AMOS 8:11 Famine in the Land 3/10/08
I’m sure that most of us would have to agree that for the most part we here in the U.S. certainly have been blest as for as our material needs are concerned, but I believe that without a doubt our country is swiftly headed in the direction of a spiritual famine because of the slackness of preaching and teaching of the true Word of God.
There are many churches across our land that have come up short of teaching and preaching the entire council of the Word of God, there’s all kind of perversions of the Bible being used across our land today and God is not pleased.
A large number of the so-called Christians only have a form of godliness but know little of true godliness.
Listen as I read today’s text found in Amos 8:11-12 11Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:
Paul said to timothy in 2nd tim. 4:1-4 1I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; 2Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. 3For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts* shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables
listen dear heart the preachers personal feelings are not the grounds for reproof: bible doctrine alone is the ground for reproof.
The time will come and most believe it is here today. Itching ears will be “tickled” by preachers who do not preach the Bible. Many pastors bow to the wishes of ungodly congregations who only want to hear what pleases them.
Someone has said, some people go to church to close their eyes and others to eye the clothes! In other words, many don’t go to church to hear sound doctrine!
They don’t want to hear the Word of God; they want a substitute.
They don’t want to hear that their sinners, they don’t want to hear that lost sinners are going to hell, they want to hear about how good all man kind is, they want to hear soft things to do with love, love, love, not how wretched man kind is and must be saved.
Like in the days when God said to the Profit Isaiah in
Isaiah 30:9-14 9That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD: 10Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:
11Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.
12Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel, Because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon: 13Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, -
Many will go to see & hear religious entertainment from Christian performers who will tickle their ears.
The man of God who simply opens the Bible is rejected while the shallow religious entertainer becomes a celebrity.
And itching ears soon will become deaf ears as people turn away from the truth and believe man-made fables.
1st pet. 4: 11If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, --
listen as I read our text once again found in Amos 8:11-12 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: 12And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.
There are many scriptures in the Bible that speak of famines and droughts, but this particular scripture is speaking of a famine of the Word of God. This particular scripture is speaking of an absence of God’s Word; An absence, a shortage…a time of hunger and thirsting for the Word of God…running from sea to sea, from north to east, and to and fro, seeking and searching for the Word and not finding it.
In this chapter of Amos, God is pronouncing judgment on Israel. God showed Amos a basket of ripe fruit and He told Amos it was representative of the people of Israel, because they were ripe, or ready for punishment. God was tired OF THE WAY His people were doing; the merchants were keeping religious festivals, but not in the spirit of worship.
They couldn’t wait for the holy days and Sabbaths to be over so they could go back to making money. All they were really interested in was doing better for themselves, even if it meant cheating others; even if it meant being immoral and deceitful; and taking advantage of others.
Their heart was not in the worship services; their heart was on themselves. They put on a religious front for others, but God knew their hearts, and He was not pleased and because the people didn’t have an appetite for His Word, God said He would take it away.
It would appear today that people are starving for the greatness of God.
The believer today that know how wonderful our Great God is realize that their greatest need as well as every body else’s greatest need is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ: no one can truly be happy without Him.
There’s a Hugh number of people that have been sitting in these dried up assembles so long that, they think that’s the way all church services are, they have been on milk for so many years their almost anemic to the true Word of God.
They have sat under some so-called preacher using a perversion of the bible so long that they really don’t know the difference, woe to these kind of preachers when they stand before God. Jesus called people like that in His day hypocrites.
Jesus said in Matt.23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. -- 15Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.
Jesus said in matt.4:4--Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
There are people that don’t know they’re starving for His greatness. They don’t know they’re starving for His holiness. They don’t know they’re starving for His righteousness, for His presence, for His purpose and for His power. They’re literally starving to death spiritually for lack of the Word of God and don’t know it.
People are starving for God but they don’t know it, He is the Bread of Life for the starving soul. He is the Living Water; He and He alone can quench the thirsty soul.
We see on our TV’s and in the newspapers every day where people in parts of the world are ready to kill other people in the name of their religion, but the Author of true Salvation is the Lord & Savoir Jesus Christ, He is the God of peace and love and He alone can save. Religion is sending thousands of people to hell every day.
Jesus said in Jn. 5: 40And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
There’s a famine in the land today from which the starving multitudes are dying.
We need to hear some old timey preaching about the cross of Jesus Christ and what took place on it.
1ST COR.1: 17 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
Have you ever thought about dear heart, if preachers and teachers are using different bibles, how can we tell the same truth word for word?
1ST COR 1: 10Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
There have never been but one true word of God.
Jude 1:3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
Let me urge you to find you a good bible believing church that uses only the Old KJV bible and settle on it and don’t change no matter what, you don’t have to get mad at the preacher who might be using some other version, just sit there until the service is over but don’t go back.
Just keep in mind that Jesus is the Living Word, and this KJV is the written Word for the English speaking people, we’d certainly not except another man as the Living Word, so why would we want to think there is another written Word.
I don’t know about you but I had rather go to a small assemble of people that is in the Word of God than go where there is a great multitude of people that’s playing church.
Now I certainly have nothing against large churches that are worshiping God in spirit and in truth and I say more power to them and thank God for them.
I’d like to see all churches fill to capacity and worshipping and praising God.
But there’s a famine across our land of the preaching and teaching of the Word of God.
All the such as this is of the devil my friend, he wants to destroy the Word of God and he’s doing it some what through these perversions. But thank God for people that will point out this fact and put the spot light on the devils devices and lies.
The devil knows that he’ll never destroy Gods Word, but if he can get multitudes of people sitting under these perversions he knows a lot of them will wind up in hell with him.
Let us not think that just because some man get in the pulpit that he surely is Gods man, because many times that’s not the case.
2ND COR. 11: 13- 14 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 14And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. 15Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
If we’ll just think about it for a minute no one can be saved by hearing these sermonets with out the word of God. People cannot have saving faith apart from hearing the Word.
Rom. 10: 17 says 17So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Rom. 10: 13-14 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 14How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? 15And how shall they preach, except they be sent?
There are many I’m sorry to say that are mama called instead of God called. Many are in the ministry for the filthy lucre, money, if the money wasn’t there in many cases he wouldn’t be there either. And let me add right here that there’s a big difference in preachers and pastors. A pastor will visit and see his flock if at all possible.
Just remember dear heart that God is not all that interested in filling empty churches; instead He is interested in filling empty hearts and empty lives, and He is looking for sincere people that are hungry for the things of God.
And we cannot have either without hearing the true Word of God.
We see the famine all around us, and God expects His watchmen to be telling about Him and not them while we still have the time and opportunity.
JN.3: 17 –18 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
We believe that Jesus is soon to come.
