close as he could to the heavens. Nearer and nearer he came to the sun, and slowly his wings began to soften. One by one the feathers began to fall and scatter in the air, and suddenly the wax melted all at once. Icarus felt himself falling. He fluttered his arms as fast as he could, but no feathers remained to hold the air. He cried out for his father, but it was too late--with a scream he fell from his lofty height and plunged into the sea, disappearing beneath the waves.
Daedalus circled over the water again and again, but he saw nothing but feathers floating on the waves, and he knew his son gone. At last the body came to the surface, and he managed to pluck it from the sea. With a heavy burden and broken heart Daedalus slowly flew away. When he reached land, he buried his son. Having done this, he hung up his wings and never flew again.
-Icarus misunderstood the purpose of his wings. He lost his focus and the wings which were to be the source of his escape became his source of demise. Icarus forgot that the purpose of the wings were for his escape from Crete. His end was to be safe passage into Greece not to worship the wings that saved him.
-So it was with Israel during the days of Amos, they lost there understanding of the purpose of Bethel and Gilgal and it was detrimental to them. I feel that I am not far off the mark in stating that there are some here who have lost there ability to understand the purpose of their relationship with God.
ll. THE PROPHET, AMOS
A. Amos, The Man
-However, God had a man that could pull the nation of Israel back to a more focused state in the prophet, Amos.
-Amos was the child of the quiet countryside of Tekoa. Tekoa was some six miles south of Bethlehem, which was in the southern portion of the kingdom of Judah.
-Amos was summoned from the spade to preach to the educated ranks of men who lived in the streets of the northern kingdom.
-Amos was not a rich man by any stretch of the imagination, in fact he was just a small herdsman, a roving cowboy in the days of his calling. He did not own the large flocks of sheep but rather was merely a shepherd who cared for the sheep.
-Much like John the Baptist, he lived on the land. He ate sycamore fruit which was one of the coarsest and least desirable of the foods during that particular time but it was all that he could afford as he was just a poor shepherd.
-Poor in this life but not limited in spiritual matters. Prophetic vision and faculties are not the prerogatives of the rich.
1 Corinthians 1:27-29 -- "But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;" "And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:" "That no flesh should glory in his presence."
-We must understand that when God calls a man that he is well able to equip that man if that man is willing to make the consecration. God can exalt those of low degree to the chief seats in his kingdom.
James 1:9 -- "Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted:"
-Thus the picture is painted that shows the prophet of Tekoa. God’s man for the hour. What kind of excuses do we offer God in our lot in life? How will those excuses stand the fire of judgment at the Bema?
B. The Word Pictures
-When a man such as Amos is used by God to preach, then he uses the things around him to paint pictures so that people will adapt to their responsibilities to serve God. His metaphors came from nature. He spoke of the locusts in the meadow (7:1-3). He drew the portrait of the basket of fruit (8:1-3). He described the battle of shepherds fighting with lions for their prey (3:11-12). He spoke of the sifting of the corn (9:9). He knew of the foaming torrents of winter that would descend into the Dead Sea. He drew the picture of the midnight sky with it’s seven stars and the ruling Orion (5:8). These served as the vivid illustrations to a wayward nation.
-Amos was a man who could tell Israel that Jehovah would crush Israel as a wagon full of sheaves crushes what is under it (2:13). Amos told Israel that the remnant left after the judgment of God would be likened to the two feet or piece of an ear saved from the lion’s mouth.
-When a man such as Amos spoke it was with a deep seated conviction. Amos and his message did not stay out in the country among the sheep but he traveled northward to the king’s court. His message was heard loudly in the royal sanctuary at Bethel to the brilliant crowd there.
-How could Amos preach with such passion and power? The answer is found in the third chapter of this minor prophet.
Amos 3:7-8 -- "Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." "The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord GOD hath spoken, who can but prophesy?"
-His entire theme of preaching was the sinfulness and doom of the kingdom of Israel. Yes, there are some mention of the surrounding countries to be judged by God also but the crux of the judgment sat squarely on the shoulders of the nation of Israel.
-Our text sheds light as to the reason why that Israel had allowed themselves to get in the sad state that they found themselves in. Bethel had taken priority in their lives. Gilgal suddenly had become the place of preeminence. There is but One who should have preeminence.
Colossians 1:14-18 -- "In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:" "Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:" "For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:" "And he is before all things, and by him all things consist." "And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence."
-When our lives lose the focus of Jesus Christ then idolatry sets in. Sin is prone to arrest us. Bondage to habits began to recur. Without Him, I Can Do Nothing. NO - THING can be done without the reign of Christ in my life.
lll. LOOKING FOR GOD IN THE WRONG PLACES
A. Bethel
-The name Bethel means "house of God." Israel had many a great victory at Bethel.
Jacob built the stone altar there.
Jacob saw the golden ladder from heaven there.
Jacob came back to Bethel in later years for a renewal with God.
-Bethel was the place where people met their God. But as the times changed, Bethel got mixed up in the rituals of the day and house of God became the house of idols. Jeroboam set up the golden calves to be worshipped here.
-This church, even though a great church, cannot save you. There cannot merely be that belief that just because we participate in church that we will be saved. Church for some has becomes a ritual. It is just a place that we go. A cool place in the summer and a warm place in the winter.
-I watch some of you and no matter what we do, you remain untouched. You do not feel the joy of the worship. You do not feel the pricking of conviction. Everything is alright on my street and it’s not alright on your street. Bethel has become a place that God is not found.
-Church has to be the place where we really meet God. The singing is great, the worship is great, the prayer and faith is great, the preaching is great, but somewhere in all of it we have got to find God. To come to church and never meet God, or to never change, or to never deal with the bitterness, the envy, the anger, the hate, the inability to forgive, is a sad thing.
-I recently read a book that was telling the story of Indian tribes of America. One of the curses that was placed upon another tribe was this, "May you never change!!!" I don’t want Bethel to stir me, I want Bethel to be a place where I change. Bethel needs to be my place of spiritual maturity and growth.
-Bethel loses it’s power every time that we began to entertain Balaks.
1. Entertaining Balaks
-Balak was the king of Moab who wanted to defeat the children of Israel but was afraid of them (Numbers 23-25).
-Balak monopolized the time of Balaam and soon Balaam became an ill tool in the hands of an improper alliance. Instead of being a great voice for God, Balaam became the weak link in the chain. He collapsed all because he did not follow close after the leading of God.
-When Bethel is reduced to window washes, car washes, auctions, and walk-a-thons spiritual degradation is going to occur. When Bethel is reduced to running wide open in one hundred different directions, spiritual paralysis is not far away. When Bethel is reduced to praise and worship but no prayer and no sacrifice and no contentment our lives are headed for downfall.
-There are some here who are so busy that the red lights are firing and you run without giving them any attention. When the motor is knocking you never race the motor. But instead we go on and on. Just a few more doors to knock on, just a few more minutes to encourage this one or that one, just one more after church supper, just one more door hanger for Pentecost Sunday, just one more contact to make hoping they will come to church, and you are bordering on burnout.
-I know what some of you are thinking, "We have got a world to reach. We have the great commission of "Go Ye" to fulfill."
-Did it ever occur to you that the last words of Jesus were not "Go Ye." But rather it was:
Acts 1:4 -- "And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me."
Acts 1:8 -- "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."
-I am not sure about you but I do not have enough talent to save this city. I do not have the spiritual power to fill everyone with the Holy Ghost. That is why Bethel cannot have the precedence in my life. God has to be the thing that I seek after.
B. Gilgal
-Gilgal also became a detrimental place to the nation of Israel. Gilgal had just as rich a heritage as did Bethel. Gilgal was the place where a memorial of stones were erected to commerate the passage into the Promised Land.
-There are memorials that are to be built in the life of every saint but you cannot serve a God who lives in the past. There has to be that fresh passion of meeting Him.
-Amos spoke sharply to Israel about how that the place called Gilgal, the circle of stones, had degenerated into a place of ritual and no spiritual power.
1. The Danger of Distance
-Peter’s life fits quite well into what is being said here. He followed the Lord at a distance. When distance gets between you and God betrayal is near. Failure is evident. Shame is going to be embraced.
Luke 22:54-57 -- "Then took they him, and led him, and brought him into the high priest’s house. And Peter followed afar off." "And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them." "But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said, This man was also with him." "And he denied him, saying, Woman, I know him not."
-A sad state of affairs to follow afar off. The danger of the distance.
-The conditions of modern day living will devour our resources. If you are homeless, we direct you to a shelter. If you are penniless, we offer you food stamps. If you are breathless, we connect the oxygen. But if you are busy, we give you another thing to do. It is the busyness that robs us of our spiritual vitality.
-The whole purpose of Bethel and Gilgal and Beersheba is to bring us close to God. Bethel and Gilgal is merely the means of escape and not where the devotions of men are to exist.
lV. CONCLUSION -- THOU ART COME FAR. . . .
Mark 12:28-34 -- "And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?" "And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:" "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment." "And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these." "And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:" "And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." "And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question."
-Thou Art Not Far From The Kingdom Of God.
-It is a time of renewing. Lord Prepare Me To Be a Sanctuary!
Philip Harrelson
barnabas14@yahoo.com
